The Golden Shore

"David Helvarg's passion for the ocean is equaled only by his elegance in writing about it. Like the ocean itself, The Golden Shore ranges from the glimmering surface to mysterious mid-waters to far deeper realms. This book will remind everyone who reads it of one fundamental fact: we live on a water planet. No author has conveyed this with more art and meaning." —Susan Casey, author of The Wave

"The Golden Shore is a thrilling read. Join master storyteller David Helvarg on a heart-pounding journey into the tumultuous past, provocative present and promising future of California's wild blue frontier."—Sylvia Earle, National Geographic Explorer in Residence

"As geography, history, and myth, the power of California as place, society, and dream is best encountered on its shoreline. In ‘Facing West From California Shores,’ Walt Whitman bore witness to this drama. In the decades that followed, writers such as Mary Austin, J. Smeaton Chase, Robinson Jeffers, and John Steinbeck each encountered the California shore as fact and symbol. And now David Helvarg embarks upon an odyssey up the coast of dreams, asking the question: what is contemporary California telling itself about itself -- and what does this mean for the nation?"—Kevin Starr, author of California: A History

“Boy, I loved this book. As a Californian who's spent much of his life talking about and fighting for more protection for our oceans I really enjoyed reading about my fellow Golden Staters' multi-faceted salt water passion. David Helvarg captures, in a really readable way: the insane, quirky and head-over-heels love we have for our seas.”—Ted Danson

“We've gotten used to thinking of California's jammed freeways, or its tech riches, or its Hollywood excess. But David Helvarg's splendid account reminds us that those are transitory--in the beginning and the end, the golden state is the place where North America meets the mighty Pacific, a coast of unvanquishable splendor and unforgettable history.”—Bill McKibben, author of Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet

“The Golden Shore is about more than one man’s love affair with California’s iconic coast. It’s the history of an environmental consciousness that has been impressed upon people around the globe. This is a vital story that will help inform future generations of how and why we work so diligently to protect and preserve California’s majestic coast. I applaud David Helvarg for this great work.” —John Laird, Chair, California Ocean Protection Council

“For all its mountains and forests, farms and deserts, California would not be California without its iconic shores. But, turns out, there’s much more to it than the Beach Boys’ surfin’ coast. This book dives deep, literally and figuratively, from deep history to deep waters to where it’s all headed. Find a comfortable chair, preferably with a view of the sea, because you’ve got your hands on a good read, told by one of our nation’s most passionate journalists—who, thankfully, happens to be a devoted coast-lover.”—Carl Safina, author of Song for the Blue Ocean and The View From Lazy Point; A Natural Year in an Unnatural World.

"Having lived in California for 44 years I was surprised by how much I learned from David Helvarg's book, The Golden Shore. It blew my mind. If you have the same love affair for the beautiful California coast and ocean as I do, this marvelous and compelling book is a must read."—Jean-Michel Cousteau, Explorer, Founder and President, Ocean Futures Society

“In this ambitious work, journalist and conservationist Helvarg successfully relates the myriad ways in which Californians engage with their beloved Pacific.”—Publishers Weekly

“A broad, insightful exploration of the Golden State’s pristine coastline and its social and ecological impact on the nation. … A lush, labor-of-love appreciation of maritime California.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)