Another Lousy Day in Paradise and Dances with Trout
Reeks: John Gierach's Fly-fishing Library
John Gierach
- Brilliant,
- witty,
- perceptive
- essays
- about
- fly-fishing,
- the
- natural
- world,
- and
- life
- in
- general
- by
- the
- acknowledged
- master
- of
- fishing
- writers.“Good
- fishing
- and
- good
- writing
- use
- the
- same
- skills,”
- writes
- John
- Gierach,
- “whether
- you’re
- after
- a
- trout
- or
- a
- story,
- you
- won’t
- get
- that
- far
- with
- brute
- force.
- You’re
- better
- off
- to
- watch,
- wait,
- and
- remain
- calm…letting
- it
- all
- happen,
- rather
- than
- trying
- to
- make
- it
- happen.”
- As
- the
- wry
- and
- perceptive
- essays
- in
- Another
- Lousy
- Day
- in
- Paradise
- prove,
- Gierach
- knows
- his
- writing
- as
- well
- as
- his
- fishing.Paradise,
- Gierach
- shows
- us,
- is
- relative;
- it
- can
- be
- found
- in
- the
- guilty
- luxury
- of
- fishing
- private
- waters
- or
- when
- one
- is
- soaked
- to
- the
- skin,
- in
- a
- small
- canoe
- on
- a
- big
- lake
- in
- a
- storm
- a
- hundred
- miles
- from
- anywhere,
- exhilarated
- after
- a
- day’s
- fishing.
- There
- are
- also
- pleasures
- to
- be
- found
- in
- unexpected
- places:
- solitary
- fishing
- trips,
- fishing
- for
- less-appreciated
- fish
- like
- carp,
- or
- meeting
- a
- guide
- who
- at
- first
- seems
- like
- an
- inarticulate
- ax
- murderer
- but
- who
- proves
- to
- be
- a
- “Zen
- master
- among
- fishing
- guides.”
- The
- point
- is
- to
- let
- things
- unfold
- as
- they
- will—because
- after
- all,
- says
- Gierach,
- “Basically,
- the
- world
- is
- a
- big,
- dumb
- trout,
- and
- you’re
- a
- fisherman
- with
- all
- the
- time
- in
- the
- world.”
- As
- Gierach
- fans
- know,
- this
- is
- a
- description
- of paradise.
