It’s an exciting time at Mutual Publishing. Honolulu Stories, over five years in the making, is being released in April. At over 1100 pages, it contains more than 350 selections (in nine languages with translations) by over 250 authors. Besides the local media, the Washington Post is expected to review it, and we are hoping for other national coverage. All the contributors and media have been invited to a get-together at Coffee Talk in Kaimuki on April 23 from 5:30 to 8:30 pm.

We are also releasing Boy’s Day in Hawai‘i, a companion to Girl’s Day, in time for the May 5th celebration. Muriel Miura’s Hawai‘i Cooks with SPAM® so impressed Hormel Foods that they will be sponsoring a June recipe-contest promotion in conjunction with the Honolulu Star-Bulletin that benefits the Hawaii Food Bank.

How to Play the Hawaiian Steel Guitar, by renowned musician Henry K. Allen, includes a play-along CD. David Leaser’s Tropical Gardens of Hawai‘i features breathtaking photography of plants and gardenscapes in Hawai‘i’s public gardens. The Hiker’s Guide to Trailside Plants is a must for hikers and plant lovers.

Besides selling out our second printing of What Hawai‘i Likes to Eat, our Hawaiian Encyclopedia Website is up and running.

The second half of 2008 should be equally exciting. We’re currently looking through the Honolulu Star-Bulletin archives to gather photos for a photography book documenting the last fifty years. Audrey Wilson is compiling What the Big Island Likes to Eat. Muriel Miura will have a new cookbook to help homemakers cope with hectic lives and rising food prices, and the Bento Box Cookbook will provide busy moms and dads with ideas to make lunches exciting.

We hope to finish Big Island Journey, an illustrated history of the island of Hawai‘i, and there will be more BeachHouse children’s books from the imprint by Jane Hopkins. We’re also preparing to release in the first quarter of 2009 a new Chris McKinney book in eFormat and audio as well as in trade format.

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