Menehune Mystery: The Original Tales and the Origins of the Myth

Generations of Hawai'i’s residents have been raised on stories about the Menehune as magical and mischievous little people, living primarily in the mists of Island forests, in the history of our oldest places, and at the very edge of our vision. But Menehune are far more than a fairy tale, and there is ample evidence that the tradition has changed dramatically over time. Across 30 years of research, journalist and historian Jan TenBruggencate has tracked down the Menehune tale’s many tendrils. Menehune Mystery is a retelling of favorite narratives: The ‘Alekoko fishpond, the Kk-a-Ola aqueduct, Laka’s canoe, the wizard Kahano-a-newa and K-leo-nui, and Kamapua'a’s house, among others. It is also a forensic analysis of the myth’s trajectory.