The Encyclopedia of Surfing [Paperback]

Matt Warshaw (Author), William Finnegan (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 7, 2005

Now in paperback and updated to include forty new entries, this "leviathan of surf literature" (Surfing magazine) is a remarkable collection of expert knowledge, spine-tingling stories, and little-known trivia. 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).

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. The Encyclopedia of Surfing is a book that no surfer-or armchair adventurer-will be able to resist.

(20031001)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

What's that sound coming from the beach? That's the rustle of pages turning, as would-be immortals look themselves up in The Encyclopedia of Surfing, surfing's first comprehensive reference book. The Encyclopedia of Surfing chronicles nearly every bit of wave-riding--its history, places, mythology, champions, tragedies, in-jokes, and minutiae. Author Matt Warshaw, former editor of Surfer magazine, and his fellow researchers took three years to put together this prodigious tome. The most surprising thing about the book is its terrific readability. Though the 1,500 entries are organized in typical encyclopedic style, one after the other alphabetically, none of them--not a single one--is completely boring. Not even the one on the technicalities of fin placement. In fact, the book is a trap, leading unsuspecting readers on a wandering journey from pioneer surfer Duke Kahanamoku to the development of hollow boards to the lifeguards who used them to lifeguard Eddie Aikau to his home in Waimea Bay to.... Suddenly, hours have gone by and there's still the huge entry on Gidget to read. Illustrated like a dictionary, this book has only one or two small black-and-white photos every couple of pages. A history of surfing introduces the entries; at the end, a bibliography, round-up of surf contest results, and lists of movies, magazines, and music provide the big finish. Though Warshaw's first three books (SurfRiders, Above the Roar, and Maverick's) were entertaining looks at surfers and surfing, this one makes him the official Kahuna of surf lore. Surfing is a multi-billion-dollar industry, flinging hordes of people and buckets of money into the waves each year. The Encyclopedia of Surfing is its new bible. --Therese Littleton --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

This volume is a gift to surfers, both neophytes and pros. Warshaw, a former pro-surfer and editor of Surfer magazine, offers the sport's first all-encompassing encyclopedia. "Cheater five," "Malibu U," "Gidget"-if you can name it, Warshaw's included it in his exhaustive catalog. There are entries for each physical part of the wave (such as the lip, curl and trough); detailed discussions of surf movies, magazines and books; types of surfboards, including both physical descriptions and the philosophy of surfing each ("animosity between shortboarders and longboarders has been present to one degree or another since the 1970s"); and bios of pro surfers and board shapers. Warshaw doesn't gloss over the sport's ugly sides, and devotes several pages to such topics as "violence and surfing," "localism," "surf rage," and "sharks and surfing." He offers helpful information for each country, state or county where surfing is popular-from Oregon to Californian, Maine to Florida, and from the Great Lakes to Texas. This is an indispensable tome for any surfer.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 816 pages
• Publisher: Mariner Books (November 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0156032511
• ISBN-13: 978-0156032513
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.9 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #562,717 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #100 in Books > Education & Reference > Encyclopedias > Sports

More About the Author

Matt Warshaw was born in Los Angeles, began riding waves in 1969, and had a brief, undistinguished, resume-padding career as a pro surfer during the early 1980s. He worked at SURFER Magazine for six years, and became editor in 1990. Quitting what has been called "the best job in surfing," Warshaw enrolled at UC Berkeley, and in 1993 took a BA in History, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. He continued to write, and published articles in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Esquire, Interview, and Outside.

Warshaw has written eight books since 1997, including the Encyclopedia of Surfing ("A living, breathing masterpiece," according to Salon.com), and the just-published History of Surfing. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin wrote that "Warshaw has written more cogent words about surfing than any other human," and the UK's Independent added that "the author appears to have attained total omniscience in his field."

Warshaw lives in San Francisco with his wife and son.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Leviathan of Surf Books, October 2, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Encyclopedia of Surfing (Hardcover)

This is the ultimate surfing book for both the hard core surfer and the wannabee. Everything under the sun (and surf) is covered and presented in an interesting and informative way. The book is big so you definitely get your money's worth. I haven't finished reading all of it--but I'm not sure that even possible. It's the kind of book you can pick up and spent 10-15 minutes reading a few entries and then come back to it later. I liked Warshaw's other books, particularly Mavericks, but this is a really different beast. An ambitous attempt to cover the entire scope of the sport in detail. He pulls it off totally.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like Surfers Journal... almost, January 28, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Encyclopedia of Surfing (Hardcover)

I surf almost every day and can never seem to quench my thirst. My favorite read, by far, of all books and periodicals is The Surfers Journal. It truly captures the many angles of the sport. This book is somewhat in the same vein. It's exhaustive, comprehensive and true to the roots. If you love the history of the sport buy it. If you read Surfing, have never ridden more than one type of board or never traveled to pursue a new wave... don't (do those things instead... THEN buy it). Good bedside book... alongside my Bible.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Book on Surfing Ever?, September 29, 2003

By 

A Stoked Surfer (Huntington Beach, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Encyclopedia of Surfing (Hardcover)

I think it must be. This massive book (800 pages plus) covers everyhing about this great sport. But what is most amazing, is that the writing is so excellent--all of the characters, surf breaks, technology, competitions, movies, music, really come alive under Warshaw's unique eye. All the facts are there in excrutiating detail, but the way they are presented makes reading the book addictive. This has got to be the new bible for the sport.