The Tattoo - Softcover

Chris McKinney is the author of The Tattoo and Bolohead Row. He is of Korean, Japanese, and Scottish descent. Born in Honolulu and raised in Kahaluu, he portrays the native Hawaiian experience from the inside, where children of mixed ethnicity grow up far from the clear water and pristine beaches of the rich visitors' resorts. He received both his BA and MA in English from the University of Hawaii and currently teaches at Honolulu Community College.

Set in contemporary Hawaii, The Tattoo reveals a side of paradise not usually seen as it traces the life of Ken Hideyoshi, a young man with a troubled past. orphaned by his mother at an impressionably young age, Ken grows up with an abusive, distant father unable to communicate anything but anger. His teen years are spent on a roller coaster as he tries to deal with a growing inner rage. Far from the sunny beaches and crystal blue ocean, Ken's world is one of mud shores and polluted waters. Drawn into Hawaii's underworld, with its hostess bars, strip bars, and massage parlors, Ken falls in love with Claudia Choy, the daughter of the rich and powerful Korean woman who presides over an empire built on the peddling of flesh. This sets in motion a chain of events that has unexpected consequences as Ken continues his struggle to control the samurai spirit that haunts and teases him into action. Told by Ken from inside the walls of Halawa Prison, this is the story of a man searching for truth. And, ultimately, for the answer to the most human of all questions: do we have the power to shape who we ultimately become?