California Golden

1

1964

The surf giveth, and the surf taketh away ­thus said the Surf God every morning, noon, and night in his church, which was the universe, the planet, California, the beach, the waves.

On this holy day, the surf would most definitely giveth.

The sand was cool and soft as sugar between her toes, the California sun tolerable, not blasting, because it was February. Yet the day was warm enough that the girls in their vibrant bikinis, and the guys in their board shorts, weren t covered in goose pimples as they danced to the wailing electric guitars of Dick Dale and His Del-­Tones ­twisting, shimmying, hand jiving. One girl s bikini was covered in long fringe that seemed to pulse with a life of its own as she gyrated so fiercely it was a wonder she didn t snap her pelvis.

Mindy laughed at the sight, then turned to do a groovy little two-­step with one of the hunky boys who d gravitated into her orbit, for today she was the sun itself, radiating joy and contentment. She danced a little Watusi, a little Pony with a side of Mashed Potato. Raising her face to her fellow celestial being in a sisterly salute, she turned her back on the waves lapping the generous beach of Paradise Cove, tucked between tall sandy cliffs and a spindly wooden pier.

If the sand was sugar, then gumballs and peppermint drops dotted the sky in the form of beach balls. Surfboards stood like totems in the sand. And Dick Dale and his boys ­all clad in wild Hawaiian shirts, their crew-­cut heads bopping up and down rhythmically ­continued to give it their all as they cranked through the driving melody of Let s Go Trippin . The music ­propelled by that wailing electric organ ­almost drowned out the pounding surf as it hurled itself against the concrete pylons of the pier.

This is life, Mindy thought, grinning wildly at the other kids, who returned the joy, all smiling their blinding California smiles, teeth startlingly white against their suntanned faces. And

Melanie Benjamin is a prize-winning novelist and the New York Times bestselling author of The Children s Blizzard, Mistress of the Ritz, The Girls in the Picture, The Swans of Fifth Avenue, The Aviator s Wife, The Autobiography of Mrs. Tom Thumb, and Alice I Have Been. Benjamin lives in Chicago.

Melanie Benjamin pairs the surf culture of the Beach Boys with the sex, drugs, and rock n roll of Daisy Jones & the Six. . . . Benjamin s novel is a portrait of three women beset by shifting cultural tides and a shimmering rendering of the promises and heartbreak of Southern California. Entertainment Weekly

If you re looking for a meticulously detailed breakdown of surf culture, look no further than Melanie Benjamin s new novel . . . [a book] teeming with sand, sun, water, hot-pink bikinis and hamburger stands. . . . California Golden plants its feet firmly on the board and rides a powerful wave of nostalgia, eyes focused on the opportunities and dangers ahead. Los Angeles Times

Benjamin vividly evokes the squalor and splendor of California surfing culture in this richly-textured novel that explores sisterhood, motherhood, ambition and friendship, with characters who rise alive from the page. It s rare to find such raw, honest sympathy for human beings and their capacity for mistakes and redemption. California Golden is a breath of bracing salt air. Beatriz Williams, author of A Hundred Summers

A gripping story about the power of family ties set in the edgy California surf culture and the glamorous and sometimes dangerous world of Hollywood celebrity, California Golden takes readers on an emotional, page-turning ride. Elyssa Friedland, author of The Most Likely Club

California Golden left me breathless. Against the shimmering backdrop of California s burgeoning surf culture, Melanie Benjamin explores the bonds of sisterhood and motherhood in an era where society, and its expectations of women, are ever changing. The Donnelly women, perfect in their imperfections, will stay with you long after the last page. Shelby Van Pelt, author of Remarkably Bright Creatures

Melanie Benjamin does a superb job of showing the complicated relationships