At the Grave of the Unknown Fisherman

By: John Gierach

Narrated by: David Colacci

Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's Summary

Brilliant, witty, perceptive essays about fly-fishing, the natural world, and life in general by the acknowledged master of fishing writers.  

Proving that fishing is not just a part-time pursuit, At the Grave of the Unknown Fisherman takes us through a year with America's favorite fishing scribe, John Gierach, who dedicates himself to his passion despite his belief that "In the long run, fishing usually amounts to a lifetime of pratfalls punctuated by rare moments of perfection."  

Beginning with an early spring expedition to barely thawed Wyoming waters and ending with a New Year's Eve trip to the Frying Pan River in Colorado, Gierach's travels find him fishing for trout, carp, and grayling; considering the pros and cons of learning fishing from videos ("video fishing seems a little like movie sex: fun to watch, but a long way from the real thing"); pondering the ethics of sharing secret spots; and debunking the myth of the unflappable outdoorsman ("masters of stillness on the outside, festering s***holes of uncertainty just under the surface").   

With an appreciation of the highs, the lows, and all points between, Gierach writes about the fishing life with wisdom, grace, and the well-timed wisecrack. As he says, "The season never does officially end here, but it ends effectively, which means you can fish if you want to and if you can stand it, but you don't have to." As any Gierach fan knows, want to and have to are never very far apart.

©2003 John Gierach (P)2019 Tantor

excellent

great book, worth your time. John gierach is fly fisherman's hunter s. Thompson. a modern master with words, send narration was really good as well. take a listen

Genuine smiles and relatable!

This is an amazing book. I laughed and related with the guys in the book the whole time .

Excellent

I like reading John Gierach’s stories and now I find listening to them is also enjoyable. David Colacci seems like the perfect narrator for Gierach’s style.

One of Gierach’s best

Easily one of the better Gierach books I’ve read so far. I like how the organization was subtle in the way it chronologically followed the season of a year. Was a interesting departure from his normal style, which seem to be a more or less disjointed series of essays.

The performance by Colacci is amazing. One of the few audiobook voice talents who I would actually actively search out when looking to purchase something. As good as George Guidall in my opinion. Some of Gierachs books are done by another performer and while they’re fine to listen to, no one really nails it like Colacci.