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Sweetness and Blood: How Surfing Spread from Hawaii and California to the Rest of the World, with Some Unexpected Results
An elegant and surprising history of surfing that examines its cultural influence in some of the most unexpected places
How did an obscure tribal sport from precolonial Hawaii—one that was nearly eliminated on its home islands by Christian missionaries—jump oceans to California and Australia? And how did it become such a worldwide passion, influencing lives around the globe?
In this brilliantly written travel adventure, journalist and surfer Moore visits unlikely surfing destinations —Gaza, West Africa, North England, Berlin, Bali, Japan, Cuba, and Morocco—to give the reader a folk history of surfing. This is a personal sketch for any curious reader of how the modern sport moved around the world and mingled with cultures that either have nothing to do with Hawaii or have strong reasons to resist pop silliness from the First World. The result is the story of hippies, soldiers, nutcases, and colonialism; a checkered history of the spread of Western culture in the years after World War II.
Moore brings to his subject a sense of adventure and relevance that will appeal to surfers and nonsurfers alike.
How did an obscure tribal sport from precolonial Hawaii—one that was nearly eliminated on its home islands by Christian missionaries—jump oceans to California and Australia? And how did it become such a worldwide passion, influencing lives around the globe?
In this brilliantly written travel adventure, journalist and surfer Moore visits unlikely surfing destinations —Gaza, West Africa, North England, Berlin, Bali, Japan, Cuba, and Morocco—to give the reader a folk history of surfing. This is a personal sketch for any curious reader of how the modern sport moved around the world and mingled with cultures that either have nothing to do with Hawaii or have strong reasons to resist pop silliness from the First World. The result is the story of hippies, soldiers, nutcases, and colonialism; a checkered history of the spread of Western culture in the years after World War II.
Moore brings to his subject a sense of adventure and relevance that will appeal to surfers and nonsurfers alike.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
14 people are currently reading
322 people want to read
About the author
Michael Scott Moore
5 books68 followersMichael Scott Moore is a literary journalist and novelist, author of a comic novel about L.A., "Too Much of Nothing," as well as a travel book about surfing, "Sweetness and Blood," which was named a best book of 2010 by The Economist and Popmatters. He was kidnapped in 2012 on a reporting trip to Somalia and held hostage for two and a half years.
His book about the ordeal, "The Desert and the Sea," is due out from Harper in mid-2018. He’s covered the European migration crisis for Businessweek, and politics, travel, and literature for The New Yorker, The Atlantic, LitHub, Newlines, Der Spiegel, GQ, The New Republic, The New York Times, and The L.A. Review of Books.
His book about the ordeal, "The Desert and the Sea," is due out from Harper in mid-2018. He’s covered the European migration crisis for Businessweek, and politics, travel, and literature for The New Yorker, The Atlantic, LitHub, Newlines, Der Spiegel, GQ, The New Republic, The New York Times, and The L.A. Review of Books.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
May 16, 2018
This could have been a good one hundred page book, but instead, the author decided to go with a mediocre three hundred page book. When he is talking about surfing, Moore has interesting stories to weave. It is when he meanders away from this, discussing local politics or what an Aussie surfer he meets thinks of the Iraq War. A better editor would have taken a 2 x 4 to these parts. Made it about 70 pages.
March 25, 2019
I enjoyed the Germany and Japan sections of the book the most, probably because I lived in both countries and am familiar with the culture. I liked comparing “my notes” with author’s. But other chapters were hard not to get bored of. His idea of this book is good, but execution falls short at times.
June 20, 2019
This was an interesting book about the origins of surfing at several different locations and even surfing the tide in a canal.
June 5, 2015
Moore goes around the world to trace the history of surfing's athletic, economic, and cultural spread to places not normally associated with surfing culture. After a brief review of the accepted history (Hawaii to California to Australia and the other usual surfing hotspots) Moore takes off for-- Germany . . . the Gaza Strip . . . Morocco.
Yes, Germany is landlocked, and yes, there is a small "surfing culture" on the canals and rivers of Munich. But this book isn't about how big the waves are there, or how to catch them, but about how the culture got there (his question at each location: who was the first person who stood up on a board and rode a wave here?) and how it has impacted the area politically, culturally, and economically.
While the American military during and after World War II was often the carrier of the concept of surfing to these far-flung places, this isn't a book about military imperialism, but it is one that talks about cultural and economic imperialism and its influence in the least likely ways and places. For example, in the chapter on Israel and the Gaza Strip you will learn how surf boards crossed security checkpoints--only to be lost in the cultural maze of Middle Eastern politics.
The closest I've gotten to surfing is boogie boarding during family vacations, and listening to Jimmy Buffett music, but Moore's subject and style doesn't require deep surfing knowledge--partly because, in proof of on of his points, of how deeply engrained the "idea" of surfing is in the leisure lobe of the modern mind.
The other aspect of this book I hinted at in my review title is its value as a travelogue of places, some perhaps familiar, some not so, but all viewed with a different set of eyes. I was reminded of Getting Stoned with Savages: A Trip Through the Islands of Fiji and Vanuatu or The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific; Moore shares a similar vibe with Martin Troost in those fresh looks at familiar (we assume) places.
Yes, Germany is landlocked, and yes, there is a small "surfing culture" on the canals and rivers of Munich. But this book isn't about how big the waves are there, or how to catch them, but about how the culture got there (his question at each location: who was the first person who stood up on a board and rode a wave here?) and how it has impacted the area politically, culturally, and economically.
While the American military during and after World War II was often the carrier of the concept of surfing to these far-flung places, this isn't a book about military imperialism, but it is one that talks about cultural and economic imperialism and its influence in the least likely ways and places. For example, in the chapter on Israel and the Gaza Strip you will learn how surf boards crossed security checkpoints--only to be lost in the cultural maze of Middle Eastern politics.
The closest I've gotten to surfing is boogie boarding during family vacations, and listening to Jimmy Buffett music, but Moore's subject and style doesn't require deep surfing knowledge--partly because, in proof of on of his points, of how deeply engrained the "idea" of surfing is in the leisure lobe of the modern mind.
The other aspect of this book I hinted at in my review title is its value as a travelogue of places, some perhaps familiar, some not so, but all viewed with a different set of eyes. I was reminded of Getting Stoned with Savages: A Trip Through the Islands of Fiji and Vanuatu or The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific; Moore shares a similar vibe with Martin Troost in those fresh looks at familiar (we assume) places.
August 10, 2010
As many people know, surfing originated as a recreational sport of Hawaiian royalty. It was then taken up by commoners, and when westerners arrived in Hawaii they were amazed at the Hawaiian's wave sliding. In the 1920s Duke Kahanamoku went on a surfing tour to California, and that is probably the root of the west coast's surfing culture. What was once an obscure sport developed in one of the most remote places on the planet has since become a pervasive influence on every continent on Earth (except maybe Antarctica).
Michael Scott Moore's book tells of his travels to surfing spots around the world and his efforts to uncover the earliest evidence of surfing in each of those places: Hawaii, California, Indonesia, Germany (river surfing+), Morocco, The United Kingdom (surfing tidal boles), Israel and the Gaza strip, Cuba, Sao Tome and Principe (Africa), and Japan. it's a globetrotter's tale of life, times, culture, and the incursion of surf culture into each of those places.
if you are looking for a book about surfing, this is not it. This is a book about a quest to understand regional origins of surfing. Even so, I found the book to be enjoyable, even if it did seem at times like the book read like a travelogue blog (-1 star).
You do have to admit that surf culture has infused itself into just about every part of global culture. I saw a surf shop last week while I was traveling in north-central Utah, of all places! I see surf emblems and posters all over the place...even where I live in Idaho! There's no surf here, but there is actually quite an active long boarding (skate boarding) collective, and long boarders and surfers share many attitudes and cultural perspectives (I know this after living in Hawaii for 1.5 years and 5 years in Santa Cruz, CA).
So, Moore found that not only surfing, but also surf culture has made its way around and into the world.
if his sounds interesting to you, then you will probably like this book. If all you want is a book about surfing, keep on looking.
Michael Scott Moore's book tells of his travels to surfing spots around the world and his efforts to uncover the earliest evidence of surfing in each of those places: Hawaii, California, Indonesia, Germany (river surfing+), Morocco, The United Kingdom (surfing tidal boles), Israel and the Gaza strip, Cuba, Sao Tome and Principe (Africa), and Japan. it's a globetrotter's tale of life, times, culture, and the incursion of surf culture into each of those places.
if you are looking for a book about surfing, this is not it. This is a book about a quest to understand regional origins of surfing. Even so, I found the book to be enjoyable, even if it did seem at times like the book read like a travelogue blog (-1 star).
You do have to admit that surf culture has infused itself into just about every part of global culture. I saw a surf shop last week while I was traveling in north-central Utah, of all places! I see surf emblems and posters all over the place...even where I live in Idaho! There's no surf here, but there is actually quite an active long boarding (skate boarding) collective, and long boarders and surfers share many attitudes and cultural perspectives (I know this after living in Hawaii for 1.5 years and 5 years in Santa Cruz, CA).
So, Moore found that not only surfing, but also surf culture has made its way around and into the world.
if his sounds interesting to you, then you will probably like this book. If all you want is a book about surfing, keep on looking.
February 19, 2017
I was expecting a "surfari" of sort but what I got was so much more. I was immersed in a global adventure, history lessons, cultural analysis and fine reporting by the pithy prose of Michael Scott Moore. A foreign correspondent and a world traveler himself, Moore took me on a global journey that is as unique as it is enriching. He wrote nine very entertaining and informative chapters about the culture of surfing around the world starting in California and moving on to Hawaii, Indonesia, Germany, Morocco, England, Israel, Gaza, Cuba, Sao Tome and Principe, and Japan.
Hawaii has surfing in its blood, culture and history, and the state just recently made it a High School sport. In, California, Huntington Beach is crowned "Surf City" and by so a sparked the birth of a new counterculture that soon after took over the nation. In Munich, people surf canals and risk being arrested for doing so. In Morocco, a surf school is instituted by the King to counter the radical Islamic wave threatening the youth. In Gaza, surfing is as popular as a falafel sandwitch.
The stories collected in this book are a testament to the power of American pop-culture and its indelible effect on the lives of people worldwide. I'm not just talking Madonna, Michael Jackson, Eminem, Friends, Glee or Desperate Housewives. I'm talking about skateboarding, rollerskating and of course, surfing. The American way of life is evidently embraced and emulated even in parts of the world where we think we're so despised.
You don't have to like surfing to enjoy this book. If you love travel and adventure, you will enjoy it. If you love history and culture, you will enjoy it. And of course if you love all of that and also surfing, you will definitely love this book.
Hawaii has surfing in its blood, culture and history, and the state just recently made it a High School sport. In, California, Huntington Beach is crowned "Surf City" and by so a sparked the birth of a new counterculture that soon after took over the nation. In Munich, people surf canals and risk being arrested for doing so. In Morocco, a surf school is instituted by the King to counter the radical Islamic wave threatening the youth. In Gaza, surfing is as popular as a falafel sandwitch.
The stories collected in this book are a testament to the power of American pop-culture and its indelible effect on the lives of people worldwide. I'm not just talking Madonna, Michael Jackson, Eminem, Friends, Glee or Desperate Housewives. I'm talking about skateboarding, rollerskating and of course, surfing. The American way of life is evidently embraced and emulated even in parts of the world where we think we're so despised.
You don't have to like surfing to enjoy this book. If you love travel and adventure, you will enjoy it. If you love history and culture, you will enjoy it. And of course if you love all of that and also surfing, you will definitely love this book.
July 7, 2010
I wrote this review for San Francisco Magazine. www.sanfranmag.com
The king of Morocco institutes a surf school to combat Islamic radicals. Punks in Munich dodge local police to surf urban rivers. A Cali fornian doctor sneaks surfboards into Palestine for the Gaza Surf Club. What’s happening here? When you think about America’s global pop-culture influence, Beyoncé, George Clooney, and Michael Jordan come to mind long before Kelly Slater. But journ alist, avid surfer, and former SF Weekly theater critic Michael Scott Moore does a fine job of arguing that surfing—yes, as in Point Break—may be our country’s most influential cultural export. (The sport is Polynesian in origin, but its modern incarnation is distinctly American.) Moore travels to unlikely surf destin ations worldwide, dredging up fascinating historical tidbits and interviews, many of which debunk long-held myths: For example, the first surfers to ride waves in Indonesia were not Australian hippies in the ’60s but an American couple, Bob and Louise Koke, in 1936. You don’t necessarily come away from Moore’s book convinced of his thesis, but his irreverent style and diligent research capture a truer—and sometimes darker—aspect of the surfer’s sacred search for the perfect wave. A-
—JAIMAL YOGIS
The king of Morocco institutes a surf school to combat Islamic radicals. Punks in Munich dodge local police to surf urban rivers. A Cali fornian doctor sneaks surfboards into Palestine for the Gaza Surf Club. What’s happening here? When you think about America’s global pop-culture influence, Beyoncé, George Clooney, and Michael Jordan come to mind long before Kelly Slater. But journ alist, avid surfer, and former SF Weekly theater critic Michael Scott Moore does a fine job of arguing that surfing—yes, as in Point Break—may be our country’s most influential cultural export. (The sport is Polynesian in origin, but its modern incarnation is distinctly American.) Moore travels to unlikely surf destin ations worldwide, dredging up fascinating historical tidbits and interviews, many of which debunk long-held myths: For example, the first surfers to ride waves in Indonesia were not Australian hippies in the ’60s but an American couple, Bob and Louise Koke, in 1936. You don’t necessarily come away from Moore’s book convinced of his thesis, but his irreverent style and diligent research capture a truer—and sometimes darker—aspect of the surfer’s sacred search for the perfect wave. A-
—JAIMAL YOGIS
April 15, 2010
It was a really good book. When i first read the title I thought it was gonna b about a surfer but then 2 find out it has all of the history in surfing. It was still super intresting. I enjoyed the Indonesia and the Germany part the best. The best section in the book was the Germany section. Indonesia was a close second. They both were more like a story and pulled me in. the Hawaii and California section was kinda boring since it only seemed 2 b history and facts. It just told all the history on surfing which is cool but the Germany part was really intresting. I really liked it when he would go out and meet the people surfing expecially in the Germany section where he meet a 20 yr old male name Sebastian but liked to b called Basti. I think that guy might of been my old forgein exchange student cause he lives close 2 where the Germany section was located and he was named Sebastian but liked 2 b called Basti and he would b 20 yrs old now. If Michael Scott Moore would of had that kind of thing in the Hawaii and California section, it would of been intresting. Best thing in the book was when Basti got in trouble. almost started laughing out loud
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 21, 2010
Basically a book about a guy who travels to a bunch of places where you wouldn't expect there to be surfing (Germany, Cuba, Japan, Morocco, Palestine, etc) and finds their surf culture while waxing philosophically about the culture of the people who live in that location. Essentially, surfing traveled around the world in the 1940s, propelled by US service men after World War II and a Life magazine article. Sometimes he had very interesting insights, but other times, the generalizations about the culture (e.g. his description of the Japanese) were uncomfortably general and patronizing.
All and all, an interesting book to read on my way back from Hawaii.
All and all, an interesting book to read on my way back from Hawaii.
December 7, 2010
Received as a FirstReads giveaway. Chapters profile the surfing community and the development of the sport in 9 locations around the world. The more general travelogue commentary was actually more interesting to me than the surfing content. The first chapter is on Hawaii and California, but otherwise, the featured spots are kind of surprising. I understand the author's intent to look at surfing in unexpected places, but, still, I think I would have liked to see something on surfing in Australia.
January 27, 2011
I knew that an Economist recommended read based on surfing HAD to be bought! ...and I'm glad I did so. It was a long'ish read, but the author uses his tales of epic surfing - from Hawaii to Indonesia - to explain the culture of the land and how the sport evolved. From the terrorist attacks in Bali to the "unique" hold-ups as a traveler to Israel, Moore shares some great surfing insights while set against several unique cultural and political backdrops.
December 28, 2015
There's not much better occupation on a winter afternoon than sitting down to watch Bruce Brown's Endless Summer. I picked up a copy of this book on a visit to Hawaii and thoroughly enjoyed reading this insider history of the people, places, breaks and outrageous personalities of the surfing world.
June 14, 2010
Won this one first reads.
I was not actually able to read this one. A friend "borrowed" it and has decided that I can not have it back. I have not seen it since he left with it. He really likes it.
I was not actually able to read this one. A friend "borrowed" it and has decided that I can not have it back. I have not seen it since he left with it. He really likes it.
June 29, 2016
A really interesting look at the origins of surfing in places where you wouldn't expect to find it. As much history into those places as into the act of surfing itself, so a great travel story, as well.
May 12, 2011
The Author travelled all over teh world to find where and when surfing was introduced into the culture. I took many notes during my time reading this book, and found many websites where pictures of the surf breaks mentioned in the book could be seen, dramatic and exciting read.
May 3, 2011
lots of interesting information, and a good survey of the state of surfing in some pretty unlikely places. Nicely written, occasionally uncomfortable, but just because the content is difficult some time.
December 2, 2014
You really, really need to be into the minutiae of surfing history to enjoy this. Lots of time spent speculating on who was the first to surf in various spots throughout the world, how surf cultures develop, etc. etc. ad nauseum.
September 9, 2010
Pure awesomeness.
February 1, 2011
Obsessed w/ surfing...reading about it, not doing it. Great book on history of surfing!
Read
August 22, 2010Totally entertaining. I think even someone who wasn't surf-obsessed could very much enjoy this sheerly for the fine writing and the fascinating narratives.
August 15, 2011
Very readable history of surfing around the world.
June 16, 2015
Liked it a lot, good history of surfing and well-written
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews