“How many ways can you describe a wave? You’ll never get tired of watching Finnegan do it. A staff writer at The New Yorker, he leads a counterlife as an obsessive surfer, traveling around the world, throwing his vulnerable, merely human body into line after line of waves in search of transient moments of grace . . . It’s an occupation that has never before been described with this tenderness and deftness.” —TIME Magazine, Top 10 Nonfiction Books of 2015 

“A hefty masterpiece.” —Geoff Dyer, The Guardian

“Terrific . . . Elegantly written and structured, it’s a riveting adventure story, an intellectual autobiography, and a restless, searching meditation on love, friendship and family . . . A writer of rare subtlety and observational gifts, Finnegan explores every aspect of the sport its mechanics and intoxicating thrills, its culture and arcane tribal codes—in a way that should resonate with surfers and non-surfers alike. His descriptions of some of the world’s most powerful and unforgiving waves are hauntingly beautiful . . . Finnegan displays an honesty that is evident throughout the book, parts of which have a searing, unvarnished intensity that reminded me of ‘Stop Time,’ the classic coming-of-age memoir by Frank Conroy.” —Washington Post 

“The kind of book that makes you squirm in your seat on the subway, gaze out the window at work, and Google Map the quickest route to the beach. In other words, it is, like Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, a semi-dangerous book, one that persuades young men . . . to trade in their office jobs in order to roam the world, to feel the ocean’s power, and chase the waves.” —The Paris Review Daily 

“Fans of [Finnegan’s] writing have been waiting eagerly for his surfing memoir…Well, Barbarian Days is here. And it’s even better than one could have imagined . . . This is Finnegan’s gift. He’s observant and expressive but shows careful restraint in his zeal. He says only what needs to be said, enough to create a vivid picture for the reader while masterfully giving that picture a kind of movement.” —Honolulu Star-Advertiser 

“That surfing life is [Finnegan’s], and it’s a remarkably adventurous one sure to induce wanderlust in anyone who follows along, surfer or not . . . Lyrical but not overbaked, exciting but always self-effacing. It captures the moments of joy and terror Finnegan’s lifelong passion has brought him, as well as his occasional ambivalence about the tenacious hold it has on him. It’s easily the best book ever written about surfing. It’s not even close.” —Florida Times-Union 

“An engrossing read, part treatise on wave physics, part thrill ride, part cultural study, with a soupçon of near-death events. Even for those who’ve never paddled out, Finnegan’s imagery is as vividly rendered as a film, his explanation of wave mastery a triumph of language. For surfers, the book is The Endless Summer writ smarter and larger, touching down at every iconic break.” —Los Angeles Magazine 

“Vivid and propulsive . . . Finnegan . . . has seen things from the tops of ocean peaks that would disturb most surfers’ dreams for weeks. (I happily include myself among that number) . . . A lyrical and enormously rewarding read . . . Finnegan’s enchantment takes us to some luminous and unsettling places—on both the edge of the ocean, and the frontiers of the surfing life.” —San Diego Union-Tribune 

“Barbarian Days gleams with precise, often lyrical recollections of the most memorable waves [Finnegan has] encountered . . . He carefully mines his surfing exploits for broader, hard-won insights on his childhood, his most intense friendships and romances, his political education, his career. He’s always attuned to his surroundings, and his reflections are often tinged with self-effacing wit.” —Chicago Reader 

“Extraordinary . . . [Barbarian Days] is in many ways, and for the first time, a surfer in full. And it is cause for throwing your wet-suit hoods in the air…If the book has a flaw, it lies in the envy helplessly induced in the armchair surf-­traveler by so many lusty affairs with waves that are the supermodels of the surf world. Still, Finnegan considerately shows himself paying the price of admission in a few near drownings, and these are among the most electrifying moments in the book . . . There are too many breathtaking, original things in Barbarian Days to do more than mention here—observations about surfing that have simply never been made before, or certainly never so well.” —The New York Times Book Review 

“Without a doubt, the finest surf book I’ve ever read . . . All this technical mastery and precise description goes hand in hand with an unabashed, infectious earnestness. Finnegan has certainly written a surfing book for surfers, but on a more fundamental level, Barbarian Days offers a cleareyed vision of American boyhood. Like Jon Krakauer’s ‘Into the Wild,’ it is a sympathetic examination of what happens when literary ideas of freedom and purity take hold of a young mind and fling his body out into the far reaches of the world.” —The New York Times Magazine

“Which is precisely what makes the propulsive precision of Finnegan’s writing so surprising and revelatory . . . Finnegan’s treatment of surfing never feels like performance. Through the sheer intensity of his descriptive powers and the undeniable ways in which surfing has shaped his life, Barbarian Days is an utterly convincing study in the joy of treating seriously an unserious thing . . . As Finnegan demonstrates, surfing, like good writing, is an act of vigilant noticing.” —The New York Review of Books 

“Finnegan is an excellent surfer; at some point he became an even better writer. That pairing makes Barbarian Days exceptional in the notoriously foamy genre of surf lit: a hefty, heavyweight tour de force, overbrimming with sublime lyrical passages that Finnegan drops as effortlessly as he executed his signature ‘drop-knee cutback’ in the breaks off Waikiki . . . Reading this guy on the subject of waves and water is like reading Hemingway on bullfighting; William Burroughs on controlled substances; Updike on adultery . . . Finnegan is a virtuoso wordsmith, but the juice propelling this memoir is wrung from the quest that shaped him . . . A piscine, picaresque coming-of-age story, seen through the gloss resin coat of a surfboard.” —Sports Illustrated 

Overflowing with vivid descriptions of waves caught and waves missed, of disappointments and ecstasies and gargantuan curling tubes that encircle riders like cathedrals of pure stained glass…These paragraphs, with their mix of personal remembrance and subcultural taxonomies, tend to be as elegant and pellucid as the breakers they immortalize…This memoir is one you can ride all the way to shore.” —Entertainment Weekly 

“[A] sweeping, glorious memoir . . . Oh, the rides, they are incandescent…I’d sooner press this book upon on a nonsurfer, in part because nothing I’ve read so accurately describes the feeling of being stoked or the despair of being held under. But also because while it is a book about ‘A Surfing Life’…it’s also about a writer’s life and, even more generally, a quester’s life, more carefully observed and precisely rendered than any I’ve read in a long time.” —Los Angeles Times

“Gorgeously written and intensely felt . . . With Mr. Finnegan’s bravura memoir, the surfing bookshelf is dramatically enriched. It’s not only a volume for followers of the sport. Non-surfers, too, will be treated to a travelogue head-scratchingly rich in obscure, sharply observed destinations . . . Dare I say that we all need Mr. Finnegan . . . as a role model for a life fully, thrillingly, lived.” —Wall Street Journal

“An evocative, profound and deeply moving memoir…The proof is in the sentences. Were I given unlimited space to review this book, I would simply reproduce it here, with a quotation mark at the beginning and another at the end. While surfers have a reputation for being inarticulate, there is actually a fair amount of overlap between what makes a good surfer and a good writer. A smooth style, an ability to stay close to the source of the energy, humility before the task, and, once you’re done, not claiming your ride. In other words, making something exceedingly difficult look easy. The gift for writing a clean line is rare, and the gift for riding one even rarer. Finnegan possesses both.” —San Francisco Chronicle 

“Finnegan writes so engagingly that you paddle alongside, eager for him to take you to the next wave . . . It is a wet and wild run. He makes surfing seem as foreign and simultaneously as intimate a sport as possible . . . Surfing is the backbone of the book, but Finnegan’s relationships to people, not waves, form its flesh . . . [A] deep blue story of one man’s lifelong enchantment.” —Boston Globe 

“Finnegan’s epic adventure, beautifully told, is much more than the story of a boy and his wave, even if surfing serves as the thumping heartbeat of his life.” —Dallas Morning News 

“That’s always Finnegan’s M.O.: examining the ways in which surfing intertwines with anthropology, economics, politics, and, of course, writing. Finnegan is a sober, straightforward author, but the level of detail, emotion, and insight he achieves is unparalleled . . . A must-read for all surfers—not just because of its unblinking prose and subtle wit, but because it’s the only book that properly details what it’s like to cultivate both an award-winning career and a dedicated surfing life.” —Eastern Surf Magazine

“Finnegan describes, with shimmering detail, his adventures riding waves on five continents. Surfing has taken him places he’d never otherwise have thought to go, but it also buoyed him through a career reporting on the politics of intense scarcity, limitless cruelty, and unimaginable suffering. It’s a book about travel and growing up, and the power of a pastime when it becomes an obsession.” —Men’s Journal

“With a compelling storyline and masterful prose, Finnegan’s beautiful memoir is sure to resonate.” —The New York Observer

“Fearless and full of grace.” —Outside Magazine

“Irresistible.” —O, The Oprah Magazine

“It’s always fabulous when an incredible writer happens to also have a memoir-worthy life; Barbarian Days bodes well.” —GQ.com

“A demonstration of gratitude and mastery. [Finnegan] uses these words to describe the wave, but they might as well apply to the book. In a sense, Barbarian Days functions as a 450-page thank you letter, masterfully crafted, to his parents, friends, wife, enemies, ex-girlfriends, townsfolk, daughter—everyone who tolerated and even encouraged his lifelong obsession. It’s a way to help them—and us—understand what drives him to keep paddling out half a century after first picking up a board.” —NPR.org

“[A] lyrical, intellectual memoir. The author touches on love, on responsibility, on politics, individuality and morality, as well as on the lesser-known aspects of surfing: the toll it takes on the body, the weird lingo, the whacky community. Finnegan’s world is as dazzling and deep as any ocean. It’s a pleasure to paddle into and makes for a hell of a ride.” —The Millions

“As it progresses the whole book turns into a portal . . . It’s tempting to say that Barbarian Days will bring readers as close as they’ll get to the surf, short of actual surfing. But I had a stronger reaction: The book brought me closer than I’d ever been, or expected to get, to the real, unfathomable ocean.” —Bookforum

“A dream of a book by a masterful writer long immersed in surfing culture. Finnegan recaptures the waves lost and found, the euphoria, the danger . . . the allure.” —BBC.com

“Panoramic and fascinating…The core of the book is a surfing chronicle, and Finnegan possesses impeccable short-board bona fides . . . A revealing and magisterial account of a beautiful addiction.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review) 

“Like that powerful, glassy wave, great books on surfing come few and far between. This summer, New Yorker writer Finnegan recalls his teenage years in the California and Hawaii of the 1960s—when surfing was an escape for loners and outcasts. A delightful storyteller, Finnegan takes readers on a journey from Hawaii to Australia, Fiji, and South Africa, where finding those waves is as challenging as riding them.” —Publishers Weekly’s Best Summer Books of the Summer

“A fascinating look inside the mind of a man terminally in love with a magnificent obsession. A lyrical and intense memoir.” —Kirkus

“An up-close and personal homage to the surfing lifestyle through the author’s journey as a lifelong surfer. Finnegan’s writing is polished and bold . . . [A] high-caliber memoir.” —Library Journal

 

WILLIAM FINNEGAN is the author of Cold New World, A Complicated War, Dateline Soweto, and Crossing the Line. He has twice been a National Magazine Award finalist and has won numerous journalism awards, including two Overseas Press Club awards since 2009. Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life received the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Autobiography. A staff writer at The New Yorker since 1987, he lives in Manhattan.

“BECOMING WESTERLY is much more than a book about a celebrated surfer who becomes a woman — in this case, a dude who becomes a diva. Brisick presents us with a case study of narcissism, of the pathology of celebrity, and a detailed look at the complex world of competitive surfing. It is a funny and painful book, too, and one I greatly enjoyed.” – Paul Theroux

“What a wild and wonderful and fascinating journey our lives can be! BECOMING WESTERLY stands as beautiful evidence of this — gorgeous proof of the ever-unfolding transformations many of us undergo — and Jamie Brisick brings these changes to vivid and heart-rending life. A sometimes-brutal book, every page is marked with care, affection, friendship, and pure honesty.” – William Lychack

“You’ve never read anything like BECOMING WESTERLY. Peter Drouyn is a character beyond the capacities of almost any novelist to imagine — and then he turns into someone else. Jamie Brisick traces the emergence of Westerly Windina with so much empathy, eloquence, and patience. His book is dazzling, devastating, funny and surpassingly strange.” – William Finnegan

“Brisick’s BECOMING WESTERLY is as compelling and magnificent as Westerly Windina herself — so charming and formidable, lonely and controlling, fierce and coquettish, and, like Marilyn Monroe, the woman with whom she most identifies, always far larger than life. In his intimate and amazing portrait of this formerly renowned male Australian surf champion now turned female entertainer, Brisick has undertaken a remarkable and riveting investigation of human identity in all of its complexities.” – Richard McCann

“What happens after the endless summer? BECOMING WESTERLY is what happens. Jamie Brisick has given all readers one shaggy, tasty gift: not only the history of surfing, as seen from inside that raging, curling wave (quite an accomplishment in itself) but the more intimate struggle that comes from being alone with your aloneness. The transformation of Peter Drouyn — troubled narcissist, influential surfing genius — into wannabe starlet Westerly Windina is every bit as absorbing as it is frustrating, as charming as it is essential.” – Charles Bock

“Renee Richards was the first prominent transgender athlete. Caitlyn Jenner surely is the most famous transgender with an athletic background. Westerly Windina may be the most fascinating. . .” – The Oregonian

“Caitlyn Jenner is dinnertime conversation in households across America. We are learning a brand-new language. . . Jamie Brisick’s ‘Becoming Westerly’ is an excellent place to start. . .” – Los Angeles Times

“In 2009 Jamie Brisick, a surf journalist who had been aware of Peter, travelled to Australia to write a profile of Westerly, but what what consequently happened became a far greater story than that. . .” – CNN

“Brisick takes surfing’s inherent, paradoxical conservatism and subjects it to long-overdue scrutiny.” – Alex Wade, Times Literary Supplement

“Almost any athlete who comes out as trans right now will be compared to Bruce Jenner, but the story of surf champion Peter Drouyn’s odyssey deserves equal attention. . .” – “15 Best Summer Reads,” The Advocate

“an unforgettable portrait of a hard-won second act in an already exceptional life. . .” – Heather Seggel, Lambda Literary

“BECOMING WESTERLY is a haunting and important book — a reminder of what it means to be human, flawed, and occasionally fabulous.” – Karl Taro Greenfeld

“In BECOMING WESTERLY, Jamie Brisick sketches with exasperated subtlety an antihero/antiheroine who is both maddening and captivating. The book describes how surfing itself moved from obscurity to the mainstream, and how one surfer moved from his place in the surfing mainstream into her highly personal obscurity. It is often hilarious, and also, ultimately, deeply empathetic and touching.” – Andrew Solomon

“Jamie Brisick tells the unlikely story of how Peter Drouyn, one of Australia’s greatest surfers, morphed into the chanteuse Westerly Windina. At once candid autobiography, participatory anthropology, and cultural history, the tale of Drouyn’s metamorphosis is told with compassion, humility, and authority. Becoming Westerly is a remarkable book, proving once again that the truth is usually stranger than fiction.” – Dr. Peter Maguire

“Brisick’s BECOMING WESTERLY is as compelling and magnificent as Westerly Windina herself — so charming and formidable, lonely and controlling, fierce and coquettish, and, like Marilyn Monroe, the woman with whom she most identifies, always far larger than life. In his intimate and amazing portrait of this formerly renowned male Australian surf champion now turned female entertainer, Brisick has undertaken a remarkable and riveting investigation of human identity in all of its complexities.” – Richard McCann

“Whitman wrote, ‘I contain multitudes,’ and he might have had this book in mind. BECOMING WESTERLY is the story of surfing great, Peter Drouyn, and his subsequent transformation, via a sex change operation, into aspiring diva Westerly Windina. But it’s also a tale of the writer, Jamie Brisick, and his efforts to understand what — for lack of a more specific term — it all means. In the process, this engrossing narrative raises a series of questions rather more profound than you might expect: Who are we? Where do we begin? Where do we end? Is there such a thing as destiny? Are we riding the wave or a part of it? And as with the best books, in the end it’s our own lives we examine.” – Jim Krusoe

“From deep inside the barrel, Jamie Brisick recounts the tale of the waverider who revolutionized pro surfing with man-to-man heats and then became a woman — having thought of herself as Marilyn Monroe all along. With this compassionate, funny, and wrenching book, Brisick has taken his impressive work to a new level, establishing himself as a fine observer of life’s currents, on land, sea, and inside the heart.” – Deanne Stillman

“Brisick shines a brilliant light on the fascinating Ms. Windina, at once damsel in distress and Superwoman. The surfing scenes are riveting―written with an excitement and an immediacy that only a lifelong wave rider can pull off.” – James Frey

“Surf is beige. Never the act and not the characters but the representation. It is monochromatic, conservative, bland. Feathers are better left unruffled, I suppose, but son of a bitch, thank God for Jamie Brisick. He decided to write about an ex-pro surf legend that has decided to become a woman. BECOMING WESTERLY is, above all, a great story but it is a difficult story and Jamie tells it perfectly. Peter Drouyn/Westerly Windina is, at turns, inspiring, brave, massively selfish, narcissistic and Jamie never pulls a punch. He lets all the variables of an extremely complex person breathe. He ushers the reader in to a bizarre world and allows for multiple possible conclusions. And the way he paints the surf backdrop is amazing. The interviews, descriptions, historical and modern nuances…. Just very very very well done. It is journalistic art. If I were ever to become a woman, or male model or Vegas showman, I would want Jamie Brisick along for the ride. Shall we dance, darling?” – Chas Smith

“A strange, exhilarating, ultimately uplifting ride. Jamie Brisick is the perfect guide into the life of an amazing ninja-level surfer, provocateur, and diva.” – Matt Warshaw

“Westerly and Peter are two of the greatest characters to ever grace surfing, two titanic life stories, and with BECOMING WESTERLY Brisick has written incredible portraits of both. A story of the glory and terrible burden of ambition for greatness, and greatness unrecognized. Beautiful, sad, and full of hope.” – Surfing World

“In the conservative, boy’s own world of contemporary surfing, Westerly Windina is a gale-force breath of fresh air.” – Sydney Morning Herald

 

A former professional surfer and a Fulbright scholar, Jamie Brisick has written extensively about surfing for The New York Times, The Guardian, The Sydney Morning Herald, and The Surfer’s Journal. Drawing from his life in surfing, Brisick provides a nuanced portrait of two extraordinary people in one, and a very personal account of the courage and self-belief it has taken for Peter to become Westerly.

Gr 6 Up—Hamilton, a professional surfer who lost her arm after a shark attack but who returned to the sport to win a National title only a month later, is back with a new book about how to be fit, fun, and fabulous by eating healthy, exercising, and finding your inner self. Right from the start, Hamilton makes her religious background clear, but even though one whole chapter is devoted to faith, the overall focus is on inspiring her audience, not on preaching religious views (she even states, “No matter how much I want others to make improvements to their lifestyles, I can’t push them to make a change”). Tween and teen girls will enjoy the writing, which makes readers feel as though they’re having a one-on-one conversation with the author. Each chapter has tips and tricks on how to stay on task, as well as a Q&A session with Hamilton. The chapters on exercise and healthy eating are supported by a certified athletic trainer and a nutritionist and are easy to follow, and the step-by-step pictures of each workout make them accessible. The recipe and healthy eating chapters emphasize Hamilton’s own food pyramid and her concept of a “clean green” diet, and the advice she gives will apply to most readers. This title will inspire girls to gain self-confidence and make better choices in their own lives.—Joanne Albano, Commack Public Library, NY

Bethany Hamilton is a source of inspiration to millions. In 2003, while surfing, she lost her left arm to a 14-foot tiger shark. With resilience and tenacity, Bethany returned to the water a month later, and within two years won her first national title. Her unbelievably positive attitude fascinated the world, resulting in an autobiography that was later adapted into the film Soul Surfer. Her courage and talent led to her induction into the Surfer’s Hall of Fame in 2017. Bethany and her husband, Adam Dirks, are also involved in charities such as Friends of Bethany, a foundation she and her family created to support amputees and youth. In addition, Bethany authored Body and Soul to encourage others toward confidence and fitness. Her new documentary Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable brings her passions together, showcasing her world-class surfing and love for life as well as her message of female empowerment and never giving up.

“For the first time we now have a book of the sport’s history. Owen Pye has written an epic chronicle.” – Mike Stewart, nine-times World Champion

“Stewart, Eppo, Tamega, Botha, Hubb, Player, Kingy, Hardy…each one has contributed something to the sport and has an amazing tale to tell. Born To Boogie is the definitive story of the history of bodyboarding.” – Matt Hawken, Kernow Bodyboarding

“What makes this book particularly special is its readability. In chapters chronicling the triumphs and anguishes of several of bodyboarding’s most influential characters, Pye has penned the first comprehensive history of the sport with a series of gripping personal tales.”  – Greg Leigh, Cape Argus, South Africa

“If you love bodyboarding you should get this book.” – Bodyboarder.com

“It’s an honour to be part of it.” – Pierre-Louis Costes, 2011 World Champion

 

Born to Boogie: Legends of Bodyboarding tells the story of the incredible sport of bodyboarding from 1971 to the present day. The pioneers, the champions and the underground chargers are all profiled, among them Tom Morey, Pat Caldwell, Ben Severson, Jay Reale, Mike Stewart, Michael ‘Eppo’ Eppelstun, Guilherme Tamega, Andre Botha, Ryan Hardy, Damian King, Ben Player, Jeff Hubbard, Mitch Rawlins and Pierre Louis Costes. Filled with incredible stories spanning four decades and packed with iconic images, Born to Boogie is a book that every bodyboarder will froth to own.

“…the book channels a sort of Boogie Nights on water feel.” ― Los Angeles Times

“What happens when a famous 21-year old L.A. surfer with a taste for partying inherits a multimillion-dollar fortune? We need to look no further than Bunker Spreckles, short-lived libertine and stepson of Clark Gable.” ― Anthem Magazine

Thirty years later, photographer Art Brewer and writer/photojournalist C. R. Stecyk III (of Dogtown and Z-Boys fame) have come together to make this book, which traces the meteoric rise and dramatic fall of Bunker Spreckels. Brewer was a close friend of Spreckels and his personal photographer throughout the last decade of his life, traveling with him from Hawaii to Los Angeles to South Africa. His images of Spreckels, both on the waves and on land, chronicle Spreckels’s metamorphosis from hippie surfer to international playboy, while Stecyk’s extensive taped interview of Spreckels, completed just three months before his death, provides a rare first-person perspective on his decadent life.