Welcome to Paradise, Now Go to Hell
A True Story of Violence, Corruption and the Soul of Surfing
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4.0 • 64 Ratings
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
Each winter, the North Shore of Hawaii is invaded by surfers, photographers, groupies, and drug dealers from around the world. Tension between the locals and the visitors is thick and often violent. Ostensibly, the draw card is the seven-mile stretch of beach with fifty-foot waves and the chance to win surfing's coveted Triple Crown title. But behind the scenes lurks a dark and seedy world of gangs, hedonism, extortion, murder and drugs as celebrity surfers and extraordinary athletes dance on waves.
Respected journalist and surfer Chas Smith investigates one hugely anticipated season. With unprecedented access to all the colourful personalities and players, Chas reveals the singular culture, feuds and athleticism that make Oahu surfing's mecca. This seven billion-dollar industry's battle for the 2012 Triple Crown will be the most explosive yet.
'Great surfers maintain exquisite presence and poise in dangerous situations. Chas Smith does likewise, with added humour, amid the macho maelstrom of a North Shore winter. Love him or hate him, he's the most stylish writer the sport has seen for decades.' – Fred Pawle, The Australian
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This debut effort from Smith, a war correspondent turned surfing journalist with a cruel, sometimes witty eye, is a mix of reportage and gonzo journalism for the surfing set. Mixing shameless, fey bluster that he dubs "Trash Prose" and occasionally trenchant observation, Smith delves into the scene surrounding the big-money surfing contests on Oahu, Hawaii's legendary North Shore. As the pro circuit arrives for the winter wave season, Smith sketches an expos of the tensions between local Hawaiian surfers and low-level gangsters and the established surfing professionals, surfwear brand representatives, and out-of-towners during this seasonal demographic change. Smith's favorite subject, however, is himself: he sees himself as an outlaw raconteur whose articles garner so much resentment he gets roughed up at a party. He also provides endless descriptions of his wardrobe he calls his style his "version of Island Dandy," which is "purposefully at odds with everything Oahu's North Shore stands for." If Hunter S. Thompson circa Hell's Angels merged with a fashion critic to write about surfing for Maxim, the result might be similar. Smith's approach is myopic, writing for an audience that already knows the sport and the names. There are some astute observations (particularly his analysis of why surfing is essentially a lonely sport), but ultimately the book fails to reveal much beyond the author's considerable self-regard.
