The Habit of Rivers: Reflections on Trout Streams and Fly Fishing

"There are elements of memoir in this book, yes, and a great deal of superlative nature writing. But if I had to label The Habit of Rivers , I think I’d call it an ‘interrogation’. Leeson is both a startlingly good writer and a brilliant thinker. What interests him are the kinds of questions that can’t be easily answered. Like, why the hell do we do this ridiculous activity? Or, as he puts it, ‘What is the strange gravity of a trout stream?’ He takes fishing seriously, a subject worth thinking deeply about. If all this makes the book sound a bit highfalutin and dull, then I need to row back a little. This is not a laugh-a-minute collection of fishy tales, but it’s not a dry philosophical tome either. It’s a collection of essays that are fuelled by curiosity, both about fishing itself and about the natural world. Most are centred around a particular occasion, a particular day in, on, or beside the water. First and foremost, Leeson is a fabulous writer of landscape, of the intimate, intricate experience of being in a place. This book, I think, is the equal of any nature writing in print. It really ought to be better known."