{"product_id":"river-songs-moments-of-wild-wonder-in-fly-fishing","title":"River Songs: Moments of Wild Wonder in Fly Fishing by Steve Duda","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIndependent Publisher Book Award Silver Winner in Nature\u003cbr\u003eForeword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist in Essays\u003cbr\u003eBanff Mountain Book Competition Finalist in Adventure Travel\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eRiver Songs\u003c\/i\u003e is rich with bracing, authentic, generous stories--writing that revels in language and spirit. Avoiding most of fly fishing's clichés--the romantic elegies, the Moby-Dick-like conquests, the play-by-play detailing a \"victory\" over a fish-- Steve Duda instead offers pieces that breathe lived experience, reveal vulnerabilities, and convey a broad perspective of what it means to have \"a long run with a tight crew.\" Duda is interested in what has been learned out there on the river: what is it about this \"ridiculous activity\" that connects us to this planet, makes us human, gives us hope?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eRiver Songs\u003c\/i\u003e focuses on the in-between moments and the unexpected revelations--awe, fear, frustration, doubt, joy--that are as much a part of fishing as tying knots and chucking flies. Readers ride along with Duda in battered pickup trucks, fish \"between jobs,\" look longingly at unfished famous rivers while touring with a country-punk band, and wonder how a fishing trip led to getting a tooth pulled while being surrounded by trash-talking friends. They will find beauty, discovery, heartbreak, good dogs, and the wonder of nature within the expanse of Northwest landscapes and beyond.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cspan\u003e:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn his first book, Duda, a Seattle writer, editor, and producer, offers a delightful experience for nature lovers and anglers. His clear, concise, funny, and confident writing suggests the wit and insight of such classic fishing writers as Thomas McGuane, Jim Harrison, and John Gierach as well as the gonzo and hell-for-leather sensibilities of Hunter Thompson and Outside magazine's Tim Cahill.\u003cstrong\u003e--John Rowen \"Booklist\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eYou won't forget these stories. They'll make you think about your relationship with fishing and perhaps make you look at it in a different way.\u003cstrong\u003e--Pete Tyjas \"Fly Culture Magazine\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSteve Duda, in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eRiver Songs: Moments of Wild Wonder in Fly Fishing\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, his first collection of essays, reminds us with attentive care to language and gloriously boisterous storytelling, why we keep coming back to rivers...\u003cstrong\u003e--Michael Garrigan \"Flyfisherman Magazine\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e...this is the kind of writing--the kind of flyfishing writing, especially--that you simply will not find anywhere else, for the simple reason that no one can tell a story the way that Steve Duda tells a story. Whether built on observation or an idea, whether springing from an experience or simply a hunch as to how the world works behind the scenes, they are stories that teem with the titular \"wonder.\" It's been a long time coming, but this debut collection was well worth the wait.\u003cstrong\u003e--Jason Rolfe \"The Fly Fish Journal\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDuda's tales are far more than fishing stories. They are the fatty spoils of in-between moments that only someone as unintentionally soaked in the cosmos as Duda could capture. I'm grateful for each of his experiences, in which he holds the fleeting, strange psalms long enough to translate them for mortals like me to cherish.\u003cstrong\u003e--Hilary Hutcheson \"outfitter and guide\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA wonderfully spirited case for one of the great and enduring sports.\u003cstrong\u003e--David Coggins \"author of The Believer: A Year in the Fly Fishing Life\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eLike a fireside raconteur plucking his banjo beside your favorite stream, Steve Duda plays notes that ring true. 'Here's to ugly flies that are beautiful, ' he says, in remembrance of a long-lost fishing buddy, and we feel the joy and the pain. His river songs about the angling life--about living--evoke a deep yearning for connection, the regret of missed opportunity, and an impatience with cheap illumination. He finds humor, absurdity, and sorrow in both the magical and the mundane. Duda's is a sometimes gruff, sometimes bemused, but always singular voice that cuts through the discordant noise of our times.\u003cstrong\u003e--Langdon Cook \"author of Upstream\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIt would be easy to say that \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eRiver Songs\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is simply a very good book about fly fishing. But it's elevated to something more because Steve Duda has his sights on bigger game, namely the passage of time, and its intimate twin, mortality. More specifically, how we choose to spend the former, given the inevitability of the latter. The author's choice is on the water with fly rod in hand, and, fortunately for us, at his keyboard. Duda writes with ferocious honesty and breathtaking intensity. The stories here are a lot like the author himself--authentic, soulful, earthy, and, beneath a sometimes-crusty exterior, filled with love. There are sweet melodies in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eRiver Songs\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, to be sure, but it's the slightly subversive, punk-rock ethic that lends satisfying grit to all that beauty. This is a book that helps us keep time through a life of fly fishing, and more importantly, what to make of it.\u003cstrong\u003e--Dylan Tomine \"author of Headwaters and Closer to the Ground\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhat strikes me most about these inviting and enjoyable stories is their authenticity. Duda writes--and I mean this in the best way--like he has dirt under his fingernails\u003cstrong\u003e--Monte Burke \"author of Lords of the Fly and Saban\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e... a joy to read.\u003cstrong\u003e-- \"Casting Across\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cb\u003eSteve Duda\u003c\/b\u003e is a writer, editor, and producer whose work in film, magazines, books, and live appearances has shaped the voice of fly fishing for over three decades. He is the former editor of \u003ci\u003eThe Flyfish Journal\u003c\/i\u003e and a founding editor at \u003ci\u003eBoise Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e. Steve's cultural writing has been featured in \u003ci\u003eRolling Stone\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eHuffington Post\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eSeattle Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eMTV\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eSan Francisco Bay Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Fretboard Journal\u003c\/i\u003e, and many others. Currently, Steve is Head of Fish Tales at Patagonia, guiding the brand's fly fish activism and storytelling through film, video, web, social media, and more. He lives in Seattle with his partner and a semi-feral feline\/raccoon hybrid.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Mountaineers Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45734501286074,"sku":"9781680517019","price":24.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0444\/2213\/5968\/files\/imageloader_ee8d3b9c-7fc0-4b40-8d14-46adda820477.jpg?v=1774475554","url":"https:\/\/naturenurture.shop\/products\/river-songs-moments-of-wild-wonder-in-fly-fishing","provider":"nature+nurture","version":"1.0","type":"link"}