Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life

Born in 1952, William Finnegan is an American writer for The New Yorker and the author of several social journalism books such as A Complicated War: The Harrowing of Mozambique and Dateline Soweto: Travels with Black South African Reporters. Although born in New York City, Finnegan spent most of his childhood in California and Hawaii.

Growing up near the coast, he learned to surf as a young boy, a hobby that soon grew into a major life passion. In Barbarian Days, he recounts in vivid detail his experiences as a surfer, as well as a student, son, boyfriend, and American at home and abroad. Finnegan’s lifetime of experience as a surfer provides a unique window into the rapidly changing surf culture.

Finnegan brings a journalistic lens to his work, including historical context and detail when necessary, and covers surfing’s development from an Indigenous practice to a modern hobby and professional sport. His work is often self-reflective and self-critical, and it examines how surfing has shaped him and his relationships since childhood.

William Finnegan’s mother, Pat Finnegan, was the descendant of Irish farmers in West Virginia. She grew up in poverty during the Great Depression. Finnegan remembers his mother as a very social and intellectual woman who was positive and forward-looking.