Breath

Half way through this book I was sure I was only going to give it 1 or 2 stars, but I must admit, the end gripped me and thus the extra star was earned.

I really wanted to like this book, but it failed to impress me. This is probably because I know absolutely nothing about surfing, and have never had any real interest in it. That said, I did find the characters compelling, and mostly disturbing and disturbed.

I think a fanatic surfer would love this novel.

Accidentally read some spoilers but ultimately glad I did. I do not want to read about an explicit adult/minor relationship. From what I understand if the ending getting 125 pages in was not worth my time if the explanation is what I'm gathering it is. Just... why. Bummed because I was really enjoying to book and the surfing. And does no one else find it disturbing that Loonie is peeping on his dad with a woman????

It's tough for me to give a rating for this book. Winton is clearly a very talented writer, from achingly acute descriptions of the interior life of a young teenage boy learning the ways of the human and natural world via surfing to the beautiful descriptions of the ocean as a force of nature. However, the last third of the book or so devolved into a totally different story that didn't fit the rest of the book in my mind. With that said, I'd like to read more of his writing.

The narrator of the audio book version did a great job and really brought the story and characters to life.