"POLYNESIAN INTERCONNECTIONS" BY PETER LEIATAUA AHCHING; SELF-PUBLISHED, PAPER, $18.95

This book on the roots that connect Hawai'i to the rest of Polynesia, and particularly Samoa, has an unusual provenance: Author Peter AhChing wrote it because he was bothered by the controversy that surrounded the casting of wrestler/actor Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as King Kamehameha in a proposed Sony/Columbia film about the Islands' famous monarch. AhChing, a student at the John A. Burns School of Medicine, argues, based on archaeological data, genetic studies and word similarities, that Hawaiians and other Polynesians originated in Samoa and that "The Rock," with his Samoan background, is a culturally appropriate choice for the role. The slim volume is composed of a jumble of essays, extracts from previous news reports and studies that support AhChing's premise.