CAUGHT INSIDE: A SURFER'S YEAR ON THE CALIFORNIA

CAUGHT INSIDE: A SURFER'S YEAR ON THE CALIFORNIA COAST Daniel Duane (North Point Press, $21) In 1992, nature writer Duane left a dull job in Berkeley and moved to Santa Cruz, where he got to know the California coastline from the perspective of a surfboard. But this is no typical surfer-dude tale: Whether he's chatting with a physicist buddy about the science of waves, digging deep into a culture that embraces not only Gidget movies but also Mark Twain and Jack London, or just hanging out, Duane's got a keen eye, plenty of humor, and an unending appreciation of detail. Read Caught Inside for a descriptively stunning slice of America -- or just to marvel at Duane's way with words and waves. A -- Daneet Steffens