11 The fishing Paper - may 2014
www.thefishingpaper.co.nz
Crimptoon
EG
! T O SFOP R TOP FISH This Month: Christchurch 5 Deep sea fishing for groper and cruising kingfish.
1 red cod in the evenings and at night. heaps of mullet.
Stick Your Oar In Have Your Say…
Mail your letters to Stick Your Oar In The Fishing Paper, PO Box 9001, Annesbrook, 7044, NELSON email: editor thefishingpaper.co.nz
Sentiments Something to Aim For Crimpy Finished reading yesterday.
your
book
Thought I’d let you know that I enjoyed it immensely. I never tire of your wit, hard case anecdotes and perspectives. Had tears rolling down my face when you described exploring your parents’ bedroom with the torch. Bloody funny. Your fresh phrases, idioms, epithets, not to mention humour, are a big part of your style and quite an attraction for me. Interestingly, and perhaps like a great number of us older hunters, I share many of your sentiments and philosophies on hunting: the act of killing animals, the harsh role nature plays in animal welfare, and the timeless circle of life. My dad was a slaughterman from the age of 15 until he retired. He could be a hard man
at times though drummed and demonstrated the importance of minimising stress on animals. We were young observers. I think hunters the world over mull over these topics. Keep up the good work and I look forward to more of your stories. Regards, Phil Walsh
No Barbs No Harm Dear Ed, Firstly I enjoy the paper and look forward to the next publication. Recently I have been using hooks with the barbs bent flat and while fishing from our secret spot (no fishfinder just a X on the side of the boat) we came upon a nursery of baby cod. With a wet rag and no barb I was able to return all the fish to the sea without harm. This type of fishing needs a lot more concentration as the pressure must be kept on the line when the fish have been hooked. Barbless hooks are great when
Have Your
Say… The Fishing Paper & New Zealand Hunting News encourages readers contributions and points of view. We ask that all contributions come supplied with contact details. All letters must be emailed, type written or printed legibly, signed and not more than 300 words. The Fishing Paper states that opinions put forward are not necessarily those of the publisher. We reserve the right to publish in part or refuse to publish on legal grounds if the content of the letters are in any way legally contentious.
2 Lake ellesmere, trout spot. Worms, freshwater shrimp or live cockabullies work well.
3 Test your surfcasting skills at Birdlings Flat. Use prawns and be patient for the elephant fish.
4 Great fishing spot all year round for cod and kahawai.
tHe ReLIaBLe NaMe IN Hot WateR
you hook species you don’t want but can throw back uninjured. A word of advice - hang on to rod at all times or the fish will throw the hook. Keep up the good work Regards Ron Mason
BOOK REVIEW Fur, Fins and Phantom Reds By Phil Walsh The Halcyon Press Rrp $30 Reviewed by Daryl Crimp
Phil Walsh’s debut book immediately grabbed my attention because I lived for a spell in his childhood backyard back in the early eighties – Westport – and I mark it as leaving an indelible score on the blueprint of my emerging character. The ‘Coast’ is a unique subset of New Zealand on so many levels, so I was eager to see if the experience of an unfettered upbringing in those untamed environs impacted on his writing, and I wasn’t disappointed.
Fur, Fins and Phantom Reds is essentially a ‘backyard’ book in the sense that Phil is writing about his experiences as they relate to a very tiny piece of real estate; a small rural ‘community’ annexed to the provincial town of Westport. It is little more than an estuary spanned with a couple bridges and a nest of telephone and power lines, a pub and scrub and pakihi and the odd ‘stolid’ farmhouse… and
possums and deer and whitebait and hot buttered scones and mud and bent bikes and grazed knees. That he is able to construct the framework of a good book with such constraints is the first mark of an able author.
The book is dubbed a coming of age story and follows the fledgling career path of young Walsh as, at the hands of older brother, Desi, he serves his apprenticeship as archetypal Kiwi outdoorsman. Phil’s writing is heavily laced with metaphors and hyperbole – although sometimes overplayed - as he settles into the role of raconteur and spins lively yarns about simple childhood rural adventures, such as eeling with mum’s pantyhose, tussles with ‘giant killer coons’ and a decrepit old three-oh-three that has magical powers. He displays wonderful word power and some of his descriptions are a pure delight – ‘the shot rang out, concussing the tranquillity of the morning.’
The key characters are described well and Desi, in particular, comes alive courtesy of some mildly mocking and sarcastic treatment. Underscoring this is Phil’s self-deprecating style as
everything you need to know about Hot Water in your Home he finds himself the butt of jokes, calamity and failed enterprise upon disastrous outcome.
The storyline has a Huckleberry Finn feel to it and the use of sketches as chapter headings, whether by design I’m not sure, is ‘Crumpesque’, lending a ‘Hang on a Minute Mate’ aura to it. The fact that these illustrations were drawn by Phil’s 17-year-old daughter is touching and shows that talent runs in the family. An author’s craft starts with the first book and Phil has the makings of a good storytelling style that can only be refined with miles at the keyboard and perhaps some tighter editing. Fur, Fins and Phantom Reds is nicely constructed, entertaining and should have a much wider appeal than just the hunting and fishing genre.
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