A book of brilliant, adventurous stories from the award-winning Doug Dorst. With the publication of his debut novel, Alive in Necropolis , Doug Dorst was widely celebrated as one of the most creative, original literary voices of his generation-an heir to T.C. Boyle and Denis Johnson, a northern California Haruki Murakami. Now, in his second book, The Surf Guru , his full talent is on display, revealing an ability to explore worlds and capture characters that other writers have not yet discovered. In the title story, an old surfing-champion-turned-surfwear- entrepreneur sits on his ocean-front balcony watching a new generation of surfers come of age on the waves, all but one of whom wear wet suits emblazoned with the Surf Guru's name. An acid-tongued, pioneering botanist who has been exiled from the academy composes a series of scurrilous (and hilarious) biographical sketches of his colleagues and rivals, inadvertently telling his own story. A pair of twenty-first- century drifters course through a series of unusual adventures in their dilapidated car, chased west out of one town and into the next, dreaming of hitting the Pacific. Dorst's characters have all successfully cultivated a particular expertise, and yet they remain intent on moving toward the horizon, seeking hope in something new. Likewise, each of Dorst's stories is a virtuoso performance balancing humor and insight, achieving a perfect pitch, pulsing with a gritty and punchy, distinctly American realism- and yet always pushing on into the unexpected, taking us some place new.
The New York Times - Robin Romm All of Dorst's stories brim with gumption. They're fun-loving, testosterone-rich yarns. And while his book is an amalgam of voices, moods, styles and forms…the stories speak to an important literary pursuit: that of pushing limits, of embracing challenge, no matter the gharials at your toes.

Dorst, Doug

Riverhead Trade (Paperbacks)

United States, United States of America

New York, New York State, 2010

First Edition, US, 2010

obscured text

A book of brilliant, adventurous stories from the award-winning Doug Dorst.
With the publication of his debut novel, Alive in Necropolis , Doug Dorst was widely celebrated as one of the most creative, original literary voices of his generation-an heir to T.C. Boyle and Denis Johnson, a northern California Haruki Murakami. Now, in his second book, The Surf Guru , his full talent is on display, revealing an ability to explore worlds and capture characters that other writers have not yet discovered.
In the title story, an old surfing-champion-turned-surfwear- entrepreneur sits on his ocean-front balcony watching a new generation of surfers come of age on the waves, all but one of whom wear wet suits emblazoned with the Surf Guru's name. An acid-tongued, pioneering botanist who has been exiled from the academy composes a series of scurrilous (and hilarious) biographical sketches of his colleagues and rivals, inadvertently telling his own story. A pair of twenty-first- century drifters course through a series of unusual adventures in their dilapidated car, chased west out of one town and into the next, dreaming of hitting the Pacific.
Dorst's characters have all successfully cultivated a particular expertise, and yet they remain intent on moving toward the horizon, seeking hope in something new. Likewise, each of Dorst's stories is a virtuoso performance balancing humor and insight, achieving a perfect pitch, pulsing with a gritty and punchy, distinctly American realism- and yet always pushing on into the unexpected, taking us some place new.
The surf guru --
Dinaburg's cake --
La fiesta de San Humberto el menor --
Vikings --
Jumping jacks --
Twelve portraits of Dr. Gachet --
The monkeys howl, the hagfish feast --
Splitters --
The candidate in bloom --
What is mine will know my face --
Little reptiles --
Astronauts

278 p. : 22 cm
Includes bibliographical references
The surf guru -- Dinaburg's cake -- La fiesta de San Humberto el menor -- Vikings -- Jumping jacks -- Twelve portraits of Dr. Gachet -- The monkeys howl, the hagfish feast -- Splitters -- The candidate in bloom -- What is mine will know my face -- Little reptiles -- Astronauts

A collections of twelve short works features tales about an aging surfing champion who meditates on the sport's new generation, an acerbic botanist who draws uproarious biographical sketches, and two drifters who share misadventures from their dilapidated car

The surf guru
Dinaburg's cake
La fiesta de san humberto el menor
Vikings
Jumping jacks
Portraits of Dr. Gachet
The monkeys howl, the hagfish feast
Splitters
The candidate in bloom
Astronauts
What is mine will know my face
Little reptiles.

2023-06-28