QUESTION & ANSWER

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE EAST WIND, RAIN?
Three years ago I heard an amazing story about a Japanese pilot who crash landed on a Hawaiian island after attacking Pearl Harbor. The villagers took him in, but they had no idea what he’d just done. They were mostly Hawaiian, but there was one Japanese American couple who lived there as well. Immediately I loved the idea of all those worlds colliding in such physical and metaphorical ways. I wanted to hear more, but books hardly mentioned it and even military historians only had a vague idea of what had happened. Here was this incredible anecdote but no one knew could tell me the whole thing!

DID YOU EVER WANT TO WRITE A NONFICTION ACCOUNT?
There just wasn’t enough archival material. The books and articles I ferreted from the stacks of the Oahu Public Library rarely agreed with one another. This story seems to be a lost episode in history. That said, I stayed as close to the documented chain of events as I could. In many ways, you’re reading a true story.

WHAT WAS THE ISLAND LIKE?
It’s called Niihau, and at the time it was privately owned and ranched by an eccentric Christian family who lived on Kauai, called the Robinsons. They regarded their island as a kind of modern day garden of Eden. But it was very dry, very hard to farm, though very beautiful. The Robinsons kept Niihau extremely isolated from the outside world, and didn’t allow inhabitants to have electricity, phones, mail, that sort of stuff, which is why the villagers didn’t know that the country was at war. People called it the Forbidden Island because it was so closely guarded.

WHAT GRABS YOU ABOUT THIS STORY?
It reminded me of that great movie, The Gods Must Be Crazy. In that story a coke bottle is dropped from a plane and the tribe that finds it is forever changed. In this story the whole plane drops from the sky! Here’s an island that sought to stay pure and innocent through isolation and, bam, a plane crashes, bringing with it, as I say in the book, the modern world, and of course, war. These changes are profound, not only for the islanders but for America as a whole.

IT’S AN INCREDIBLE TALE BUT DOES IT HAVE HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE?
In February of 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which targeted those of “foreign enemy ancestry.” This was largely because of the events on Niihau. 120,000 people, 60 percent of whom were American citizens, mostly of Japanese descent, were sent to internment camps, losing all their possessions in the process. That has a profound effect on our history, and that effect continues today. We’re debating racial profiling again, but now it’s Arab-Americans who might be a threat. A bestselling book in favor of racial profiling had a chapter on Niihau, restating the arguments that were made after that fateful week.

IS THERE ANY PERSONAL CONNECTION TO THIS STORY?
To be honest, I was fascinated with Airman Nishikaichi’s crash. I’m a pilot too – I fly small planes, paragliders and ultralights – and I once had to make an emergency landing in a small field. It took skill and luck and, I’m sure, a higher power that was on my side. Like all brushes with death, it was life changing. He survived, like I did, but I went home, had dinner, went out with friends. He was in enemy territory and things were far from over. I even flew a warplane to better understand what he went through, though I decided not to go so far as to make a crash landing.

WHAT IS NIIHAU LIKE TODAY?
It’s still owned by the Robinson family. But there’s been an interesting turnabout in the way the island and the owners are now viewed. During the time I write about, there was a lot of negative gossip about the Robinson family, a lot of grumbling about the fanatical isolation that the family imposed. Many people suspected dirty dealings, that Niihua was a backwards fiefdom where the Hawaiians worshiped their white owner, and that Robinson was somehow taking advantage and getting cheap labor. Now people are lauding the purity of the Hawaiian customs, the way the language has been effectively preserved and finally the pristine condition of the island. The endangered monk seal makes its home there, for one. The seashells are marvelously bright, supposedly from the lack of water pollution.

YOU’VE MENTIONED THE AFFECT OF NIIHAU ON JAPANESE-AMERICANS. WHAT ABOUT ON HAWAIIANS?
People say Niihau’s isolation saved Hawaiian culture. Elsewhere the language was almost gone, so were the customs. But it stayed alive on Niihau. Today there’s a strong independence movement and it doesn’t surprise me that one of its leaders, Bumpy Kanahele, is directly descended from Ella and Ben Kanahele, who figure prominently in this story.

IS THIS YOUR FIRST BOOK?
Second! I wrote a memoir a few years ago, about my career as a San Francisco firefighter, called Fighting Fire. It became a Book of the Month Club pick, the Today Show nominated it a “Top Ten Summer Read,” and it even appeared on Rosie O’Donnell. It was fun. Almost as exciting as a third alarm. Not quite.

YOU HAVE AN IDENTICAL TWIN.
My twin is an actress, best known for her role on Baywatch. She’s done many movies and television shows, and people often stop me on the street and ask for my autograph. The truth is it’s fun to be famous. But I’m only comfortable with it for about a minute. Then it becomes very weird. When I explain that I’m not her, but her identical twin, people often don’t believe me. There’s a lot of people out there who think they’ve had a celebrity sighting and they haven’t.

YOUR YOUNGER BROTHER, JONATHAN PAUL, IS A WELL KNOWN ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVIST.
I am in awe of Jonathan's fierce commitment to end animal suffering. His exploits are legendary: he once posed as a fur buyer to document cruelty at mink farms, he repeatedly positioned his boat between gray whales and hunters in Neah Bay, and for years he secretly liberated animals from university laboratories. He is currently in prison serving a four-year sentence for burning a horse slaughterhouse in 1997. He has come out publicly against arson, but his dedication to animals does not waver. To find out more about such a noble man and great little brother, go to www.supportjonathan.org

WHERE DO YOU WRITE?
I’m lucky to be a member of the Grotto here in San Francisco. The Grotto has been called a “literary community” but really it’s a bunch of people who rent space together and give back to the arts by promoting events and readings. We also give each other help on manuscripts, tips on publishing and a shoulder to cry on. There’s thirty writers around me every day. When I tick off the accomplishments of this group it’s nothing short of inspiring. International bestsellers, New York Times bestsellers, National Book awards, National Magazine awards, Hollywood scripts, Sundance movies, television shows. Wow. The energy crackles in this place.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU?
My twin sister recently pointed out that I’ve written about firefighting and war. She wants my next book to be a little calmer. She wants the main character to knit and write poetry.