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Under the Wave at Waimea
“Theroux’s work is like no one else’s.” –Francine Prose, New York Times Book Review
From legendary writer Paul Theroux comes an atmospheric novel following a big-wave surfer as he confronts aging, privilege, mortality, and whose lives we choose to remember.
Now in his sixties, big-wave surfer Joe Sharkey has passed his prime and is losing his “stoke.” The younger surfers around the breaks on the north shore of Oahu still idolize the Shark, but his sponsors are looking elsewhere. One night, while driving home from a bar after one too many, Joe accidentally kills a stranger near Waimea, a tragedy that sends his life out of control. As the repercussions of the accident spiral ever wider, Joe’s devoted girlfriend Olive throws herself into uncovering the dead man’s identity and helping Joe find vitality and refuge in the waves again.
Set in the lush, gritty underside of an island paradise readers rarely see, Under the Wave at Waimea offers a dramatic, affecting commentary on privilege, mortality, and the lives we choose to remember. It is a masterstroke by one of the greatest writers of our time.
From legendary writer Paul Theroux comes an atmospheric novel following a big-wave surfer as he confronts aging, privilege, mortality, and whose lives we choose to remember.
Now in his sixties, big-wave surfer Joe Sharkey has passed his prime and is losing his “stoke.” The younger surfers around the breaks on the north shore of Oahu still idolize the Shark, but his sponsors are looking elsewhere. One night, while driving home from a bar after one too many, Joe accidentally kills a stranger near Waimea, a tragedy that sends his life out of control. As the repercussions of the accident spiral ever wider, Joe’s devoted girlfriend Olive throws herself into uncovering the dead man’s identity and helping Joe find vitality and refuge in the waves again.
Set in the lush, gritty underside of an island paradise readers rarely see, Under the Wave at Waimea offers a dramatic, affecting commentary on privilege, mortality, and the lives we choose to remember. It is a masterstroke by one of the greatest writers of our time.
416 pages, Paperback
First published April 13, 2021
380 people are currently reading
4665 people want to read
About the author
Paul Theroux
237 books2,601 followersPaul Edward Theroux is an American travel writer and novelist, whose best known work is The Great Railway Bazaar (1975), a travelogue about a trip he made by train from Great Britain through Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, through South Asia, then South-East Asia, up through East Asia, as far east as Japan, and then back across Russia to his point of origin. Although perhaps best known as a travelogue writer, Theroux has also published numerous works of fiction, some of which were made into feature films. He was awarded the 1981 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his novel The Mosquito Coast.
He is the father of Marcel and Louis Theroux, and the brother of Alexander and Peter. Justin Theroux is his nephew.
He is the father of Marcel and Louis Theroux, and the brother of Alexander and Peter. Justin Theroux is his nephew.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 305 reviews
March 11, 2024
Joe Sharkey is a big wave surfer. At sixty two maybe his best days are behind him, but when he wakes every day his first thought is still to check out how the waves are today, and living on Hawaii’s North Shore he’s in the perfect spot to take advantage of any opportunity to wax his board and get in amongst them. He can throw his board on top of his car for a quick drive to the beach or if he feels like it he can even put it under his arm and walk there, it’s close enough. The waves here can be immense, up to forty feet high and only experienced surfers are skilled enough to take them on. But Sharkey – known as The Shark in these parts – has seen it all and done it all, he’s surfed all over the world and won many prestigious competitions, the waves hold no fear for him and they roll in biggest at Waimea Bay.
On this day we witness just how perfect his life can be. When he wakes he has uncomplicated sex with his live in lover, Olive, an English nurse he met some six weeks ago. When she’s departed for work he gathers fruit and eggs from his garden, feeds his chickens and admires the local flora and fauna before having a lazy breakfast and then he’s off to the beach. He surfs and swims and sleeps on the beach when he’s tired. In this way the whole day passes and as light dims he makes his way home.
We learn of his early life, his struggles as a non-native Hawaiian, a haole, resulting in some bullying at school and Joe’s regular escape to the beach as an alternative to attending lessons. His father was a forbidding military man, a Colonel who was seldom at home, and his mother someone who he struggled to find a bond with. But as a loner, a sea dog, he found his place amongst the waves. Later, when he’d become a ‘name’, he became friends with the legendary journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson, with whom he shared some bizarre episodes. He had no interest in what was going on in the wider world and saw no need to clutter his mind with extraneous knowledge. So in time his own world became a very simple one, he’d tell stories of his adventures, drink, smoke quite a bit of pakalolo, enjoy the company of women and most importantly he’d surf. But then it changed. An incident occurred and suddenly a rude interruption is introduced to this comfortable life.
Perhaps it could be said that not much happens in this story, and to some extent, that is true, except it misses the point that there is just so much texture to this book. It’s a deep exploration of one man: who he is, what made him that way, and a reminder that things that can come along to derail any human being. It’s about private thoughts and relationships and what makes people what they are. The comparison between Sharkey and his friend Hunter is an interesting one: they are very different people – Thompson wild and constantly seeking attention and Sharkey the quiet, storytelling loner – but more than that, it’s clear that the writer will leave his mark on the world, the indelible footprint of his work, whilst lacking video evidence of his achievements Joe’s actions are instantly erased.
Theroux’s writing had me entranced from the start. I believed in this man, I thought I understood him – I envied him. But then I was reminded that life is more complex than that, that people are more fragile, that the good times are not a permanent feature in anyone’s life; it’s then about how we deal with the challenges that are thrown at us and who we have around us to lean on and who can support us. There are elements here that will, I think, frustrate some readers - they might find the surfing episodes somewhat repetitious, the regular use of Hawaiian words (often unexplained) frustrating and, late in the book, the lack of challenge to Sharkey in respect of his actions bemusing. But that’s for others to judge. For me, these were minor irritations in what I found to be a totally engrossing, thought-provoking and an absolutely memorable reading experience.
It’s a chunky book and it took me a while to work through it and I found myself becoming more and more interested in the sheer excitement of surfing, to the extent I began watching online videos of surfers doing their thing at the spots featured in the book. And there’s a long-term goal that Sharkey regularly alludes to within the story, that of tracking down and surfing the largest wave of them all – the Big Mamma, a hundred foot monster. And in my internet surfing (excuse the pun), I came across the story of real-life surfer Garrett McNamara who, it’s clear, is the inspiration for some of the action in this book. Garrett is actually featured in the narrative, but I’ll not spoil the fun by disclosing any more than that here.
A wonderful book, brilliantly written, and one that will undoubtedly live long in my memory.
My thanks to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
On this day we witness just how perfect his life can be. When he wakes he has uncomplicated sex with his live in lover, Olive, an English nurse he met some six weeks ago. When she’s departed for work he gathers fruit and eggs from his garden, feeds his chickens and admires the local flora and fauna before having a lazy breakfast and then he’s off to the beach. He surfs and swims and sleeps on the beach when he’s tired. In this way the whole day passes and as light dims he makes his way home.
We learn of his early life, his struggles as a non-native Hawaiian, a haole, resulting in some bullying at school and Joe’s regular escape to the beach as an alternative to attending lessons. His father was a forbidding military man, a Colonel who was seldom at home, and his mother someone who he struggled to find a bond with. But as a loner, a sea dog, he found his place amongst the waves. Later, when he’d become a ‘name’, he became friends with the legendary journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson, with whom he shared some bizarre episodes. He had no interest in what was going on in the wider world and saw no need to clutter his mind with extraneous knowledge. So in time his own world became a very simple one, he’d tell stories of his adventures, drink, smoke quite a bit of pakalolo, enjoy the company of women and most importantly he’d surf. But then it changed. An incident occurred and suddenly a rude interruption is introduced to this comfortable life.
Perhaps it could be said that not much happens in this story, and to some extent, that is true, except it misses the point that there is just so much texture to this book. It’s a deep exploration of one man: who he is, what made him that way, and a reminder that things that can come along to derail any human being. It’s about private thoughts and relationships and what makes people what they are. The comparison between Sharkey and his friend Hunter is an interesting one: they are very different people – Thompson wild and constantly seeking attention and Sharkey the quiet, storytelling loner – but more than that, it’s clear that the writer will leave his mark on the world, the indelible footprint of his work, whilst lacking video evidence of his achievements Joe’s actions are instantly erased.
Theroux’s writing had me entranced from the start. I believed in this man, I thought I understood him – I envied him. But then I was reminded that life is more complex than that, that people are more fragile, that the good times are not a permanent feature in anyone’s life; it’s then about how we deal with the challenges that are thrown at us and who we have around us to lean on and who can support us. There are elements here that will, I think, frustrate some readers - they might find the surfing episodes somewhat repetitious, the regular use of Hawaiian words (often unexplained) frustrating and, late in the book, the lack of challenge to Sharkey in respect of his actions bemusing. But that’s for others to judge. For me, these were minor irritations in what I found to be a totally engrossing, thought-provoking and an absolutely memorable reading experience.
It’s a chunky book and it took me a while to work through it and I found myself becoming more and more interested in the sheer excitement of surfing, to the extent I began watching online videos of surfers doing their thing at the spots featured in the book. And there’s a long-term goal that Sharkey regularly alludes to within the story, that of tracking down and surfing the largest wave of them all – the Big Mamma, a hundred foot monster. And in my internet surfing (excuse the pun), I came across the story of real-life surfer Garrett McNamara who, it’s clear, is the inspiration for some of the action in this book. Garrett is actually featured in the narrative, but I’ll not spoil the fun by disclosing any more than that here.
A wonderful book, brilliantly written, and one that will undoubtedly live long in my memory.
My thanks to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
May 13, 2022
Narcissistic old white guy ponders his life after accidentally killing a homeless man on a bicycle. The following quote sums things up nicely . . . .
the offense of boasters was not the oversized, obnoxious stories but that they were bores
This probably would work better for other old, narcissistic white dudes than it did for me. I’ve only read The Mosquito Coast before this and thought Theroux deserved a second chance. Well, I gave it to him and now I can die knowing that.
To be fair, had this started with “Hi, my name is Joe and after I whacked some poor fella while drunk driving I went into some sort of traumatic brain injury state without actually having a brain injury and now I’m going to tell you my life story” - not only could we have skipped the craptastic first and last 100 pages of this book, but it would have been a great novella about a “haole” son of a military man coming of age in Hawaii during the Vietnam War and his loves/losses/successes/failures as a young man while making a name for himself in surfing. Instead we got the above narcissistic ramble that per near bored me to death. And . . . . .
2 Stars (because I’m nice DAMMIT!). Seriously, though, there were 200 solid pages of 1 Star crap to wade through, but that 200 in the middle was worthy of 4. Also, I'm a little obsessed with all things surfing despite being petrified of the ocean. Oh and that title and cover are worth 10 Stars easy.
the offense of boasters was not the oversized, obnoxious stories but that they were bores
This probably would work better for other old, narcissistic white dudes than it did for me. I’ve only read The Mosquito Coast before this and thought Theroux deserved a second chance. Well, I gave it to him and now I can die knowing that.
To be fair, had this started with “Hi, my name is Joe and after I whacked some poor fella while drunk driving I went into some sort of traumatic brain injury state without actually having a brain injury and now I’m going to tell you my life story” - not only could we have skipped the craptastic first and last 100 pages of this book, but it would have been a great novella about a “haole” son of a military man coming of age in Hawaii during the Vietnam War and his loves/losses/successes/failures as a young man while making a name for himself in surfing. Instead we got the above narcissistic ramble that per near bored me to death. And . . . . .
2 Stars (because I’m nice DAMMIT!). Seriously, though, there were 200 solid pages of 1 Star crap to wade through, but that 200 in the middle was worthy of 4. Also, I'm a little obsessed with all things surfing despite being petrified of the ocean. Oh and that title and cover are worth 10 Stars easy.
April 28, 2021
I never read a Theroux novel that I didn’t absolutely love, until this one. Interesting events happen to Joe Sharkey, lifetime solitary surfer and champion, but as for Joe himself? He just didn’t come across as all that compelling. In fact, I found him rather unexciting and tedious. Theroux has a way with the English language--a linguistically flexible mind capable of thrilling the adamant reader; but, surfer Joe here, and his tale, was rather frustrating and redundant, with some hot spots that started to pull me in, but stopped short of embracing me. Theroux's authenticity in portraying Hawaiian culture and vernacular gave the story some rich color and tapestry, but, in the end, the tale didn’t take off for me, although I had some heartfelt moments with it.
I learned quite a bit about surfing—a singular passion for some people--and where the finest waves reside. Waimea, in the Noth Shore of Oahu, is a surfer’s paradise (there are many surfer rendezvous in Hawaii, of course). There’s an entire vocabulary--very physical and metaphorical--that describe not just the waves, but also one’s body on the board, riding in the surf. Although I don’t surf, I am an active and ardent swimmer, and the ocean (or any body of water, but the ocean especially) is like a second skin. I’m more comfortable in the water than walking on land. Joe Sharkey is, too. Along the way, his parents may have aided and abetted Joe’s single-minded determination. His mother stayed drunk and insipid after the death of his military father, who was stationed in Vietnam, and taught Joe, “Consider yourself already dead, and you’ll be fine.”
In fact, on land one night, at the age of 62, as Sharkey discovers he is gradually becoming a has-been, he accidentally runs into a man on a bicycle, and kills him, while his 30-something girlfriend, Olive, is in the car. His karma is run over by his dogma at that point, and his life becomes one miserable day after another. A subsequent tragic event that would have convinced me to flat-out leave Joe for good actually strengthens Olive’s resolve to save Sharkey from thorough depravity and decline. She’s selfless, sensitive, and nurturing (a nurse who is beloved by staff and patients), and I wish that Theroux had mined her character more than he did.
Who are we, as a person? Joe has always been a legend and a raconteur, embellishing so many surfing stories and achievements in his life that it is difficult to pick apart the truth from exaggeration--even for him. His friendship with the equally grandiose Hunter S. Thompson adds a little spice to the story, although its poignancy is a nuanced thread to untangle closer to the denouement. Ironic that Joe has never read a book—and brags about it. He has one interest and one interest only--surfing. That may make him alluring to surfers, but it got a bit boring for me, as I wrestled with impatience for Joe to wake the fuck up. As he becomes tedious and redundant, I lost interest in him. You have to be willing to be in Joe's head for 416 pages. I went there, but it wasn't easy.
After the incident, Joe starts deteriorating, to the point of either madness or dementia. He utters, repeatedly, “I ran into a drunk, homeless guy,” refusing to acknowledge that he killed the man, or that the man has an identity beyond drunk and homeless. In a desperate act to save him, Olive attempts to uncover the victim’s name, as yet unknown. Even when he kills the poor man, the local cops on the scene are more impressed about meeting the legend, Joe Sharkey, than about the fate of the man on the bike.
The narrative takes us back and forth, nonlinearly, through crucial traumas and events in Joe’s life—saga-like, an anti-hero’s journey, episodes that weave together over the course of the novel. His character was drawn well, although many of the secondary and tertiary characters seemed flat. If you can deep dive into Joe Sharkey’s life, and find an emotional connection, you will be more likely to engage. There were universal aspects of the story and its themes of mortality and redemption, and absolutely stunning figures of speech about the ocean, water, the waves, and surfing.
“He learned to predict from the swell what a wave would do, by studying a break, reading it thoroughly, the inner life of its push, as if each length of wave were a line of poetry, each set a stanza, with its internal rhythm, so that he could insert himself into it, not waiting for the wave to accommodate him but something deeper, meeting it on his terms, finding harmony, becoming the wave."
3.4 stars
I learned quite a bit about surfing—a singular passion for some people--and where the finest waves reside. Waimea, in the Noth Shore of Oahu, is a surfer’s paradise (there are many surfer rendezvous in Hawaii, of course). There’s an entire vocabulary--very physical and metaphorical--that describe not just the waves, but also one’s body on the board, riding in the surf. Although I don’t surf, I am an active and ardent swimmer, and the ocean (or any body of water, but the ocean especially) is like a second skin. I’m more comfortable in the water than walking on land. Joe Sharkey is, too. Along the way, his parents may have aided and abetted Joe’s single-minded determination. His mother stayed drunk and insipid after the death of his military father, who was stationed in Vietnam, and taught Joe, “Consider yourself already dead, and you’ll be fine.”
In fact, on land one night, at the age of 62, as Sharkey discovers he is gradually becoming a has-been, he accidentally runs into a man on a bicycle, and kills him, while his 30-something girlfriend, Olive, is in the car. His karma is run over by his dogma at that point, and his life becomes one miserable day after another. A subsequent tragic event that would have convinced me to flat-out leave Joe for good actually strengthens Olive’s resolve to save Sharkey from thorough depravity and decline. She’s selfless, sensitive, and nurturing (a nurse who is beloved by staff and patients), and I wish that Theroux had mined her character more than he did.
Who are we, as a person? Joe has always been a legend and a raconteur, embellishing so many surfing stories and achievements in his life that it is difficult to pick apart the truth from exaggeration--even for him. His friendship with the equally grandiose Hunter S. Thompson adds a little spice to the story, although its poignancy is a nuanced thread to untangle closer to the denouement. Ironic that Joe has never read a book—and brags about it. He has one interest and one interest only--surfing. That may make him alluring to surfers, but it got a bit boring for me, as I wrestled with impatience for Joe to wake the fuck up. As he becomes tedious and redundant, I lost interest in him. You have to be willing to be in Joe's head for 416 pages. I went there, but it wasn't easy.
After the incident, Joe starts deteriorating, to the point of either madness or dementia. He utters, repeatedly, “I ran into a drunk, homeless guy,” refusing to acknowledge that he killed the man, or that the man has an identity beyond drunk and homeless. In a desperate act to save him, Olive attempts to uncover the victim’s name, as yet unknown. Even when he kills the poor man, the local cops on the scene are more impressed about meeting the legend, Joe Sharkey, than about the fate of the man on the bike.
The narrative takes us back and forth, nonlinearly, through crucial traumas and events in Joe’s life—saga-like, an anti-hero’s journey, episodes that weave together over the course of the novel. His character was drawn well, although many of the secondary and tertiary characters seemed flat. If you can deep dive into Joe Sharkey’s life, and find an emotional connection, you will be more likely to engage. There were universal aspects of the story and its themes of mortality and redemption, and absolutely stunning figures of speech about the ocean, water, the waves, and surfing.
“He learned to predict from the swell what a wave would do, by studying a break, reading it thoroughly, the inner life of its push, as if each length of wave were a line of poetry, each set a stanza, with its internal rhythm, so that he could insert himself into it, not waiting for the wave to accommodate him but something deeper, meeting it on his terms, finding harmony, becoming the wave."
3.4 stars
April 18, 2021
This just kept plodding along. I think there might have been a decent story buried in there somewhere, but I feel like some major editing is needed (especially for the middle part that went back to Joe's younger years). This was probably 1.5 stars for me, rounded up as I liked the descriptions of Hawaii.
Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 1, 2022
With this novel, I do believe that Paul Theroux has crossed over from travel books to become a major American literary figure. Under the Wave at Waimea is miles beyond Theroux's other fiction.
Joe Sharkey is a famous surfer, widely known on across O'ahu for his exploits on the waves. Life has been easy for him: money for nothing and chicks for free. One day, half stoned out of his gourd, Sharkey runs over and kills a cyclist during a rainstorm. Suddenly, things start going bad for him: his girl suffers a miscarriage, the waves no longer seem friendly to him, and all the trappings of bad karma manifest themselves. Olivia, his girlfriend, insists that Joe find out more about the man he killed so he can change his luck.
At this point, the novel goes back to Joe Sharkey's beginnings and traces his career as a champion surfer -- at the end of which, we are back in the present day as Joe and Olivia begin their search into the story behind the unclaimed body that was a drunk homeless guy. This is powerful stuff, by far the best that Theroux has ever penned. As the book says:
Joe Sharkey is a famous surfer, widely known on across O'ahu for his exploits on the waves. Life has been easy for him: money for nothing and chicks for free. One day, half stoned out of his gourd, Sharkey runs over and kills a cyclist during a rainstorm. Suddenly, things start going bad for him: his girl suffers a miscarriage, the waves no longer seem friendly to him, and all the trappings of bad karma manifest themselves. Olivia, his girlfriend, insists that Joe find out more about the man he killed so he can change his luck.
At this point, the novel goes back to Joe Sharkey's beginnings and traces his career as a champion surfer -- at the end of which, we are back in the present day as Joe and Olivia begin their search into the story behind the unclaimed body that was a drunk homeless guy. This is powerful stuff, by far the best that Theroux has ever penned. As the book says:
Nothing was certain. Every wave had a hidden contour and something like a mystical muscle in it that could trip you: every succeeding wave had the capacity to hold you down and suffocate you to death. The world was a wave, a wave was pitiless.Never before has a book about contemporary Hawaii and the surfing scene led to so many deep places.
May 11, 2021
If you read one book about surfing read Barbarian Days.
If you read two books about surfing...well it shouldn’t be this book.
Waimea is a mess.
The fractured time seems to be there only for effect and the character of Joe and the events surrounding his loss of self seem just off from what real people would do.
The last third of the novel is almost wholly uninteresting. It’s a bad detective novel where the protagonist goes around interviewing people who knew the victim.
Here, the killer is already known, the victim is uninteresting, the rationale for the investigation is strained, and the coincidences stack up like driftwood on a beach after a big Blow.
If you read two books about surfing...well it shouldn’t be this book.
Waimea is a mess.
The fractured time seems to be there only for effect and the character of Joe and the events surrounding his loss of self seem just off from what real people would do.
The last third of the novel is almost wholly uninteresting. It’s a bad detective novel where the protagonist goes around interviewing people who knew the victim.
Here, the killer is already known, the victim is uninteresting, the rationale for the investigation is strained, and the coincidences stack up like driftwood on a beach after a big Blow.
June 5, 2021
I hated this. Couldn’t finish it. Maybe if I didn’t grow up in Hawaii and didn’t surf and was also an old white guy lamenting my youth, maybe I’d have liked it. But yeah NAH. Pages and pages of reading about this washed upped drunk/faux surfer named Sharkey (really??!! Joe Sharkey?) just made me want to stab my own eyes out. I gave zero shits about his character if we can even call him that. He’s banging a chick half his age who’s been written w so little resemblance to an actual woman, I wondered why she wasn’t written as a piece of cardboard w tits. Honestly what woman spends every waking moment thinking about the old dude she’s sleeping with? NO ONE that’s who. And then he kills a homeless dude and no one cares. I tried four times to care about Sharkey’s white male privilege but nope zero fucks here. I also found Theroux’s depiction of local people pretty condescending and off mark, painting us all like we’re a backdrop/quirky side kick to the white man’s “struggle”. The way he tries to depict the pigeon dialect is also way off mark and truly cringe worthy. Cue eye roll. But if you enjoy reading books written by old white men about old white men doing things like surfing that you have never experienced nor ever will, by all means use this book as a fire starter for a cold night.
April 24, 2021
We first meet Joe Sharkey as a 60-something surfing legend, living a life that seems idyllic. As a child, he was mercilessly bullied in school, never really feeling as if he fit in, and found release on the surfboard. His father, an officer during the Vietnam era, dies early on, and his mother's self absorption doesn't provide much in the way of guidance or affection, so his inclusion into the surfer community provides his first taste of acceptance.
This is the latest novel by Paul Theroux, best known for his travel books. Equally at home writing fiction, his rich attention to detail and feel for a place is evident in this account. Hawaii has been Theroux's home base for decades, enhancing the flavor of his prose, and his knowledge of the diversity in population. But Joe is front and center for most of this book -- attempting to come to grips with the fact that although still regarded as a legend, there are younger members of the surfing community unfamiliar with him. Included is a wonderful description of his friendship with the legendary Hunter S. Thompson, so detailed and specific, I wonder if Theroux himself had enjoyed a connection with that complex personality.
This is the latest novel by Paul Theroux, best known for his travel books. Equally at home writing fiction, his rich attention to detail and feel for a place is evident in this account. Hawaii has been Theroux's home base for decades, enhancing the flavor of his prose, and his knowledge of the diversity in population. But Joe is front and center for most of this book -- attempting to come to grips with the fact that although still regarded as a legend, there are younger members of the surfing community unfamiliar with him. Included is a wonderful description of his friendship with the legendary Hunter S. Thompson, so detailed and specific, I wonder if Theroux himself had enjoyed a connection with that complex personality.
April 27, 2021
I found the central character so unlikeable; selfish and self-centred; caring only for himself. Consequently, as I read on I began to care less and less about him.
March 27, 2021
I’ve read and reviewed the last six books from the iconic travel writer, Paul Theroux, and was fortunate enough to snag a copy of the uncorrected proof of his next book, which will be available in mid-April. Initially, I was unenthusiastic about reading about the life of an aging surfer in Hawaii, but after reading “On the Plain of Snakes” about Mexico, I felt sure he’d manage to turn Hawaii into one of his ebullient tomes—and I was not disappointed. After all, the author has lived there for over 30 years, during which time he’s been gathering stories and materials about this unique 50th State.
Although he’s traveled the world, he lived the longest in Hawaii, whose complexity has fascinated him all that time. In an article in Smithsonian Magazine entitled, “Paul Theroux’s Quest to Define Hawaii,” the author revealed, “My love of traveling to islands amounts to a pathological condition known as nesomania, an obsession with islands. Each island is a small self-contained world than can help us understand larger ones.” He has written several fiction books like “Hotel Honolulu,” but said, “I have struggled as though against monster surf to write non-fiction about the islands.” Although he’s connected with people from different social classes and places in the world, he asked, “So why are the islands so difficult and why is a place like Hawaii, one of the 50 U.S. States so uncooperative, so complex in its division?”
The book begins with a quote from legendary Hawaiian surfer, Duke Kahanmoku, “Out of the water I’m nothing.” The protagonist, Joe Sharkey, “The Shark,” meets the Duke and seems to emulate his perspective on the meaning of life. Initially, “The island has no bad days—he surfed like an otter on acid”. Sharkey’s philosophy of life is summed up as, “I don’t want more than I have; therefore, I have everything. It’s the economy of enough.” Sharkey is revered by many, but ignored by some of the younger surfers, generating this poignant passage,
He thought with wonderment, I’m old. When did it happen? It wasn’t sudden—no illness, no failure; it had stolen upon him. It could have been while I was surfing, going for smaller waves, becoming breathless and needing to rest as I paddled out. Or maybe on the days I stayed home, making myself busy, unaware of time passing, and then it was sunset and too dark to go anywhere except to bed. I hadn’t really noticed except for the ache in my knees some days. And growing old is also becoming a stranger, with a different and unrecognizable face, withering to insignificance, ceasing to matter. Nothing more will happen to me. So soon, so soon—and how sad to know that I will only get older.
His life changes forever when, driving through a tropical thunderstorm with his British companion, Olive, he runs into and kills what he thought was a homeless man on a pushbike. From this point on, the author takes us on a journey through what had been an unexamined life up to this point. From a young, mediocre student, Sharkey constantly ditches school in order to hit the beach and surf. His father is in the Special Forces in Vietnam and is more of a commander than a father. After his death in a helicopter crash, his mother, although very wealthy, has a serious drinking problem. Sharkey never really fits into his school, where he’s called an “Haole,” an outsider always picked on by the other children. Surfing became his obsession and escape.
Hunter was one of the many memorable characters the author develops as part of Sharkey’s life journey. A writer, his relationship with Sharkey’s represents his transition from a child to maturity. Hunter was an advocate, praised him (although Sharkey never read his books). Hunter stops listening and begins withdrawing from life until he finally shoots himself. Sharkey “found the wave but had no one to share it with.”
Just when I was wondering where else the “Godfather of travel writing” would take us, Sharkey’s surfing competitions lead him to the far reaches of the surfing world like Tahiti, Cape Town, South Africa, and to the home of the “water monster”—Nazaré, Portugal, where the waves rise up over one hundred feet. Sharkey considers this possibly life-ending experience the greatest feat a surfer can attain, and stays focused on riding the wave of his life.
Part three focuses on the mysterious identity of the homeless biker Sharkey ran into, and his world begins to crumble. Upon arriving at their home after work, his British nurse companion, Olive, finds him “in a blank gaze, and sinking” and determines that the only way to get his life back on course is to identify who the man he killed was and accept his guilt. Her normal supportive nature provides serious tough love for Sharkey:
The police “gave you a pass… You’re a sixty-two-year-old man,” Olive said, holding him still, piercing him with her stare. “You’re selfish, narcissistic, and ungrateful. You’ve spent your whole life doing whatever the bloody hell you’ve wanted to, living on your mother’s money. All I’ve ever heard from you is how awful the human race is, why most people are worthless, and why do women have children. You’ve had every advantage and you’re still a misanthrope—and for your information, that’s someone who hates people.
Sharkey and Olive begin to investigate the life of the man known as “Max,” which takes them to a homeless camp just fifteen minutes from their house. Their shock at what they encounter is classic Theroux, a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer who’s traveled the world meeting and questioning some of the most abandoned, isolated people in the world. His attention to detail is uncanny:
Olive saw again that the disorder of the camp was fixed and featureless, and so it was not a camp at all, but a settlement, like the ruin of a scattered household. The burst cushion was left where it had been, those empty cans had not been picked up or kicked aside, the beach chair, the chewed boogie board, the mildewed mattress, the shredded plastic bags—all of it remained as they had seen it before, nothing moved or cleared, giving the squalor the look of solidity. The same piercing smell, too, as before, wood smoke and damp rags and decaying food. Olive was struck—not that it was ugly but that it seemed indestructible and everlasting.
After several conversations with the household members in the homeless settlement they identify the biker and go to the Ozarks to find his family and, eventually, on to California to meet his ex-wife. Max was actually a successful entrepreneur and sold his business to go to Hawaii and surf. Bringing the story full circle, Max actually knew of and respected Sharkey. Max’s wife admits to Sharkey how cruel she was to Max and mentions how much their “free spirits” have in common. This encounter reflects the different types of people that arrive in Hawaii under very different circumstances and how their lives are often intertwined.
Dealing with the tragic accident and his turbulent past, Sharkey is “released” from the tragic past after meeting Max’s wife a second time while in California. He finds his true calling when he begins teaching some young, novice surfers, reminding them, “In the water, you’re somebody special. Remember that.”
The author’s graceful use of language takes the reader through Sharkey’s life and reflects the cultural diversity that is Hawaii. His use of “Pidgin” English gives the story a unique feel. I was familiar with many of the terms, as it resembled “Krio” of Sierra Leone, where I worked for several years, but the author adds many native Hawaiian terms which add to the authenticity,
“Oh, da cute!” “You try the pig?” Wallis said to Sharkey, tapping her chopsticks on the platter of dark shredded kalua pig. “They imu it round the back. Hee Hing famous for it.” Before Sharkey could respond, Winston said to his mother, “I told that fricken haole guy he never join the hui. Hell with him. He never bring no omiyage for present.”
The author broadens the linguistic diversity with this passage about Sharkey’s companion.
At home, Olive was talkative, seeming to reassure herself, her characteristic and chatty back-and-forth, the way she muttered when she was alone, thinking out loud, more slangy and British when she talked to herself— grumble . . . “Cuppa tea would do me a power of good . . . Get cracking”—all of it unintelligible to Sharkey.
Theroux brings his tale to a close like few other writers, with the funeral for the deceased bike rider Max,
Round him, in the lacework of sun-flecked shade, the surfers young and old, the young ones chattering, the older ones solemn and silent—Jock, Garrett, Brock, Ryan, the Florence brothers, and others on the beach sitting cross-legged, some pacing. Sharkey recognized Stickney and Wencil, Alex, Fonoti and Frawley, and from the kapu camp Rhonda, Winona, and Kimo, and the schoolchildren gathered near them. Skippy Lehua had come with some of his grommets, and Sugar with her three children, May and her Chinese husband. All of them tense and tearful in their gaudy shirts. Moe was there. So was I. “Insane,” Sharkey murmured.
As we gathered on the foreshore, three black-and-white HPD police cruisers drew up at the edge of the parking lot. Six officers got out and marched to the beach, where they stood in a line, at attention, and saluted. Onlookers too, early risers, rock jumpers, beachgoers, gawkers, tourists, crowding the surfers. A hoarse haole voice: “Some kind of Wayan ceremony?”
Only to be topped off with this memorable last scene with Sharkey who, “…tipped his board into the wave’s shallow sloping face and got to his feet. Without effort, like a hero on a flying carpet, not tensed in a surfer’s stance but standing confidently upright, a fearless boy again. Hands on hips, he slid.”
The author definitely dispels the popular image of some writers who stay for a week, gushing about the marvelous beaches, the excellent food, the heavenly weather, filling travel pages with holiday hyperbole. As Theroux points out, “Hawaii has a well-deserved reputation as a special set of islands, a place apart, fragrant with blossoms, caressed by trade winds., vibrant with the plucking of ukuleles, effulgent with sunshine spanking the water...” and none of this is wrong, although Theroux’s book shows that there so much more.
William Finnegan, author of Barbarian Days, winner of the Pulitzer Prize sums up the mastery of this book, “Extraordinary. A frightening ride to the bottom of the soul of a man with a previously unexamined life. This is contemporary Hawaii as it’s rarely evoked, with surfing strangely near its troubled heart.”
The Author
Paul Theroux’s novels include, “The Lower River” and “The Mosquito Coast,” and his renowned travel books include “Ghost Train to the Eastern Start, Dark Star Safari, and Deep South. Several of his books have been adapted to major films. He lives in Hawaii and on Cape Cod. One of America’s hardest working writers, Theroux has written over 50 fiction and non-fiction books.
Book Reviewer
Walker was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala and spent over forty years helping disadvantaged people in the developing world. His memoir, Different Latitudes: My Life in the Peace Corps and Beyond, was recognized by the Arizona Literary Association for Non-Fiction. More than 25 of his articles were published in literary magazines, including one that received Honorable Mention from the Solas Literary Award for the Best Travel Writing, 2020, while another was an essay winner for the “Arizona Authors Association” 2020 Annual Literary Awards competition. He’s a contributing author to “Revue Magazine” and has a column in the “Arizona Authors’ Association Newsletter,” which includes some of his 60 book reviews. Walker is also producing a documentary on immigration in Guatemala. His next book is tentatively entitled, The Moritz Thomsen Reader: His Books, His Letters and His Legacy Told by the Writers Who Knew Him Best. He founded Million Mile Walker LLC in 2016. His wife and three children were born in Guatemala. He can be found at www.MillionMileWalker.com
Although he’s traveled the world, he lived the longest in Hawaii, whose complexity has fascinated him all that time. In an article in Smithsonian Magazine entitled, “Paul Theroux’s Quest to Define Hawaii,” the author revealed, “My love of traveling to islands amounts to a pathological condition known as nesomania, an obsession with islands. Each island is a small self-contained world than can help us understand larger ones.” He has written several fiction books like “Hotel Honolulu,” but said, “I have struggled as though against monster surf to write non-fiction about the islands.” Although he’s connected with people from different social classes and places in the world, he asked, “So why are the islands so difficult and why is a place like Hawaii, one of the 50 U.S. States so uncooperative, so complex in its division?”
The book begins with a quote from legendary Hawaiian surfer, Duke Kahanmoku, “Out of the water I’m nothing.” The protagonist, Joe Sharkey, “The Shark,” meets the Duke and seems to emulate his perspective on the meaning of life. Initially, “The island has no bad days—he surfed like an otter on acid”. Sharkey’s philosophy of life is summed up as, “I don’t want more than I have; therefore, I have everything. It’s the economy of enough.” Sharkey is revered by many, but ignored by some of the younger surfers, generating this poignant passage,
He thought with wonderment, I’m old. When did it happen? It wasn’t sudden—no illness, no failure; it had stolen upon him. It could have been while I was surfing, going for smaller waves, becoming breathless and needing to rest as I paddled out. Or maybe on the days I stayed home, making myself busy, unaware of time passing, and then it was sunset and too dark to go anywhere except to bed. I hadn’t really noticed except for the ache in my knees some days. And growing old is also becoming a stranger, with a different and unrecognizable face, withering to insignificance, ceasing to matter. Nothing more will happen to me. So soon, so soon—and how sad to know that I will only get older.
His life changes forever when, driving through a tropical thunderstorm with his British companion, Olive, he runs into and kills what he thought was a homeless man on a pushbike. From this point on, the author takes us on a journey through what had been an unexamined life up to this point. From a young, mediocre student, Sharkey constantly ditches school in order to hit the beach and surf. His father is in the Special Forces in Vietnam and is more of a commander than a father. After his death in a helicopter crash, his mother, although very wealthy, has a serious drinking problem. Sharkey never really fits into his school, where he’s called an “Haole,” an outsider always picked on by the other children. Surfing became his obsession and escape.
Hunter was one of the many memorable characters the author develops as part of Sharkey’s life journey. A writer, his relationship with Sharkey’s represents his transition from a child to maturity. Hunter was an advocate, praised him (although Sharkey never read his books). Hunter stops listening and begins withdrawing from life until he finally shoots himself. Sharkey “found the wave but had no one to share it with.”
Just when I was wondering where else the “Godfather of travel writing” would take us, Sharkey’s surfing competitions lead him to the far reaches of the surfing world like Tahiti, Cape Town, South Africa, and to the home of the “water monster”—Nazaré, Portugal, where the waves rise up over one hundred feet. Sharkey considers this possibly life-ending experience the greatest feat a surfer can attain, and stays focused on riding the wave of his life.
Part three focuses on the mysterious identity of the homeless biker Sharkey ran into, and his world begins to crumble. Upon arriving at their home after work, his British nurse companion, Olive, finds him “in a blank gaze, and sinking” and determines that the only way to get his life back on course is to identify who the man he killed was and accept his guilt. Her normal supportive nature provides serious tough love for Sharkey:
The police “gave you a pass… You’re a sixty-two-year-old man,” Olive said, holding him still, piercing him with her stare. “You’re selfish, narcissistic, and ungrateful. You’ve spent your whole life doing whatever the bloody hell you’ve wanted to, living on your mother’s money. All I’ve ever heard from you is how awful the human race is, why most people are worthless, and why do women have children. You’ve had every advantage and you’re still a misanthrope—and for your information, that’s someone who hates people.
Sharkey and Olive begin to investigate the life of the man known as “Max,” which takes them to a homeless camp just fifteen minutes from their house. Their shock at what they encounter is classic Theroux, a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer who’s traveled the world meeting and questioning some of the most abandoned, isolated people in the world. His attention to detail is uncanny:
Olive saw again that the disorder of the camp was fixed and featureless, and so it was not a camp at all, but a settlement, like the ruin of a scattered household. The burst cushion was left where it had been, those empty cans had not been picked up or kicked aside, the beach chair, the chewed boogie board, the mildewed mattress, the shredded plastic bags—all of it remained as they had seen it before, nothing moved or cleared, giving the squalor the look of solidity. The same piercing smell, too, as before, wood smoke and damp rags and decaying food. Olive was struck—not that it was ugly but that it seemed indestructible and everlasting.
After several conversations with the household members in the homeless settlement they identify the biker and go to the Ozarks to find his family and, eventually, on to California to meet his ex-wife. Max was actually a successful entrepreneur and sold his business to go to Hawaii and surf. Bringing the story full circle, Max actually knew of and respected Sharkey. Max’s wife admits to Sharkey how cruel she was to Max and mentions how much their “free spirits” have in common. This encounter reflects the different types of people that arrive in Hawaii under very different circumstances and how their lives are often intertwined.
Dealing with the tragic accident and his turbulent past, Sharkey is “released” from the tragic past after meeting Max’s wife a second time while in California. He finds his true calling when he begins teaching some young, novice surfers, reminding them, “In the water, you’re somebody special. Remember that.”
The author’s graceful use of language takes the reader through Sharkey’s life and reflects the cultural diversity that is Hawaii. His use of “Pidgin” English gives the story a unique feel. I was familiar with many of the terms, as it resembled “Krio” of Sierra Leone, where I worked for several years, but the author adds many native Hawaiian terms which add to the authenticity,
“Oh, da cute!” “You try the pig?” Wallis said to Sharkey, tapping her chopsticks on the platter of dark shredded kalua pig. “They imu it round the back. Hee Hing famous for it.” Before Sharkey could respond, Winston said to his mother, “I told that fricken haole guy he never join the hui. Hell with him. He never bring no omiyage for present.”
The author broadens the linguistic diversity with this passage about Sharkey’s companion.
At home, Olive was talkative, seeming to reassure herself, her characteristic and chatty back-and-forth, the way she muttered when she was alone, thinking out loud, more slangy and British when she talked to herself— grumble . . . “Cuppa tea would do me a power of good . . . Get cracking”—all of it unintelligible to Sharkey.
Theroux brings his tale to a close like few other writers, with the funeral for the deceased bike rider Max,
Round him, in the lacework of sun-flecked shade, the surfers young and old, the young ones chattering, the older ones solemn and silent—Jock, Garrett, Brock, Ryan, the Florence brothers, and others on the beach sitting cross-legged, some pacing. Sharkey recognized Stickney and Wencil, Alex, Fonoti and Frawley, and from the kapu camp Rhonda, Winona, and Kimo, and the schoolchildren gathered near them. Skippy Lehua had come with some of his grommets, and Sugar with her three children, May and her Chinese husband. All of them tense and tearful in their gaudy shirts. Moe was there. So was I. “Insane,” Sharkey murmured.
As we gathered on the foreshore, three black-and-white HPD police cruisers drew up at the edge of the parking lot. Six officers got out and marched to the beach, where they stood in a line, at attention, and saluted. Onlookers too, early risers, rock jumpers, beachgoers, gawkers, tourists, crowding the surfers. A hoarse haole voice: “Some kind of Wayan ceremony?”
Only to be topped off with this memorable last scene with Sharkey who, “…tipped his board into the wave’s shallow sloping face and got to his feet. Without effort, like a hero on a flying carpet, not tensed in a surfer’s stance but standing confidently upright, a fearless boy again. Hands on hips, he slid.”
The author definitely dispels the popular image of some writers who stay for a week, gushing about the marvelous beaches, the excellent food, the heavenly weather, filling travel pages with holiday hyperbole. As Theroux points out, “Hawaii has a well-deserved reputation as a special set of islands, a place apart, fragrant with blossoms, caressed by trade winds., vibrant with the plucking of ukuleles, effulgent with sunshine spanking the water...” and none of this is wrong, although Theroux’s book shows that there so much more.
William Finnegan, author of Barbarian Days, winner of the Pulitzer Prize sums up the mastery of this book, “Extraordinary. A frightening ride to the bottom of the soul of a man with a previously unexamined life. This is contemporary Hawaii as it’s rarely evoked, with surfing strangely near its troubled heart.”
The Author
Paul Theroux’s novels include, “The Lower River” and “The Mosquito Coast,” and his renowned travel books include “Ghost Train to the Eastern Start, Dark Star Safari, and Deep South. Several of his books have been adapted to major films. He lives in Hawaii and on Cape Cod. One of America’s hardest working writers, Theroux has written over 50 fiction and non-fiction books.
Book Reviewer
Walker was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala and spent over forty years helping disadvantaged people in the developing world. His memoir, Different Latitudes: My Life in the Peace Corps and Beyond, was recognized by the Arizona Literary Association for Non-Fiction. More than 25 of his articles were published in literary magazines, including one that received Honorable Mention from the Solas Literary Award for the Best Travel Writing, 2020, while another was an essay winner for the “Arizona Authors Association” 2020 Annual Literary Awards competition. He’s a contributing author to “Revue Magazine” and has a column in the “Arizona Authors’ Association Newsletter,” which includes some of his 60 book reviews. Walker is also producing a documentary on immigration in Guatemala. His next book is tentatively entitled, The Moritz Thomsen Reader: His Books, His Letters and His Legacy Told by the Writers Who Knew Him Best. He founded Million Mile Walker LLC in 2016. His wife and three children were born in Guatemala. He can be found at www.MillionMileWalker.com
April 26, 2021
Thought it was fabulous writing, reads like non fiction, drug soaked books are not my thing, but the layers grabbed me and I loved the journey, details, experiences, the writing was completely absorbing.
April 13, 2021
An ageing surfer in Hawaii. A man who has spent his whole life living for surfing, on an endless quest for the biggest, the perfect wave. Bullied at school as a child for being a “haole”, a white boy, he finds his refuge and his safety in the surf. Famous for a while, he’s now facing increasing irrelevance as his place is taken by younger surfers, many of whom haven't even heard of him. And then things get even harder to handle when an accident challenges his sense of self-worth and his whole way of life. I found this a surprisingly compelling read, even though I have no interest in surfing. That really doesn’t matter as at its heart is the story of man becoming increasingly old and vulnerable. Joe Sharkey is a larger than life character and ultimately a very empathetic one. And in fact I actually enjoyed the surfing parts of the book. Theroux writes with great authority and vividness, and I could really sense the skill in riding and the excitement of surviving those big waves. I also very much enjoyed the portrait of Hawaiian life and society, in all its complexity. A couple of aspects of the book didn’t work so well for me, which make it a 4* rather than the 5* read it so nearly was. The quest to discover the other man involved in the accident goes on for far too long. And the introduction of Hunter S Thompson into the narrative is not only unnecessary but actually irritating. I understand that Theroux knew Thompson so perhaps this is intended as some sort of homage. But not only does the episode add nothing to Joe’s story, but it distracts by being a portrait of a particularly unlikeable man whose excesses are neither interesting nor admirable. And it all makes an already long book even longer to no good end. However, these are relatively minor quibbles as overall I really enjoyed this well-written and interesting novel and I was engaged by it pretty much throughout.
March 8, 2021
The life of Hawaiian surfer Joe Sharkey is put under the microscope by Paul Theroux in (if my count is correct) his 60-somethingth book. Across three sections, Theroux starts with the 60-something Shark still a surfing legend on the North Shore of Oahu but losing his mojo (and possibly his memory), then goes into his backstory as a bullied army brat who finds peace and release in the water on a surfboard, and finally chronicles his transformation after a life-changing event.
If you're a Theroux reader, as I was at least through Hotel Honolulu, which is now 20 years ago, you may find this to be reminiscent of that novel along with his best known novel, The Mosquito Coast, and his best known travel books, The Great Railway Bazaar and The Old Patagonian Express. Set in Hawaii like Hotel Honolulu, taking you all over the world to big surf spots like his travel books, and pitting an idealistic, individualistic, somewhat misanthropic man against nature and native people like TMC.
There is a lot of surfing. I enjoyed it -- this is about a lifelong champion surfer, if there's not enough surfing you feel like you're missing out on a key element of your protagonist's character, but is there too much surfing in this book? Not for me (and I've never surfed). The best part of Joe being a surfer are his trips to Tahiti, Christmas Island, South Africa, Portugal, and other locales (hence the comparison to Theroux's travel books).
There is a lot of character study. This is all character study. There is barely a plot -- something happens to Joe, it affects his life in unexpected ways, he and his girlfriend try to figure out why, and when they do, things change. The plot is basically character study, and my only gripe there (being a big fan of literary fiction and its hyper-focus on character development) is that there is not enough on Joe's girlfriend and her backstory and motivation (some but not enough).
Overall, I unexpectedly loved this book. The last time I tried to read Theroux, I got about 10% into Millroy the Magician and without actually making a decision on whether to continue, I just stopped reading, moved on to something else and did not want to return to it. But this book sucked me in right away and kept me there. Doesn't hurt that I love Hawaii (have been contemplating moving there for quite some time, as Theroux did) -- and it doesn't hurt that this book has not a moment to spare for touristy Hawaii, taking us into a deep dive (pun intended) into real Hawaiian culture.
If I have one gripe, it's the section on Hunter Thompson. I know Theroux was close to him, and I assume that part of the book is autobiographical. But I feel that it is a waste of time in an already long book, and I feel that it runs contrary to Joe's character arc -- for a lifelong loner who never suffered fools, or even non-fools, I don't get Joe's devotion to Thompson, who in fact is a major league fool (sorry, Paul, that's what I thought of him before, and still do after reading your take).
Thanks to NetGalley for this unique opportunity to read in advance the latest work of one of my favorite authors (despite my lapse over the past couple of decades). And thanks to Paul Theroux for a new novel that harks back to my favorite writings from his bibliography. I've traveled to all seven continents, inspired not wholly or even majorly, but in some small part by Theroux's novels, set all over the world, his personal story, also set all over the world, and of course his travel writings.
If you're a Theroux reader, as I was at least through Hotel Honolulu, which is now 20 years ago, you may find this to be reminiscent of that novel along with his best known novel, The Mosquito Coast, and his best known travel books, The Great Railway Bazaar and The Old Patagonian Express. Set in Hawaii like Hotel Honolulu, taking you all over the world to big surf spots like his travel books, and pitting an idealistic, individualistic, somewhat misanthropic man against nature and native people like TMC.
There is a lot of surfing. I enjoyed it -- this is about a lifelong champion surfer, if there's not enough surfing you feel like you're missing out on a key element of your protagonist's character, but is there too much surfing in this book? Not for me (and I've never surfed). The best part of Joe being a surfer are his trips to Tahiti, Christmas Island, South Africa, Portugal, and other locales (hence the comparison to Theroux's travel books).
There is a lot of character study. This is all character study. There is barely a plot -- something happens to Joe, it affects his life in unexpected ways, he and his girlfriend try to figure out why, and when they do, things change. The plot is basically character study, and my only gripe there (being a big fan of literary fiction and its hyper-focus on character development) is that there is not enough on Joe's girlfriend and her backstory and motivation (some but not enough).
Overall, I unexpectedly loved this book. The last time I tried to read Theroux, I got about 10% into Millroy the Magician and without actually making a decision on whether to continue, I just stopped reading, moved on to something else and did not want to return to it. But this book sucked me in right away and kept me there. Doesn't hurt that I love Hawaii (have been contemplating moving there for quite some time, as Theroux did) -- and it doesn't hurt that this book has not a moment to spare for touristy Hawaii, taking us into a deep dive (pun intended) into real Hawaiian culture.
If I have one gripe, it's the section on Hunter Thompson. I know Theroux was close to him, and I assume that part of the book is autobiographical. But I feel that it is a waste of time in an already long book, and I feel that it runs contrary to Joe's character arc -- for a lifelong loner who never suffered fools, or even non-fools, I don't get Joe's devotion to Thompson, who in fact is a major league fool (sorry, Paul, that's what I thought of him before, and still do after reading your take).
Thanks to NetGalley for this unique opportunity to read in advance the latest work of one of my favorite authors (despite my lapse over the past couple of decades). And thanks to Paul Theroux for a new novel that harks back to my favorite writings from his bibliography. I've traveled to all seven continents, inspired not wholly or even majorly, but in some small part by Theroux's novels, set all over the world, his personal story, also set all over the world, and of course his travel writings.
August 4, 2021
I know some of the other reviews noted the main character, Sharkey, being an unlikeable person and they couldn’t muster the energy to carry on. I can see that. I can see being driven away by the authentic Hawaiian pidgin being difficult to read or the detailed surfing lingo and lifestyle the reader feels is too hard to follow. Of course the transformation of the main character is what a great novel is all about. All I can say is if you quit early you missed a great read. That is my one fear when I finally decide to drop a book, and sometimes upon a second read I realize I put down a great book, I’m reminded of Amis’s London Fields. But the world isn’t perfect, my reading list isn’t pristine, and this was one phenomenal book.
July 21, 2021
This book really brought the reader to North Shore Oahu. The sense of place and culture was immersive. I particularly enjoyed the use of Hawaiin surf slang. The arc of the main character was interesting, a mid life transition, realization and maturing. The bonds between some of the main characters were less developed/convincing, but perhaps that was because the main chat was a bit of a loner.
Well worth the read if you love the ocean, surfing, or enjoy the culture of Hawaii.
Well worth the read if you love the ocean, surfing, or enjoy the culture of Hawaii.
May 12, 2021
I read these books hoping for something more, but I don't get them. I should probably just stop, because I don't really identify with these stories, and on top of that my kind get lectures in book: 'we don't color code surfing' says the main character to a POC journalist who asks him about the mostly white people she's seen on the waves.
Go on, tell us more, because by this point we've spent close to 400 pages hearing him whine over and over about how alienated he felt among the Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, about how 50 years down the line he felt homeless despite having a huge house he owns, about how the kids in his tough inner city adjacent school called howlie/haole - white guy/other, and that made him tough enough to run away and surf, I guess. We've also heard him whine about the access to the big waves controlled by the locals, how only because he befriended one of them he got access, blah blah and more blah.
I would have maybe cared for his emotional state a tiny bit had he done something to show that he could live outside himself, but he doesn't. Women exist in the book either to fuck him (there's a serious thing here with Hawaiian men offering up their girls to this guy, even the horrible boys in school who feel sorry for him when his father dies hook him with this girl who gives him blow jobs in a junked car and who genuinely thinks she's dating him, except surprise! this guy is an emotional vampire) or in the case of mom to be a teary smothery mom from hell that he runs away from. He only comes back to her when another poc woman moves in as his caretaker and threatens to take over the house. And then mom dies and Sharkey is free to go surf the waves. Oh there's Olive, who loses her unborn baby because this man makes her surf when she doesn't really care to and she has to shelve that pain because she has to heal him for some reason (she's known him for all of six weeks - olive just walk away).
The man he kills only becomes real to Sharkey when he finds out he was a surfer too. He was a whole lot of other things but the main thing was he was a surfer. Which is the only life that matters - being a hairdresser who owns his own salon is fucking hilarious, but being a surfer who lives on his mother's money is somehow extremely serious and basically the only thing that exists. I get it, this book was not written for me, for various reasons. I'm also a reader and that Sharkey proudly claims to have not read a thing should have told me enough to stop reading. But I didn't, and that's 2 full days I'm not getting back. Two stars only because it was my stupidity that kept me reading.
Go on, tell us more, because by this point we've spent close to 400 pages hearing him whine over and over about how alienated he felt among the Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, about how 50 years down the line he felt homeless despite having a huge house he owns, about how the kids in his tough inner city adjacent school called howlie/haole - white guy/other, and that made him tough enough to run away and surf, I guess. We've also heard him whine about the access to the big waves controlled by the locals, how only because he befriended one of them he got access, blah blah and more blah.
I would have maybe cared for his emotional state a tiny bit had he done something to show that he could live outside himself, but he doesn't. Women exist in the book either to fuck him (there's a serious thing here with Hawaiian men offering up their girls to this guy, even the horrible boys in school who feel sorry for him when his father dies hook him with this girl who gives him blow jobs in a junked car and who genuinely thinks she's dating him, except surprise! this guy is an emotional vampire) or in the case of mom to be a teary smothery mom from hell that he runs away from. He only comes back to her when another poc woman moves in as his caretaker and threatens to take over the house. And then mom dies and Sharkey is free to go surf the waves. Oh there's Olive, who loses her unborn baby because this man makes her surf when she doesn't really care to and she has to shelve that pain because she has to heal him for some reason (she's known him for all of six weeks - olive just walk away).
The man he kills only becomes real to Sharkey when he finds out he was a surfer too. He was a whole lot of other things but the main thing was he was a surfer. Which is the only life that matters - being a hairdresser who owns his own salon is fucking hilarious, but being a surfer who lives on his mother's money is somehow extremely serious and basically the only thing that exists. I get it, this book was not written for me, for various reasons. I'm also a reader and that Sharkey proudly claims to have not read a thing should have told me enough to stop reading. But I didn't, and that's 2 full days I'm not getting back. Two stars only because it was my stupidity that kept me reading.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 25, 2021
This latest novel from Paul Theroux reads like a biography, the fictional biography of Joe Sharkey, a 62 year old man who has given his entire life to surfing at the cost of neglecting everything else around him. It is a very emotional piece of fiction from an American master. A powerful testament to human resilience and an ode to the beauty and the fragility of Hawaii. The reader will follow Sharkey as he struggles to overcome a bitter existential crisis and recapture a sense of normalcy in his life. I was actually very surprised because by the end of the novel I was shedding tears...
Many thanks to Netgalley & Houghton Mifflin for the opportunity to read this wonderful novel prior to its release date
Many thanks to Netgalley & Houghton Mifflin for the opportunity to read this wonderful novel prior to its release date
June 2, 2021
I can't think of a fictional character that I care less about than Joe Sharky.
April 11, 2021
Paul Theroux is a very prolific writer - mostly a travel writer. I’ve heard of him but never read his books until this one - Under The Wave at Waimea.
Wow it was good. Really tough to put down.
The story is about Joe Sharkey, accomplished big wave surfer who is past his prime. He’s in his 60s, never married, angry at the world, narcissistic. The book takes you through his life, how he became who he was and then leads to an incident in which Da Shark is forced to confront himself.
Set on a backdrop of Hawaii, Paul has a talent for bringing everything to life - the people, the scenery, the ocean, everything. It all seems so real.
My one not-as-positive feedback about this book is that it seems to be two novels put in one. About 75% (300 pages) into it, it seemed to me it could wrap up and effectively end the story. But, alas, the main incident happens and there is another 150 pages of that. It’s not bad, it didn’t lose my attention, it makes sense in that the three sections of the book are the Present, the Past and the Future. It was just surprising for me.
That aside, this book is great for anybody who loves literature and a good story. If you like Paul Auster (great writing, great stories, makes you think), you will love this Theroux book.
Now I’ve got to read some of his others.
#NetGalley #UnderTheWaveAtWaimea
Wow it was good. Really tough to put down.
The story is about Joe Sharkey, accomplished big wave surfer who is past his prime. He’s in his 60s, never married, angry at the world, narcissistic. The book takes you through his life, how he became who he was and then leads to an incident in which Da Shark is forced to confront himself.
Set on a backdrop of Hawaii, Paul has a talent for bringing everything to life - the people, the scenery, the ocean, everything. It all seems so real.
My one not-as-positive feedback about this book is that it seems to be two novels put in one. About 75% (300 pages) into it, it seemed to me it could wrap up and effectively end the story. But, alas, the main incident happens and there is another 150 pages of that. It’s not bad, it didn’t lose my attention, it makes sense in that the three sections of the book are the Present, the Past and the Future. It was just surprising for me.
That aside, this book is great for anybody who loves literature and a good story. If you like Paul Auster (great writing, great stories, makes you think), you will love this Theroux book.
Now I’ve got to read some of his others.
#NetGalley #UnderTheWaveAtWaimea
March 27, 2021
Under the Wave at Waimea by Paul Theroux is a highly recommended novel, especially for the right reader, of aging, mortality, but, most importantly, big-wave surfing.
Joe Sharkey is a legendary big-wave surfer who is now in his sixties and past his prime. Although there are some new, young surfers who realize who he is and recall his many incredible feats on the surfing circuit around the world, increasingly more of them don't recognize Sharkey. Sharkey still checks out the wave forecast and tries to surf everyday. He seemingly has an ideal life now. He is comfortable. He is living with a much younger woman, Olive, a nurse from England. But when Sharkey accidentally hits and kills a homeless man on a bicycle when driving home from a bar, he suddenly begins to question his mortality and begins repeating the many stories of his life to Olive. She begins the process and encourages him to uncover the identity of the victim which will hopefully give him closure.
The narrative also jumps back in time, to Sharkey's childhood, his family, and his start in surfing, as well as the bullying he experienced. Then it covers his surfing life. Basically, this is an in depth character study of a man who becomes a competitive surfer and follows his life, as he remembers it, in his search for the ultimate wave. This is about Joe Sharkey, and it is a ponderous novel. There is a whole lot of surfing in Under the Wave at Waimea, which is to be expected, and also a plethora of Hawaiian vocabulary, which can be frustrating without the context to always understand what is being said. There are also passages of brilliant character insight along with vivid descriptions.
The search for the identity and information about the man he killed, Max, does expand the focus of the novel and gives Sharkey a focus beyond his surfing stories. It is this search that sets his own mortality before him and provides a new dimension to his character. In the end, however, this is a well written character study of one man that suffers a bit from it's length and could use a bit of editing. In the parts that are successful, it is amazing, but there are whole sections that could use some editing. It also requires a higher degree of interest and appreciation of surfing than I expected. Finally, Olive could have used more character development as she was an intriguing woman.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of HMH Books in exchange for my honest opinion.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2021/0...
Joe Sharkey is a legendary big-wave surfer who is now in his sixties and past his prime. Although there are some new, young surfers who realize who he is and recall his many incredible feats on the surfing circuit around the world, increasingly more of them don't recognize Sharkey. Sharkey still checks out the wave forecast and tries to surf everyday. He seemingly has an ideal life now. He is comfortable. He is living with a much younger woman, Olive, a nurse from England. But when Sharkey accidentally hits and kills a homeless man on a bicycle when driving home from a bar, he suddenly begins to question his mortality and begins repeating the many stories of his life to Olive. She begins the process and encourages him to uncover the identity of the victim which will hopefully give him closure.
The narrative also jumps back in time, to Sharkey's childhood, his family, and his start in surfing, as well as the bullying he experienced. Then it covers his surfing life. Basically, this is an in depth character study of a man who becomes a competitive surfer and follows his life, as he remembers it, in his search for the ultimate wave. This is about Joe Sharkey, and it is a ponderous novel. There is a whole lot of surfing in Under the Wave at Waimea, which is to be expected, and also a plethora of Hawaiian vocabulary, which can be frustrating without the context to always understand what is being said. There are also passages of brilliant character insight along with vivid descriptions.
The search for the identity and information about the man he killed, Max, does expand the focus of the novel and gives Sharkey a focus beyond his surfing stories. It is this search that sets his own mortality before him and provides a new dimension to his character. In the end, however, this is a well written character study of one man that suffers a bit from it's length and could use a bit of editing. In the parts that are successful, it is amazing, but there are whole sections that could use some editing. It also requires a higher degree of interest and appreciation of surfing than I expected. Finally, Olive could have used more character development as she was an intriguing woman.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of HMH Books in exchange for my honest opinion.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2021/0...
April 28, 2021
I've been reading Paul Theroux now for more than two decades. Like many, I started with his travel literature and then gradually began to discover his novels. Now 80, he remains as prolific as ever having just published a wonderful Mexican travel book, On the Plain of Snakes and now with Under the Wave at Waimea, he returns to the fictional sphere. Or does he? It's often a fine line with Theroux, many of whose 'novels' sail close to being autobiographical. At first glance it's hard to find a parallel between the protagonist in Under the Wave at Waimea, Joe Sharkey, an ageing big wave surfer whose life up to now has been all about chasing surf, chasing surf bunnies, smoking pakalolo (dope), drinking, almost defiantly unliterary and not thinking deeply about anything except the ocean versus the distinguished literary figure of Theroux. But then you consider the parallels - the theme of an ageing hero, Hawaii (where Theroux lives at least some of the time) and where he will have mined much of the material, including the surfer slang, for this, bobbing about in the ocean (Theroux once wrote a book based on single-handedly paddling around the scattered isles of the Pacific) and you begin to wonder how much of Theroux himself is actually is in this book. Only he truly knows! I suspect quite a lot.
Sharkey's life is dissected in detail along three interlocking strands - a shocking road accident that derails his otherwise idyllic life, an exploration of his life from childhood through his glory years at the top of the surfing ladder to his gentle descent down that ladder and a final phase where, with the aid of his English lover, Olive, he confronts his demons by unlocking the mystery of just who he killed at the onset of the book, emerging with some kind of peace. There is a lot packed in here, including the difficulty of growing up a minority haole in a tough Hawaiian environment and a damaged relationship with both parents that ultimately forms his character and his (well-concealed) ambition to be the greatest surfer of them all. There is a slightly baffling insertion of Hunter S Thompson in the cast of characters; he, himself undoubtedly influenced by Hemingway, becomes obsessed with Sharkey's physical feats and lionises him in print, all the while losing himself in various hallucinogenic and alcoholic adventures. I don't think I'd ever seen Theroux mention Thompson in print before now (unlike other literary figures like Bowles, Borges and, most infamously, V.S. Naipaul to name but a few) so this felt slightly jarring but was also true to Thompson's manic character. Some of the most enjoyable passages are those that detail Sharkey's travels outside of Hawaii in pursuit of the mythical 100 foot big wave, which he ultimately finds in Portugal - as a side note, once you read the vivid prose descriptions of this you will be compelled, as I was, to find footage of surfers on this monster. This adds the your enjoyment of the book, and if you're an armchair surfer like me, will scare the pants off you.
This is Theroux's second novel focussed on Hawaii - the first, Hotel Honolulu, was very funny and also affectionate in its portrait of the various characters. It did not however instill in me any desire to go to Hawaii and most descriptions I have read since then have reinforced the impression of an overtouristed 'paradise' ruined by the usual forces of greed and stupidity. This book does challenge that by taking us deeper into the unspoiled places and the melting pot of modern Hawaiian culture itself, including a beautiful section where Sharkey becomes fixated on a Chinese surfer girl he befriends only to swiftly realise that he can never penetrate the cultural barrier of her family, and this is one of the achievements of the book, beyond the depth of the plot itself. Some of the ageing introspection is overdone and becomes repetitive in places but this is still a great read - bravo Mr Theroux, I look forward to continuing to read your books many years into the future!
Sharkey's life is dissected in detail along three interlocking strands - a shocking road accident that derails his otherwise idyllic life, an exploration of his life from childhood through his glory years at the top of the surfing ladder to his gentle descent down that ladder and a final phase where, with the aid of his English lover, Olive, he confronts his demons by unlocking the mystery of just who he killed at the onset of the book, emerging with some kind of peace. There is a lot packed in here, including the difficulty of growing up a minority haole in a tough Hawaiian environment and a damaged relationship with both parents that ultimately forms his character and his (well-concealed) ambition to be the greatest surfer of them all. There is a slightly baffling insertion of Hunter S Thompson in the cast of characters; he, himself undoubtedly influenced by Hemingway, becomes obsessed with Sharkey's physical feats and lionises him in print, all the while losing himself in various hallucinogenic and alcoholic adventures. I don't think I'd ever seen Theroux mention Thompson in print before now (unlike other literary figures like Bowles, Borges and, most infamously, V.S. Naipaul to name but a few) so this felt slightly jarring but was also true to Thompson's manic character. Some of the most enjoyable passages are those that detail Sharkey's travels outside of Hawaii in pursuit of the mythical 100 foot big wave, which he ultimately finds in Portugal - as a side note, once you read the vivid prose descriptions of this you will be compelled, as I was, to find footage of surfers on this monster. This adds the your enjoyment of the book, and if you're an armchair surfer like me, will scare the pants off you.
This is Theroux's second novel focussed on Hawaii - the first, Hotel Honolulu, was very funny and also affectionate in its portrait of the various characters. It did not however instill in me any desire to go to Hawaii and most descriptions I have read since then have reinforced the impression of an overtouristed 'paradise' ruined by the usual forces of greed and stupidity. This book does challenge that by taking us deeper into the unspoiled places and the melting pot of modern Hawaiian culture itself, including a beautiful section where Sharkey becomes fixated on a Chinese surfer girl he befriends only to swiftly realise that he can never penetrate the cultural barrier of her family, and this is one of the achievements of the book, beyond the depth of the plot itself. Some of the ageing introspection is overdone and becomes repetitive in places but this is still a great read - bravo Mr Theroux, I look forward to continuing to read your books many years into the future!
April 17, 2021
Are famous people really more interesting than the rest of us? Our culture seems to believe this, but there isn't much evidence that it is true. This book about a famous old white man who ends up killing another famous old white man is a very long slog. It finally picks up in the last third, but that is too little, too late. Sorry, I can't recommend this.
I received an eARC through NetGalley.
I received an eARC through NetGalley.
May 9, 2021
Having lived in Hawaii for several years near the north shore this story flooded me with emotion from those days. The story touching realistic, loving and sad, wove a wonderful & emotional ride I trio enjoyed. Aloha nui loa ♥️
February 6, 2021
I could not get through the e-book version provided by NetGalley. I wanted to enjoy the story but have decided that e-reading is impossible for me so I will update this review when it is released.
May 11, 2021
Disclosure: I received a copy of this novel from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
It is always nice to find a new (to you) writer that you really like, especially one that has already written a ton of books to fill your TBR for the next few years. Ignoring the raised eyebrows at taking so long to read such a famous and highly regarded author like Paul Theroux isn’t so difficult. We all have reasons (or lack thereof) for not getting around to a particular writer I guess, probably mostly to do with the fact that we need to do boring and time consuming things like work and sleep. Oh well, I rejoice nonetheless.
I echo what several others have stated that I loved the first and last third of this book and felt that the middle third was a distraction to a truly compelling story. The first third tells a heart wrenching yet satisfying account of how Joe, an army brat in Hawaii (a mainlander) tries at first to fit in to his surroundings but then decides to escape to the waves and join the joyous and free surfer culture to become “the Shark”—a famous and successful surfer. The tragic relationships between Joe and his father and mother felt realistic to me and Joe was a counter-culture David Copperfield of sorts. This is where I first started asking myself how I missed out on reading Theroux and added several of his books to my TBR pile. His expertise as a travel writer is in full display and his deftness at characterization and the internal thought processes of his main character team up for a truly compelling narrative. This level of artistry only comes with the best writers.
The first part of the novel ends with a traumatic event that stops Joe dead in his tracks, although he does his best to ignore its significance—and this almost kills him. Skipping over the middle section for a moment, the third part tells the story of how Joe (sometimes on his own, but often forced) moves to consider something beyond himself and discover the history of a homeless man that he has run over and killed mostly due to his own negligence. Joe spent most of his life ignoring the world around him, which he felt judged, rejected and abused him, to create the larger than life personality of “the Shark” which was both his alter ego and his refuge. The Shark didn’t care about other people, just about waves, his surfer family, and avoiding the real world and real relationships because real relationships made demands on him. In order to save himself, he needed to research the life story and resurrect the man behind the anonymous drifter that he killed and in the process he heals and even recreates himself to where he no longer needs to be the Shark—to where he is comfortable for once in his life to be “just Joe.” I found Under the Wave a Waimea to be a thoroughly satisfying read. As an aside, as someone who was an army brat and school kid in the 70s in Kailua, Oahu I found his descriptions of Joe’s way of life very accurate.
My issue with the middle third is that I feel that the book is about first and foremost Joe and his journey. In the middle section Joe meets a larger than life character that throws the spotlight off of him and sucks up all the oxygen in the story. Joe meets and spends time with gonzo journalist Hunter Thompson and during this entire section the story takes a detour into Thompson’s life and doesn’t resume its true course until the focus returns to Joe. Others may disagree but I found this section knocked the novel off course and it would be a much better book without it. I also don’t feel that it added anything to Joe’s journey and was therefore an unnecessary distraction.
It is always nice to find a new (to you) writer that you really like, especially one that has already written a ton of books to fill your TBR for the next few years. Ignoring the raised eyebrows at taking so long to read such a famous and highly regarded author like Paul Theroux isn’t so difficult. We all have reasons (or lack thereof) for not getting around to a particular writer I guess, probably mostly to do with the fact that we need to do boring and time consuming things like work and sleep. Oh well, I rejoice nonetheless.
I echo what several others have stated that I loved the first and last third of this book and felt that the middle third was a distraction to a truly compelling story. The first third tells a heart wrenching yet satisfying account of how Joe, an army brat in Hawaii (a mainlander) tries at first to fit in to his surroundings but then decides to escape to the waves and join the joyous and free surfer culture to become “the Shark”—a famous and successful surfer. The tragic relationships between Joe and his father and mother felt realistic to me and Joe was a counter-culture David Copperfield of sorts. This is where I first started asking myself how I missed out on reading Theroux and added several of his books to my TBR pile. His expertise as a travel writer is in full display and his deftness at characterization and the internal thought processes of his main character team up for a truly compelling narrative. This level of artistry only comes with the best writers.
The first part of the novel ends with a traumatic event that stops Joe dead in his tracks, although he does his best to ignore its significance—and this almost kills him. Skipping over the middle section for a moment, the third part tells the story of how Joe (sometimes on his own, but often forced) moves to consider something beyond himself and discover the history of a homeless man that he has run over and killed mostly due to his own negligence. Joe spent most of his life ignoring the world around him, which he felt judged, rejected and abused him, to create the larger than life personality of “the Shark” which was both his alter ego and his refuge. The Shark didn’t care about other people, just about waves, his surfer family, and avoiding the real world and real relationships because real relationships made demands on him. In order to save himself, he needed to research the life story and resurrect the man behind the anonymous drifter that he killed and in the process he heals and even recreates himself to where he no longer needs to be the Shark—to where he is comfortable for once in his life to be “just Joe.” I found Under the Wave a Waimea to be a thoroughly satisfying read. As an aside, as someone who was an army brat and school kid in the 70s in Kailua, Oahu I found his descriptions of Joe’s way of life very accurate.
My issue with the middle third is that I feel that the book is about first and foremost Joe and his journey. In the middle section Joe meets a larger than life character that throws the spotlight off of him and sucks up all the oxygen in the story. Joe meets and spends time with gonzo journalist Hunter Thompson and during this entire section the story takes a detour into Thompson’s life and doesn’t resume its true course until the focus returns to Joe. Others may disagree but I found this section knocked the novel off course and it would be a much better book without it. I also don’t feel that it added anything to Joe’s journey and was therefore an unnecessary distraction.
May 21, 2021
There are so many aspects to love about this book, it almost overwhelmed me:. If you are not seduced into the description of the landscape, both jungle and ocean, you will be mesmerized by the haunted and beguiling world of surfers, their sensuous connection to the ocean and its turbulence. The hero of the book, Joe Sharkey ,and his shadow, Olive, allow Theroux to meditate on ageing, caregiving, the homeless, the function of happiness, what it is that money can buy, as well.as the power of community, in every level of society. And if none of that gets your literary juices flowing, the forming and unfolding of all the novel's layers, its sly plot, and the different and unique complexities of every character, despite one's first impressions, should draw.you into UNDER THE WAVES AT WAIMEA. This is a very humanitarian book, as well as an entertaining novel. A message that constantly appears is that you cannot judge a person by his house or his clothes. So simple to know this. But don't we all do it? Of course, my favorite, and to me most memorable part of the novel is the powerful portrait of Joe STarkey and his single-mindedness about surfing big waves and being in the water, that makes him seem like a force of nature. I have not read such a rich and primal book in quite a long time.
Diane Wakoski, 21 May 2021
Diane Wakoski, 21 May 2021
August 28, 2022
3.5 stars
July 5, 2021
Paul Theroux's book about aging surfers on the North Shore of Oahu. It hits close to home. Aloha
April 13, 2021
When Joe Sharkey, surfing superstar, accidently kills a homeless man with his car he looks back on his life. Arriving in Hawaii at the age of 10 with his father, a special forces colonel stationed there during the Vietnam War, Sharkey remembers being bullied as a “haole.” He credits a native Hawaiian surfer for his survival. Becoming professional surfer, he travels the world. As he reminisces, his girlfriend and he travel to Arkansas and California to find out more about the man he killed. Theroux’s fans will find this book to be enjoyable as they are taken into the Hawaiian surf culture.
November 4, 2024
Big Z from Surfs Up but if it was melodramatic
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