Death, Taxes, and Leaky Waders : A John Gierach Fly-Fishing Treasury

John is one funny guy. And he knows the outdoors. His cast of characters make reading this series of short stories about fishing, camping, and life outdoors a real pleasure. I only hope his other books are as enjoyable as this one.

John's writing is in one of those styles you look forward to crummy weather so you can justify sitting down and getting a kick out of his antics. To do otherwise, well heck, you'd feel like he'd wag a finger at you and ask, "Why the hell aren't you fishing you dolt!? See that hatch? See that rise? Drop my book and tie into those beautiful little torpedos!"

The stories are marvelous. John's fishing and hunting partners are a hoot. And I can't help but think that there's some cryptic means of deciphering his secret fishing spots by selecting every third letter of every ninth word of every other paragraph... or something like that.

The illustrations are GREAT! Hope I can find a garage sale edition of the book so I can demolish it for the pictures.

John, great job and hope your St. Vrain is chugging along for you.

GB in Tulsa

I splurged on this book without knowing anything about John Gierach (sacrilege?), and felt like I'd discovered America. As an inchoate fly-fisher, I found his stories so exciting that every time I sat down to read it I wanted to rush out to practice my casting in the hope that one day, I too would have stories like these to tell. I've found that many books by veteran fishermen discourage me from trying to get my waders wet--this book does the opposite (and I wonder if the author regrets this response!) Huzzah huzzah.

I always page to John Gierach's column first when the Fly Rod and Reel magazine shows up in the mail box. This was a wonderful read for a flyfisherman in Minnesota in the winter. The thoughts this book brought forth kept me going through the long (too cold to fish) winter.

Death, Taxes and Leaky Waders

Time, little pieces of forever crumbling into tomorrow, so fleeting so fast, so damn close to April 15th and tax day. I received a letter from the IRS, and after a big breath, and popping a fresh load of buckshot into the old 12 gauge, I decided to read it. Appears the government is giving me $600 of my own money back in order to stimulate the economy. They could have saved a stamp and given me $600.41 cents back, or better yet, left it in my pocket. I would have tickled the economy by buying food, books, and of course, fishing gear. Yep, the first true sign of spring isn't robins or dandelions or even April showers, but that first tug at the end of a fishing line. The first day of trout season is always about more than the fish, and no one knows that better than outdoor writer John Gierach.

John Gierach is a free-lance writer and author of several fly-fishing themed books with titles such as Still Life With Brook Trout; Sex, Death and Fly-Fishing; and the cult classic, Trout Bum. His work has appeared in Gray's Sporting Journal, Field & Stream and Fly, Rod and Reel. His writing is not purely instructional, though there's plenty of useful information, nor merely adventurous, though he travels from the Arctic to Scotland to the Rockies, and it's not the purist philosophy of an elite fly fisherman, though there's a witty thinker with a wry sense of humor wearing that patched-up pair of waders. What he does manage to do is explain the peculiarities of the fishing life in a way that will amuse novices and seasoned fly fishers alike.

Death, Taxes and Leaky Waders collects forty of John Gierach's finest essays on fishing from six of his earlier books. Gierach is perhaps one of the most entertaining outdoor writers working today. Like all his writing, these essays are about more than fishing, but about nature, friendship, and observations of life. Gierach often begins with a keen observation that soon leads to something below the surface, which he coaxes out, and successfully lands. As Gierach says, "Writing is a lot like fishing."

Writing is a lot like fishing. Both take patience, persistence, lots of time, an appreciation of the process, and both are harder than they appear. This anthology of Gierach's work is sure to comfort the angler who stands in a cold river for hours and brings home nothing to show for it. As any fisherman knows, there's more to fishing than the fish, and like any good writing, this collection of essays is about more the preparation of camp coffee or catching arctic graylings, but ultimately about life, death and of course, fly fishing...

If you love this book, check out "Of A Predatory Heart" by Joe Parry and "Of Woods and Wild Things" by Don Knauss

Fish or cut bait? Trout or Bass? Drop me an email at frommyshelf@epix.net Trolling for past columns? Cast your line at www.frommyshelf.blogspot.com Be sure to catch "Hobo Finds A Home" a children's book about a cat who wanted more out of life than to be a barn cat. This column approved by the committee to elect Hobo for President