Book Review: The Venerable Fly Tyers

by Glen R. Blackwood, Great Lakes Fly Fishing Company

This past March, I watched the mail lady slide a kraft brown paper package into my mailbox on a drizzly gray afternoon by happenstance. I wasn’t expecting anything, but childlike, I was anxious to learn what was hidden beneath the wrapping. Slipping off my shoes and sliding into a pair of rubber bottom camp moccasins, I called for the puppy. He bounded towards me and slid to a squirming stop at the door. Finagling a slip lead over our field-bred cocker, who was more anxious to go outside than I (no easy task), once accomplished, we headed toward the mailbox. The route was not direct as Whisk wanted to explore and mark several spots along the way. In my haste, I had not worn a jacket, nor a hat for that matter, and I was damp, chilled, and untangling a dog lead from around our mailbox post as Whisk continued his markings. Opening the box, underneath the day’s post of bills and junk mail was the package addressed to me, postmarked Traverse City, Michigan. The package was small but had heft, and I was excited.

Once inside, Whisk in his pen, I tore open the padded envelope as if it was December 25th to find a hardbound copy of The Venerable Fly Tyers by Dave Jankowski. The front of the dust jacket embraced a Winslow Homer painting of an angler with a long rod in a boat, the background a blend of muted greens, grays, blues, and browns, much like the March day. The back cover contained testimonial quotes from Tom Buhr, Jerry Dennis, Josh Greenberg, and the founder of Project Healing Water Fly Fishing, Captain Ed Nicholson USN (Ret.), an organization that the author is donating 20 percent of this book’s proceeds to. Intrigued and warming up from my walk, I began reading.

The Venerable Fly Tyers is a multi-faceted look at the author and his friends’ lives and travels regarding their hobby of fly fishing. Hobby may not be the correct term for their addiction; only the jovialness of the members’ banter certainly distracts from all but the most serious issues. Beginning with the author’s introduction into the sport and culminating with his cabin purchase on a northern Lower Michigan trout stream, with a few duck and deer hunting tales commingled, this book reaches from Michigan to Montana, with a brief half-day excursion to Florida. To this reviewer, the trials and tribulations of the author and his cadre read as genuine and not overly embellished. Some were bawdy, others simply mischievous, and all were enjoyable.

The author is a retired military and commercial airline pilot. His military call sign was “Archer,” and this and other mentions of nicknames regarding angling companions are common throughout. I found this confusing, as I had to refer back to whom he was referencing versus a given name. This distraction is minor but one worthy of note.

This book is mostly original tales and essays, the exception being three chapters previously published in the bamboo rod newsletter, The Planing Form, and The Anglers of the Au Sable publication, The Riverwatch. Intertwined between the adventures of the author and his cohorts are shorter selections. These concise pieces displayed a more contemplative voice, which I feel added depth and flavor to the book. I found the last paragraph of the chapter titled “Why I Fish” full of subtle imagery and magical prose.

Rod Jenkins collaborated on this book by being a member of the Venerable Fly Tyers and producing the line drawings that open each chapter. As a fan of black and white illustrations, I found these additive to each chapter as they enhanced the overall body of the book.

Most angling adventures are shared through verbal communication. The original experiences are lost over time, continuing only by retelling the saga. They may be retold streamside, around a campfire, or any assortment of anglers gathering, ranging from mountainside bars to Christmas parties. Details are lost, added, and exaggerated. Only in the case of a group that calls themselves the Venerable Fly Tyers, the record is now cast in stone, in perpetuity for the honestly of the members but also for the reader’s pleasure. And a pleasurable read it is.

The Venerable Fly Tyers Author: David Jankowski Illustrator: Rod Jenkins Publisher: Mission Point Press 2022 Hardcover $24.95 ISBN: 978-1-954786-70-7 Softcover $19.95 ISBN: 978-1-954786-69-1

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