A highly readable book on the nature of beaches, including thedynamics of the shoreface, surf, swash and backbeach, and globallyat the regional variations in beach systems from the tropics to thepoles. The beach and adjacent shoreface are the most dynamic part of theEarth's surface. They represent a narrow zone where waves, tidesand winds continously interact, producing, wherever sediment isavailable, hundreds of thousands of kilometres of beach systems.Beaches are also the focus of intense pressure from users anddevelopers, and for these reasons alone a knowledge of beachsystems and their morphodynamics is critical to their sustainablemanagement. This book is the first to: * provide an in-depth and holistic view of beach systems, lookingboth in detail at the different beach zones and globally at rangeof parameters influencing regional variation * examine the relationship between beaches and ancillary dunesystems and includes chapters on beach ecology, safety,stratification and barrier evolution. The book is designed for use in the classroom and the office, beingaimed at university level students and coastal professioanls.