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pods for primates : a catalogue of surfboards in australia since 1900

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references : books d

1950
d'Alpuget, Lou :
Sydney Beaches
Ure Smith Miniature Series
Ure Smith Pty. Limited, 166 Phillip Sreet, Sydney.
Hardcover 56 pages, 34 black and white plates, maps on front and rear flyleafs.
Review
introductory text by Lou d'Alpuget includes surf guide to Sydney beaches (apparently for body surfing) and brief historical notes, mainly William Gocher's daylight surfing campaign and the development of the surf lifesaving movement.
The photographs are of a very high standard and the maps (Northern and Southern beaches) are excellent.

1840-1947
Dana, Richard Henry:
Two Years Before the Mast
Thomas Nelson and Sons, London, 1947.
Hard cover, 282 pages.
First published in 1840 as
Two Years Before the Mast - A Personal ...
Harper and Brothers, New York, 1840
Review
An early account of sailing square rigger ships written by a crew member, Dana voyaged from Boston to the West Coast in 1835-1836 providing a rare insight into life in California before the1849 gold rush.
Though Dana did not visit Hawaii, a ten-page section (pages )describing his time in San Diego relates an encounter with "a considerable group of native Hawaiian expatriates.whom he discusses sympathetically" (Forbes).
Its publication predates Melville's Moby Dick (1851) and the return around Cape Horn through an extensive ice pack is said to have inspired Coleridge's The Rhime of the Ancient Mariner.
He reports on the "Kanakas" surfing skills in landing a longboat in the surf at Santa Barbara, pages 51-52, and their unusual fishing techniques, pages 130-131.
For these extracts, see Source Documents
Dana : Two Years Before the Mast (1840).

2004
Dela Vega, Timothy T. et al. :
200 Years of Surfing Literature - An Annoted Bibliography
Published by Timothy T. Dela Vega.
Produced in Hanapepe, Kaui, Hawaii. 2004.
Soft cover, 103 pages, extensive black and white images, Contributors.
Review
Extensive (but not complete) bibliography of surfing related publications since Captain Cook's first observations.
An essential publication for any serious collector or researcher
Initially based on Daved Marsh's The Water Log , the book was compiled from contributions from a worldwide group of historians and collectors.
Australian contributors include...
Paul Scott, Deputy Head of the School of Design, Communication and Information Technology at University of Newcastle.
Al Hunt, International Tour Director for the ASP.
Bob Smith, Victoria.
Geoff Cater, South Coast, NSW.

2009
de Mestre, Neville:
Body Surfing
Vengram Educational Services, Queensland, 2009.
Soft cover, 58 pages, black and white photographs and illustrations, Glossary (Surf Talk).
Review
Comprehensive manual on body surfing technique with a strong emphasis on its role in surf life saving and competition.

Item provided courtesy of Neville de Mestre,
Disclaimer: The Preface acknowledges the assistance of Geoff Cater @surfresearch.com.au for the preparation of Chapter 2, The Origins of Bodysurfing in Australia.

1965
Dixon, Peter L. :
The Complete Book of Surfing
Longmans, Green and Co Ltd., 40 Grosvenor Stret, W. 1.
First published in Great Britain 1966.
Hard cover, 201 pages, 72 black and white photographs, 3 black and white illustrations, Glossary, Index.
Review
Comprehensive, but basic, general surfing text.
Board design see Chapter 13 The Modern Surfboard, particually template illustrations, pages 172 -173.
Construction and maintainance, Chapters 14 and 15.
Other craft, Chapter 11.
The photographs mostly do not credit the riders, including Dr Don James' classic shot of Rusty Miller at Sunset on the cover.
Midget Farrelly demonstrates wake-boarding, pages 149 - 151.

2001
Dixon, Peter L. :
The Complete Guide to Surfing
????
Longmans, Green and Co Ltd., 40 Grosvenor Stret, W. 1.
First published in Great Britain 1966.
Hard cover, 201 pages, 72 black and white photographs, 3 black and white illustrations, Glossary, Index.
Review
Despite the title, this title is somewhat less than "complete".

1966
Dixon, Peter:
Men and Waves - A Treasury of Surfing
Coward - McCann, Inc. New York
Hard Cover, 250 pages, 14 black and white plates, 6 black and white illustrations.
Review
Wonderful compliation of surf related articles drawn from a range of sources.
Highlights include History of Surfing in Hawaii by Desmond Muihead - page 20,
Jack London's A Royal Sport - page 31,
Tom Blake Modern Surfing - page 42,
The Surf by Willard Bascom - page 71,
Bob Cooper's My Australian Skinny - page 188.
The photographs, many by Dr. Don James and Ron Church, do not credit the surfers or breaks.

1969
Dixon, Peter:
Men Who Ride Mountains
Bantam Books Inc. 271 Madison Avenue
New York. N.Y. 10016
Soft cover, 174 pages, 30 b/w photographs
Review
Emphasis on big waves and Hawaii.
Australia covered in Chapter 8.

2001
Dixon, Peter:
Men Who Ride Mountains
The Lyons Press, Guilford, Connectictut
PO Box 480, Guilford, CT, 06437
Soft cover, 174 pages, 30 b/w photographs
Review
Reprint of 1969 edition in a larger format and superior printing.
A sixpage introduction to the new edition is the only additional material.
Emphasis on big waves and Hawaii. Australia covered in Chapter 8.

1971
Dodge, Ernest S. : Beyond the Capes - Pacific Exploration from Captain Cook to the Challenger, 1776-1877.
Victor Gollanz Ltd., London, 1971.
Review
An excellent account of Pacific exploration, with the contributions of
navigators from all the European powers assessed constructively.

2004
Doherty, Sean :
MP - The Life of Michael Peterson.
Harper Sports
Harper Collins Publishers, Pty Ltd
25 Ryde Road, Pymble, NSW 2073, Australia. 2004
Soft cover, 340 pages, plates : 23 black and white photographs and 17 colour photographs, Acknowledgements, Index.
Review.
An interesting, but hardly an incredible story.
The author's comparison of his subject with Micki Dora is specious.

2007
Doherty, Sean :
The Pigrimage - 50 Places to Surf Before You Die.
Penguin Group Australia.
250 Camberwell Road Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia, 2007.
Hard cover, 230 pages, extensive colour photographs, Contributors, Photo credits.
Review.
A book of fifty surfbreaks from around the world, in the wake of the publishing success of 100 Books You Must Read Before You Die, circa 2005.
The large number of line-up photographs is a postive feature, often negleted in these type of publications.
For a surfer of less than averge ability, it may be better titled as 50 Places to Surf and Die.

1996
Duane, Daniel :
Caught Inside – A Surfer’s Year on the California Coast
North Point Press
A Division of Farrar, Strass and Giroux, New York, 1996.
Hard cover, 239 pages
Review
A very personal account that has some commentary on the California coastal environment and surf history/mythology.

1997
Duane, Daniel : Caught Inside – A Surfer’s Year on the California Coast
North Point Press,
A Division of Farrar, Strass and Giroux, New York, 1997.
Soft cover, 239 pages
Review

Soft cover publicationion of the1996 first edition, above.

1978
Dugan, Michael :
Australian Fact Finders : Surfing
The Macmillan Company of Australia, Street, South Melbourne 3205
Hard cover, 23pages,15 b/w photographs, 1 b/w illustration, glossary
Review
Very basic introductory book of little value.
Only interest is photographs :
- board collection (Golden Breed, Lightning Bolt, Nat Young, two others – probably manufactured at Barry Bennett Surfboards) page 8,
- Midget Farrelly and blanks page 7
- sequence Midget Farrelly riding a unshaped blank pages 10, 11 and 12.

1985
Dutton, Geoffrey :
Sun, Sea, Surf and Sand - The Myth of the Beach
Oxford University Press, Melbourne
Hard cover, 166 pages, colour/black and white illustrations, List of Illustrations, List of Quotations, Index.
Review
Beautifully presented collection of beach orientated paintings, photographs and poetry/prose by famous Australian artists.
Works by Streeton, Boyd, Nolan, Whitely, and the photography of Max Dupain are featured. Accompanying text concentates on the artistic response to the coastal enviroment with only brief, but glowing, references to surfriding.
See Notes on Australian Surf Culture.

surfresearch.com.au

Note
This is not a complete list of surfing books, only books read and reviewed for this site are listed.
For more comprehensive lists go to...
The Surfing Bibliography - Surfing Books
- Steven Whelan's comprehensive list of books, film, video and magazines, listed alphabetically.
From England.
and/or
The Water Log Surfing Bibliography
- excellent listing of books and journals by Daved Marsh USA, listed by category. From USA.