| The Great Floodgates of the Wonderworld Contributor(s): Hocking, Justin (Author) |
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ISBN: 1555976697 ISBN-13: 9781555976699 Publisher: Graywolf Press OUR PRICE: $13.50 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: February 2014 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Biography & Autobiography | Personal Memoirs - Biography & Autobiography | Literary Figures |
| Dewey: B |
| LCCN: 2013946924 |
| Physical Information: 0.77" H x 5.69" W x 8.18" (0.78 lbs) 266 pages |
| Themes: - Locality - New York, N.Y. - Geographic Orientation - New York - Cultural Region - Mid-Atlantic - Cultural Region - Northeast U.S. |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Surfing in Far Rockaway, romantic obsession, and Moby-Dick converge in this winning and refreshing memoir Winner of the Oregon Book Award for Creative Nonfiction Justin Hocking lands in New York hopeful but adrift-he's jobless, unexpectedly overwhelmed and disoriented by the city, struggling with anxiety and obsession, and attempting to maintain a faltering long-distance relationship. As a man whose brand of therapy has always been motion, whether in a skate park or on a snowdrift, Hocking needs an outlet for his restlessness. Then he spies his first New York surfer hauling a board to the subway, and its not long before he's a member of the vibrant and passionate surfing community at Far Rockaway. But in the wake of a traumatic robbery incident, the dark undercurrents of his ocean-obsession pull him further and further out on his own night sea journey. With Moby-Dick as a touchstone, and interspersed with interludes on everything from the history of surfing to Scientology's naval ties to the environmental impact of the Iraq War, The Great Floodgates of the Wonderworld is a multifaceted and enduring modern odyssey from a memorable and whip-smart new literary voice. |