May 5, 2026 by Penguin Workshop
E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus
Nohea Alapa’i lives in a village in a valley on O’ahu, Hawaii. He loves to surf, but he is all too aware of his family history. He is a shark prince, and his father turned into a shark and ate a competitor when he was a teen. He left, and was never seen again. This left his very young mother alone with only her mother to help raise him. Because of this family history, and the fear that one day Nohea will one day turn into a shark, his mother and Tutu (grandmother) homeschool him, feed him a vegetarian diet, and monitor his behavior carefully. Nohea does enjoy surfing, and often “talks” to his missing father when out in the ocean. He knows that finances are tight even though the family works hard, with the mother taking shifts a Mr. T.’s small grocery store and weaving lauhala purses to sell. His mother would like to join family in Las Vegas, and has been meeting with a developer who is trying to get her to sell the family’s home. When Nohea finds that there is going to be a surging competition with a significant cash prize, he wants to enter, but would have to find five other homeschooled children to join his team. Instead, he decides to enroll in the public school system. His mother agrees, and even though things don’t always go smoothly, he joins the surf team, coached by teacher Kami Sanoe. Team member Rell is supportive, but Layden seems to know about Nohea’s family history, and often angers Nohea. When this happens, Nohea can feel his shark shaped birthmark burning on his back, and he starts to exhibit more and more symptoms, like shark teeth, and eventually even a dorsal fin! With the help of an endangered monk otter, Notch, who has befriended him, Nohea has to deal with these changes at the same time team members go missing. They might have been attacked by sharks; is Nohea doing this during his blackouts? Mr. Canterman, the developer, is trying to buy up the entire valley, and might be using evil methods to accomplish this, even relying on the efforts of a surprising community member. Will Nohea be able to come to terms with the shark portion of himself and also save his beloved community? This is apparently the first book in a duology.
Strengths: Remember K.A. Applegate’s 1990s Animorph series? My children were obsessed with them, so that was the first thing I thought about! Nohea’s family has always been upfront with him about his father, but has kept it a secret from the rest of their neighborhood, which seems like a good plan. The homeschooling is perhaps an excessive caution, but going into a public school affords Nohea a good way to break from his family and gain new experiences. There are a lot of good details about surfing, as well as about the natural environment. Development is a growing concern in many areas of the world, so Canterman’s plan to build makes sense, especially when we find out secrets about HIS past. I enjoyed Nohea’s snarky attitude, his relationship with Notch, and the way he is able to realistically handle both being a shark and saving his community.
Weaknesses: At 368 pages, this book is on the longer side of what my students will read. The first 100 pages flew by, but the story did slow down a bit. Tighter editing, and less of Nohea talking to his father, would have made for an even more engaging read.
What I really think: From the perspective of an Ohioan, Hawaii is a fascinating change of pace, and this should be a big hit with fans of Huang’s Kaya of the Ocean, Smith’s The Pearl, or Maunakea’s own Lei and the Fire Goddess. The cover is great, with just that tiny bit of shark tooth showing in Nohea’s mouth!
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