At age eighty, Tony Taylor journeys from Sydney to British Columbia to fish the Cowichan River with his eight-year-old grandson, Ned. This trip is an opportunity for Tony to return to a landscape that has had a profound effect on his life and his way of thinking, and to share this place with his grandson.
As Tony teaches Ned the patient art of fly-fishing, a lifetime of memories, thoughts and stories unspool in peaceful reflections by the water's edge.
Fishing the River of Time. is an elegant meditation on nature, life and family, written with warmth and wisdom. It inspires self-reflection and an appreciation of the natural world and the fundamentals of our human experience. It is destined to become a classic work of simple living after Henry David Thoreau's Walden.
Industry Reviews
`Tony Taylor's book is a reminder of the importance of nature and continuity in all aspects of our lives. It will appeal to readers of Robert Hughes' A Jerk on One End and will make an excellent present for anglers and grandfathers.' 4 stars * Australian Bookseller & Publisher *
`A wise and wonderful book flowing with love for the life of the Earth-human, animal, the great woods, and the deep slow pulse of rock and water. Being about `something more important than fish,' Tony Taylor's book will delight all who angle for the great and wild things, above all beauty and truth.' -- Ronald Wright, author of A Short History of Progress
`A superb mix of natural history, biography-and fishing. Not to be missed.' * Tim Flannery *
`There is much wisdom in these pages...There is little not to like about this book and I foretell it will become something of a classic...' * Canberra Times *
`Taylor is a thoughtful, knowledgeable writer who has led an interesting and adventurous life. He joins a select list of fine writers, comfortable in solitude, who find their inspiration in unspoiled places.' 4 stars. * Adelaide Advertiser *
`Taylor is thought-provoking, challenging and entertaining, and his words linger long after the book has been closed.' * Weekend Press (NZ) *
`This is the modest memoir of a remarkable man...Taylor's elegant, reflective style flows easily between past and present. His vocabulary is a simple blend of the formal and informal, and his paragraphs are phrased with a fine attention to rhythm...This is an inspiring first book by a gentle and generous writer.' * Australian Book Review *
'This thoughtful, witty contribution has an eloquence that reaffirms fishing is truly about thinking and understanding in "a world of serenity and freedom".' * Courier-Mail *
`This is a beautiful book. Ostensibly about an old man connecting with his grandson while fishing for salmon in a Canadian river, the book provides an elegiac reflection on the environmental degradation that has taken place in the forests and rivers of British Columbia since Tony Taylor first fished there. But he also drifts into quiet pools to meditate on how to live a gentle life in a rapacious world and how we can better connect with each other and with the world that sustains us. Reminiscent of Henry David Thoreau, it is set to become a classic.' * Age Book of the Year Awards *
`An odd, haunting debut memoir by an octogenarian author about fishing, wilderness and grandparenthood.' -- Jane Shilling * New Statesman *
