Welcome to Paradise Now Go to Hell

<p><strong>A finalist for the PEN Center USA Award for Nonfiction</strong></p><p><em>Welcome to Paradise Now Go to Hell </em>is surfer and former war reporter Chas Smith's wild and unflinching look at the high-stakes world of surfing on Oahu's North Shore--a riveting often humorous account of beauty greed danger and crime.</p><p>For two months every winter when Pacific storms make landfall swarms of mainlanders Brazilians Australians and Europeans flock to Oahu's paradisiacal North Shore in pursuit of some of the greatest waves on earth for surfing's Triple Crown competition. Chas Smith reveals how this influx transforms a sleepy laid-back strip of coast into a lawless violent drug-addled and adrenaline-soaked mecca.</p><p>Smith captures this exciting and dangerous place where locals outsiders the surf industry and criminal elements clash in a fascinating look at class race power money and crime set within one of the most beautiful places on earth. The result is a breathtaking blend of crime and adventure that captures the allure and wickedness of this idyllic golden world.</p>