Review of 'Notes for a young surfer', by Clifton Evers, Melbourne, Melbourne University Press, 2010, 172 pp., $24.95 (paperback), ISBN 978-0-522-85489-3

Abstract

Clifton Evers' 'Notes for a young surfer' is an exciting read - richly auto-ethnographic, conversational and at times confronting. While the book's title articulates the overarching focus on young surfers and their processes of identity construction as members in surfing groups, the text has much wider appeal and relevance. It is concerned with opening up conversation and critical reflection on the often misguided ways young men come to learn about 'doing' manhood, mateship, sex, respect and social hierarchies. The topics covered in the book (masculinity, sexuality, gender relations, racism, emotions/affect/embodiment) are therefore not new in gender and feminist geographies but what stands out in this work as important are the rich anecdotes formed around these themes, drawn from the author's own personal and embodied experiences as a surfer. Evers explains how he grew up on Queensland's Gold Coast (perhaps Australia's most famous surfing region) where he learnt about manhood 'on the run' by his daily experiences in the ocean and from his social interactions with other surfers on land.