Moon Pulled Up an Acre of Bass, The: A Flyrodder's Odyssey

Fishing, cooking, and having a good time with your friends at your favorite vacation house, what could get better than that? That's the "good life" described by Peter Kaminsky in his nonfiction novel The Moon Pulled Up An Acre Of Bass.
Kaminsky shared his humorous fishing stories in October 2000 throughout the whole book. He picked the month of October because of the great fishing experiences he had with bass fishing and many other fish. One of his memorable moments was when he termed the expression "The moon pulled up an acre of bass." He used this term when he stood in amazement and shock while gazing at the water with what he called an "Acre" of bass while the moon glared at his face. Beside being a great fisherman and having a love of fishing, Kaminsky loved other things.
One of the things he loved to do was he loved to cook. He would love to catch fish, have friends over and then cook the fish in his kitchen that he loved. He said the kitchen had "Acres of counter space." Also what he liked to do was to spend time with his friends onshore and offshore. When he was with his friends he became a great fisherman. This happened because all his good fisherman friends gave him all various kinds of advice, which added up to him being a great fisherman. For example, one of his friends taught him how to cast under the wind on a windy day. This was great for him because then he could basically fish whenever he wanted since gusty weather wouldn't make it difficult for him.
Overall I really liked this book because I could connect to it so much. I could do this because I also have a love of fishing and the book takes place on Long Island. I have much background information of Long Island because I live there. As you can see, this book was mainly about Peter Kaminsky and his love of fishing with his friends. Since he and his friends were hilarious, this book turned out to be filled with humor. I really liked this book and I would recommend this book to anyone who loves fishing, comedy, and nonfiction novels.


The Guides don't control Mother Nature   October 18, 2003
 3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I enjoyed the book and the concept, but the fawning treatment of certain guides (that probably gave Kaminisky free rides) read too much like promotional materials.


Superb writing!   September 22, 2002
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

The author gives us a great look into not only the stiper fishng world, but the culture and heritage of the east coast. A pleasure to read, cover to cover. Even for those of us that may never see stripers in the salt, this is defintely a worthwhile read.


Superb read   August 21, 2002
 2 out of 4 found this review helpful

Reading his first hand account of 30 straight days tracking the Montauk striper, I found ambitious reason to visit the East End for the first time myself. Not only did I meet one of the colorful characters Peter describes, but I romanticized what it'll be like out there in another month as the fall blitz approaches, with Peter's account coloring every image. A superb read for anyone who finds comfort in the flex of a flyrod, and a fantastic primer to anyone who endeavors to interrupt, albeit mildly and temporarily, one of nature's greatest migration of life: the fall blitz off Montauk.


captivating   July 9, 2002
 0 out of 2 found this review helpful

what a marvelous book. more than any book i have read on fishing or outdoors, this one is well written. it captures the feelings of the changing of seasons and the hope and dread of how things will be that day. are there fish still in area or have they moved out. what will today bring. one learns a lot about fishing and life and the passion one can have for something. at same time it is not obvious or heavy-handed with some zen philosophy or fishing as allegory. ultimately it is about the love of fishing with a fly rod and sharing that with a few other friends who have the same feelings. while reading this gem of a book, one learns a lot about fishing. i live on the east end of long island but i didnt really know the areas he talked about and the history of some of them. the author really makes the region and the people come alive. it is like you are having breakfast in the local "greasy spoon" with the guys who fish and talk about it. you can see the guys with the bedraggled looks while they try to glean some info on where action is without giving away any of their own secrets. you can see the birds working the water and feel the hard tug. you can also feel the days where nothing working/nothing happening but it isnt dissappointing. the possibilty is almost enough ....but not quite. i have only fished for stripers once with a fly rod but after i read this book i made arrangements to go out to montauk area to try it. if it is 1/4 quarter as good as the author makes it out to be, it will be well worth it.