On a Wave - Hardcover

Ziolkowski, Thad

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 087113845X ISBN 13: 9780871138453

Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Pr, 2002

Synopsis

Describes the life of a poet who uses surfing and the healing power of the ocean to escape his problems, including his parent's divorce and his new stepfather, until a tragedy changes his life.

About this title

About the Author

Thad Ziolkowski has a Ph.D. in English literature from Yale University. He is a widely published poet, and his articles and essays have appeared in The Village Voice, Artforum, Index, and Travel & Leisure. He directs the writing program at Pratt Institute and lives in Brooklyn, New York.

From Publishers Weekly

Generally speaking, surfers don't write. They spend their formative years riding waves, smoking joints and chasing girls. Ziolkowski did all that, but somehow managed to avoid the Jeff Spicoli syndrome, becoming instead a poet (and director of Pratt Institute's writing program) whose talent and mastery of the language have allowed him to write this enjoyable memoir, equal parts surfer tale and bildungsroman. After his parents' divorce, Ziolkowski recalls, he moved with his mother and stepfather to Florida's Atlantic coast. He discovered the joys of surfing: the clothes, the camaraderie, the drugs (he first smoked pot at age 10 and was already "over" it by 15). Ziolkowski surfed almost daily, before school, after school and at night. Once he surfed so much that the glare from the water caused him to go temporarily blind; another time he hit the beach in the middle of a hurricane all in pursuit of the perfect wave. Although there's a lot of surf talk here, it's really a book about family: the wicked stepfather, the feral brother, the compassionate mother and the tragedies that ultimately tear them apart. Underneath the surfer veneer is a story about the disintegration of the author's family and growing up in a time (the mid '70s) when all the old rules no longer seemed to apply. Ziolkowski writes that he aspired to go pro but never quite made it a few trophies for local competitions was the closest he got, and a move to Kansas during high school prompted him to give up his quest for good. Better for readers that he did, for now they have this touching, poetic book.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Pr
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 087113845X
• ISBN 13: 9780871138453
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 260