Hawaii karate library - a treasure of the karate world

[Makalakumu]

http://www.examiner.com/x-25229-Hon...arate-library--a-treasure-of-the-karate-world

On July 1st 2009, a rare event occurred in the karate world. The Hikari Institute donated the entire contents of the Hawaii Karate Museum's Rare Books Collection to University of Hawaii at Manoa so that it could be preserved for posterity and accessed by anyone. The library was originally stored in the offices of Honolulu Attorney and Karate expert Charles Goodin. Upon hearing that a new Okinawa exhibit would be opening at UH Manoa, Mr. Goodin decided to give them a call. From there, the story unfolded.

The end result was that over 260 books were donated to the UH Manoa Rare Books Department so that they could be preserved for anyone to see. This collection of karate literature represents the largest public collection of karate books in the world. It has the potential to draw karateka from around the world to make a stop in Hawaii on their way to Okinawa in order to experience books that are available no where else in the world.

I wrote this article in my new position as the Honolulu Martial Arts Examiner. This is the first in a series that will discuss an insider's view of Hawaii's martial arts community. The Hawaii Karate Library is a hidden gem of the islands. Please check it out!