Surfing Books

Maui Trailblazer: Where to Hike, Snorkel, Paddle, Surf, Drive

Jerry Sprout, Janine Sprout

Amazon Price: $11.53 List Price: $16.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Diamond Valley Company Amazon Marketplace: 49 new & used starting at $6.70

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Subjects -> Outdoors & Nature -> Hiking & Camping -> Excursion Guides -> General
Subjects -> Outdoors & Nature -> Hiking & Camping -> Excursion Guides -> General AAS
Subjects -> Sports -> Water Sports -> Surfing

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 59 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

A guide for families and outdoor adventurers alike, Maui Trailblazer 2006 covers all of the island, and includes day trips to the neighboring islands of Molokai, Lanai, and Molokini.

Clear directions and concise descriptions lead to all of Maui's well-known attractions, as well as to hidden discoveries that Trailblazer readers have come to expect.

137 different hikes and strolls to tropical rain forests and remote valleys, coastal bluffs and lava caves, Haleakala crater and the Hana Highway, cascading waterfalls, beaches, ridgetops, towns, whale-watching perches, historic sites, and archeological ruins.

Among the 44 snorkeling spots are hike-to coves and the secret places that tour boats go.

Kayakers can pick from about 20 put-ins.

Surfers can select from 38 beaches and decide whether to boogie, board, or body surf. Onlookers will find the best places to watch the surfers, windsurfers and kite-boarders ride the big ones.

The text is complimented by 10 maps and 240 photographs. Driving tours-nine of them-take readers to all the attractions, natural wonders, and historic sites.

A Resource Links section provides numbers for free visitor information and recreational outfitters, as well as hand-picked accommodations and local restaurants to suit every budget and taste bud.

A Best Of section lets you pick the right activity to suit your mood and the day. Appendices include free hula shows, farmer's markets, what to pack, climate, history, fauna, and a Hawaiian glossary.

This new and completely revised second edition for 2006 includes a Trailblazer Kids section for adventuring families.

Fit To Surf

Rocky Snyder

List Price: $14.95 By: Emerson Pub Amazon Marketplace: 17 new & used starting at $6.29

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Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Exercise & Fitness -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Exercise & Fitness -> General AAS
Subjects -> Sports -> Training -> Bodybuilding & Weight Training

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 25 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Right On! 5 out of 5 stars.
12 of 12 people found this review helpful.

Since I don't get to surf everyday, this book is exactly what I needed to stay in surfing shape. I have a number of other fitness related books, but none address surfing fitness. This book gave me exactly what I've been looking for. I've since given it to a number of friends and they have all told me how helpful they have found it as well.

awsome hardcore surf book 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

if your learning how to surf and want to progress in this sport then you should chech this book out. full of many different kinds of workouts and it evens plans out workouts that fit your life style....a must have to your surf collection....

Improve Your Surfing Level 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

From new surfers all the way through professional, this surfing guide will help you improve your skill. Great workouts for the surfer are included.

Editorial Review:

Fit To Surf is the surfer's guide to strength training and conditioning. This book is filled with information and photographs to help an individual: build more surfing strength, enhance paddling endurance, increase balance and coordination, reduce chance of injury, and train individually or as a member of a surf team.

The Encyclopedia of Surfing

Matt Warshaw

List Price: $40.00 By: Harcourt Amazon Marketplace: 40 new & used starting at $1.28

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A MUST HAVE FOR ANY SURFER 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 7 people found this review helpful.

If you are a surfer or interested in learning anything about the history and names in the sport past and present then you should immediately buy this book. Two copies. Matt Warshaw does an excellent job of detailing almost every major and minor aspect in the history of the sport from onshore wind to "nat young" to "new jersey". There are small black and white photos throughout the book as well. I guarantee you will learn alot from reading just one letter of the alphabet. After reading this book, you can start to talk like Sam George. Highly informative and hard to put down.

Editorial Review:

Everybody's going surfing. Each year, the surf industry brings in $4.5 billion, and more than two-and-a-half million Americans, from California to Delaware, have caught the wave. Surfers have popped up on postage stamps, in television commercials, and in Hollywood movies, and the sport has developed the remarkable depth, color, and history that can only be cataloged in encyclopedic form.

With 1,500 alphabetical entries and 300 illustrations, The Encyclopedia of Surfing is the most comprehensive review of the people, places, events, equipment, vernacular, and lively history of this fascinating sport by "one of surfing's most knowledgeable historians" (San Francisco Chronicle). A remarkable collection of expert knowledge, spine-tingling stories, and little-known trivia, this is a book that no surfer-or armchair adventurer-will be able to resist.

(10/01/2003)

Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board

Bethany Hamilton, Rick Bundschuh

Amazon Price: $14.99 List Price: $19.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: MTV Amazon Marketplace: 122 new & used starting at $0.01

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Subjects -> Biographies & Memoirs -> Leaders & Notable People -> Religious
Subjects -> Biographies & Memoirs -> General
Subjects -> Biographies & Memoirs -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 31 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

The amazing story of the thirteen-year-old surfer girl who lost her arm in a shark attack but never lost her faith -- and of her triumphant return to competitive surfing.

They say Bethany Hamilton has saltwater in her veins. How else could one explain the tremendous passion that drives her to surf? How else could one explain that nothing -- not even the loss of her arm in a horrific shark attack -- could come between her and the waves?

That Halloween morning in Kauai, Hawaii -- a glorious part of the world, where it's hard to deny the divine -- Bethany responded to the shark's stealth attack with the calm of a girl with God on her side. Pushing pain and panic aside, she immediately began to paddle with one arm, focusing on a single thought: "Get to the beach...." Rushed to the hospital, where her father, Tom Hamilton, was about to undergo knee surgery, Bethany found herself taking his spot in the O.R. It's the kind of coincidence that isn't mere coincidence to the Hamilton family, a clan whose motto could easily be "the family that surfs and prays together stays together." To them it was a sign someone had a greater plan than the one they'd been working on themselves -- which had been to scrape together whatever resources they could to help Bethany rise to the top of her sport. When the first thing Bethany wanted to know after surgery was "When can I surf again?" it became clear that her unfaltering spirit and determination were part of a greater story -- a tale of courage and faith that this modest and soft-spoken girl would come to share with the world.

Soul Surfer is a moving account of Bethany's life as a young surfer, her recovery in the wake of the shark attack, the adjustments she's made to her unique surfing style, her unprecedented bid for a top showing in the World Surfing Championships, and, most fundamentally, her belief in God. It is a story of girl power and spiritual grit that shows that the body is no more essential to surfing -- perhaps even less so -- than the soul.

Inside Maverick's: Portrait of a Monster Wave

Amazon Price: $23.10 List Price: $35.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Chronicle Books Amazon Marketplace: 33 new & used starting at $10.00

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Subjects -> Arts & Photography -> Photography -> Subjects -> Sports
Subjects -> History -> Americas -> United States -> State & Local -> California
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Social Sciences -> Popular Culture

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Every winter when the ocean buoys start to read 10-, 15-, and 20-feet, the coast of Half Moon Bay, California, is transformed by an enormous wave called Maverick's. Recognized as one of the most dangerous big wave surf breaks in the world, Maverick's is big, cold, and sickeningly powerful. It's the best show in town, but until now you could only see it through a pair of binoculars. Inside Maverick's brings you right onto the sickening ledge of a 75-foot wave with jaw-dropping photographs and gritty insider accounts of what it's really like out there. Sports columnist Bruce Jenkins and Maverick's surfer Grant Washburn have interviewed top big wave surfers Peter Mel, Zach Wourmhoudt, Evan Slater, and others to discuss every aspect of the freakish wave from the paddle out to the terrifying drop to the inevitable and brutal wipeouts. Covering fifteen years of incredible surfing with photos that have never before been published, Inside Maverick's grants unparalleled access to this legendary wave and the elite core of big wave surfers that are obsessed with challenging it.

Walking on Water: The Spirituality of the World's Top Surfers

Jeremy V. Jones

Amazon Price: $10.39 List Price: $12.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Regal Amazon Marketplace: 40 new & used starting at $2.06

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Subjects -> Children's Books -> Religions -> Christianity -> General
Subjects -> Children's Books -> Religions -> Christianity -> General AAS
Subjects -> Children's Books -> Religions -> Inspirational

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Surfing is spiritual. Ask most wave riders and they’ll describe some sense of deeper connection with the water, the waves or the power around them. Surfing to them is a spiritual experience. In a subculture that’s traditionally known for its rebellion, here you’ll find a deep undercurrent of faith amongst these top wave riders who share an understanding that the Creator of the waves also desires to know and relate with them. In these pages, you’ll meet top surfers such as C.J. Hobgood, who rose to the top of the surf world but found it ultimately dissatisfying; Bethany Hamilton, a courageous teen who survived a shark attack and returned to the sport; surf legend Tom Curren, a middle-aged father of four whose comeback of sorts is the talk of the surf world; and Al Merrick, a remarkable surfboard shaper who crafts the vehicles ridden by surf stars. Discover what makes these celebrities and others believe that surfing is meaningless without a deep satisfying faith in something more.

Caught Inside: A Surfer's Year on the California Coast

Daniel Duane

Amazon Price: $11.20 List Price: $14.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: North Point Press Amazon Marketplace: 119 new & used starting at $0.98

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 67 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Take me away... 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I haven't finished the book yet, but as far as I am concerned, this book deserves all the 5 stars I gave it!
I live in a place surrounded by mountains, where people are very narrow-minded, and distant sooo many miles from my beloved USA; therefore, I am always looking for a book that keeps me company during the cold months of winter that separates me from my summer vacation in California.
I need this to keep my mind occupied, and I definitely enjoy books that can describe the coast and the deep feelings and believings of surfers so thoroughly.
What I particularly appreciate about this book is the way he describes the surfing and other facts (history, sharks and otters ways of living, etc.) related to the life of a surfer.
I definitely recommend this book, you gotta give it a try!

Editorial Review:

A wondrous, uproarious, and surprisingly informative account of a year spend surfing, Caught Inside marks the arrival of an exuberant new voice of the outdoors. This remarkable narrative of Daniel Duane’s life on the water is enhanced by good-humored explanations of the physics of wave dynamics, the intricate art of surfboard design, and lyrical, sharp-eyed descriptions of the flora and fauna of the Pacific wilderness. From Captain Cook and Mark Twain to Robinson Jeffers and Jack London, from portraits of famous (and infamous) surfers to an analysis of Gidget’s perverse significance, Duane expertly uncovers the myths and symbols bound up in one of our most vibrant and recognizably American subjects.

Surfings Greatest Misadventures: Dropping in on the Unexpected

Amazon Price: $10.85 List Price: $15.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Casagrande Press Amazon Marketplace: 36 new & used starting at $8.90

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Subjects -> Entertainment -> Humor -> Sports
Subjects -> Sports -> Miscellaneous -> Essays
Subjects -> Sports -> Water Sports -> Surfing

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good Surfers 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This book expertly delves into the surfing subculture with stories that every surfer can relate to. I have never surfed Trestles, but the stories of what went on between the surfers and the military base were hysterical. Even non-surfers I read it to found it extremely entertaining.

Great stories, told in traditional surfer (embellished) fashion... 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Surf stories are always the best things surfers write about. Maybe because they are such interesting people who usually sail along in the tradewinds of life but still find themselves in the most extraordinary circumstances. This group of stories nailed the genre just right, the way Steve Pezman explained the mystery of the trestles situation in the Nixon years, Matt George's very strange experience in Northern California, and on and on. I would lend it to one of my other surfer friends, but I will want to read it again and again year after year. This is a book you would never want out of your possession, but keep it in the car, take it to the beach and pass it around but be sure to get it back. What a treasure. Have any more stars?

Editorial Review:

The true stories in this one-of-a-kind collection cross the spectrum from terrifying to comical to downright bizarre. It prepares you for the most gripping and unbelievable stories about big waves, shark attacks, tsunamis, boating disasters, devastating wipeouts, pranks, and bad judgment calls. These thirty tales, by surf journalists, filmmakers, magazine editors, watermen, and everyday surfers, illuminate the less enchanting aspects of a life committed to surf.

Return by Water: Surf Stories and Adventures

Kimball Taylor

Amazon Price: $13.72 List Price: $14.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Dimdim Publishing Amazon Marketplace: 10 new & used starting at $8.09

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Subjects -> Nonfiction -> True Accounts
Subjects -> Sports -> Water Sports -> Surfing
Subjects -> Sports -> Water Sports -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Rad Travel Stories 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I really enjoyed "Return by Water." Each story places you in beautiful, isolated beaches and towns around the world with clever, humorous tales that allows the reader to drift off and place themselves in Kimball's flip-flops.

A Terrific Read 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Kimball Taylor writes with succinct clarity, beguiling empathy and a crazed, matter of fact humor that will delight most anyone who loves a story. He travels the world, knows it's oceans and understands that getting to the water and meeting the people along the way is essential to the joy of surfing.

Driving desperately through the South African outback to legendary waves - somewhere, he writes, "In a daze of passing kilometers, I begin to suspect the positioning of the potholes is not senseless, does not exist in chaos, but that each communicates in a kind of morse code. And I believe I know what they were saying. They read, dot, dot, "Get off the f*@#ing road before you die here."

Any adventurous surfer has been there, the rest of us wish that we had. Return By Water is a terrific book and will have to suffice until Kimball's next one.

Editorial Review:

From the big-wave surfers of Tahiti and the salty hurricane chasers of New England, to the cliffs of Molokai's infamous leper colony and the Wild Coast of South Africa's Transkei Homeland, Return by Water brings light to surfers' lives around the world with amazing sense of place and deft character portraits of the famous, ordinary and irascible surfer alike. Follow surf journalist Kimball Taylor on his travels through South Africa, Ecuador, Brazil, Mexico, Hawaii, French Polynesia, Indonesia and more. The journey is as transforming and definitive as any surfer's first trip away from home.

Learn to Surf

James MacLaren

Amazon Price: $10.36 List Price: $12.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: The Lyons Press Amazon Marketplace: 55 new & used starting at $2.15

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 18 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Buy This Book!!! 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.

Every beginning surfer should read this book. I picked it up and couldn't put it down. MacLaren takes you through every aspect of surfing with wit and humor. I read it cover to cover, then went out and bought a 9 foot longboard (as suggested) and hit the beach. Within the first hour in the water I was standing up and riding waves in, without shelling out alot of cash for lessons. You don't need lessons, all you need is THIS BOOK!!!

Cool little book 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I needed to do some research on surfing. This book was a great, little book that helped me out. It has some fun insights into surfing philosophy, history, materials, boards, waves, etc. It's like a surfing for dummies, but more fun and easier to read. I ended up also getting the Encylcopedia of Surfing, which was much easier to read after picking up this book.

Good beginners book 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book is a great book for the beginning surfer. It's easy to read and very informative.

Its alllllll about the pop-up............. 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Obviously the only way to learn how to actually surf is to get in the water and do it, with some lessons, or the gumption to just go for it. But this book will help you out with the stuff that you may want to know first. So thank you for writing this book, and hopefully one day I will get my butt out there on a longboard (for beginners. And the pop-up is the most important part.

Editorial Review:

An introductory guide to surfing, body-boarding, and body-surfing