From the Desk of the Attorney General

From the Desk of the Attorney General: A Memoir by David M. Louie
Softcover, 184 pp
Release Date: October 2021
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David M. Louie had been a civil trial lawyer in private practice for thirty-two years when he was named Hawai‘i’s attorney general by Governor Neil Abercrombie in 2010. What followed was an eye-opening education in the nature of government—how it works and how the sausage of government policy is made. His historic koa wood desk in Hawai‘i’s state capitol gave Louie a frontrow seat for viewing—and shaping—the inner workings of government. In this incisive, behind-the-scenes memoir, the country’s first Chinese American state attorney general recalls the landmark cases of his time in office—environmental issues, Native Hawaiian rights, Internet safety, same sex marriage, human trafficking and even the unlikely concert hoax known as the “Wonder Blunder.”

From the Desk of the Attorney General is Louie’s chronicle of his experiences as a public servant—the challenges faced, the insights gained, the lessons learned. His behind-the-scenes account of the way things really get done—how issues are addressed and decisions made, how goals are achieved and power wielded—provides an inside look at the role of the top lawyer in state government, the decision maker who operates at the intersection of law, politics and government.

This book is a customized version of the Professional Package, with increased print run, in hardcover with dustjacket.

From the Desk of the Attorney General is available via our online store and at local bookstores

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Can, No Can!

Can, No Can! by Fred Hemmings
Can, No Can! Making Changes, Hawaiian-Style by Fred Hemmings
Softcover, 108 pp
Release Date: July 2020
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In Can, No Can! Making Changes, Hawaiian-Style, longtime Hawai‘i state senator and world champion surfer Fred Hemmings offers a calabash full of ideas for the future of the Islands, including a sprinkling of “random thoughts” and yes-or-no options from a local boy’s perspective. “A dear friend, Chubby Mitchell, was a graceful surfer and a man of aloha,” Hemmings explains. “Whenever I’d get frustrated by something, he would look at me and say, ‘Freddie, if can, can. If no can, no can.’ All these years later, I surmise that this pragmatic outlook on life contributed significantly to the aloha of bygone days.”

The book is compilation of Hemmings’s essays, letters, legislation, statements to the press and news clips spanning the years, including hot-button items still as relevant today as they were then. Says Hemmings, “I always have believed that there are good solutions to Hawai‘i’s problems and that there’s usually a better way to do things. Unfortunately, we in the Islands get caught up in the dilemma expressed by, of all people, Albert Einstein, in the mid-20th century. To paraphrase Einstein, ‘Doing the same thing and expecting different results defines insanity.’ Maybe it is time to do some things differently in Hawai‘i.”

This book is a customized version of the Professional Package, with increased print run.

Can, No Can! Making Changes, Hawaiian-Style is available via our online store and at local bookstores

Cover spread and interior pages: