New Memoir Chronicles Hawaiian Family’s Laughter and Pain; Book by Jo Marpert, Released by Dog Ear Publishing

Redmond, VA, September 24, 2010 --(PR.com)-- This is the story of Cissy (Jo), the youngest daughter of second-generation Europeans, who grew up in the paradise for kids that was Hawaii in the 1930s. She and her two sisters lived on the Waialua Sugar Plantation on the island of Oahu, enjoying an idyllic lifestyle until the bombing of Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941 – Cissy’s birthday – and the start of the U.S. involvement in World War II. The martial law that followed brought chaos. Cissy’s once safe world is ripped apart.

Don’t Park Under the Coconut Trees, published by Dog Ear Publishing, describes the sisters’ happy childhood, such as taking hula lessons, buying shaved ice with flavored syrup while on motor trips and seeing President Roosevelt in his touring car. This memoir also describes Cissy’s father’s alcoholism, fueled by his Danish melancholia, a family history and easy accessibility of beer, saki and local booze, all well-stocked by the small, family owned liquor stores dotting the sugar plantation. Eventually the well-loved field supervisor loses his job.

Once the war begins, the family faces a new reality. Once-beautiful beaches are lined with barbed wire in case of invasion, blackouts and curfews limit movement. Cissy struggles in high school and attends USO dances and parties, as servicemen are everywhere. Mother Nature even takes a turn with a nasty surprise – a tsunami. Line drawings by Celia Clark (partner and advisor) and personal photographs of the author and Lee Sher of WWII’s 47th Fighter Squadron add to this heartfelt story about survival – and triumphs – in the face of pain.

Author Jo Marpert attended the University of Hawaii and married “the boy next door.” The busy 80-year-old lives in Redmond, Wash.

For more information, visit www.jomarpertbook.com

Don’t Park Under the Coconut Trees
Jo Marpert
Dog Ear Publishing
ISBN: 978-160844-589-9 232 pages $14.99 US

Available at Ingram, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble and fine bookstores everywhere

About Dog Ear Publishing, LLC Dog Ear Publishing offers completely customized self-publishing services for independent authors. We provide cost-effective, fast, and highly profitable services to publish and distribute independently published books. Our book publishing and distribution services reach worldwide. Dog Ear authors retain all rights and complete creative control throughout the entire self-publishing process. Self-publishing services are available globally at www.dogearpublishing.net and from our offices in Indianapolis, Indiana.

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