what is a good fly fishing book to read?

Marinaro's Modern Dryfly Code has a lot of anecdotal information about flyfishing Cumberland Vally creeks (and also Penns Creek I believe). There's a lot of trout-nerd information so you may consider it as a how-to book, but the rest of the book makes it fun to read a chapter or two every now and then. There are also a lot of photos (by author) and about a dozen flytying instructions (with photos).
 
Trout Magic by Robert Traver Love his "Testament of a Fisherman" at the beginning of that book. That alone is worth giving it a look and many people could learn much by reading it.
 
An Entirely Synthetic Fish. Anders Halverson. Its related to, but not about fly fishing.
 
Not explicitly flyfishing, but if you're interested in trout habitat and habitat improvements, "The Quest for the Golden Trout" is really good.

I really enjoyed "Backcast" by Lou Ureneck. It's a story about a man and his son taking a solo trip in Alaska. More of a "life lessons" set against the backdrop of flyfishing story, but very good.
 
I really enjoyed The Optomist: A Case for the Fly FIshing Life by David Coggins. Legit funny at times. Each chapter documents a trip or experience he had.
 
“An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How Rainbow Trout Beguiled America and Overran the World”. by Anders Halverson

A very good read, it speaks to our efforts to manipulate nature to improve fisheries and the environmental, cultural, and social impacts of stocking non-native species.
 
rrt said:
Oh, there are sooooo many. I concur with a couple of the above posts for "The Earth Is Enough" and "The Vanishing Trout." They are wonderful books. Here are a couple others:

1. Trout Madness by Robert Traver
2. This Wonderful World of Trout by Charles K. Fox (Has how-to info. in the first half, but the second half is all fly-fishing semi-fiction)
3. A River Runs Through It by Norman Maclean
4. Any John Gierach book, especially older ones such as "Trout Bum"
5. A Good Life Wasted by Dave Ames
6. Tributaries by Lou Wentz (newer book by a man who posts on this site)

I'll stop here. There are lots of wonderful fly-fishing reads out there. Good luck. Get some and enjoy!
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I like that #6 suggestion.:cool:
 
Many Rivers to Cross by MR Montgomery
Dark Waters by Russell Chatham
Trout Fishing in America by Richard Brautigan (if you like zany)

Plus most of the ones already mentioned. You have a lot of catching up to do.
 
silverfox said:
Not explicitly flyfishing, but if you're interested in trout habitat and habitat improvements, "The Quest for the Golden Trout" is really good.

I really enjoyed "Backcast" by Lou Ureneck. It's a story about a man and his son taking a solo trip in Alaska. More of a "life lessons" set against the backdrop of flyfishing story, but very good.
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Life lessons can be some of the best writing.
 
One last suggestion:

Fly-fishing for Sharks by Richard Louv. He was a reporter for the San Diego Union and this book covers the fishing culture in America. Not strictly fly-fishing, but a really entertaining read. Covers a lot of ground on the subject, including bass tournaments, rare trout in Mexico, and of course, fly-fishing for sharks.
 
gulfgreyhound said:
The Old Man and the Boy by Robert Ruark. Nothing better in print, imo. GG
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I came across him in to Have and Have Another: Hemingway Cocktail Companion. He introduced me to the Ideal Cocktail which he claimed was one of Hemingway's regular drinks at the Floridita in Havana along with of course the Daiquiri. The author of the book (Philip Greene) said Ruark was known as a "poor man's Hemingway" saying he idolized Hemingway and imitated him in many ways. What's interesting is this title is similar to one of Hemingway's famous books. Thanks for mentioning Ruark and this book. I am seeking one out!

I am obviously a Hemingway fan so I will note:

Old Man and the Sea which is always noted as his best story on fishing. I didn't like it as much as I thought I would.
The Sun Also Rises has one of my favorites on fishing in the Pyrenees. After reading this I had to push my wife for a bus trip to see them when we were in Barcelona.
Big Two Hearted River Fishing upper Michigan after a return from WWI
Islands in the Stream: Bimini an artist has his boys visit him for a summer of fishing

BTW the Ideal Cocktail has become one of our favorite drinks. My wife makes me substitute vodka for half the gin. I like gin!

Islands in the Stream also references a drink called the Green Isaac's Special. I love Hemingway's description of the drink. It is pretty good and I always make a few at the beach and relive the Bimini story.
 
riverwhy said:
I came across him in to Have and Have Another: Hemingway Cocktail Companion. He introduced me to the Ideal Cocktail which he claimed was one of Hemingway's regular drinks at the Floridita in Havana along with of course the Daiquiri. The author of the book (Philip Greene) said Ruark was known as a "poor man's Hemingway" saying he idolized Hemingway and imitated him in many ways. What's interesting is this title is similar to one of Hemingway's famous books. Thanks for mentioning Ruark and this book. I am seeking one out!

I am obviously a Hemingway fan so I will note:

Old Man and the Sea which is always noted as his best story on fishing. I didn't like it as much as I thought I would.
The Sun Also Rises has one of my favorites on fishing in the Pyrenees. After reading this I had to push my wife for a bus trip to see them when we were in Barcelona.
Big Two Hearted River Fishing upper Michigan after a return from WWI
Islands in the Stream: Bimini an artist has his boys visit him for a summer of fishing

BTW the Ideal Cocktail has become one of our favorite drinks. My wife makes me substitute vodka for half the gin. I like gin!

Islands in the Stream also references a drink called the Green Isaac's Special. I love Hemingway's description of the drink. It is pretty good and I always make a few at the beach and relive the Bimini story.
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Hope you're drinking them with peanut butter and onion sandwiches
 
It's not a book specifically about flyfishing but I found Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food (by Paul Greenberg) to be very interesting. One of my sons had to read and report on it in college (BIO Major), so I took it along to read on a work trip when he was done with it. This was several years ago.
 
Surprised nobody mentioned GEM Skues. Any of his writings are very good but, The Way With a Trout and a Fly is particularly good.

James Leisenring/Pete Hidy: The Art of the Wet Fly and Fishing the Flymph is a great read.

Frank Sawyers Keeper of the Stream and Nymphs and the Trout are excellent reads.

Datus Proper's What the Trout Said is a very interesting read... makes you think.

I've got hundreds and hundreds of books on the subject - More so, books about angling and tying.
 
1. The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway. His last and most famous work published during his lifetime. Every human being should read it.

2. Brook Trout and the Writing Life - Craig Nova. A very unusual book ... I think you‘ll find it captivating.

3. Open Season - William Humphrey. A collection of 11 essays by a great American novelist.

And nothing to do with fishing, but my favorite novel of all time:

1. The Sojourner - Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. A stunning, sweeping novel about a good Man ... and a life well lived. An important read ... during these times.

Na Zdrowie!
 
Kyle said:
im looking for a book to read about fly fishing. not looking for a "how to fly fish" book. maybe a bio. something related to fishing a certain area of PA or other states in the north east. maybe a book on a trip someone took. im really not sure as long as its not a how to flyfish book.
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Kyle -

I see you’ve already received many good suggestions, which I‘ll try not to duplicate, but I’ll add some more suggestions to the list, and hope I’m not duplicating:

1. The Compleat Angler - Isaac Walton
2. Great Fishing Stories - compiled by Edwin Valentine Mitchell

Also, here are several authors that have written a number of books related to fly fishing, and life in general, that are just plain good reading:

1. Dana Lamb
2. Roderick Haig Brown
3. Sparse Grey Hackle
 
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