Haunted By Waters: Fly Fishing In North American Literature [Paperback]

Four essential questions: Why does one fish? How should one properly fish? What relations are created in fishing? And what effects does fishing have on the future?Haunted by Watersis a self-examination by the author as he constructs his own narrative and tries to answer these questions for himself. But it is also a thorough examination of the answers he uncovers in the course of reading what's been written on the subject.

As his own story unfolds, Mark Browning analyzes angling literature from the Bible to Norman Maclean, always bringing his inquiry back to the same source: the enigma of this sport.

Haunted by Watersis an exploration of the apparent compulsion of those who fish not only to read about the sport, but to write about it as well. Mark Browning's personal account as a fly fisherman and his perspective as a critic make him uniquely qualified to navigate these waters.

Haunted by Watersis a landmark book&[Brownings] brilliant displays of research and erudition in chapters on Old World and New World angling traditions and American Transcendentalism are nonpareil. So, too, is his comprehension regarding the art of fly-fishing in its entirety. Whats more, no one has ever written a literary history of fly-fishing, even a brief one, with more style or insight.
Bloomsbury Review

In this thoughtful, penetrating&look at the literature of fly-fishing, the author notes that fishermen who write can be likened to our ancient ancestors,`who blazoned portrayals of the hunt on the walls of & caves&. In scrutinizing Hemingway'sThe Sun Also Risesand his story Big Two-Hearted River' & Browning finds the most profound portrayals of fishing as an`activity where life and death meet and stare at each other.
Kirkus Reviews

Anyone who is genuinely interested in fly-fishing and is also a serious reader will be gratified by Browning's book&. Authors of books in which fly-fishils