California Golden, Melanie Benjamin’s latest novel is awash in the California dreams of the 1950’s and 60’s. The bright sunshine, golden beaches, big waves, blonde haired surfers, bikinis, sex, drugs and rock ’n roll; but this novel centers around a family of three women, surfers all, beautiful all and totally dysfunctional as a family. Unrequited and unfulfilled desires makes all three tick. I loved this book! Ms. Benjamin writes with incredible fact based heart rendering warmth, and she grabs me, as always in her novels, with the first sentence. I read this book in one day, couldn’t put it down, as I was transported to my high school days when I used to go out in the waves with the boys. Thank you to Ms. Benjamin, first of all for your research and respect for the Art of Surfing, the backdrop to this story, and to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Publishing for the eGalley in exchange for my very honest review. Ms. Benjamin has another bestseller in California Golden!

“California Golden” takes us back in time to sunny and laid back Southern California when life was simpler, the ocean breezes were mesmerizing and dreams were chased by the young at heart. The Donnelly family dynamic was somewhat dysfunctional and went against the societal norms of the 1960’s. Carol and her daughters, Mindy and Ginger lived a carefree life, where surfing all day was much more important than family dinners, dance classes and homework. For Carol, surfing was her life and she often left her young daughters to fend for themselves. The oldest, Mindy, was an old soul who watched over her wayward mother and her sister, Ginger. I felt sorry for them because at first, all they wanted was a normal life, until Mindy caught the surfing bug and began riding the waves alongside her mother. Ginger wasn’t as adept at surfing but she went along with their plan to get closer to their mother, so they could finally be a family. As with any plan, things could go wrong and unfortunately, the sisters went their separate ways, to lead very different lives.

I was impressed with the attention to detail the author used to create the backdrop for our characters. The music, the movie and TV stars, and the tragedy of the Vietnam War, were what the 1960’s were all about. I very much felt a part of the story as I listened to The Beach Boys on the transistor radio while watching the surfers balance on their boards, cheering when they had a good run. All the characters changed as the years went by, and I cried along with them when their lives were turned upside down by the decisions they had made, and laughed when they basked in the warm sunshine, wishing they could stay this way forever. I read to escape, and this trip back in time was the perfect vacation.