“It’s Only Drowning” 

by Fran Withrow 10.2025

David Litt, a former speechwriter for Barack Obama, has written a gem of a book that had me laughing out loud repeatedly. “It’s Only Drowning” is how Litt starts surfing as a way of combating his existential dread related to current events. His worry about things has always bubbled gently below the surface but comes to a head when Covid hits. 

Litt’s brother-in-law, Matt, is a completely different person: an athletic electrician who rides a Harley, is not vaccinated, doesn’t vote, and loves surfing so much that even Christmas Day finds him on his board. The two men have little in common. But the more Litt observes how surfing seems to bring Matt joy, the more he wonders if surfing might help him too.

Deciding to try, Litt signs up for surfing lessons, but soon realizes that “Learning to surf is like learning a language that wants to kill you.” He is fearful of everything, including rip currents, sharks, getting trapped below the ocean’s surface by a huge wave, and getting stung by a box jellyfish, yet he perseveres, and slowly steps out into a brand new world.

Litt’s descriptions of his repeated endeavors to surf are absolutely side-splitting. The best humor writers are unflinching about describing their foibles and flaws, and their honesty about their imperfections makes them all the more endearing. Thus it is with Litt. 

I’m not a surfer, but I get why even the simple “pop-up”— standing up on the board from a lying position —is incredibly challenging. Every minuscule mistake causes him to fall into the sea. “If I was lucky, I kerplunked into the ocean. If I was unlucky, I bounced off my board onto my tailbone (or sometimes, just for variety’s sake, my knee and then my tailbone), and kerplunked into the ocean.”

His body is frequently battered, and he wipes out repeatedly, facing monster waves and fighting to read what the ocean waves are telling him. Surfing is so hard that Litt decides to ask Matt to help him. As Matt and he surf together, Litt slowly improves. And surfing does seem to help ease his worry about the world. Can it help him find connections with his brother-in-law too?

The two men begin surfing in New Jersey, but eventually travel together to other locations, ending up in Hawaii’s North Shore. As they spend more time together, Litt wonders if he can change Matt. Can he talk Matt into voting? Trying NPR in lieu of Joe Rogan? Getting a flu shot?

Read this book for its grand humor about surfing, but also for the poignant revelations Litt has regarding his brother-in-law, as they are perfect for our current political climate. “It’s Only Drowning” is a hoot, but the underlying thread of how to find courage and optimism in a world full of fear hums throughout. Following Litt’s lead, we might find that trying to understand those with different beliefs is not only possible, but just might save us all.