Around the Next Bend

Book excerpt: In "Around the Next Bend" Bob Shanks leads us, with many touches of wry dry Tennessee humor, through his half-century of trout fishing, from the cool rush and roar of the Great Smokies' streams to Montana's big-skied trout waters. The engaging book will appeal not only to dedicated anglers, but also to non-fishing lovers of the outdoors for whom a fly rod is just a skinny hiking stick.-Mart Baldwin, PhD, author of "Drifting the River: Growing Up Wild in the South," numerous travel essays, and a guide to off-the-path places in the CarolinasBob Shanks is a soft-spoken Southern gentleman. His decades-long love of both fishing and his fishing friends illuminates the pages of his book. These are the kinds of memories good friends swap over a fine Tennessee sipping whiskey at the end of a long day of fishing. Bob's stories are humorous, heartwarming, and sometimes heart-breaking as with losing the battle to save the Little Tennessee River from destruction at the hands of the TVA vandals. Anyone who loves fishing and fishing stories told with warmth and charm will enjoy this book. -Richard Lessner, PhD, Executive Director Madison River Foundation, Ennis, MontanaI've enjoyed fly fishing with Bob Shanks and cherished every encounter. I shared some of his favorite runs on Montana's Ruby River where he insisted that I take the first cast with a big hopper under a grassy overhang. He would suggest a spot to cast, and the spot would produce. I know you will treasure Bob's stories, and you'll get to know him as I do: as a true sportsman, a fly angler of grace, knowledge and merit, and a genuine, gracious southern gentleman. The words, the language, the generosity of spirit in these pages: pure Robert Shanks. -Juni Fisher, Songwriter Red Geetar Records recording artist