Audiobooks by John Gierach

In No Shortage of Good Days John Gierach takes listeners from the Smokies in Tennessee to his home waters in Colorado, from the Canadian Maritimes to Mexico-saltwater or fresh, it's all fishing and all irresistible. As always he writes perceptively about a wide range of subjects: the charm of familiar waters, the etiquette of working with new fishing guides, night fishing when the trout and the mosquitoes are both biting, and fishing snobbery, a pitfall he seems to have largely avoided: "A friend and I recently realized that making fly-fishing a way of life instead of a hobby has made us a couple of pretty one-dimensional characters. On the other hand, we agreed we're two of the happiest people we know, albeit in a simple-minded sort of way." Gierach again demonstrates the wit, eloquence, and insight that have become his trademarks. No Shortage of Good Days is the next best thing to a day of fishing.

John Gierach (Author), Mike Chamberlain (Narrator)

Audiobook

Sex, Death, and Fly-Fishing

From the irrepressible author of Trout Bum and The View from Rat Lake comes an engaging, humorous, often profound examination of life's greatest mysteries: sex, death, and fly-fishing. John Gierach's quest takes us from his quiet home water (an ordinary, run-of-the-mill trout stream where fly-fishing can be a casual affair) to Utah's famous Green River, and to unknown creeks throughout the Western states and Canada. We're introduced to a lively group of fishing buddies, some local 'experts,' and even an ex-girlfriend, along the way. Contemplative, evocative, and wry, he shares insights on mayflies and men, fishing and sport, life and love, and the meaning (or meaninglessness) of it all.

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

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A Fly Rod of Your Own

John Gierach is known for his witty, trenchant observations about fly-fishing. In A Fly Rod of Your Own, Gierach once again takes us into his world and scrutinizes the art of fly-fishing. He travels to remote fishing locations where the airport is not much bigger than a garage and a flight might be held up because a passenger is running late. He sings the praises of the skilled pilots who fly to remote fishing lodges in tricky locations and bad weather. He explains why even the most veteran fisherman seems to muff his cast whenever he's being filmed or photographed. He describes the all-but-impassable roads that fishermen always seem to encounter at the best fishing spots and why fishermen discuss four-wheel drive vehicles almost as passionately and frequently as they discuss fly rods and flies. And while he's on that subject, he explains why even the most conscientious fisherman always seems to accumulate more rods and flies than he could ever need. From Alaska to the Rockies and across the continent to Maine and the Canadian Maritimes, A Fly Rod of Your Own is an ode to those who fish.

John Gierach (Author), Mike Chamberlain (Narrator)

Audiobook

Standing in a River Waving a Stick

Brilliant, witty, perceptive essays about fly-fishing, the natural world, and life in general by the acknowledged master of fishing writers With his inimitable combination of wit and wisdom, John Gierach once again celebrates the fly-fishing life in Standing in a River Waving a Stick and notes its benefits as a sport, philosophical pursuit, even therapy: "The solution to any problem-work, love, money, whatever-is to go fishing, and the worse the problem, the longer the trip should be." After all, fly-fishing does teach important life lessons, says Gierach-about solitude, patience, perspective, humor, and the sublime coffee break. Recounting both memorable fishing spots and memorable fish, Gierach discusses what makes a good fly pattern, the ethics of writing about undiscovered trout waters, the dread of getting skunked, and the camaraderie of fellow fishermen who can end almost any conversation with "Well, it's sort of like fishing, isn't it?" Reflecting on a lifetime of lessons learned at the end of a fly rod, Gierach concludes, "The one inscription you don't want carved on your tombstone is 'The Poor Son of a Bitch Didn't Fish Enough.'" Fortunately for Gierach fans, this is not likely to happen.

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

Audiobook

All Fishermen Are Liars

For John Gierach, "the master of fly-fishing" (Sacramento Bee), fishing is always the answer-even when it's not clear what the question is. In All Fishermen Are Liars, Gierach travels around North America seeking out quintessential fishing experiences, whether it's at a busy stream or a secluded lake hidden amid snow-capped mountains. He talks about the art of fly-tying and the quest for the perfect steelhead fly ("The Nuclear Option"), about fishing in the Presidential Pools previously fished by the elder George Bush ("I wondered briefly if I'd done something karmically disastrous and was now fated to spend the rest of my life breathing the exhaust of this elderly Republican"), and the importance of traveling with like-minded companions when caught in a soaking rain ("At this point someone is required to say, 'You know, there are people who wouldn't think this is fun'"). And though Gierach loses some fish along the way, he never loses his passion and sense of humor. Wry, contemplative, and lively-that is to say, pure Gierach-All Fishermen Are Liars is a joy to listen to-and, as always, the next best thing to fishing itself.

John Gierach (Author), Mike Chamberlain (Narrator)

Audiobook

At the Grave of the Unknown Fisherman

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.

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

Audiobook

Dumb Luck and the Kindness of Strangers

In his latest fresh and original collection, Gierach shows us why fly-fishing is the perfect antidote to everything that is wrong with the world. In Dumb Luck and the Kindness of Strangers, Gierach looks back to the long-ago day when he bought his first resident fishing license in Colorado, where the fishing season never ends, and just knew he was in the right place. And he succinctly sums up part of the appeal of his sport when he writes that it is 'an acquired taste that reintroduces the chaos of uncertainty back into our well-regulated lives.' Lifelong fisherman though he is, Gierach can write with self-deprecating humor about his own fishing misadventures, confessing that despite all his experience, he is still capable of blowing a strike by a fish 'in the usual amateur way.' He offers witty, trenchant observations not just about fly-fishing itself but also about how one's love of fly-fishing shapes the world that we choose to make for ourselves.

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

Audiobook

Fool's Paradise

If John Gierach is living in a fool's paradise, then it's a paradise that his regular readers will recognize and new fans will delight in discovering. Laced with the inimitable blend of wit and wisdom that have made him fly-fishing's foremost scribe, Fool's Paradise chronicles the fishing life in all its glory (catching your biggest fish ever) and squalor (being stranded in a tent during a soaking rainstorm). In Gierach's world, both experiences are valuable, and perhaps inevitable. Fishermen everywhere will understand Gierach's quest to discover and explore new waters, the unlikely appeal of winter fly-fishing, or his dismay at encroaching development. Braving trips on small prop planes and down "Oh-My-God" roads, Gierach and his fishing buddies pursue bull trout in British Columbia, steelhead in the Rocky Mountains, and pike so fierce that a wise fisherman wears Kevlar gloves for the obligatory trophy photo. Equal parts fishing lore, philosophy, and great fish stories, Fool's Paradise may not be a perfect substitute for actually being out on the water, but it's surely the next best thing.

John Gierach (Author), Mike Chamberlain (Narrator)

Audiobook

Still Life with Brook Trout

Brilliant, witty, perceptive essays about fly-fishing, the natural world, and life in general by the acknowledged master of fishing writers In Still Life with Brook Trout, John Gierach demonstrates once again that fishing, when done right, is as much a philosophical pursuit as a sport. Gierach travels to Wyoming and Maine and points in between, searching out new fly-fishing adventures and savoring familiar waters with old friends. Along the way he meditates on the importance of good guides ("Really, the only thing a psychiatrist can do that a good guide can't is write prescriptions"), the challenge of salmon fishing ("Salmon prowl. If they're not here now, they could be here in half an hour. Or tomorrow. Or next month"), and the zen of fishing alone ("I also enjoy where my mind goes when I'm fishing alone, which is usually nowhere in particular and by a predictable route"). On a more serious note, he ponders the damaging effects of disasters both natural and man-made: drought, wildfires, and the politics of dam-building, among others. Reflecting on a trip to a small creek near his home, Gierach writes, "In my brightest moments, I think slowing down . . . has opened huge new vistas on my old home water. It's like a friendship that not only lasts, but gets better against the odds." Similarly, Still Life with Brook Trout proves that Gierach, like fly-fishing itself, becomes deeper and richer with time.

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

Audiobook

Dances With Trout

Brilliant, witty, perceptive essays about fly-fishing, the natural world, and life in general by the acknowledged master of fishing writers. With the wry humor and wit that have become his trademark, John Gierach writes about his travels in search of good fishing and even better fish stories. In this new collection of essays on fishing-and hunting-Gierach discusses fishing for trout in Alaska, for salmon in Scotland, and for almost anything in Texas. He offers his perceptive observations on the subject of ice-fishing, getting lost, fishing at night, tournaments, and the fine art of tying flies. Gierach also shares his hunting technique, which involves reading a good book and looking up occasionally to see if any deer have wandered by. Always entertaining, often irreverent, and illuminating, Gierach invites listeners into his enviable way of life, and effortlessly sweeps them along. As he writes in Dances with Trout, 'Fly-fishing is solitary, contemplative, misanthropic, scientific in some hands, poetic in others, and laced with conflicting aesthetic considerations. It's not even clear if catching fish is actually the point.'

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

Audiobook

Where the Trout Are All as Long as Your Leg

Brilliant, witty, perceptive essays about fly-fishing, the natural world, and life in general by the acknowledged master of fishing writers. Fly-fishing's finest scribe, John Gierach, takes us from a nameless stream on a nameless ranch in Montana to a secret pool off a secret creek where he caught a catfish as a five-year-old, to a brook full of rattlesnakes and a private pond where the trout are all as long as your leg. As Gierach says, 'The secret places are the soul of fishing.' Hearing about a new one never fails to entice us. And so Where the Trout Are All as Long as Your Leg transports the listener to the best of these places, where the fish are always bigger and the hatches last forever. After all, it's these magical places that Gierach so vividly evokes that remind us how precious-and precarious-are the unspoiled havens of the natural world.

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

Audiobook

Even Brook Trout Get the Blues

Brilliant, witty, perceptive essays about fly-fishing, the natural world, and life in general by the acknowledged master of fishing writers. 'Once an angler has become serious about the sport (and 'serious' is the word that's used), he'll never again have enough tackle or enough time to use it. And his nonangling friends and family may never again entirely recognize him, either.' In other words, he (or she) will have entered Gierach territory. Whether debating bamboo versus graphite rods, describing the pleasure of fishing in pocket waters or during a spring snow in the mountains, or recounting a trip in pursuit of the 'fascinatingly ugly' longnose gar, Gierach understands that fly-fishing is more than a sport. It's a way of life in which patience is (mostly) rewarded, the rhythms of the natural world are appreciated, and the search for the perfect rod or ideal stream is never ending. It is not a life without risks, for as Gierach warns: 'This perspective on things can change you irreparably. If it comes to you early enough in life, it can save you from ever becoming what they call 'normal.'' Even Brook Trout Get the Blues will convince you that 'normal' is greatly overrated.

John Gierach (Author), David Colacci (Narrator)

Audiobook