Surf Mules

by G. Neri

When Logan goes searching for the Perfect Monster Wave, he doesn’t expect his former best friend to be killed by it. Add to this a deadbeat dad who bankrupted his family and the possibility of college going down the drain, and Logan is suddenly in a tailspin.

So when small-time dealer Broza offers Logan and his dropout pal, Z-boy, a summer job that could make them rich, it seems his problems might be solved. But between Z-boy’s constant screwups, a band of Nazi surfers out for blood, and a mysterious stranger on their tail, Logan is starting to have some serious doubts about hauling contraband across country, and hopes just to make it home alive.

Genres: Young Adult

273 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

G. Neri is the Coretta Scott King honor-winning author of Yummy: the Last Days of a Southside Shorty and the recipient of the Lee Bennett Hopkins Promising Poet Award for his free-verse novella, Chess Rumble. His books have been translated into multiple languages in over 25 countries. They include the novels Tru & Nelle, A Christmas Tale, Ghetto Cowboy, Knockout Games, Surf Mules, and two free-verse picture book bios, When Paul Met Artie and Hello, I'm Johnny Cash. In 2017, he was awarded a National Science Foundation grant that sent him to Antarctica.

Prior to becoming a writer, Neri was a filmmaker, an animator/illustrator, a digital media producer, and a founding member of The Truth anti-smoking campaign. Neri currently writes full-time and lives on the Gulf Coast of Florida with his wife and daughter. You can find him online at www.gneri.com.

Reviews

[Al Kaelin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am no longer a "young adult". This story does have a potential to be a great movie.

[Brody · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surf Mules follows a teenage boy going through his senior year of high school with his best friend Z boy, both just teens who love surfing, and also take part in illegal activites like smoking pot and selling. This is my honest review of the book.
To begin, the plot is amazing and very thought out. Instead of just being a story about two boys who love surfing, it goes in depth about the death of one of their best friends, and the toll it takes on them. It is also an amazing adventure thriller, and keeps you on the edge of your seat. The characters are also very well written, Neil makes you feel a personal connection with the character all the way until they end of the book.
I would recomend this book to teenagers, but especially people who like to surf and have more of a laid back chill vibe, because that's the type of vibe that I got from this book. It is truly amazing, and I think whoever reads it will love it.

[Phillip III · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Bit Annoyed by the slamming of Republicans in this book. Suppose there are a lot of "left-wing" writers out there. Ironic Neri attempts to make fun of the "Right" saying how they are always trying to shove their ideals down someone's throat ... when he did the same, LOL

Regardless, the book SURF MULES was a great, fast, taut read. As a young adult novel it tackles the big issues all in one - drugs, sex, death, murder - with a Splash of Surfing.

Complete different writing style used in SURF MULES compared to GHETTO COWBOY, proving that Neri is a very talented author. I am so happy to have "found him" and will be reading ALL of his other works (unless his political views continually pepper his stories. Then I won't. Because it is annoying as hell).

Phillip Tomasso,
Author of the Young Adult novel, SOUNDS OF SILENCE

[Jakob Creswell · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book was a very good adventure and exciting type of book. it does a very good job at detail and clarification. i found the ending to the book kind of boring and didn't really leave me at a hook. i would recommend this book to people who enjoy adventure books and are around the 8th, 9th and 10th grade level of reading. i really enjoyed this book because i was easy for me to picture the events of what was happening in my head so i was able to make the book more interesting for me. the book did a good job of grabbing a hold of me and never made the book at any point not interesting with a great story line and making passed connections with other main ideas in the book. the book did a great job overall of entertainment and a roller coaster of emotions.

[Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book did show a lot of work in it, has point of view on where both Logan and Z-boy have gone to the beach for vacation, both of them got part time jobs by the name of Boza, which can only lead trouble for them except z-boy who thinks this will be easy, which means they have to move to another country while their at it.

[Carolina Colleene · Rating 1 out of 5]

Language PG-13 (27+ swears, 9+ "f"), Sexual Content G; Violence PG
I read the first two chapters of this book, found the swear words and decided I didn't want to put up with 250 more pages of swearing like the first 20.
Reviewed for https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/

[Robbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surf Mules
by G. Neri

Hardcover / 288 Pages
Penguin Putnam / June 2009
978-0-399-25086-6

fourstars

Surf Mules grew on me. At first, it seemed very slow and boring, which is funny because it’s about drug trafficking. But not only did it pick up, it also showed an emotional depth that I was not expecting.

Logan has just graduated from high school when his friend Fin dies riding the Perfect Killer Wave. Searching for his place in the world, he decides to go with his best friend Z-Boy on a cross country road trip carrying one-hundred pounds of marijuana.

The plot takes awhile to get into. Neri takes his time introducing the characters and their motivations; honestly, it was boring, but it does pay off in the end. Logan is lost, floundering for any hold at life that he can cling to. It’s very reminiscent of lots of other teens who may leave high school and have absolutely no idea where they fit in. Dropout Z-Boy, on the other hand, seems to be the comic relief screw-up, but he and Logan genuinely care about each other and stick together through it all.

The actual driving/drug-carrying only takes up the last half of the novel, but this allows Neri to keep the action coming fast and loose, from a run-in with Texan “Surf Nazis” to times when the tension runs high and it looks like the boys won’t make it. At its heart, though, Surf Mules is a buddy story and, even more importantly, a coming of age story about one boy’s journey from California to Florida and how he can never be the same or return to the life he left.

The end of the novel takes a twist, and I won’t tell you what it is, but it’s good. Following the climax, Neri sets the perfect cathartic tone while still managing to wrap things up and end, despite all the events of the novel, to end on a hopeful note.

This book is not a screwball comedy or action flick, like one might think at first. Actually, I think it would be very difficult to get reluctant male readers to stick with the entire novel. However, for avid readers or anyone who does stick through the slower pace of the first half, Surf Mules is a rewarding story that offers hope to those who may need some.

[Zombieslayer⚡Alienhunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, are there really only twelve ratings for this book?
I understand why parents wanting their kids reading it, because of the language and subject matter, but come on. This is real.
I'm almost sixteen, I talk like Logan and Z-Boy (although I must confess I've never had the pleasure of calling someone a 'fuckwad' to their face).
Kids so young getting mixed up in pot smuggling might turn parents off to the book, but let me say this once; they know.
They know, okay? Your kids know whatever you've taught them about drugs. Or whatever they saw on TV, movies, the news. They know.


Z-Boy's death hurt me. Really bad. I know a Z-Boy. I know and love a Z-Boy.
And, much like Logan, I have no faith in mine ever growing up.
Some day, something bad will happen to him.
I just hope I'm not there when it does.

You know what?
I was gonna write a review full a weed, kush, joint, doobie, 420 and pot jokes, but screw it.
This is a heartfelt book with an amazing story, real characters and lots and lots of love (and pot).
I'm not s surfer, but the philosophy is just about the smartest damned thing I've ever heard in my whole life. Those dudes are deep. Respect.

The only thing I can complain about is the portrayal of Texas surfers.
They do more than just surf oil tank breaks, okay?
They may not be as hardcore as the South Cali brahs, but they're surfers nonetheless.
Don't disrespect.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go rent Chasing Mavericks again.

[Josh Newhouse · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am in the middle of disc 5 of 6... I have reached the beginning of the book basically... the cliffhanger... my thoughts thus far...

I really like the plot and characters, but it felt a little bit too much of a wait for the cliffhanger return...

I also do not like the way he returned to the beginning and retreads that same time period... I had to check to make sure it was not the same disc again before I realized that there was added detail which fleshed out the beginning but at the same time distracted...

More to come as I reach the end... so far its a 4 star book, but with a little bit of tweaking it could have been 5 stars and I am a big fan of G. Neri...

It took me a while to read because language and content wise it is definitely for older middle school only (8th grade boy reluctant readers with permission), and I have so much to read for middle school... but I am glad I have had the chance to return to my listening, restarting this summer... oh and I love Finn's Dad... he reminds me of Bill from Kill Bill... very weathered, beaten down, yet wise and a little kick-a*, maybe even a Nick Nolte role?

Having finished now I really liked it... the ending surprised me as it showed real consequences for the actions... I don't want to spoil more...

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Logan Tom is a good student and wants to go to college but his single mom is in serious financial trouble and his deadbeat dad is no help. He and his friends love surfing and one of his best friends, Fin, has just signed on to the professional surfing circuit. Even though Fin’s father is a former professional surfer, Logan taught Fin everything he knows. After Logan witnesses Fin’s death from a monster wave, Logan goes into an emotional tailspin. He feels overwhelmed by pressure to solve his mother’s financial problems so he can go to college and by guilt over a fight he and Fin had. His other friend, Z-boy, is kicked out of the house because he isn’t graduating from high school and he wants Logan to help him transport drugs to Florida for a local drug dealer. They can make some big money and Logan thinks it will help with his college tuition. This coming-of-age novel is an adrenaline rush from beginning to end with exhilerating surf scenes, liberal references to pot smoking, and the cross country journey of the two boys with all its attendant misadventures usually caused by the hapless Z-boy. Logan and Z-boy are likeable characters and the ending is shocking. Mostly boys will be drawn to this book because of the content and the vivid writing.

[Liviania · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summer's almost over, but the Books of Summer list is yet to be completed! Here's another hardcover for the list - one that's far better than it ought to be. I picked this one up expecting it to be so-so, an impression enforced by the prologue that recounts one of Logan and Z-boy's dumber exploits. But SURF MULES quickly becomes an emotional novel that will appeal to boys.

Logan's smart for a surfer, but it takes more than brains to go to college. And when his former best friend dies on the wave he spent his whole life wanting to ride, Logan is thrown for a loop. So when his other pal Z-boy hooks him up with the local drug dealer for an easy job, he takes it. And of course, things go terrible wrong.

(Everything I know about drug muling I learned from this book and Maria eres llena de gracia, neither of which make it an attractive job despite explaining very well why people would do it.)

SURF MULES combines comedy, adventure, and poignancy to create a book that is far less silly than it seems on the surface. Reading about Logan's last summer before college is a good way to cap off your own summer.

[Dominic · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was probly one of my favorite books of all time. I think all books should be wrote like this. Avid surfer Logan goes into a sudden depression when his X friend, Fin, dies in a freak surfing accident. Logan learns that fin had been a drug mule for Broza, a local drug dealer. When Broza needs a new drug runner since Fin died he uses Logan's best friend Z-boy,a goodhearted but burn out high school dropout who wants to get rich fast so he can surf and get high. Z-Boy lures Logan into taking the drug runner job for Broza. After this event its all down hill for logan and Z-boy. All this is in the environment of beach-bums and stoners. All Logan and Z-boy do is hang out and go surfing. There constantly at their friends house or surfing. Overall this is an amazing book and i recomend it to any high schooler

[Christina Getrost · Rating 4 out of 5]

Logan, newly graduated from high school and anticipating college, plans to spend the summer surfing with his childhood best friends Zane "Z-Boy" and Flinn. But life, just like the Perfect Wave, has a habit of changing in the blink of an eye. Flinn is killed in a freak surfing accident, and Logan is totally thrown for a loop. Add to this that Z-boy, more of a stoner than the other two (who occasionally smoke some marijuana), didn't make graduation, and Logan's deadbeat surfer loser of a dad bankrupts Logan and his mom, and NOT DONE YET!

[Augusta Scattergood]

A gritty novel with lots of heart. Believable setting, characters and language. The tone and the language are perfectly suited to readers and to the theme. Surf Mules will have a following of teenage guys who love to surf and who like adventure stories. Also should have crossover appeal into the adult market.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was actual pretty good. My first thought was ugh, a book about surfers...but combine that with a teenage road trip with a car filled with 100 pounds of pot, drug dealings, coming of age/growing up and a few other twists it's actually a decent story. The ending was a little long, almost like the author didn't quite know how what to do with the charactors.

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, not what I would normally choose. Didn't think it exactly had a happy ending, and I was kind of waiting for the bad the whole time so it was kind of a perturbing read. Well written though and not a bad story.

[Margie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the story very much. Didn't know what turn it would take. Two young kids in desperate situtations trying to do what they think will help them. Characters are believable and very realistic. Listened to the Audio.

[Mo · Rating 1 out of 5]

It kills me to write this, because I love everything I've ever read by Neri. I forced myself to read this in hopes that it would get better. It didn't. I can't find any redeeming qualities in this book.

[Donna Lyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

spoiler alert....
this read like a biography in that it provided a lot of life lessons. a book for teen boys that talks about the drug culture but doesn't glorify it.

[Will · Rating 3 out of 5]

My review on my You Know You Wanna Read It blog:

http://willteenbooks.blogspot.com/201...

[Elyse · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just really liked this book. Somehow really poignant and moving.

[Sarah Ressler Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for kids who don't like reading especially when I say "it's a book about pot smuggling."