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Book and DVD Reviews
No sport or game has had as long, and as extensive, a literature history as has fly fishing and its companion craft fly tying. This large body of written and visual material creates one of the greatest joys to members of the brotherhood of the angle. This body of work is one of the truly unique attributes of fly fishing and one that every fly fisherman should indulge in.
Collected here are reviews of books and DVDs I have read or viewed concerning fly fishing, fly tying, and stories about both. No hype, no paid endorsements, only my opinion of each book. These reviews not only describe the contents but also how well the contents have been executed by both author and publisher.
Fishy's Flies
by Jay "Fishy" Fullum
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg PA, 2002
68 pages, softbound
illustrated, B&W
suggested price $$9.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
This is one of the best surprises the year for the fly tier. A small volume in size but a gigantic volume in fun and novel fly tying techniques and materials. In only 68 pages of text and wonderfully clear line drawings the author teaches how to tie twenty-seven different fly patterns he has created. Here you will find foam hoppers, epoxy ants, craneflies, stickleback minnows, and stoneflies tied with plastic canvas, lipped poppers, and bead-chain crabs. Each and everyone tied using novel materials found in out of the way places and products designed for all manner of uses other than fly tying.
But don't let the fun and novelty fool you. These flies are both very fishable and very durable. If you are a natural materials traditionalist you may have a bit of a psychological barrier to overcome. After all using an electric pencil sharpener on a bit of balsa wood to make a popper body, or to cut a piece of needlepoint plastic canvas to create a stonefly takes just a bit of loosening up mentally. The warm-water and saltwater tiers will not have this problem to the same extent as they are used to using all manner of synthetic material in their everyday fly tying.. Once over this hurdle however, the reader will be surprised on how much fun and how effective flies designed by the author can be.
Overall this slim volume provides the fly tier with interesting, fun, and effective materials and techniques for tying a larger variety of effective fishing flies. With a retail price of under $10.00 the reader receives his moneys worth and much more. For innovative and inquisitive fly tiers this book is a must.
© 2002 Bruce E. Harang
The
Practical Fly Tier
by Royce Dam
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg PA, 2002
110 pages, hardbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $$29.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
Royce Dam is one of the finest fly tiers I have had the privilege to watch and to chat with. He is also one of the nicest people you will ever meet, as well as an effective teacher. Royce' use of carded wool for fly bodies is extremely effective. It is also very easy to learn. If this was all that was taught in this book it would be more than worth its purchase price. Fortunately, for all of us that tie flies, Royce didn't stop with a discussion of making and using carded wool for fly tying. Instead he has produced a book chuck full of useful practical fly tying techniques. You will not find a finer volume of practical fly tying methods allowing you, the fly tier, to produce beautiful, functional, and effective flies. Every technique is clearly explained in easy steps. Each step is illustrated by high quality photo images by Thom Beck. Thom clearly understands microphotography as well as Royce understands fly tying. The photos are all well exposed, well focused, and make the procedure in question the center point of each photograph. The only point I would have liked to have seen in the photos would be to have removed the support from some of the fly shots as they tend to distract a bit from the flies themselves.
Royce provides comprehensive chapters on tying wet flies, dry flies, nymphs, and streamers. In each section he also starts each section with clear concise descriptions of tying techniques needed to be successful tying these flies. Along with the opening chapter on tools the reader has an extremely useful learning program. This reader was pleasantly surprised at the amount of good information the author has packed into only five chapters.
The overall layout, design and editing are of the highest quality. Mark Van Patten and Art Scheck desire recognition for doing such good work in this area. Most readers never consciously look at these areas of a book. However, most readers instinctively know when a book seems easy, or hard, to read. The difference between the two types of books is the quality of the layout and editing. Royce's book is a prime example of a book that is easy to read.
If you tie flies at any level this book is a must addition to your library.
© 2002 Bruce E. Harang
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Angler's Companion
by Ian Rutter
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
Portland, OR, 2002
67 pages, softbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $$16.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
If you would like a good starting point for fishing in the nation's most popular national park this book is the one to read. Ian Rutter guided in the Park for a number of years and has first hand knowledge of the streams he describes. The book is divided into two major sections; fishing in the Park and stream descriptions. The first section on fishing in the Park is broken down into sections on the streams, the fish, the fishing seasons, the fishing methods and the flies as well as a short introduction describing the symbols used throughout the book. The second section breaks the Park down around five base areas and describes in greater detail the streams in each of these areas as well as how to access them and what to use once you get there.
The author includes directions to the streams as well as directions to camp grounds, parking areas, and lodging. By breaking the Park into five areas centered around a base-camp location he has proved the visiting angler with a realistic and accurate perspective of what waters are accessible from where around the park.
The book is nicely written and accompanied by excellent photographs of the Park, its streams and its fish. For anyone wanting to fish the Great Smoky Mountains National Park this book will get you to the right places at the right times and with the correct gear. Well done.
© 2003 Bruce E. Harang
Tying Flies with CDC
by Leon Links
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg PA, 2002
158 pages, hardbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $24.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
The feathers around the preen gland of waterfowl have a structure like no other feather. Called Cul de Canard by some and CDC by others, this feather has a remarkable ability to entice fish to take a fly upon which it is tied. Up until now however, accurate information on the history, origin, and patterns utilizing this wonderful fly tying material have been very hard to come by. With this book the author has provided a first major step in correcting this situation. The author traces the history of the use of CDC in flies. Where the use of the material started, how it is used, and backgrounds of many of the people who have been instrumental in using and fishing flies incorporating CDC feathers.
The book also discusses various methods of fishing flies incorporating CDC feathers. Also included is information on how to use CDC for tying nymphs, emergers, and wet flies as well as dry flies.
There are interesting comments on methods of tying with CDC but unfortunately the methods themselves are not disclosed. Likewise, while a good number of patterns using CDC are illustrated most have no recipe or tying instructions. In addition, the images of the flies are such that a tier will have a most difficult time trying to understand the patterns illustrated. In this respect the book is a major disappointment.
For those few patterns having tying instructions and step-by-step images the work is excellently done. The printing and editing is also very well done. One can only hope that the lack of information was a publishing decision and that the author will publish more information in subsequent works.
The book is clearly worth owning and does provide information that has been very difficult to find previously concerning the use of CDC in flies.
© 2003 Bruce E. Harang
Trout from Small Streams
by Dave Hughes
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg PA, 2002
167 pages, hardbound
not illustrated
suggested price $16.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
Dave Hughes has once again produced an outstanding fly fishing book. It is also very refreshing in format as it is a text only layout without the now popular and over exploited photograph or drawing for every thought. Once again Dave Hughes work has reminded me in a most favorable way of the writing style, and intellectual level, of G. E. M. Skues.
For the fly fisherman that is interested in learning about or learning more about small stream trout fishing this book is a must read. With information on stream geology, gear, flies and methods to fish them, this book has compiled a complete course is small stream trout fishing.
Because the book has no illustrations the reader does not have try to memorize charts, graphs, and drawings and then try to find them on his water. Instead, the words invoke memories of the fisherman's own outings, and his own water. Instead of trying to force the reader to place his water into the book, the information allows the reader to more instinctively use the proper gear, fly, and presentation for the water he is actually on at that moment. The proper presentation becomes more like a reflex action. Learning by having his own streams brought to mind allows the reader to become more productive and have more fun on the water he fishes.
The author�s writing style is concise, lucid, and easy to read and understand. The reader gets the feeling that the words are carefully chosen to present the idea at hand and nothing more. Reading a book by Dave Hughes becomes a sharing of ideas across a campfire or in front of a winter fireplace. It is personal and friendly. There is always a grin or chuckle just beneath the surface of every topic. This book is like an afternoon or evening with a favorite fishing partner, fun, reflective, and informative without ceremony and social posturing.
The publisher's choice of font and page layout only adds to the ease of reading and understanding. This book exhibits a subtle but extremely well done publishing effort.
For any fly fisherman that wishes to fish for trout in small streams this is one of the finest courses you can ever take. A must read for all small stream fly fishermen and a book that needs to be in your library.
© 2003 Bruce E. Harang
Tying Contemporary
Saltwater Flies
by David Klausmeyer
Countryman Press
Woodstock, VT 2002
152 pages, hardbound
illustrated, Color
suggested price, $45.00
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
David Klausmeyer is a name familiar to most fly tyers. His books on tying are considered by many to be some of the best ever done. This book is no exception. For the fly tyer that wants to learn to tie saltwater flies popular today this book is a dream come true.
The author starts with a short concise chapter on the tools and materials that are central to the tying of saltwater flies without losing the reader with a long winded discourse on fly tying basics. The rest of the book is broken down into six chapters. Each chapter shows step-by-step how to tie a particular style of saltwater fly using both clear text and outstanding photographs. The styles covered are Basic Flies; Small Baitfish patterns; Tarpon flies, Shrimp, Squid, & Eels patterns; Flats Flies, and flies based on using epoxy and silicone. Then most chapters conclude with a selection of flies of that style tied by saltwater guides and anglers that have used them extensively. These flies are illustrated with the same high quality images and full recipes as well as comments by the tyer in most cases.
If you are interested in learning to tie first class saltwater flies this book will certainly get you well on your way. If you are already tying saltwater patterns but would like to improve your tying and the durability of your flies this is also the book for you.
The editing and printing of this book is excellent. There are a few text errors but nothing that will prevent you from clearly understanding what the author is trying to say and teach.
There are not a lot of saltwater fly tying books. This latest entry is clearly a contender for the number one spot.
© 2003 Bruce E. Harang
Found in a River
by Jeff Bright
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
Portland, OR, 2002
73 pages, hardbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $19.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
This small volume is a wonderful interlude of peace in a busy world by a man who has refused to loose the wide eyed wonder of childhood. A collection of poems vividly describing the ephemeral qualities of the Steelhead Rainbow Trout accompanied by photographic images that evoke a dreamlike vision of being on a river with them. The author brings to reality the emotional soul of why some of us cast a fly, in the worst weather, for a fish seldom caught in large numbers. Like a sailor always believing a mermaid is possible, so to the steelheader believes that a steelhead on the end of the line is just as possible.
If you are a steelheader you will smile and feel the passion of being on the river casting repeatedly on belief alone. If you have never cast a fly for this great fish, curl up in a quiet corner with this book, open your mind and your heart and you may just be able to glimpse the spirit of a steelhead swimming through your future.
The editing and photography are beautifully adapted to the text and the emotions they evoke. Extremely well done and well worth the price of admission.
One of the purest reading pleasures to have been printed in a long time.
© 2003 Bruce E. Harang
Mayflies "Top to Bottom"
by Shane Stalcup
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
Portland, OR, 2002
158 pages, softbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $29.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
The author is one of the first US tiers to publicize the use of CDC feathers for fly tying. His innovative patterns and tying methods have become a standard for CDC patterns in the US and now in many other countries as well.
The book starts, as many fly tying books do, with a small section on fly tying tools and materials. Shane has kept this down to some particularly favored tools and tying materials including some he has invented. The book turns to a section describing methods of tying used for Shane's patterns. These include materials and methods of tying trailing shucks, materials and methods of tying extended bodies, how to pre-make no-thread dubbed bodies, tying in micro tubing and D-rib materials, a method Shane calls "precise dubbing", using biots, making wings using Medallion sheeting and Zing Wing synthetics, his preferred method of splitting tails on may fly patterns, using ostrich herl for Mayfly bodies, using soft hackle fibers for legs, and a dubbing color chart. The rest of the book is devoted to step-by-step instructions for tying his patterns and his variations of standards.
The photographs and text are well done and fairly well presented. The step-by-step sequences are very well done and make following them easy for the reader working at his tying bench. These same tying sequences will clearly teach the fly tier how to tie the wonderful patterns Shane has become famous for. In addition, there are some neat tips and tricks that will make every fly tier a better craftsman. For example the use of plastic ribbing or tubing for dry fly bodies is most interesting.
However, these are not realistic fly patterns. They are impressionistic from my standpoint. Maybe they could be described as realistic impressionism in that they seem to have the triggers that make trout accept them even though they clearly do not look realistic to the fisherman. Certainly not realism such as displayed by the flies of Bob Mead for example.
The only disappointment with the book was the repetition of the same tying step in every pattern. After the first half dozen times the reader kind of wants to rip out the sections on splitting tails and tying in the biot that is repeated in almost every tying sequence. Especially since these topics were covered in their own chapter at the front of the book.
Overall, if you like the fly patterns of Shane Stalcup you will love this book. If you want to learn about the use of CDC in all types of flies or how to effectively use biots for bodies this is a good place to learn. Well worth the price of the book and a good value for the money.
© 2003 Bruce E. Harang
Caddisflies
A guide to eastern species for anglers and other naturalists
by Thomas Ames Jr.
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg, PA, 2009
312 pages, Hardbound, illustrated Color
suggested price $49.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
Marvelous, beautiful, eminently readable, highly useable, and just plain fun! This is quite simply the best book on fishing for trout with caddisfly imitations published in over 30 years. The author has taken the finest photographs to date of caddisflies important to fly fishermen and had the models accurately identified by experts. The reader doesn’t need to rely on scientific terminology, or field reports that are hearsay at best. Instead the reader gets first hand information in easy to read and easy to understand plain language text and superb images of the Eastern caddisflies he sees on the stream or lake to compare with the patterns in his fly box. Furthermore, the author summarizes the information for each caddisfly in easy to understand tables. Brilliant!
The book comprises two main portions and four very important appendices. The first main portion of the book has five chapters devoted to the biology and habitat of the Eastern caddisflies of importance to the fly fisherman, as well as the angling history and fly fishing techniques for trout fishing using caddisfly imitations. These five chapters set out the technical aspects for trout fishing with caddisfly imitations in an easily comprehensible manner. The second main portion of the book describes caddisflies found east of the Mississippi River of the four super families down to species level. These include Rhyacophiloidea, the primitive caddisflies; Hydropsychoidea, the fixed-retreat makers; Limnephiloidea, the tube-case makers that are aquatic egg-layers; and Limnephiloidea, the tube-case makers of the Limnephilid Complex. These four chapters are broken down into a general description of each family and then each species that is important to fly fishermen. The descriptions include both plain language easy to read text and superb images of adults, pupae, pharate adults, and cases as appropriate for each species. Each such section of each chapter concludes with a table listing the type, color, sizes, and suggested fly patterns for larva, pupa, emerger, and egg-layer as appropriate. These tables are an invaluable resource for every fly tyer and every fly fisherman wanting to tie and fish caddisfly imitations. In fact, they are probably the finest references of their kind ever published.
The appendices begin with a collection of all of the fly patterns suggested in the caddisfly summary tables and include both recipe and photograph of each fly. In many cases, tying and fishing notes are also included. The second appendix is a collection of hatch charts for eastern caddisflies which is divided into the three climatic regions of the east coast. These charts compile the author’s notes, data from numerous published charts, and the information of a number of the professionals dealing with caddisflies in these climatic regions. The third appendix lists the habitat and behavior of the fly fisherman’s eastern caddis by family. Here is found information such as how the caddis feeds, type of retreat each makes, preferred habitat, where they emerge and how they lay their eggs. Just the information that is most helpful to having the correct fly patterns for your favorite caddisfly trout water. The final appendix gives the current taxonomy of eastern caddisflies. For those that acquire a passion for caddisflies and collecting them or their images this is a fine resource. The book concludes with an extremely well researched bibliography including both print and internet resources, a credits section, and a well designed index.
The book is further enhanced by exquisite design and editing. Due to these well executed features reading is easy and pleasant. Illustrations are positioned to allow the reader to use them to enhance the text without having to flip pages or otherwise be distracted from reading the text. The summary tables are so well done and comprehensive that the reader can simply flip through to each as a reference for tying the proper fly pattern for any caddisfly he may encounter on his stream or lake. Clearly this volume raises the bar several notches.
© 2009 Bruce E. Harang
The North
Umpqua Chronicles
by Patrick McRae
Self Published
Glide, OR, 2009
191 pages, soft bound
not illustrated
suggested price $26.95
© 2009 Bruce E. Harang
The Source --
Tasmania
by Nick Reygaert
Gin-Clear Media Productions
Te Anau, NZ, 2009
DVD, 48 minutes plus 15 minutes Featurette & Trailer, color
suggested price $26.95
© 2009 Bruce E. Harang
Tomorrow’s
Fly Fishers
by Fanny Krieger & Friends
Krieger Enterprises
www.fannykrieger.com, 2009
DVD, 43 minutes + bonus materials
suggested price $29.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
© 2010 Bruce E. Harang
Angler
Management
by Jack Ohman
Headwater Books
New Cumberland, PA 2009
214 pages, hardbound
illustrated, B&W
suggested price $24.95
reviewed by Bruce E. Harang
This is a book of essays. The essays are not funny, informative, or instructive. They seem to have no purpose whatsoever. For those that are not fly fishers none of the topics would be familiar. To fly fishers all of the topics are worn out clichés. This book has nothing to offer at any level to any fly fisher. The book ends with a mock book review of four pages. This is clearly 3.9 pages too long. Pass this one by.
© 2010 Bruce E. Harang
Fly
Tying Made Clear and Simple II
by Skip Morris
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
Portland, OR, 2009
151 pages, spiral softbound
illustrated, Color
suggested price $24.95
© 2010 Bruce E. Harang
Creative
Salmon Fly Art, Vol. 1
by Paul Rossman
Pine Meadow Publishing
Pine Meadow, CT 2010
91 pages in PDF format on CD
suggested price $24.95
This is the first volume of a proposed ten volume set of books directed to Salmon flies as art. This series will first be published as PDF format books on CD, and in the future as traditional printed volumes. The quality of the production is excellent. The writing is lovely in both thought and form. The overall structure of the book is to select a small set of birds that provide feathers of interest to the Salmon fly tyer and provide a history of these birds, reproductions of early naturalist images, and a fly designed to highlight the feathers of a single bird of the group in an artistic manner. Many of the superbly reproduced early images are very difficult to find making these reproductions of originals a valuable resource. The author not only presents each fly and the components and recipe, but also his design philosophy. Being able, as a reader, to see into the mind of the artist provides the reader with many new ideas and directions for his own fly tying and fly designing. This first volume is one of three volumes covering the pheasants. Here the tragopan, peacock, and jungle fowl pheasants are presented. In total fifteen different species of these pheasants and fifteen beautifully designed and executed Salmon flies are presented. Whether you tie Salmon flies or not, if you have a love of tying, nature, or art you will find this electronic book a most pleasurable treasure.
© 2010 Bruce E. Harang
Bug
Water
by Arlen Thomason
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg, PA 2010
211 pages, hardbound
illustrated, Color
suggested price $39.95
© 2010 Bruce E. Harang