Trash. Not really a surfing book. It's 75% or so bird watching (25% of that is watching birds make love), 10% driving around, 10% inane conversations, and 5% surfing.

The summary relates it to Walden but it's nothing like that. There's no insight gained or meaningful discoveries. No introspection at all. Just a rambling story about a guy who somehow affords moving to the California coast and lives there with no goals or ambitions. It's a waste of time.

Summary:
This story is the real story (non-fiction) of a successful businessman who chooses to quit his job and learn to surf. Over the course of his year outside "normal" society, he comes in conflict with other surfers, nature, and his lack of knowledge about this difficult sport. The author moves to Santa Barbara, California and joins a small surfing community that initially tries to keep him out but over time allows him in.

The story is told through a series of surfing adventures. He encounters sharks and meets surfing legends then tells the reader the back story on those legends and builds our knowledge of surfing and its role in our world. Along the way, he develops a philosophy of living that cherishes and respects nature and calls for each one of us to seek a similar understanding.

Explanation of Review:
I gave the book four stars because I really enjoyed learning about the technical aspects and back stories of surfing. I love the great outdoors and if I had been born in another part of the country I could easily see taking up surfing. Also, I connected with the author's desires to confront dangerous parts of nature as a test of one's self. I too have placed myself in challenging places to test my abilities. That said, I don't know if I could ever surf with sharks (the author does this several times even when he knows people have been attacked in the same area within a few days). I also enjoyed the mini-biographies he gives of surfing legends and what it was like when they started. It is always interesting to me to know who inspired the legends of today. People like Laird Hamilton who does American Express commercials while riding 60 foot waves (and aspiring to ride 100 foot waves) got his start somewhere.

A favorite quote from the book is: “It’s awfully dark when you’re drowning in cold water, or at least it struck me that way. Claustrophobic from filling lungs, agoraphobic from the void below, I felt as if watching a celestial scattering of my own ashes: awestruck, and lonely. The waves holding me under were big enough, but my impending death had more to do with how little I knew about them.”
(from preface)

I recommend this book to anyone that enjoys non-fiction adventure books with a dash of philosophy.

i really enjoyed this one..must be the fantasies of dropping out.

Pretty nice, but by no means a masterpiece:)

Fantastic writing. Really enjoyed this book.

Good read, gets a little long in the tooth regarding flora and fauna but overall a good mood piece. Twenty something drops out of life and rents a bedroom on the northern California coast for a year. Meets some characters and surfs every day but that's not the strength of the read. It's more of a mood setter, the characters are not that memorable, the action not spectacular, the personal growth does not excite, the gist is allusive. I would call it a "period piece" and decent enough. Maybe my expectations were set as high as "Kook" and this reminds me not to set expectations in stone, but remain "readably flexible".

I understand why this is considered a classic in surf literature. Thoughtful meditation on surfing and the pull of the ocean. Even better that I could picture just about every location in the book and aura that is Santa Cruz. Did not expect to enjoy this so much.

I enjoyed the descriptions of the natural environment. I also thought some of the philosophy discussions on surfing were interesting, especially when it comes to relationships.

Writing a little overwrought, sort of deeply self-aware nature writing that's at times too precious... However, it's well crafted, insightful and enjoyable and I'd recommend it.

Dan Duane spent a year surfing in Santa Cruz, and this book looks at his experience season by season. At his best, he prose is poetic, with a voice that reminds me of Annie Dillard in Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. But at other times, the book is overwritten and digressive. On balance, it is ok, but not great.

nice to read about a guy making it through the crowds in Santa Cruz. there's still hope for California surfing

I want to be a surfer when I grow up. Always have.