Bill Heavey

The first few pieces here were making me seriously think about putting the book down - sad sack/eternal loser, hunter/fisher form. Yawn. Then he started writing about _why_ he kept going out into the woods, even when he wasn't good at it - and suddenly there was a reason to keep reading. The stories are in more-or-less chronological order - which I didn't realize while reading, so the piece about his baby daughter dying followed by piece after piece about teaching his daughter to hunt were frightening me. Very late in the book there's a mention of the daughter who died, by name - which is _not_ the name of the child we've been reading about, whew. I am not a hunter, definitely not a fisher, nor much of an outdoorswoman; my eyes glazed over on 90% of the technicalities of gear (oddly enough, except for brand names of shotguns - I read too many murder mysteries). And I still greatly enjoyed the book. It would probably be better read in small bits - one essay/piece at a time, rather than straight through as I read it - but even this way it was worth reading. I'll be looking for more by him.… (mehr)

Lots of fun

I seldom see Field & Stream these days, but in my youth it was a family favorite and universally available in waiting rooms in our part of the country. I always enjoyed the stories and learned from them. But that was then and this is now and my life outdoors is not involved with hunting (actually I don't care to hunt) or fishing (which I love, but seldom do anymore), so it was a treat to get this book to review.

If you can look at a hunting and fishing book without the top blowing off your skull, then you will probably enjoy this one a lot and even indulge in some out-loud laughs. Mr. Heavey has an enviable life getting paid to slog through mud and snow and be eaten alive by mosquitoes, ticks, and leeches. (Actually there aren't any leeches here, probably because Mr. Heavey has learned to keep them mostly out of his stories.) He writes about his life and adventures in a clean, straight-forward style that is so rare these days.

I received a review copy of "Should the Tent Be Burning Like That?: A Professional Amateur's Guide to the Outdoors" by Bill Heavey (Grove Atlantic) through NetGalley.com.… (mehr)