If you were to ask me where my favorite place to have a book event would be, the first thing that would come to my mind is Hawaii’s Plantation Village in Waipahu.
The first book event I went to there was for Feng Feng Hutchin’s Plenty Saimin children’s book [read our review here]. It was the first time Misty and I were at the Plantation Village, and we fell in love with its quaintness and dedication to Hawaii’s rich, multicultural past.
The second event I went to there was for Arnold Hiura’s Kau Kau: Cuisine & Culture in the Hawaiian Islands [read our review here]. This one was even more incredible, as not only was the event held at the Plantation Village, but Arnold lead a discussion about Hawaii’s culinary past and there was a whole buffet of dishes straight from the cookbook’s pages! It was a fantastic event, in an incredible venue with delicious food—what more could you ask for?
So, it was no surprise that Watermark Publishing, the publisher behind Kau Kau, returned to the Plantation Village to host a book event for their latest cookbook, The Hawaii Book of Rice [read our review here]. Once again, the event would be held in the village’s social hall, with the author leading a discussion about the topics covered in the book, and with the talented staff members of the Plantation Village whipping up delicious dishes straight from the book’s recipes (or “rice-ipes” in this case). Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi gave a fantastic presentation on the history and decline of rice production in Hawaii, complete with a photo slide show. Afterward, there was trivia and prizes! For example, did you know that on average, a sumo wrestler eats 2.2 lbs. of rice per day? Or that there are six states that grow rice in the U.S.–Arkansas,California, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Missouri? We didn’t know that either.
You can enjoy the experience of the event in our photo gallery below. Maybe next time there’s a book event here, you’ll be even more tempted to come!
