Some like it hot

This book is based on extensive research. It involves an original synthesis of material that distils a diverse variety of socio-cultural principles into a succinct argument. In doing so it challenges the traditional view that Australia is a place dominated by a culture of the bush. It presents a series of papers that suggest that Australia is now a country that has embraced a beach culture. It is the first book that draws on the arguments of leading academic researchers and scholars to support this belief.

Some Like it Hot: The Beach as a Cultural Dimension highlights that our cultural identity has resulted in the development of numerous sub-cultures each with its own distinguishing factors. This book concentrates on three core cultural themes: first, beach subcultures; second, body culture and the beach, and finally the commodification of the surf industry. These three themes mediate the application of eight peripheral areas including culture and the beach, the postmodern surfer, surf-lifesaving, surfing girls, surf movies, surf magazines, professionalism, and consumerism.