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Gidget [Paperback]

Frederick Kohner , Kathy Kohner Zuckerman
4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)

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Book Description

June 1, 2001
My English comp teacher Mr. Glicksberg says if you want to be a writer you have to—quote—sit on a window sill and get all pensive and stuff and jot down descriptions. Unquote Glicksberg! I don't know what kind of things he writes but I found my inspiration in Malibu with a radio, my best girlfriends, and absolutely zillions of boys for miles. I absolutely had to write everything down because I heard that when you get older you forget things, and I'd be the most miserable woman in the world if I forgot all about Moondoggie and what happened this summer. I absolutely owe the world my story. (And every word is true. I swear.)

This is Franzie, part Holden Caulfield, part Lolita. The guys call her Gidget—short for girl midget—and she’s a girl coming of age in the summer of 1957. Based on the experiences of his own daughter, Frederick Kohner's trend-setting novel became an international sensation and turned its irrepressible heroine into an American pop culture icon whose voice still echoes every thrill, every fear, and every hope that every teenager ever had about growing up.


Frequently Bought Together

Gidget + Accidental Icon: The Real Gidget Story + The Complete Gidget Collection (Gidget / Gidget Goes Hawaiian / Gidget Goes to Rome)
Price for all three: $32.02

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If all American literature comes from Huckleberry Finn, all American surf culture comes from Gidget, the ostensible diary of Kathy Kohner, a teensy, gutsy teenage girl who crashed the all-male scene at Malibu Beach north of L.A. in 1957 and earned, from Moondoggie and others, the nickname Gidget, which meant "Girl Midget." Her father, the German immigrant screenwriter Frederick Kohner, fascinated by the beach-shack counterculture, interviewed his perky daughter at length, eavesdropped with permission on her phone calls, fictionalized her adventures, and batted out this influential bestseller. He nailed a tiny subculture's new form of speech ("If you want to know what goes on in Loveville ... Dig Number One: being gone on a boy is more important than having a boy gone on you.") and made it a pop-culture staple. Newly reissued with the real Gidget's picture on the cover (as on the original hardback), the book is very slim (appropriately enough) and historically beguiling. You'll like her--you'll really like her! --Tim Appelo

From Publishers Weekly

"I'm not quite five feet but if it hadn't been for that year-round swimming I'd have probably stayed a dwarf," writes the teenage surfer chick in the upcoming reissue of Gidget by Frederick Kohner. The kitschy, American pop culture classic was written in 1957, hit Hollywood in 1959 and returns for summer 2001, brimming with tales of guys, waves, hopes and dreams. Kohner based the novel on the life of his then 16-year-old daughter, Kathy Kohner Zuckerman, the charming young thing who penetrated what was previously a male-dominated sport with gusto. She writes a foreword for this version, which has a splashy cover that will appeal to teens and older fans alike.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


Product Details

  • Paperback: 176 pages
  • Publisher: Berkley Trade; Reissue edition (June 1, 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0425179621
  • ISBN-13: 978-0425179628
  • Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #145,583 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars
(20)
4.9 out of 5 stars
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Just a really great book, and you have to read it to see what I mean! Joan Maydet  |  8 reviewers made a similar statement
I read this book when I was a teenager, and have hung on to it for 30 years! Heidi L. Marshall  |  2 reviewers made a similar statement
While not particularly deep or philosophical, this novel is a delightful coming-of-age story. Tracey L. Satterthwaite  |  1 reviewer made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Don't judge a book by its... movie? July 7, 2002
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
When my mother thrust Gidget at me about ten years ago, I shuddered. My only experience with the perky California teen was the movie (no dis intended to fans of the flick). Frederick Kohner's novel is a whole other ball of wax (board wax, natch!). While not particularly deep or philosophical, this novel is a delightful coming-of-age story.

Gidget's trials and tribulations convey all the horror, delight, confusion, and wonder of the teen years, from finding a pastime for which she has a passion (surfing), to the exultation, heartache (and, again, exultation) of her first real crush.

As Gidget takes the reader along on the magical summer of her fifteenth year, she also provides an in-depth tour of the California surf culture in the mid to late 1950s. Every sub-culture has its own lingo, and Kohner gives the reader a colorful, entertaining look at what has become an American Icon: the professional beach bum.

Each time I reread my faded, old copy of Gidget, I prayed that it would hold together for one more perusal. Imagine my delight when I found that it had been reissued! It may not be Shakespeare, but Kohner's "bitchen" novel is a classic of American pop culture!

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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars This is a book to remember June 13, 2001
Format:Paperback
I read this book when I was a teenager, and have hung on to it for 30 years! It is definitely one of my favorite "feel good" books. Gidget is the type of girl that every red blooded American teenage girl wants to be. She lives the kind of life that most of us dream about. The sand and surf of Malibu Beach come alive in this book. Moondoggie, and the other surfers are really fun to read about, and get to know. This book is recommended as a great summer read for teenagers, and adults. I am so glad to see that it has been released again for an entire new generation to read and enjoy. It is great fun!
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Fun, Fun January 30, 2003
Format:Paperback
It's true this is not a work of a profound and philosophical nature. On the other hand, it is a fun and quick read. The fact that it is at least loosely based on the life of Kathy Kohner and that it was written by her father, who picked up some ideas for the book by eavesdropping on her telephone conversations, only adds to the enjoyment. The beach culture/counterculture presented in this book ushered in not only the Gidget movies but also all of the beach-oriented movies from the early and mid-60s. It's easy enough for anyone who recalls being a teenager to identify with at least some of the teenage angst contained within Gidget. If you're looking for a light, sunny read on a dark winter's day or at any other time, give it a chance.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome
I had to read this book for class. I really liked it. It was different and its an easy read. A book with growth and relatability
Published 3 months ago by Kalee Fine
5.0 out of 5 stars Nice reality based coming of age story
Growing up I watched this show in reruns and the movies on Saturday afternoon tv. The TV show in particular was sugary. The book is not. Read more
Published 3 months ago by melinda cox
5.0 out of 5 stars Great short easy read
This was an entertaining book. I just wish it was longer. I wish I had 10 books as fun and enjoyable as this one. Read more
Published 4 months ago by William D. Hause
5.0 out of 5 stars A True Great in the Field of American History
College instructors all through the land require their students to read historical books, like Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, but one of the most culture changing books in America is... Read more
Published 4 months ago by William A. Hensler
5.0 out of 5 stars gidget
i bought this book because i had seen the original gidget on florence henderson's show and she mentioned that it was the 50th anniversary of the book being published so i had to... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Elaine Croteau
5.0 out of 5 stars Gidget[the real story!
If you grew up in the 50s and 60s then you know about Gidget! She brought the surf culture to the east coast even before any of us had heard of the Beach Boys! Read more
Published 11 months ago by Adrienne M. Butvinik
5.0 out of 5 stars The Gidget....Still a great read!
It was a great read the first time it was out and now here again it's still great and interesting....Gidget is one bitchen surfer babe!
Published 16 months ago by Charlyn
5.0 out of 5 stars "Honest to goodness it's the absolute ultimate!"
"OH, Gidget, Gidget, Gidget..."

The movie's great (the first will always be my favorite--Sandra Dee & James Darren are forever Gidget and Moondoggie in my eyes). Read more
Published 23 months ago by RJRo20
5.0 out of 5 stars The Book
I liked the TV show and was interested to read the original book. The book was very much as I expected and I enjoyed it. I also liked what was added by the real "Gidget".
Published on December 25, 2009 by Joan Cowan
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the great American Novels
Frederick Kohner, a naturalized American has written one of the great American novels--no kidding--this puts Kohner in a class with James Fenimore Cooper and Herman Melville. Read more
Published on March 29, 2008 by Lawrence Rowswell
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