Review
WL Rating
Stoked! A History of Surf Culture is yet another book from renowned surf journalist Drew Kampion (Art of the Surfboard, The Lost Coast). First released in 1997 and then updated most recently in 2003, Stoked! is an easy reading, energetic history of surfing culture. At only 224 pages but with more than 150 photographs, Stoked! obviously isn’t delving too deeply into any one particular topic. Rather, Kampion goes for breadth, providing quick, punchy descriptions of surf culture including the sport’s influence on art, music, fashion, movies, and vocabulary. Unlike the recently published History of Surfing, which truly delivers on the word “history”, Stoked! seems perfectly content to lead the reader down a relaxed, unpretentious summary of the sport. Because of this, hardcore surf historians probably won’t find Stoked! to their liking. But people new to the sport, particularly those from California, will find plenty that is interesting and entertaining in Kampion’s book. (November 2010)
Stoked! A History of Surf Culture - Drew Kampion
