Children’s book cover for “Naupaka,” featuring two people by a blue lagoon surrounded by tropical plants and flowers, with title and author credits.

Naupaka

written by Gabrielle Ahuli‘i, illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong

Part of the Hawaiian Legends for Little Ones series, Naupaka introduces kids ages 0-4 to one of Hawai‘i’s best-known love stories that explains why the native plant naupaka— which can be found on the beach and in the mountains—blooms only half a flower.

The naupaka legend tells the story of why this native shrub, found both in the mountains and by the sea, blooms just half a flower. It is a story of love, jealousy, and separation and has inspired hula practitioners, songwriters, and storytellers.

​5 x 6 inches
16 pages
$8.95
ISBN 978-1-933067-79-7

Blue graphic with circular white text reading “A W A I T A Z” and “HAWAII FOR LITTLE ONES,” decorated with yellow flowers
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Hawai‘i Public Radio Interview with Author
  • Illustrated garden scene with Nanau and Kapaka tending tropical flowers and plants, alongside text about caring for the land with aloha.
  • Illustrated couple kissing in a lush green forest landscape, with text about their love of nature and being together forever.
  • Illustrated storybook scene of Nanau and Kapaka fleeing through tall grass, with one character running toward the mountains and the other toward the shore.

Other titles in the Hawaiian Legends for Little Ones series

Blue graphic with circular white text reading “HAWAII FOR LITTLE ONES,” surrounded by yellow flowers.
  • Children’s book cover for “Māui Hooks the Islands,” featuring an illustrated ocean, fishing hook, island motifs, and credits to Gabrielle Ahuliʻi and Jing Jing Tsong.
  • Children’s book cover for “HiʻIaka Battles the Wind,” featuring a Hawaiian figure amid tropical foliage, with text identifying author Gabrielle Ahuliʻi and illustrator Jing Jing Tsong.
  • Children’s book cover for “Kaiona Guides the Lost,” featuring a lush tropical forest, colorful bird, and illustrated children; written by Gabrielle Ahuliʻi and illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong.
  • Colorful children's book cover titled “Maui Slows the Sun,” written by Gabrielle Ahuliʻi and illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong.
  • Children’s book cover for "Hina," featuring a smiling blue moon over a stylized nighttime landscape, written by Gabrielle Ahulii and illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong.
  • Illustrated children's book cover titled “Naupaka,” showing two figures beside a blue lagoon surrounded by tropical plants and flowers; written by Gabrielle Ahulii and illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong.
  • Children’s picture book cover, “Pele Finds a Home,” featuring an illustrated orange-and-white dog with a large black-and-white dog, by Gabrielle Ahuli’i and Jing Jing Tsong.
  • Children in a canoe paddle beneath a flying bird on the colorful children's book cover for “Lea: Goddess of Canoe Builders,” written by Gabrielle Ahuliʻi and illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong.