The Trout Whisperers by Peter Bodo
My review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Fly fisherman are sometimes thought of as snobbish sorts by other types of fishermen. Or, so the common “wisdom” is bandied about by fly fisherman. But I don’t ever think I’ve heard a non fly fisherman disparage a fly fisherman or fly fishing. It’s just the fly fishermen who say that non fly fishermen are snobs. Thereby becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy that fly fishermen are snobbish.
So, why do we do it? I think we just like to think that other people think we’re snobbish. It’s like an exclusive club that we can belong to, but then feel superior because we aren’t one of “those” snobby fly fishermen, we’re regular guys and it’s OK by us whatever it is that other fishermen want to do.
The Trout Whisperers plays on the idea as one of the main characters, Louis, is a bit of a blowhard as he speaks about flies, “There are two important insect genera for trout in all North America—mayflies and caddisflies. If you prefer, the exquisite Ephemerella mayflies and the more mundane but considerably more ubiquitous Trichoptera caddis. Tricops, in the patois.” Or , after his fishing companion states that ranchers hate coyotes, he replies, “That they do. but their odium is born of ignorance. Coyotes are no real threat to calves or lambs. …white men of western European stock have always harbored an irrational hatred for wild canids…”
Throughout the book, Louis riffs philosophically and academically on just about every subject. Words are his stock in trade since he is the “Wordsmith,” keeper of all things linguistic on his website, “Guardian of Grammar.” He is hilarious to listen to and hopefully gives an idea to those who throw Latin around in the fly shop of what they sound like to others.
Raul is a specialist: he only fishes for large bank feeding trout. Frequently he does not fish. He is also a member of the Ironfeather Society of Warriors—“a male empowerment group” who explore their manhood so they can tame the inner man. Throughout the book Raul shares snippets of wisdom from Darby Wingo (the Ironfeather founder), as penned in The Virilian Protocol. Such as, “The healer lies buried in every warrior, as the warrior lies buried in every man—to help your fellow man is all.”
Louis fancies himself a Lewis and Clark expert and as they travel throughout Montana and surrounding areas, they cross the tracks of the Corps of Discovery, given Louis the opportunity to spout his knowledge. They rescue a female (unlike the original Corps who were rescued by a female) and her gaseous dog (who is nothing like the original Seaman).
The plot does bog down in the middle as the characters engage in banter and actions that do not move the plot forward. But it was brief enough that I read through it without losing too much interest.
This is a fun read for fly fishers, Lewis and Clark fans, readers of humor and outdoorsy types. And word mavens.
You can read a more of a plot summary from Amazon.
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