Sports and Recreation Books

Thought this book was really good. Lots of little tidbits of knowledge that you may have heard or didn't ever think about. Presented for all ages and all skill levels.

I teach a beginning backpacking class for adults and have used several books over the past 15 years. This is the 2nd year that I have used the Allen & Mike's book and it is a much easier read. Students and instructors both like the illustrations as it makes it faster to get through the information. Much more enjoyable than standard textbooks, but with a lot of valuable information.

A friend suggested I read this book before my first backpacking trip. It is a very fast and fun read with tons of useful information. My friend, who is a very experienced backpacker and NOLS alumni, was amazed at the amount of knowledge I acquired just from the book and has since purchased his own copy for reference. I highly recommend this book to any beginner or expert who needs a refresher!

The author shares his substantial experience with the reader in a uniquely entertaining manner, and the illustrator complements the light-hearted style of the author with [occasionally] hilarious visuals. The character of this book will attract everyone in the household; even those without camping or backpacking experience will find it easy-to-read and interesting. For those already bitten by the 'outdoor bug', new insights presented by the author force us to reconsider our position on a variety of subjects.

Unlike so many of its kind, this book is comprehensive without being obscure; no lessons on building water bucket baskets or how to skin and dry moose meat for the winter. This handbook addresses the basics of backpacking with enthusiasm, and it proves contagious for the reader.

Reading this book reminds me that it's possible to learn from all types of backpackers. The book is well written and illustrated. The illustrations have ideas that are not always in the text.

Allen O'Bannon clearly is not in the lightweight backpacking camp, which I am. O'Bannon writes about heavy pack loads (how to properly put on a heavy pack) and leather hiking boots. The book is loaded with ideas that will be interesting to all backpackers. I wouldn't recommend the book to someone just starting out with backpacking. For those readers I would give it just two stars. However, I would recommend it for a current backpacker that wants some fresh ideas or a fairly new backpacker that has read a couple books on lightweight backpacking first. The book isn't loaded with a lot of fluff that can be found everywhere. It is also easy to read and not nearly as boring as many backpacking books.

For those acquainted, even indirectly, with the world of rowing, this book represents a fantastic story of a rebellious rower and his desire to win an olympic gold medal on his own terms. After his dramatic loss in the single scull trials on Lake Carnegie, being denied a spot in one of the national selection camp boats, and having to relocate to the east coast despite his west coast upbringing, he somehow won the national trials, made the team, and then won the olympics. He became the best in the world months after being denied a spot as one of the top 6 in his own country. This was, and still is, unprecedented in almost any sport ever. Take that inspirational story and couple it with Lewis' knack for capturing the aggression of a young non-conformist and "Assault On Lake Casitas" becomes the second best rowing book ever. (The best rowing book ever is "The Amateurs" by David Halberstam. If you read either of these books, it is imperative that you read the other. If you've read none, it is imperative you read both.)

I'm a rower and I didn't know anything about this book before I read it. I met Brad Lewis while I was at the San Diego Crew classic in March 2003 and I was very impressed with his character, so I bought his book. The competetive shark found in the book was chillingly inspirational on what it takes to be a champion, but I must admit that the Brad in the eighties is not the same Brad of today. Ever since he stopped competing, he has calmed that anger within him. I think it has made him a better Journalist because his writing keeps getting better.
Read this book if you are interested in knowing what goes through the head of a competetive rower and the sacrifices Brad made to get that gold medal.

as a long time, fanatic, and not especially talented rower i was pretty surprised i had never heard of this book when lewis himself foisted it on a friend of mine at the 2004 head of the charles. after leafing past the disturbing cover art, the book itself traces his long quest for gold culminating in the 1984 LA olympics. this book is all rowing, so if you are interested in crew, or any seriously competitive athletics, like i suspect you'll find reading it to be the purest pleasure, if not, let's just say there's no love angle to carry it along. but for those in pursuit of excellence: what a tremendous read! lewis is relentless, and he's a superb story-teller. i'm so happy to finally discover a companion to the only other great rowing book i've ever found, also culminating in the 1984 olympics, david halberstam's `the amateurs'.

I bought this book a couple of years ago when I was doing some rowing. I also bought it because of the great reviews at Amazon.com. I will add my voice to those who have written here: this is a very special story and is much more than a book about rowing--it is a book about overcoming obstacles, persevering in the face of unbelievable odds and understanding that the process is as valuable and prized as the final result. It is not a book about the means justifying the ends. It is a book about building a foundation and building upon that foundation and not taking any shortcuts. Lewis is a superb writer and the speed of his narrative matches the strength of his oar strokes. I have given it as a gift to people I really care about.

Brad Lewis' "Assault on Lake Casitas" is bar none the finest book ever written, not just on the sport of rowing, but on the unflaging pursuit of excellence. A powerfully gripping read from cover to cover, Lewis's description of the training, trials, heats and finals of his 1984 olympic campaign captures the essence of competitive rowing. Like many of the other reviewers, I too read Lewis' heart stopping description of his Grand Final race before races-no other book captures with such power the emotions which crew illicits. A triumph of determination and perseverence, Lewis' story is a great, great read.

I've been fly fishing for over 30 years and live in the epicenter of fly fishing in Montana. I learned a ton from this book ("Barr Flies"). I caught more trout over 20 inches this Summer on the Beaverhead than any time in the past. Filled with great, very specific tactics. Thanks John Barr.

I am usually pretty picky on my fly pattern books and get most of them off the internet. This is a reallyg good addition to your tying library and has lots of info, pictures and organized well. I keep it next to my bench when I get ready to go chase the trout or warmwater fish. Great for remembering patterns I had tied or finding new ones to try.

Barr Flies: How to Tie and Fish the Copper John, the Barr Emerger, and Dozens of Other Patterns, Variations, and Rigs
I have purchased and read many books in the last few years regarding tying and fishing,but this book not only is well-written and enjoyable to read but it just may give you some new weapons in your fishing arsenal! The photography is excellent and Mr Barr's flies,tying techniques and practical suggestions as to how to fish these flies is wonderful.You will not be dissapointed with the purchase of this book!

It is hard to imagine that anyone pursuing trout on flies could have walked into a fly shop in the past five years and not have walked out with one of John Barr's flies. Even harder to imagine is that this same angler has never heard of a Copper John or a Barr Emerger. Walking into several fly shops in the past four months around the country, I can attest not only to the popularity of his patterns, but the more than enthusiastic reception this book has received among the fly fishing faithful.

I admit to having tied my own Copper John's for years, now. While I doubt that the effectiveness of my flies will change much now that I tie them in de facto Barr style, the step-by-step instructions and photographs sure have them looking just flat-out better than anything turned out at the vise previously. From a standpoint of personal pride alone, this book may be worth the purchase.

John's commentary on the development of the patterns is good entertainment, but what I found to be of great value were his explanations for why he was driven to imitate the food organisms he has included (i.e. why they are important to the trout), how to fish them best, and overall how these flies are incorporated into his own personal system of fishing. The final pages provide photographs and explanations of four fly boxes (which may have been featured in an issue of "Fly Fisherman" previously - I have not bothered to check) containing the book's patterns in an array of colors and sizes, in addition to a few other popular western fly patterns. I know I stand on thin and melting ice at the mere suggestion of such a notion, but the thought of consolidating one's fly assortment to just four boxes and covering all of the bases likely to be met on-stream just sounds outrageously tempting. Perhaps when I have put 200 days on the water for the next 10 years and have 20 original patterns designed to tackle all of the challenges faced in that time, I will be able to do so. In the meantime, why start re-inventing the wheel? A great book, whether you want to subscribe to a complete fishing system, learn a few new techniques and flies to add to your arsenal, or just make your own flies look better.

I just wanted to put in my two cents about this great book and Barr flies in general. I hesitated to try Barr flies for a long time thinking them "Western" flies that our Eastern trout might find insulting. I tied up some Copper Johns and slumpbusters for a Western trip and they worked great in Northern Idaho. So one day I gave them a try on a tough Eastern stream and they worked super here too(helped me avoid a skunk.) They have definately earned a permanent place in my flybox. I'm sure they will in your's too if you give them a try.

With the backdrop of the emerging black middle-class in segregated Washington, D.C., during World War II, author Brad Snyder tells the compelling story of two baseball clubs and the push to integrate one professional league.

There is Homestead Grays founder Cum Posey, who is looking to relocate his franchise from Pittsburgh before the start of the 1940 season. And there is Clark Griffith, owner of the pathetic Washington Senators, who can briefly shuffle aside his racism for a business deal that will bring a new revenue stream to his bank account when the team is playing away from Griffith Stadium.

This initial tenuous partnership delivered a surprise to Griffith; the Grays exemplary play on the field found them outdrawing the cellar-dwelling Senators and galvanizing a new generation of baseball fans. That success - even with onerous stadium leases common when NLB teams played in facilities used by Major League Baseball clubs - helped propel the integration of MLB in 1947.

The era is also seen through legendary sportswriters Sam Lacy & Wendell Smith, Buck Leonard - the greatest pro first baseman - and in the offices of MLB, especially the Senators.

Griffith - who certainly could have worked out some type of agreement with the Grays for players to bolster the Senators before the Dodgers signed Robinson - was only a pioneer in segregation, integrating his team seven years after Robinson's debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers and ultimately fleeing Washington, D.C., relocating his team to the whiter Minneapolis-St. Paul market.

With the success of Robinson came the slow disintegration of NLB - the league that was truly integrated on the field, in the stands and in the front offices - as MLB teams raided the club rosters for established stars and began scouting & signing younger players to contracts.

Snyder has brought this forgotten period beyond the shadows of the simplistic retelling of the past that plagues all levels American history.

Let me be clear, this is a great book, rather than just a very good one. In nine chapters, plus an introduction and conclusion, Washington, D.C., based attorney turned writer has told the powerful and sometimes provocative story of how the Homestead Grays moved to Washington, D.C., and set the stage for the breaking down of the color line in Major League Baseball (MLB). In this important book Brad Snyder moves beyond the singular actions of Branch Rickey's Brooklyn Dodgers and Jackie Robinson, which most people are familiar with, to explore the broader implications of race relations in baseball during the 1940s.

In telling this story, "Beyond the Shadow of the Senators" is filled with heroes and villains. The most significant hero is unquestionably Sam Lacy, a black writer with the "Washington Tribune," a weekly oriented toward D.C.'s large African American community, who consistently called for the desegregation of MLB. Also heroic are the great stars of the Negro Leagues, especially Buck Leonard, Satchel Paige, and Josh Gibson, all of whom came to Washington to play before large crowds in the nation's capital. They demonstrated through their exploits the quality of talent in the Negro leagues, especially when juxtaposed against the hapless play of the Washington Senators of the American League. The villains include Clark Griffith, the financially strapped owner of the Senators whose willingness to rent Griffith Stadium to the Grays proved lucrative, and Grays owner Cumberland Posey who shifted his team from the Pittsburgh area to Washington to cater to the large middle-class African American community in Washington. Both Griffith and Posey had every reason to keep the segregated system intact because of the money they made. Moreover, Griffith was a blatant racist who integrated reluctantly and eventually moved the Senators from Washington to Minneapolis-St. Paul because, as he said in 1978, "you've got good, hardworking white people here" (p. 289).

Ranging broadly from social history to baseball and back, Snyder captures the essence of the history of the Senators, the Grays, and wartime Washington's racial situation. It is a story of love and hate at the same time, as well as the quest for dignity of the minority population in a divided city. "Beyond the Shadow of the Senators" is a powerful book. Enjoy.

Brad is an excellent researcher and writer. This book is not only enjoyable but educational. I met Ted "Double Duty" Radcliffe and Lester Lockett, two former Negro League players, a few years ago and their stories started my interest. Brad fed that interest beautifully. I look forward to Brad's next book on Curt Flood and the reserve clause. His attention to detail is consistent with his legal background.

Tim Moreland, PhD
Salisbury, NC

"Beyond the Shadow of the Senators'' is a must read for any serious student of baseball history. The author put a massive amount of research into this engaging account, of which I knew nothing even though I grew up in Washington not long after these events took place. This is an outstanding work in every regard. I have never met the author and I am not an African-American (not that anybody should care); I am just a fan of baseball and its history. If you are, too: Read this book.

This is a great, and true-to-life (i.e., "complex") story about the institution of 'Negro' League baseball and the various parties who profited and railed against it.

Key people that are introduced and brought to life are:
Buck Leonard, Satchel Paige, and Josh Gibson -- three of the greatest ballplayers who ever lived;
Clark Griffith -- the pioneering, penurious and controlling owner of the Washington Senators;
Sam Lacy -- the ahead-of-his-time, DC-native who tirelessly advocated for the integration of Major League Baseball; as well as
Cum(berland) Posey -- the shrewd owner of the Homestead Grays -- the dominant team of the loosely confederated Negro Leagues during the late 30's and 40's.

Tangential to this story are:
the decimation of the post 1933 Senators, mostly due to finances and an inadequate ballpark;
the relative prosperity of Washington DC during the years of the depression and WWII and the partial equality of African-American government workers that led to a vibrant culture and ability to spend on entertainment;
the move by Posey and his "partner" (many of the Negro League baseball teams were financed by numbers entreprenuers) to Washington from their Pittsburgh home and the welcome of their rental payments and gate pctgs. by Clark Griffith;
Judge Landis' death, the increasing awareness of America's incongruity in its fight for freedom and democracy in Europe while maintaining a virtual apartheid culture at home; and
the greed/opportunity of baseball owners to find the best talent at the lowest price which ultimately led to Rickey's "great experiment");

This book also fleshes out the background and conflict around Jackie Robinson, who was rightly judged to be a great man and the right vehicle for Rickey's efforst, and the shared opinions that he was a good, but not all-time great Negro baseball player. [Check out how well a 42-yr old Satchel Paige pitched for the World Championship Indians in 1948.]

The shifts in attitude between "separate but equal" and complete integration by the various parties reveal primarily self-interest. Judged by the standards of our time, I share many others' great respect for Sam Lacy and his tireless, moral advocacy and feel sorry for the Negro League baseball owners who were mostly left with nothing as they rarely had enforceable contracts that protected their relationship with their players.

Clark Griffith was an "innovator" in attracting inexpensive talent from Cuba. Many of these players represented themselves well on the ballfield but would only be acceptable if they were of "Spanish" descent.

Utterly inconceivable now, but the norm for over 60 years (since Cap Anson helped institute the "gentleman's agreement" against employment of African Americans in the early 1880's) was to allow a Major or Minor League ballclup to employ pretty much anyone (Swedes, Germans, Irish, Italians, Jews, etc.) anyone, except African-Americans.

It has often been discussed that without Jackie Robinson (& the parts played by Branch Rickey, Roy Campanella, Pee Wee Reese, Ben Chapman, etc.) the 1954 "Brown vs. Board of Education" decision would not have happened as quickly.

This book provides a wonderful companion story to the integration of major league baseball which, in my opinion, is one of the most significant stories of 20th Century United States.

When I read the description on the jacket I thought, "No way will this work. He's going to tell us about the 60 rounds he shot, stroke by stroke, such as.... and on the seventh, a tough par five, I got out my trusty three wood etc., etc., etc." It is that but it is more. Slack shares with us the feeling of what it is like to stand at the first tee of a course you have never played on a beautiful spring morning in New England. He introduces us to the people he meets on the course, from the potato farmers of Maine to the Florida "snowbirds" who flew South to escape the Northern winters. Did the book work? I'm getting my clubs ready to try a West Coast version.

Great book on golf. Gives a great look at courses up and down the east coast. There was, however, too much on the history of the towns instead of more on the history of the course and more on the actual rounds he was playing. Was "On The Road" for the golfing enthusiast.

A perfect blend of of travel journal and salute to public golf. Anyone with a high handicap, who has played with bare-chested strangers with even higher handicaps, on crowded bald fairways with bumpy greens, will appreciate this book.

Blue Fairways is thoroughly enjoyable. Slack's sense of humor, coupled with his self-deprecating writing style, make this a must read -- golfer or not. I laughed out loud and also cringed as he described some less-than-stellar golf moments. For those of us who do golf, who couldn't identify with The Look of Pity? Non-golfers will enjoy the way Slack captures what most of us will never have a chance to witness first hand -- the essence of what remains of small towns and hospitality as they teeter on the brink of chain restaurants and cynicism.

If you've ever topped a drive off the first tee or missed a three-footer on 18 while trying record your career low round, you'll be able to identify with Charles Slack's golf game. When it comes to writing, though, he's scratch. One brief example will suffice. Describing the contrast between the front and back nines at the Ponce De Leon course in St. Augustine Florida, he says, "The back nine plunges into the jungle with the suddenness of a Disney ride, into a lush, dark, secretive world of mangrove swamps and ponds curving tantalizingly like lost lagoons. Moving from the ninght to the tenth holes is like putting down a volume of P.G. Wodehouse and picking up Heart of Darkness, all in one morning."

The book is filled with wonderful insights like that one and reminds us on nearly every page of the real reasons why golfers love this sometimes maddening, often magical, game. For those of us who never will have the pleasure of sharing a round with Charles Slack, this book is a delightful substitute.

I've been training BJJ for about a year now, and I'm on the small side (130 lbs) so I find myself on my back a lot, and I quickly learned the importance of an effective guard. For me this book has probably done more to improve my training than anything else (except actual sparring). I usually fight guys much bigger than me (between 180-220 lb) and until I learned how to use the guard effectively I was basically a grappling dummy for my opponents. But now I'm constantly surprising my training partners and myself with how effective and varied these techniques from guard are, and I credit this book with much of my improvement. The guard is great because you can attack with all four limbs while your opponent can only use their arms.
Kid Peligro is an excellent teacher and offers many of the subtle details that make the difference between submitting and being submitted. For example, the section on breaking the posture and the 4 pages on the basic cross collar choked improved my game more than anything. Everyone knows this choke, but the minor details make it really dangerous, especially when you don't have a lot of muscle to force the choke. Before, most guys I sparred with weren't too worried about my choke, I was convinced I wasn't strong enough, but since reading this book I've put several guys to sleep because they wouldn't even considering tapping and now they try hard not to even let me get a grip on their collar. This opens up many more opportunities to attack with sweeps, arm bars, and omoplatas. What makes this book so good is the authors' understanding of students and the basic mistakes they make, as well as the very clear explanations and photos. The moves are integrated into a complete system that will put you years ahead than if you tried to figure this out on your own. That being said, there is plenty here for higher belts as well. I think the Essential Guard is essential reading for anyone taking BJJ seriously and interested in dramatically improving their Guard game. It should be know that there isn't a lot on the half- guard, it's mostly breaking the the posture, replacing the guard, opend and closed guard, butterfly, spider, and attack combinations. If you want a good half-guard game, I recommend Eddie Bravo's Mastering the Rubber Guard. These two books compliment each other well.

Thank you for writing this book. This book gives details about the guard that would take thousands of dollars to learn in a jujitsu school. I hope the authors write a book about how to pass the guard that is as detailed.

I found this book very useful and well laid out. I use this book whenever i get busy at work and can't attend bjj class as often as i would like. Very easy to understand with good pictures. My only negative comment is i wish the butterfly guard section was thicker.

this is the essential book for the beginner or intermediate BJJ player. it is likely the best BJJ book out there because it pays quality attention to the nuances of the GUARD and you will not get that at every jiujitsu school. without fundamental knowledge of the proper body positioning required to execute guard techniques, youre going nowhere.
futhermore, no matter how good you are as a 'top' position player, without a SOLID guard, youre wasting your time.

rodrigo medeiros is an excellent teacher.... one of the best. this is evidenced by the fact that he shows you the 'finer' points in very clear detail. one begins to wish that the book were much larger in scope and that it covered ALL the techniques from the guard, but no book can really do that. however, if you are having trouble executing or setting up the standard techniques, this book is sure to help. you get a $200 lesson for about 25 bucks.

get to rollin'

I loved this book the second I opened it. This book has a great lay out and an easy step by step process to help any gaurd game at any level. I opened it a read it the first day and put some new simple techniques into effect my first session. The chapter on setting up and combonations from one technique to another is GREAT, This is what all new BJJ strive for. Great book and a must get for anyone interested in improving there gaurd game.

I bought this book for my nephew who shoots clay's and he said he loved the book and it was very informative.

The book explains in easy to understand detail what I need to do and what I need to avoid. the rest is up to me.

Frank
Bronx

I've been shooting for 4 years now after taking 15 years off. This book has a seemingly endless amount of great, technical advice and tips. Diagrams especially helpful. I will re-read it over and over again as I try to become a better shot. Great buy, great book. Curt L.

Lots of good tips, but especially for anyone who wanted to learn about all the shotgun sports. Another recommended learning source is Leon Measures - "Shoot where you Look" in DVD and Bill McGuire's - "Focus and Fire" DVD.

I can warmly recommend this book both for the novice and some more experienced trap clay sporter. A lot of illustrations with easy text, a very logical approach to major techniques. In all a very good info and "inspiration" source.

I just bought this book the other day and it is amazing. It gives you the facts you need for survival. If I get caught in a situation from the book and I don't know what to do, I will be suprized.

This great book teaches you how to survive. It has so many detailed descriptions with graphs. It is so compact that I even carry it everyday in my backpack. It might be really useful when the war starts or an earthquake takes place.

One of my friends bought the big version that had a little more information in it. I read it and when I saw that you could buy a pocket version I was thrilled! Wisemen gives an informative description of everything you need to survive almost anywhere. I'm confident that if I were in a survival situation I would be able to survive.

I've had this book for a few years now and have read it over and over again. The information is amazing. There's not a topic that Wiseman doesn't cover or at least touch on.
Not only is it small, it's tough too. It's been on every camping trip, hike, deployment and just about every other trip with me for the past three years and it's still in great shape.
Friends of mine that could have cared less about a suvival book have read mine on airplane rides and afterwards went and bought thier own.
You can't go wrong

With store shelves overloaded by "SAS" books it's unfortunate that this little, uh, Gem can be lost in that crowd. The original format was more like a coffee table book, but for practical purposes this chunky, compact edition is not only the most convenient of those available, it is also arguably the best on the market.
The manual itself is comprehensive, clearly written and with clear (if sometimes limited) illustrations, including a useful colour section; and here the colour is used for more than mere decoration as it provides essential additional information in identifying plants and animals. There is no philosophical description here, little room for the romance of the wild or the ethics of surviving. Instead, "Lofty" Wiseman's guide is a direct parcel of solid information aimed solely at keeping you alive in the worst of situations. Campers and outdoorsmen will find some interesting and useful sections here, but it requires a degree of knowledge and experience to sift them from those which simply must not be used outside of an emergency. This is a fascinating book to dip into, and doubtless most purchasers treat it as such, but it is also an exceptionally effective, reliable and well-crafted source of possibly vital information.

a good book this is my first hockey training book and I was very happy with it but i would reccomend it for coaches

Peter Twist says it right in the beginning, there is nothing quite like hockey. That makes it really tough to get in shape to play. Even if you're already in great shape, you're game could improve dramatically if you got into hockey shape. That is exactly what Twist tries to do.

The book is organized in such a way that the later chapters build upon the previous chapters. He begins by talking about energy and how we burn fuels different ways when playing hockey. Then he goes into stretching and strength training. If you have ever spent any time around a gym, you'll already know how to perform these movements. The payoff for this book is the plyometric. These are techniques used to help improve your agility and explosive movements. Let's face it, the team that can consistently get to the puck first usually wins. These exercises will provide you with a quick jump giving you an extra step over your opponent and the puck.

Twist writes simply, and his instructions are easy to follow. He uses photos generously when trying to explain complex movements. Both on-ice and off-ice exercises are provided so you don't have to be at the rink or have precious ice time to get into shape.

The book was delivered to me within 5 days and was in excellent condition when I received it.
The book is excellent. It provides some great ideas for hockey fitness. The only draw-back is that a good portion of the book deals with on ice fitness exercises and unless you're a professional hockey player, it is very difficult to have a clean sheet of ice to yourself to work on conditioning. However, there is enough to keep you busy.

This is the book that has elevated the hockey game of a 33 year old goaltender. I've been using it for myself and for the midget hockey team I coach. It definitely gives the team the edge when the the drills are executed on a regular schedule during the season and off season. This is required reading for my youth team and it has not failed.

This book is fantastic. The book is very complete, from beginning to end on the training and conditioning aspect. Not only did it include the fitness portion, but also nutrition, which I was surprised to see.

My only complaint is that each and every exersize should have photos. Most do, but not all of them. There are some exersizes that are not 100% clear on the proper technique.

Other than that it's great.

This was the book I was looking for when it came to all things surfing. Everything from history, boards, type of surf, how to surf, surf lingo, and great pictures: it's all there.

I bought this for my boyfriend last year and he is still reading it. It is a great book for the coffee table and it keeps you going back for more. It has everything related to surfing in a great layout.

I bought this for my eight-year-old son. He has gotten into surfing recently and can't stop talking about it. He is just getting better at reading, and although this book has a lot to read (which is a plus for those wanting to look up anything about surfing), he is more willing to practice reading when it comes to a subject of interest, so he'll open it up and look up whatever questions pops up in his mind about surfing. Great book!

Or so I presume.

This book has the best history I've seen on Pacific Ready Cut Homes and that's why I purchased it. I'm the author of "California's Kit Homes" and had a devil of a time finding information on this Los Angeles-based company.

I bought "The Encyclopedia of Surfing" and was pleasantly surprised to find information about the company that brought us the Swastika Surfboard. Yes, they made wonderful (and heavy!)surfboards, but did you know they also made and sold 40,000 kit homes before they got into surfboards? (BTW, one Pacific Ready-Cut house had 30,000 pieces of house and a 75-page instruction book - and you thought putting together a VCR stand was tough.)

I also browsed other parts of the book and found it to be an informative and well-researched book.

Rose
author, California's Kit Homes

If you are a surfer or interested in learning anything about the history and names in the sport past and present then you should immediately buy this book. Two copies. Matt Warshaw does an excellent job of detailing almost every major and minor aspect in the history of the sport from onshore wind to "nat young" to "new jersey". There are small black and white photos throughout the book as well. I guarantee you will learn alot from reading just one letter of the alphabet. After reading this book, you can start to talk like Sam George. Highly informative and hard to put down.