First published 2024
Carol Donnelly rides the waves at Malibu in the 1960s, breaking barriers as a female surfer in a sport dominated by men. Her daughters Mindy and Ginger grow up with a mother who stays absent, either catching waves at the beach or withdrawing emotionally at home. The girls skip school to surf, hoping to win Carol's attention. Mindy takes to the water naturally, but Ginger struggles to find her place on a board. As the sisters mature, their paths split dramatically. Mindy gets caught up in celebrity culture, enjoying romantic encounters on the beach, parties at the Playboy Club, and performing for troops in Vietnam. Ginger searches for belonging elsewhere and gets pulled into the risky world of drugs and cult movements. Despite their different journeys, the sisters remain bound by their shared wounds from an unconventional upbringing. Set during an era when society expected mothers to embody traditional domesticity rather than athletic rebellion, the story follows three generations of women navigating a world in constant flux.
Genres: fiction, american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, coming-of-age, family-drama
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: family-drama, found-family, sisters
Setting: Malibu, Playboy Club, Vietnam
Period: 1960s
368 pages · Paperback · Bantam
Content warnings: emotional-abuse, mental-illness