Taut Lines: Extraordinary True Fishing Stories

A collection of great fishing stories by classic and contemporary authors―Zane Gray, Rudyard Kipling, Izaak Walton, James Prosek. And although the stories all contain fish and fishing, editor Cameron Pierce has pushed the boundary. These stories are broader in their reach and sweep and present a wide emotional range. Many were written by women; the topography ranges from the Sierras to Afghanistan, and there is as much meditative tranquility and resonance in these tales as stories of landing (or losing) “the big one.” To be sure, there are the great stories of big fish by angling legends, but there are also stories of human connections, of challenge and pathos, of the peace, even the spirituality, that comes with being a part of nature, and the companionship, or solitude, that comes with fishing. The collection includes examples of every type of angling experience, each a classic in its own right, writing that is by turns whimsical, instructional and sometimes heartbreaking. Most species are represented, and not always in the usual places: trout fishing in Africa, salmon fishing in Iceland, carp in California, spring walleyes in Minnesota, and even killer sharks on the screen.