Return by Water: Surf Stories and Adventures [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Kimball Taylor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2005

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.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A series of surf stories that tell us more about why we live as surfers than how we do it." --Brad Melekian, Surfer Magazine, 2005

"It's [Taylor's] adventurous spirit that drives the stories in Return by Water." --Nina Garin, Union-Tribune, 2005

About the Author

Kimball Taylor has been scolded by a leper; robbed in Peru; nearly duped by a Balinese transvestite; riddled by malarial mosquitoes in Ecuador; attacked by baboons in Africa; and mocked, browbeaten and harangued by great and not-so-great surfers around the world. A senior writer for Surfer magazine, Taylor also contributes to various other surf publications. He holds a bachelor's degree in journalism and is currently a candidate for a master's in creative writing at San Diego State University. This is his first collection of stories.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Dimdim Publishing; illustrated edition edition (August 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0976538105
• ISBN-13: 978-0976538103
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,097,924 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Takes you away, October 12, 2005

By 

James Mann - See all my reviews

This review is from: Return by Water: Surf Stories and Adventures (Paperback)

This book, and the words written within are unlike any stories you would find in the average surf magazine. Its nice to see an alternative for those who would rather read a great book and not a magazine full of ads.

The author uses a unique and descriptive style to take you into his adventures, as if he was telling you the story over a few beers at a bar, with colorful sarcasm and humour. You feel drawn in and itching to read the next chapter to see what hilarity, mishaps and strange charcacters the author will meet in the next journey.

Highly recomended.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kimball would go, October 19, 2005

By 

Da Hawk (Sonora) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Return by Water: Surf Stories and Adventures (Paperback)

For every Jon Krakauer there should be two Kimball Taylor's.Each story in this book is exceptionally written, but the beauty lies in the tales themselves and the inclusive vibe Taylor extends to bring the reader with him. Krakauer's life-threatening intensity is replaced by honest adventure that anyone can get themselves into. Getting out is another story completely, and Taylor tells it beautifully.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not Just for Surfers!, November 9, 2006

By 

S. Laddon (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Return by Water: Surf Stories and Adventures (Paperback)

Return By Water is an engaging, humourous collection of stories that explore not only the adventures of surfing, but the world of fearless travel. The author has a wonderfully insouciant voice, vividly describing characters and settings that range from the wilds of Ecuador to the more pedestrian ( or so one would think!) Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Some of my personal favorites were 'El Brazo', a lovely tale about a little Ecuadorean boy living on the ranch/'hotel' where the main character stays while checking out the surf scene. He is rewarded with the protagonist's surf board at the conclusion of the story, but not without heretofore unforseen complications. 'Bachong and the Bemo' describes with a wonderfully fresh perspective the thoughts of an American abroad in Java during the events of 9/11.

Overall, these stories flow wonderfully from one to the next, and were a joy to read. I was throughly delighted with the book, and give this collection my highest recommendation. I sense this is the first of many books from this author.