The Kanaka Surf

by Jack London

36 pages, Paperback

First published October 28, 2013

About the author

John Griffith Chaney, better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to become an international celebrity and earn a large fortune from writing. He was also an innovator in the genre that would later become known as science fiction.

London was part of the radical literary group "The Crowd" in San Francisco and a passionate advocate of animal rights, workers’ rights and socialism. London wrote several works dealing with these topics, such as his dystopian novel The Iron Heel, his non-fiction exposé The People of the Abyss, War of the Classes, and Before Adam.

His most famous works include The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set in Alaska and the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush, as well as the short stories "To Build a Fire", "An Odyssey of the North", and "Love of Life". He also wrote about the South Pacific in stories such as "The Pearls of Parlay" and "The Heathen".

Reviews

[Станислав · Rating 3 out of 5]

Напоминает
Напоминает "Маленькая хозяйка большого дома Джек Лондон - Маленькая хозяйка большого дома / Храм гордыниМаленькая хозяйка Большого дома ". Завязка похоже: муж и жена, уже прошли молодость, очень красивы, атлетически сложены, похожи на Аполлона и Артемиду с бронзовой кожей, богаты. Короче, такие современные американские полубоги: волевой подбородок, железные мускулы и нервы, хорошая наследственность. И вот по такому идеальному браку, хотя про детей там не слышно, пробегает трещина. И женщина начинает обращать внимание на другого. Здесь место действия перенесено на Гавайи и чета смущает американских туристов своими невероятными способностями к плаванию и тем унижают духовных пигмеев. Здесь обошлось без трагедии, может быть это и "Маленькой хозяйке" не повредило. Чувствуется, что ДЛ пытался выйти на какую-то новую тему, но смерть…

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[Iole · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best tales ever read, maybe currently my favorite. I thought I would read a tale on how surf could look like at the beginning of '900, described by such a great author as jack London. I was utterly impressed when finding out it's not only about that. It is actually a tale on a brave woman. Far from my expectations, "The Kanaka Surf" is a tale on how women were seen (rather judged) at the time. Even more surprised when thinking about how that vision has not changed much nowadays. Highly recommended.

[Forked Radish · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing says love like drowning someone.