2nd quarterOutside reading book review

Dances with trout by John Gierach. Simon and Shuster, 1994 Autobiographical novel

This book is a very simple set up. IT is all about mainly fishing and some hunting. John Gierach is the main character and he tells the reader about his voyages all around fishing streams and woods. John goes to places like Alaska for ice fishing and places like Colorado for fly-fishing. He usually voyages with a couple of friends but not all the time. He has a passion for hunting and fishing. The setting is always a beautiful outdoor setting. John loves the outdoors and loves to observe it. He is faced with a task of getting a state record in Colorado for the biggest rainbow trout.

"I find myself reaching for Gierach when i can't get to the river" -Tom Mcguane the book jacket reads

John Gierach uses thick description of the setting to engage the reader and allow the reader to feel what he is feeling. The book is all about setting. The setting is described each chapter because each chapter is a new adventure or a new topic. He seems to write the same as Charlie Moore except less enthusiasm in his writing. He is not faced with many conflicts throughout the book except catching a record fish. He does not complete his task but has a great time trying.

"For a couple of days there i was even hesitent to criticize people, tending to say either nice things or nothing at all, as in "Oh, i don't think he's incompitent,he's probably just in the wrong line of work" It wore off eventually, but for a week or so I was actually acting like a gentlemen. (65)

Personally i Loved the book. I love fishing therefore anything to do with fishing i will most likely like. It was not so exciting which disappointed me but it had a lot of tips and techniques throughout the book which helped me a good amount for when i fly fish. The book made me cheerful when i was already cheerful. Fishing is such a happy topic. When i came across the few hunting chapters i just read those quickly not paying attention to what was going on but when fishing came up i read it carefully over and over again making sure i knew what was going on.It was a very well written book and i loved it. THE END