Paul Theroux's New Book on Aging Big Wave Rider Drops Today...

[Autoprax]

Did you guys read Motherland?

What did you think?

I thought there were flashes of brilliance but it was too long.

 

[elcalvo]

I did! After reading 51 pages I put the book in the Little Library in our neighborhood. I was going to throw it away, but my wife suggested the LL.

That's why they make Public Libraries.
All I had to do was put it in the dropbox with no regrets about the money I wasted.

 

[Muscles]

Everyone needs to look up e-libraries. Go to your local library and sign up. Then download whatever app their using. Access to thousands of kindle or audiobooks that you can borrow for free.

I tell people about it and they look at me like I have two heads and ask me why I wouldn't just buy stuff off Amazon.

 

[kidfury]

this is how I like to read

I'm running out of mexico books and you can only gaze in to the abyss of McCarthy
for so long before the abyss of McCarthy gazes in to you

Have you read most of his books?

 

[Chocki]

reading anything surf related, 'cept of course this here erBB, is already highly suspect.

surf related literature normally leaves me a bit intellectually unsatisfied. if I'm going to read, it's going to be something worth reading.

cannot say that I remember ANY surf related literature. and I know I've read plenty... just goes to show.

literature is so rich and deep, why waste time reading something you have more fun doing?



don't even talk to the people in the parking lot anymore. total dissonance, MP levels even.

surfers bore to no end, clog up parking, and the line-up. people who ride waves stylishly on the other hand, few and far between, and not too many of them interesting enough to read.

only exception that comes to mind: Derek Hynd

Derek Hynd x2
FWIW I really enjoyed reading this a long time ago

North Shore Chronicles

In this memorable account of 17 trips he made to Hawaii's North Shore starting in 1974, Bruce Jenkins, considered the Kerouac of surf writers, profiles the area's elite, the superstars who live to conquer Hawaii's deadliest waves. Here are the egoists, stylists, gladiators, and purists of the...

books.google.com

 

[Autoprax]

Hynd. Too many fragment. Affected writing style. Distraction.

 

[freeride76]

North Shore Chronicles was great.

 

[20W-50 and blood]

in-depth discussion of books, in genreal, let alone on here? this depresses me and restore smy faith in malt liquor. and hey...whatddayaknow...guess what is in my hand!

 

[20W-50 and blood]

actually....can i crowdfund or whatever it si called a book? you guys got people you can pimp it out to...maybe i can write a ranting piece of sh!t, talking about everything, for a 5G "advance"?

 

[ElOgro]

Have you read most of his books?

Yes. 70%+.

The best books I’ve read about mejico de las tunas

https://www.google.com.mx/amp/s/vdocuments.mx/amp/tragicomedia-mexicana-jose-agustinpdf.html

Three volumes, from Lázaro Cárdenas to Ernie Zedillo. You were here for part of that at different times as I was, it covers the full spectrum, both culturally and politically, and is an excellent sad and humorous description, as the title implies, of what got the country so far from god and so close to the USA.

I’ve bought the paperbacks twice and the kindle. Sadly it’s not remotely translatable to English, much as surfing isn’t translatable to the masses. Or many “surfers” for that matter.

Part 1 of PT’s book is a bore if you’re looking for surfing action to the core li dat. Maybe reread Cap 0 for a real surfer’s perspective. Or Chas Smith.

I admit it was somewhat of a struggle to get through but there’s definitely some meat in there, although not readily apparent for many. It’s worth finishing, unless you’ll never get old.

 

[tenover]

This book is laughably bad. It's like someone adapted "North Shore" for the page, with some elements of "In God's Hands" thrown in. I don't know why people who don't surf are drawn to writing about surfing. I'm barely into the book and I don't know if there are any more cliches about surfing, surfers, or Hawaii left. Theroux should've stuck to what he knows and does best. This ain't it.

Exactly. Having a rough time trying to convince myself to finish the book after a few chapters.

 

[freeride76]

Hynd. Too many fragment. Affected writing style. Distraction.

It's definitely not affected. It's how he thinks and talks.

Some people find it excessively cryptic and thus distracting.

I like the way his mind works and thus like his writing.

 

[Autoprax]

It's definitely not affected. It's how he thinks and talks.

Some people find it excessively cryptic and thus distracting.

I like the way his mind works and thus like his writing.

I just remember reading something by him a long time ago.

If you think the style should be transparent his might make you take pause.

I'll go revisit.

Can you recommend some example of his good writing?

Derek Hynd: Conducting Chaos - Waterpeople Podcast

Derek, one of the brightest minds in the surfing constellation, Constantine Bay, 1979/80 via Constantinesurf In episode 6, Derek sings the praises of gannets, far feels theory and…

waterpeoplepodcast.com

Rasta's girl friend has great vocal tone and verbal ability.

I think Rasta is right about the eye loss causing a hyper condensation response.

But it's not the energy that when to the eye going to his mind.

It's the catastrophic event that signaled the nervous system to release resources that it hides from one's conscious awareness to use in the event of an emergency.

But Hynd was fun to listen too.

 

[billypilgrim]

in-depth discussion of books, in genreal, let alone on here? this depresses me and restore smy faith in malt liquor. and hey...whatddayaknow...guess what is in my hand!

Your let your faith in malt liquor falter?