The History of Surfing

I am not a surfer. But I am a history buff who was given an advance copy of this gorgeous book. I'm only on page 174, but I have to stop and share my excitement about The History of Surfing. How can you not love a book that describes the crowds at surf movies of the late 1950's like this:

"Firecrackers were lit and rolled across the floor to the next row of seats. Bottlecaps zipped through the air. High decibel beer-belches rang out. A motorcyclist might blow in through the side door, ride up one aisle and down the other, then gun back out the way he came.

"What older surfers invariably describe first when talking about early surf movies is the tearing thunderclap of cheers and whistles and stomping feet that began when the lights dimmed and the first blue-green image lip up the screen--a roaring noise signifying not just a manic willingness to be entertained, but the pure joy of an otherwise staunchly nonaligned multitude coming together briefly, powerfully, ecstatically as a group."

Now that's the way to write history. Kevin Starr, California State Historian, eat your heart out.

Warshaw covers it all. It's a fascinating book, complete with sections on surfing lore, surfing legends and heroes, 'surfing philosophy' and how it influenced the sport (as well as the zeitgeist of the era, an on), types of boards, how one mode of thinking led to the next. Well done and worth the price. You can get gorgeous surfing photos -- past and present -- in a gazillion other books. This has a few, but it really is an intellectual look at a West Coast phenom. Yes, intellectual (well, as much so as possible, anyway). What I mean is that surfers are said to be shallow, narcissistic (or ego-oriented) hedonists. He says little to disavow folks of that notion, but he explains how it is that the public feels this way about those who practice the sport. Granted, today many -- if not most -- surfers probably just enjoy the athleticism, the being "in one with the waves" feeling, being out on gorgeous days, the thrill of the speed, and the exhilaration of being out there in the gorgeous water with the fish and other wildlife. But there is a mystique to it all, too, and while not exactly nailing the sensation or the "rapture" of it, Warshaw comes about as close as possible.

Excellent Book on the history of surfing. This is such a quality piece of work and as a surfer that started surfing in the 60's and still surfs today I'm loving this book, great journalism and photography. This is PURE Stoke!

Surf historians take note - Matt Warshaw has just put y'all out of business. Seriously, this book should be in the NYTimes Top 100 books because, far from being a mere surf history - it's the 'Story' of surfing - how an incredibly difficult yet photogenic sport wormed its way into mainstream culture. Warshaw's prose crackles off the page - no cliches, no hashing over old stories, just bringing a fresh eye and perspective to the 'original' action sport. Oh, to have this kind of encyclopedic knowledge of a topic and the ability to write authoritatively and entertainly as Warshaw does. Bravo!

One amazing book... there are however some facts that are incorrect but all these books have them. It is one of the best surfing books today. Would love for this author to do a book on surfers that do not get their kudos that one day no one will even remember and its a real shame. Went to Wikapedia and the list is sad, Added some of the old guys that were amazing a lot more amazing tham a few that are mentioned over and over as they hung with the right crowd but were just not all that.... thanks love it read it all the time and will forever... a must have.

This book is great - a lot better than I thought it would be. I've had it in my list for a while because I'm interested in surfing and I like history. But I honestly thought it'd be pretty boring and I'd skim it here and there and then it would look cool on my bookshelf. I'm about halfway through it, though, and it's a great read. Even for non-surfers the history of surfing has a huge intersection with the history of pop-culture.

This book is awesome. I bought it for my boyfriend, and I wanted to read it when I saw it. Beautifully designed, awesome pictures, thorough. Great book.

I have these 2 books for my son and son-in-law. They were life guards and are still surfing. Saw this book at The Wave hotel in Long Branch, NJ on their coffee table and I had to have it for my boys! Thank you so much and it will be a Christmas present. Stay safe and healthy and Happy Thanksgiving! Eag

Fine coffee table book. Large format. I liked the way the pages were laid-out - somewhat stylish. Gave as a gift to my oldest, surfer, son, and he enjoyed it - I have seen it about his apartment where visitors can enjoy it.

It has great photography and very good contents. It's a very well edited book, not just to read it quickly but to have it on top of your table.