A very highly regarded book by the man who basically invented creative nonfiction.

This is a terrific book that combines sports (fishing), natural history, poetry and even recipes. You engage with the learning and teaching process of the writer, and through this, you learn more about his outlook on life. I am not a fisherman, but I appreciate this kind of engagement with history (New England and fishing) and the work we choose to do (here, fishing for food.). As a woman, it's a little weird that the two main characters are (apparently) men, and that there is a woman in the room, but she is only spoken to, or about. She never speaks. But it's a very spare book, and that's not really central to what's happening.

I agree with one of the cover blurbs, that this is a kind of virtual voyage to Martha's Vineyard. It's worth giving this book a try, even if it's not your usual subject matter. And if you like to fish, I think you are in for a real treat.

One note on my original journal entry: I was confusing John Hersey with John McPhee. While John Hersey is highly regarded for his journalism, essays and fiction (e.g. Hiroshima), it's McPhee who is the genius of creative nonfiction.

Going into Mary Zee's Biography of Things Bookbox.

I received this book as part of the Mary Zee's Biography of Things bookbox. While I did flip through it, I am not going to hang on to it and will send it back on its way to the next recipient in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Okay, so I got the book box back pre-pandemic. Pandemic sucked out much of my enthusiasm for anything and I have never logged any of the books.

I am finally feeling ready to start another round of the book box. PM me if you are interested. This book has only been seen by a few people, so it will be included.

This book is in the Biography of Things book box and on its way to new adventures.

Any future reader or recipient of this book is encouraged to leave a journal entry here on the BookCrossing site to let prior readers know the fate of the book. You can make an anonymous entry without joining the BookCrossing movement, but if you are interested in joining, it is a free and spam-free community where your contact information is not shared with others. Best of all, members receive private messages via e-mail from books like this one when those books are journaled, allowing for long-term relationships between books and readers.

Received in the Biographies of Things BookBox.

I will release this back into the box.

Released in the Biographies of Things BookBox.

Please enjoy!

Putting back in the box for the Biographies of Things Bookbox. Hope it finds a nice home!

I'm claiming this softcover from the Biographies of Things bookbox - bookbox-journal here. My fishing days are long past, but I do have some fond memories of idling along the banks of a little stream waiting for the trout to bite... Haven't done any ocean fishing, though!

Later: Very enjoyable, once I got used to the dialogue format - the entire thing consists of a conversation between the Fisherman and the Stranger, and takes place as a series of encounters from June through October. The Stranger has to be nudged a bit to join the Fisherman on his boat, but gradually learns to appreciate and even love the sea - and the fishing, both for the delicious dishes it produces and for the thrill of the hunt. Along the way there are lots of lessons about the region, the history of bluefish and other ocean creatures, the different styles of fishing, the birds - gulls, cormorants, and more - that often show considerable interest in the fish, and, increasingly as the book goes on, the perils of over-fishing, pollution, and contaminants in the food chain. Oh, and poems - each poem that's mentioned in the dialogue is included in full at the end of the chapter. But for the most part it's an ode to being on the water, observing the life that thrives in, under, and above the waves.

I also appreciated those recipes; each segment features a different way of preparing the fish, from simple frying or grilling to more elaborate marinating - all quite tempting!

[A few years back I participated in a local Community Sourced Fishing program - like the ones for vegetables, but focused on fish. Every week there'd be a new delivery of fish, caught by specific fisher-folk and varying according to the season, weather, and availability. I enjoyed several new-to-me types of fish that year, including bluefish - though receiving them in the form of already-cleaned fillets does rather separate the experience from seeing the fresh-caught fish...]

I left this book in the Little Free Library on this rainy day; hope someone enjoys it!

[See other recent releases in NH here.]

*** Released for the 2022 September Sapphire challenge. ***

** Released for the 2022 Keep Them Moving challenge. **

This book will be released at a Little free library in Newton mass on July 19 or 20th.