Sharks in the Time of Saviours by Kawai Strong Washburn

'The novel you never knew you were waiting for' Marlon James  A Barack Obama Book of the Year. Named one of the Best Books of 2020 by New York Times, Guardian, Irish Times, Oprah Magazine, BBC Culture, Good Housekeeping, Kirkus Reviews and Amazon

In 1995 in Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i, seven-year-old Nainoa Flores is saved from drowning  a shark takes him in its jaws - only to return him, unharmed, to his parents. His family, struggling to make ends meet amidst the collapse of the sugar cane industry, hails his rescue as a sign of favour from ancient Hawaiian gods.

 For the next thirty years Noa and his siblings struggle with life in the shadow of this miracle, hope gives way to economic realities, forcing Nainoa and his siblings to seek salvation across the continental United States, leaving behind home and family. With a profound command of language, Washburn's powerful debut novel examines what it means to be both of a place, and a stranger in it.