What Fly Fishing Book?

What do you look for in book about fly fishing such that you will actually
take action and buy it?

In another thread, Larry L. posted what he liked in his 2 favorites out of
140 fly fishing books he owns. He said, "Both greatly affected HOW I think
about fly fishing, fly design, hatch matching, observation of naturals, etc
etc, ... not just WHAT I think. The "what" in both books is largely out of
date, but the "how" is what makes "new" possible."

What kind of fly fishing book is YOUR favorite and why?

John

"John" wrote in message
...
What do you look for in book about fly fishing such that you will actually
take action and buy it?

In another thread, Larry L. posted what he liked in his 2 favorites out of
140 fly fishing books he owns. He said, "Both greatly affected HOW I
think about fly fishing, fly design, hatch matching, observation of
naturals, etc etc, ... not just WHAT I think. The "what" in both books is
largely out of date, but the "how" is what makes "new" possible."

What kind of fly fishing book is YOUR favorite and why?

John


I guess I have two favorite genre's in Fly Fishing literature (can I use
that word?), one being related to fly Tying, and everything else fits into
the second.

I would have to say my favorite Fly Tying "book" is about 4 or 5 years worth
of the magazine "FlyTyer" starting with issue one, and continuing about to
where it started to suck.

The articles are mostly by amateurs, but I notice that some of my most
effective patterns come out of that "book".

In the other genre, it depends on what my intention in reading it is, or my
mood...

"John" wrote in
:

What do you look for in book about fly fishing such that you will
actually take action and buy it?

In another thread, Larry L. posted what he liked in his 2 favorites
out of 140 fly fishing books he owns. He said, "Both greatly affected
HOW I think about fly fishing, fly design, hatch matching, observation
of naturals, etc etc, ... not just WHAT I think. The "what" in both
books is largely out of date, but the "how" is what makes "new"
possible."

What kind of fly fishing book is YOUR favorite and why?

John



If its about technique, it should address some situation that I commonly
find myself in where I'm not satisfied with my own technique, and it
should be good. Tom Rosenbauer's "Prospecting for Trout" is like this.

Destination books are pretty obvious.

Fly tying books should be more about techniques and materials than a
pattern book.

--
Scott
Reverse name to reply

"Skwala" wrote in message
...

I would have to say my favorite Fly Tying "book" is about 4 or 5 years
worth
of the magazine "FlyTyer" starting with issue one, and continuing about to
where it started to suck.

This is one of the two genres of value recognized
by most collectors. You might call it Technique,
viz. information in a particular book that both is
desired and cannot be found anywhere else.

The other genre is quite different. You might
call it "Voice," i.e. the personality of the author
as transmitted by the way he writes. People
like Joe Brooks or Ray Bergman were men you
would like to know or to go fishing with. We
might have much to learn from Vince Marinaro
or Ernie Schwiebert but I am not so sure we
would want to go fishing with them.

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)

"Don Phillipson" wrote in message
...
"Skwala" wrote in message
...

I would have to say my favorite Fly Tying "book" is about 4 or 5 years
worth
of the magazine "FlyTyer" starting with issue one, and continuing about
to
where it started to suck.

This is one of the two genres of value recognized
by most collectors. You might call it Technique,
viz. information in a particular book that both is
desired and cannot be found anywhere else.

The other genre is quite different. You might
call it "Voice," i.e. the personality of the author
as transmitted by the way he writes. People
like Joe Brooks or Ray Bergman were men you
would like to know or to go fishing with. We
might have much to learn from Vince Marinaro
or Ernie Schwiebert but I am not so sure we
would want to go fishing with them.

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)




I know exactly what you mean.... and I'd add Syl Nemes to the former
group...

Skwala

..
"John" wrote in message
...
What do you look for in book about fly fishing such that you will actually
take action and buy it?

In another thread, Larry L. posted what he liked in his 2 favorites out of
140 fly fishing books he owns. He said, "Both greatly affected HOW I
think about fly fishing, fly design, hatch matching, observation of
naturals, etc etc, ... not just WHAT I think. The "what" in both books is
largely out of date, but the "how" is what makes "new" possible."

What kind of fly fishing book is YOUR favorite and why?


John


I kind of like John Gierach's books
They are very easy reading especially on a plane or in an airport
and they bring me back to some fun times of my own.
Planes and airports suck and I believe that they are a complete waste of
your time in thiis life so- If you can escape and amuse yourself while
putting up with this kind of crap then
the endeavor is wotrth it.


Fred

“The Longest Silence”
by Thomas McGuane

--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.

rw wrote:
"The Longest Silence"
by Thomas McGuane


I really like The Longest Silence - "Wisdom of the Guides" is also
really good.

bruce h

John wrote:
What do you look for in book about fly fishing such that you will actually
take action and buy it?

In another thread, Larry L. posted what he liked in his 2 favorites out of
140 fly fishing books he owns. He said, "Both greatly affected HOW I think
about fly fishing, fly design, hatch matching, observation of naturals, etc
etc, ... not just WHAT I think. The "what" in both books is largely out of
date, but the "how" is what makes "new" possible."

What kind of fly fishing book is YOUR favorite and why?

John

I like dry conversational self-deprecating humor, like Gierach and
Sparse Gray Hackle and Nick Lyons for reading while I'm travelling. I
think somebody else mentioned this. They're nonthreatening, easy, fun.
I'm not much on fishing or tying techniques, and while I own and have
read Marinaro and the like, they're nothing I'm coming back to. Fly
tying books I buy for the pictures.

When I've got time to devote to reading, I want a well-written tribute
to a place. I want to hear some guy talk about how some bit of
geography made off with his soul while he was fishing there.
Particularly, I like Haig-Brown and his Northwest, Traver and his UP,
Neil Patterson's chalkstream, Schullery's Yellowstone and Middleton's
Appalachians. I've grew up a bit of a gypsy, so I can't think of just
one place, but I like to hear people bursting with wonder at the place
they've dropped their spiritual anchor. That's why I like hearing from
the North Cackalacky contingent here on ROFF. They seem to be addicted
to it.

I've got a collection half the size of Larry's, but I find myself
pulling _A River Never Sleeps_ and _Mountain Time_ on cold winter
evenings more often than anything else.

John wrote:

What kind of fly fishing book is YOUR favorite and why?


Far, far my favorite (and I own many, many more than 140) is 'Rod and
Line', a collection of essays written by Arthur Ransome. He's best
known as the author of a series of children's books about sailing in
the Lake District in England, 'Swallows and Amazons'. But he covered
the Russian Revolution for the Manchester Guardian, played chess
regularly with Lenin, eloped with and married Trotsky's secretary,,
Evgania, and became fishing correspondent for the Manchester Guardian.

'Rod and Line' is a collection of those essays, with titles such as
'the benign moment', 'saving a blank', 'the dry-fly strike'.

He was a passionate, intelligent fisherman, and a beautiful writer.

Below that I'd put an Irish book: 'A man may fish' by Kingsmill Moore

Lazarus