Get our latest book recommendations, author news, and competitions right to your inbox.
Table of Contents
About The Book
David Litt, the Yale-educated writer with a sensible fear of sharks, and Matt, the daredevil electrician with two motorcycles and a passion for death metal, had always coexisted from a comfortable distance as brothers-in-law. Yet in 2021, as David wallowed in existential dread while America’s crises piled up, he couldn’t help but notice that Matt was thriving. When he wasn’t making money rewiring New Jersey beach homes, Matt was riding waves at his favorite spots in the state.
Quietly, David started taking surfing lessons. For a few months, he suffered through wipeouts on waves the height of daffodils. But to his surprise, he soon became obsessed. And once he got a sense of the ways that fully committing to surfing could change him both in the water and on land, he set his sights on an unlikely goal: riding a big wave at Hawaii’s famously dangerous North Shore. To get there, he’d need Matt’s help.
At a moment when the fault lines of class, education, and culture threaten to tear our country apart, It’s Only Drowning is a blueprint for becoming braver at a time when it takes courage just to read the news, a love letter to surfing in the vein of William Finnegan’s Barbarian Days, and a poignant buddy comedy in the tradition of Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods.
Product Details
- Publisher: Gallery Books (June 24, 2025)
- Length: 304 pages
- ISBN13: 9781668035375
Raves and Reviews
“Reading It’s Only Drowning feels like those early mornings paddling out into an unpredictable swell—you don’t know what’s coming, but you feel alive just being out there. David's book is not just a surfing memoir— it's about the connections that keep us going.”
—LAIRD HAMILTON, legendary big-wave surfer and author of Force of Nature
“It's Only Drowning is delightful and an instant classic. David Litt has given us a coming-of-age story in the best sense—about a person, a passion, a friendship, and a moment in history. And the book is wickedly funny from beginning to end."
—JAMES FALLOWS, New York Times bestselling author of Our Towns
“David Litt has written a surfing memoir that’s about so much more than surfing. It's an insightful, hilarious, surprisingly moving story about the nature of friendship and the search for common ground, and I loved it.”
—JUDD APATOW, New York Times bestselling author of Sick in the Head
“So funny. So smart. If you’re a millennial panicking as you approach middle age, read this book!”
—ILANA GLAZER, cocreator of Broad City
Resources and Downloads
High Resolution Images
- Book Cover Image (jpg): It's Only Drowning eBook 9781668035375
- Author Photo (jpg): David Litt Lawrence Jackson(0.1 MB)
Any use of an author photo must include its respective photo credit