California Golden: A Novel
Two sisters navigate the thrilling, euphoric early days of California surf culture in this dazzling saga of ambition, sacrifice, and the tangled ties between mothers and daughters from the New York Times bestselling author of The Aviator’s Wife.
“A shimmering rendering . . . pairs the surf culture of the Beach Boys with the sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll of Daisy Jones & The Six.”—Entertainment Weekly (“Best Books of the Summer”)
Southern California, 1960s: endless sunny days surfing in Malibu, followed by glittering neon nights at Whisky a Go Go. In an era when women are expected to be housewives, Carol Donnelly breaks the mold as a legendary female surfer struggling to compete in a male-dominated sport—and her daughters, Mindy and Ginger, bear the weight of Carol’s unconventional lifestyle.
The Donnelly sisters grow up enduring their mother’s absence—physically, when she’s at the beach, and emotionally, the rare times she’s at home. To escape questions about Carol’s whereabouts—and to chase her elusive affection—they cut school to spend their days in the surf. From her first time on a board, Mindy is a natural, but Ginger, two years younger, feels out of place in the water.
As they grow up and their lives diverge, Mindy and Ginger’s relationship ebbs and flows. Mindy finds herself swept up in celebrity, complete with beachside love affairs, parties at the Playboy Club, and a USO tour in Vietnam. Meanwhile, Ginger, desperate for a community of her own, is tugged into the dangerous counterculture of drugs and cults. But through it all, their sense of duty to each other survives, as the girls are forever connected by the emotional damage they carry from their unorthodox childhood.
A gripping, emotional story set at a time when mothers were expected to be Donna Reed, not Gidget, California Golden is an unforgettable novel about three women living in a society that was shifting as tempestuously as the breaking waves.
“A shimmering rendering . . . pairs the surf culture of the Beach Boys with the sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll of Daisy Jones & The Six.”—Entertainment Weekly (“Best Books of the Summer”)
Southern California, 1960s: endless sunny days surfing in Malibu, followed by glittering neon nights at Whisky a Go Go. In an era when women are expected to be housewives, Carol Donnelly breaks the mold as a legendary female surfer struggling to compete in a male-dominated sport—and her daughters, Mindy and Ginger, bear the weight of Carol’s unconventional lifestyle.
The Donnelly sisters grow up enduring their mother’s absence—physically, when she’s at the beach, and emotionally, the rare times she’s at home. To escape questions about Carol’s whereabouts—and to chase her elusive affection—they cut school to spend their days in the surf. From her first time on a board, Mindy is a natural, but Ginger, two years younger, feels out of place in the water.
As they grow up and their lives diverge, Mindy and Ginger’s relationship ebbs and flows. Mindy finds herself swept up in celebrity, complete with beachside love affairs, parties at the Playboy Club, and a USO tour in Vietnam. Meanwhile, Ginger, desperate for a community of her own, is tugged into the dangerous counterculture of drugs and cults. But through it all, their sense of duty to each other survives, as the girls are forever connected by the emotional damage they carry from their unorthodox childhood.
A gripping, emotional story set at a time when mothers were expected to be Donna Reed, not Gidget, California Golden is an unforgettable novel about three women living in a society that was shifting as tempestuously as the breaking waves.
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Community Reviews
Mindy and Ginger are the daughters of surfing phenom Carol. The book will have you emersed in the big waves and the golden beaches of Southern California. One night, Mindy and Ginger make different decisions and their lives veer in vastly different directions.
The book leads us through three parts. The first is set from the period of their preteens through their early twenties. We then get the past and present point of views through the years, and from Mindy to Ginger and back again. The second part covers their mother Carol, and her struggle to be a mother and also to chase her own dreams and happiness. And finally, the third part, which moves to the 1970s.
In this one, readers learn about the sport of surfing while becoming immersed in a compelling family drama. I recommend reading "California Golden."
I had the honor of reading this ARC thanks to Netgalley! Thank you to the Author, Melanie Benjamin and the Publishers, Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine, Delacorte press.
The book leads us through three parts. The first is set from the period of their preteens through their early twenties. We then get the past and present point of views through the years, and from Mindy to Ginger and back again. The second part covers their mother Carol, and her struggle to be a mother and also to chase her own dreams and happiness. And finally, the third part, which moves to the 1970s.
In this one, readers learn about the sport of surfing while becoming immersed in a compelling family drama. I recommend reading "California Golden."
I had the honor of reading this ARC thanks to Netgalley! Thank you to the Author, Melanie Benjamin and the Publishers, Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine, Delacorte press.
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