The Complete Angler: a Connecticut Yankee Follows in the Footsteps of Walton

"Izaak Walton was my excuse to go to England. I had been thinking through ideas to get money from Yale in the form of a traveling fellowship for two years, and several attempts had failed. My last--and best--idea was to suggest to the fellowship committee that I go to England and fish in the footsteps of a legitimate seventeenth-century author, Izaak Walton, who wrote The Compleat Angler, the third most frequently reprinted book in the English language, one that has been in print for over three hundred years. I told them during my interview that Walton's words spoke to me, that fishing was my passion, and that his book represented and defended every facet of the art more lucidly than I ever could."-- James Prosek James Prosek has been called "the Audubon of the fishing world" by the New York Times. A passionate fisherman and talented artist from a young age, he published two illustrated books on fish and fishing while still an undergraduate at Yale. After winning a traveling fellowship to follow in the footsteps of Izaak Walton, The Compleat Angler became his obsession. He was fascinated by Walton, a humble man who won the friendship of kings, and he was intrigued by the book's philosophies concerning the timelessness and immortality that could be achieved by fishing. Although Walton was sixty when The Compleat Angler was published and Prosek only twenty when he set off to visit England, they each had traits in common: a love of fishing and an extraordinary ability to make friends. This is the story of a young man's pilgrimage through England, fishing the waters that are now privately held. Along with wonderful stories about good times, great fishing, and fine eating, this trip becomes an exploration of Waltonian ideals: how to live with humor, wisdom, contentment, and simplicity. The original watercolors complementing the text are wonderful. Like Walton's book, The Complete Angler is not about fishing but about life. Or rather, it is about fishing--but fishing is life.

About the Author :
James Prosek is a writer and artist. Dubbed "the Audubon of the fishing world" by the New York Times, his books include Trout, The Complete Angler, and Fly-Fishing the 41st. He lives in Easton, Connecticut.

Review :
"James Prosek's third book, "The Complete Angler, will enhance his growing reputation as a writer-painter. His story of his quest for Izaak Walton has a wonderful freshness and immediacy, eloquent and life-affirming.-- Harold Bloom, author of "Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human"James Prosek got a Yale fellowship to go fishing! That itself is a work of genius, and the book he wrote about it is another. Yale paid him to go fishing! Oh, that our universities should be always so useful and so wise." -- P.J. O'Rourke, author of "Eat the Rich"What a graceful young writer James Prosek is! You don't have to be an angler to enjoy his wonderful adventures in England. His book is savvy and generous in spirit."-- Bill Barich, author of "Crazy for Rivers"James Prosek is a national treasure. His return to the streams and villages of Isaak Walton is a lesson in life, nature and the essential goodness of a contemplative existence. I loved it." ---- Tom Brokaw"If you're hooked on the sport, we recommend the latest work by this 23-year-old Yale graduate, who has won a large following with his watercolor-illustrated fishing books. In this effort, Mr. Prosek puts himself on the trail of Izaak Walton, famed author of "The Complete Angler."-- "The Wall Street Journal"brims with the enthusiasm of a young writer finding his way. This fresh approach to something centuries old makes the book entitled to a turn off the shelf."-- J. Taylor Buckley, "USA Today