Surfing is a way of life, one that defines not only where we live, but how we live. Surf Shacks Volume 2 picks up where the first volume left off, exploring homes of surfers, which range from improvised cabins by the beach to penthouse apartments in big coastal cities. In this followup, we meet a fascinating cast of characters from the shores of southern California through to the wild waters of Sri Lanka, Japan and Australia.

Many abodes can fall under the label of surf shack: New York City apartments, cabins nestled next to national parks, or tiny Hawaiian huts. Surfing communities are overflowing with creativity, innovation, and rich personas. Surf Shacks takes a deeper look at surfers' homes and artistic habits. Glimpses of record collections, strolls through backyard gardens, or a peek into a painter's studio provide insight into surfers' lives both on and off shore. From the remote Hawaiian nook of filmmaker Jess Bianchi to the woodsy Japanese paradise that the former CEO of Surfrider Foundation in Japan, Hiromi Masubara, calls home to the converted bus that Ryan Lovelace claims as his domicile and his transport, every space has a unique tale. The moments that these vibrant personalities spend away from the swell and the froth are both captivating and nuanced.

"Cabin porn goes coastal in Nina Freudenberger’s Surf Shack" [Vanity Fair], and here are bungalows, trailers, cabins, and beach homes where surfers retreat after a day on the waves. Peek inside the homes of longtime enthusiasts and dedicated newcomers that reflect not just a sport or passion, but also a way of life. Blake and Heather Mycoskie of TOMS, hotelier Sean MacPherson, Gypset author Julia Chaplin, and others have set up their spaces to embrace a casual ease and be the break between the waves. With vibrant photographs of design details and bright beaches—from Malibu to the Rockaways, from Japan to Australia—this book captures the soulful milieu of a lifestyle we all aspire to. "A colorful tour of some of the most unique surfer abodes around the world, from Melbourne to New York City." —Architectural Digest

When the early European explorers traversed the globe, their journals held numerous accounts of Hawaiians enjoying surfing. Since Europeans of that era were not accustomed to swimming in their own cold waters, it must have seemed like a dream to watch naked native Hawaiians riding the waves of a turbulent sea. Nowhere in the ancient world was surfing as ingrained into the culture as on the islands of Hawai'i. He'e nalu (wave sliding) was the national sport and enjoyed by all. When a swell was up, whole villages were deserted as everyone fled to the beach to test their surfing skills. Legends of famous surf riders were retold in mele (song/chant), and fortunes could be decided on the outcome of a surfing contest. From these shores, modern surfing was born, along with the iconic romantic images of bronzed surfers, grass shacks, and hula.

Coastal havens designed for laid-back living. The idea of a retreat—a place removed from one’s daily stressors, a secluded haven to be enjoyed by family--is more appealing than it has been in decades. But second homes are far from a novel concept. Families have built retreats since the late 1800s, when the well-to-do began to construct reprieves in coastal areas to escape the combustive atmosphere of city life. Homes on the water have been coveted and cherished for their particular restorative qualities. In an oceanside house, one can’t help but pause to contemplate the view. At Home on the Water offers a history of coastal living and features twelve homes on the water on both coasts and the gulf. This stunning title focuses on both the design of the homes and the way the homeowners live in them, embellished by interviews with homeowners, designers, and/or architects.

Christian Beamish, a former editor at The Surfer’s Journal, envisioned a low-tech, self-reliant exploration for surf along the coast of North America, using primarily clothes and instruments available to his ancestors, and the 18-foot boat he would build by hand in his garage. How the vision met reality – and how the two came to shape each other – places Voyage of the Cormorant in the great American tradition of tales of life at sea, and what it has to teach us.

Analyzing the movement's deep-seated origins in questions that the country has sought too long to ignore, some of the greatest economic minds and most incisive cultural commentators - from Paul Krugman, Robin Wells, Michael Lewis, Robert Reich, Amy Goodman, Barbara Ehrenreich, Gillian Tett, Scott Turow, Bethany McLean, Brandon Adams, and Tyler Cowen to prominent labor leaders and young, cutting-edge economists and financial writers whose work is not yet widely known - capture the Occupy Wall Street phenomenon in all its ragged glory, giving readers an on-the-scene feel for the movement as it unfolds while exploring the heady growth of the protests, considering the lasting changes wrought, and recommending reform. A guide to the occupation, The Occupy Handbook is a talked-about source for understanding why 1% of the people in America take almost a quarter of the nation's income and the long-term effects of a protest movement that even the objects of its attack can find little fault with.

Stylish, aspirational homes and the dogs that live in them in a beautifully photographed celebration of style and canines. Just as every home is different, so is every dog. In this stunningly photographed book of architecturally superb houses—many of them architects’ own homes—we see how the presence of a dog brings warmth and life to the most dramatic spaces. From mid-century raw brick to a penthouse apartment, gracious Edwardian to Scandinavian modern, from beach house to country retreat, there is always room for a dog or two. They trot, nap, and sniff through every page, at times more rambunctious than their surroundings, and at others perfectly in tune with the setting. Peek inside the most breathtaking homes that feature French bulldogs, golden retrievers, Labradoodles, and more as your guides. Oblivious to designer furniture, heritage considerations, or serious design aesthetics, dogs can make themselves at home anywhere. In fact, the homes in this book are all the more appealing because of their resident dogs.

Foreclosures are hitting record highs; Americans are declaring bankruptcy at rates ten times that during the great Depression; more college students drop out because of debts than due to poor grades; reports of debtor suicides proliferate in the media. In other words, it's a great time to be in the banking business. Maxed Out takes us on a road trip that is sometimes hysterical and often horrifying: from Las Vegas to the Bible Belt, from the backwoods to inner cities, where the world's largest financial giants troll for their next victims. Welcome to a country populated by debt pirates, corporate predators, human credit card billboards, debt evangelists, megamillion-dollar spec homes, and, of course, trillions of dollars of easy credit. Combining startling facts with even more startling examinations of individuals, institutions, the government, and modern religion, James Scurlock separates the myths (there is "good debt" and "bad debt") from the harsh reality (corporations partner with colleges to target today's youth; credit reports are riddled with errors that will never be fixed; and death, for many of those in trouble, is the only way out). At a time when the financial industry posts ever-higher profits even as its clients drown in the flood of easy credit, Scurlock exposes very real, potentially disastrous systems and policies that are consuming millions of Americans. Maxed Out takes readers on a wickedly smart and entertaining tour of what one interviewee calls "the last taboo."

A sweeping history of Los Angeles told through the lens of the many marginalized groups—from hobos to taggers—that have used the city’s walls as a channel for communication Graffiti written in storm drain tunnels, on neighborhood walls, and under bridges tells an underground and, until now, untold history of Los Angeles. Drawing on extensive research within the city’s urban landscape, Susan A. Phillips traces the hidden language of marginalized groups over the past century—from the early twentieth-century markings of hobos, soldiers, and Japanese internees to the later inscriptions of surfers, cholos, and punks. Whether describing daredevil kids, bored workers, or clandestine lovers, Phillips profiles the experiences of people who remain underrepresented in conventional histories, revealing the powerful role of graffiti as a venue for cultural expression. Graffiti aficionados might be surprised to learn that the earliest documented graffiti bubble letters appear not in 1970s New York but in 1920s Los Angeles. Or that the negative letterforms first carved at the turn of the century are still spray painted on walls today. With discussions of characters like Leon Ray Livingston (a.k.a. “A-No. 1”), credited with consolidating the entire system of hobo communication in the 1910s, and Kathy Zuckerman, better known as the surf icon “Gidget,” this lavishly illustrated book tells stories of small moments that collectively build into broad statements about power, memory, landscape, and history itself.