The cauliflower chronicles - Marshal D. Carper

When Marshal D. Carper broke up with his girlfriend of four years, his true love pulled him through: Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He packed his white belt and moved from rural Pennsylvania to Hilo, Hawaii to train at the BJ Penn MMA Academy, home of former UFC welterweight champion and current lightweight champion BJ Penn. The Cauliflower Chronicle follows Carpers adventures and misadventures, both on the mat and around the island. He quickly learns that Hawaii is not the carefree paradise advertised in brochures and finds himself feeling like a foreigner in his own country. On the mat, he experiences Hawaiian fight culture from the inside, goes head to head with BJ Penn, and struggles to overcome injuries. Off the mat, he explores the Hawaiian Independence movement and the effects of colonization, battles with giant cockroaches and centipedes, meets a myriad of colourful locals, and travels the island in the bed of the Red Barona rusted 1986 Mazda pick-up truck. At times sad, shocking, and laugh out-loud funny, The Cauliflower Chronicle is a must-read for both sports fans and travel buffs, showing a side of mixed martial arts and of Hawaii not available anywhere else.