Reviewed
by S.B. Schweitzer
- Pardon My Backcast
- Alan Pratt
- Frank Amato Publications
- ISBN: 1-57188-059-3
- Price: approx. US$15.-
WARNING: I
enjoy good humor. If you don't care for silly wit and prose, you
won't agree with my review. Stop here and read something more
serious on GFF. However, if you are like me and your built-in
internal wader-snug system jiggles over classic comedy, then you'll
want to read on.
Combine the
practicality of Sheridan Anderson, The witty prose of John Gierach
and the comedic illustration of Gene Trump and you have the only
Alan Pratt book ever published. Making it more of a spectacular
feat is that all the writing and illustrations are done solely
by the author.
Alan Pratt
was for many years the resident artist/cartoonist for The Seattle
Times, 41 years to be exact. He was most well known for his outdoor
illustrations and comical muse to flyfishing. After his sudden
death in 1994, his unfinished book "Pardon My Backcast",
was picked up by The Washington Fly Fishing Club and completed
by his daughter, Berlinda and son Mark.
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Alan
Pratt in his custom wading shoes...canvas Converse All-Stars!
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While this
is a small paperback of only 80 pages, it will entertain you for
hours and have you flipping backward to re-read a section or two.
His wit starts from the get-go by just reading the Chapter Contents.
Chapters such as "An Entire Chapter Devoted to Getting Lost",
"General Procedures for Successfully Falling In", "How
to Find West Yellowstone", "Cussing", and "Why
Fly Fishing Books Never Make The Best Seller List" make
you want to read this book!
Alan Pratt
must have been a joy to be around...looking like the jovial 1940's
Coca-Cola Santa Claus and humoring the Seattle sporting contingent
for over 40 years. I could just imagine grabbing the daily Times,
pulling up a wire-frame stool, asking for the Seattle precursor
to Starbucks coffee and whisking straight to the section of the
paper where Alan Pratt illustrations and wit could be found. It
would most certainly make my day...that's for sure.
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This
book had me laughing non-stop on a flight from Denver to Bozeman.
Thank God most of the passengers were flyfisher-types that could
understand my laughter after peering over my shoulder to see just
what-in-the-heck I was reading. This book was so gosh-darned good
that I re-read it on the flight home. As humor goes in the drafty
flyfishing media-scape, this book sets the stage for what books
en-genre' should be in the future. I clearly give this work a
'6' on the GFF rating scale. It's too bad the book is a paperback.
After I lend it to my friends, I'll wage a dozen size 18 Royal
Wulffs that it won't last the carnage of laughter and re-thumbing.
You won't find another book like it. I guarantee it.
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