Wave Watch

Dave Jenkinson is Associate Dean of the Faculty of Education at the
University of Manitoba.

Choyce, himself a year-round surfer on Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore, is
at his writing best when describing the April-to-August surfing
experiences of this book’s central character, 16-year-old Randy, who
is an academically weak, chubby klutz at school, but a local expert on
the Eastern Shore’s surfing waves. Between Randy’s water-based
summer adventures, the book falters somewhat; characterization is
inconsistent and Choyce introduces a series of plot lines that remain
largely undeveloped. For example, rural Randy’s resentment of the way
the monied Halifax “townies” invade his “private” surfing locale
off the Lawrencetown headland evaporates too easily, and the conflict in
a romantic triangle involving Randy and a townie couple just loses
steam. Similarly, an ecological theme relating to the beach’s future
development by the province’s parks department remains unresolved.
However, when Randy is skimming along on his surfboard on the waves of
the dangerous Big Left on the 12-footers raised by a hurricane, the
action moves swiftly and even nonsurfers can vicariously share Randy’s
exhilarating experiences.

Readers in grades 5 through 8, while skimming the dull parts, might
dream of joining Randy in his watch for surfing waves. For those
unfamiliar with surfing terminology, Choyce provides a two-page
glossary.