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Rath’s “talk-story” is a memoir; a story for himself and other alumni of the Hawaiian institute the Kamehameha School for Boys. It is also, says the University of Hawaii Press, a “love affair” between the author and his school.

Founded by Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, Kamehameha was intended to educate native Hawaiian children. The half-Hawaiian Rath entered the school as an eighth-grade boarder and credits it for turning his life around, as well as giving himself and other disadvantaged children of native ancestry the confidence and support necessary to make something of themselves.

These children are the “lost generations” of the title, and the first half of the book is Rath’s memories of his days at Kamehameha. The second half of is the story of the recent battle, fought by Rath and other alumni, to bring the school’s trustees to account for mismanaging the Bishop Estate’s holdings and ultimately their failure to the mandate of the school itself.

J. Arthur Rath is a retired public relations executive who now lives in Hawaii. He is the author of several books and a former university adjunct professor.

Reviews

"Lost Generations moves beyond traditional autobiography and, remarkably for its length, achieves the intimacy of casual conversation." - Honolulu Advertiser, May 7, 2006

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