East Branch by Mitch Keller

An area where you can discuss books about angling, classic tackle, angling literature, your favorite authors, old and new, and any upcoming books you see of interest and of course all the classics as well.

Moderator: Whitefish Press

Post Reply
User avatar
creakycane
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 3878
Joined: 06/20/06 18:00

East Branch by Mitch Keller

#1

Post by creakycane »

6 years on a Catskill trout stream.

with a blurb from Mike Valla, it surely must be worth a look.

Check amazon!
Last edited by creakycane on 04/09/22 07:37, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
Eperous
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 1146
Joined: 08/10/08 18:00
Location: Catskills

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#2

Post by Eperous »

Thanks...

My copy should arrive tomorrow--- it's been on order since May, and I'm looking forward to it as I flog the East Branch Delaware both below, and upstream of NYC's Pepacton Reservoir...

Ed

DaveNJ
Master Guide
Posts: 546
Joined: 04/02/16 08:25

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#3

Post by DaveNJ »

Would love to hear your thoughts on it. The EB is probably my most fished river annually, aside from my local.

User avatar
creakycane
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 3878
Joined: 06/20/06 18:00

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#4

Post by creakycane »

It is a well-written reflection on living a rural trout bum-life near Margaretville. The author gravitates to less-tread waters, and describes a bit about Catskill fishing and other local history, a bit on flies and bugs here and there. Mostly, a meditation for anyone who has contemplated chucking it all, and living by a river - the rewards and the considerable challenges. Even in the balmy south I found reading the winter cabin scenes chilly! The allure and the reality, soberly rendered. If you are looking for tips on holes to fish on the EB, this ain't it. It's fairly short; I plan to re-read, as it is oddly haunting me....and my fantasies to relocate and drop out in trout country. The jacket says it is creative non-fiction, so let's go with that. I will emphasize that the writing is very good, but I think this will get a range of reactions from readers......FWIW
Last edited by creakycane on 12/11/20 11:54, edited 1 time in total.

DaveNJ
Master Guide
Posts: 546
Joined: 04/02/16 08:25

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#5

Post by DaveNJ »

I have a video on my instagram of a few trees waxing against each other near the Mattis Farm on a brooding Spring day. It would probably accompany the book well from what you described.

What I prefer about the East, especially the upper, is that it's isolating and stoic. The West is a circus, the Main is picturesque and often rewarding... The East is bi polar to put it nicely. It's especially lovely in the Fall.

Thanks for your thoughts!

User avatar
Eperous
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 1146
Joined: 08/10/08 18:00
Location: Catskills

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#6

Post by Eperous »

Though promised ten days ago, my copy of this book never arrived, hung up in U.S. Postal Service... given the current state of affairs and serious problems impacting so many people, I plan to wait until after the New Year of 2021 to request another copy be shipped...

Ed

User avatar
Caneghost
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 1185
Joined: 06/15/13 18:51
Location: Hancock, NY
Contact:

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#7

Post by Caneghost »

A good friend gave me this book for Christmas, a very kind gesture, and I read it yesterday. I was hopeful that it would be excellent but I was not really impressed with the writing. The tale highlighted the angler's beginning ineptness and learning curve, not a bad premise, but it didn't really delve into his revelations as it could have until near the end, and then sparsely. Most of the book, to me, was more about living in poverty so he could fish than the fishing. I used to review fishing books when I wrote for the newspaper and I only wrote reviews for the books I could recommend. I would not have chosen to review this one.
...a wink of gold like the glint of sunlight on polished cane...

brightwatercatskill.art.blog

User avatar
Eperous
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 1146
Joined: 08/10/08 18:00
Location: Catskills

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#8

Post by Eperous »

Caneghost wrote:
01/07/21 06:58
... Most of the book, to me, was more about living in poverty so he could fish ...
My copy of this book came recently, arriving about a month after an email said to expect delivery... and I agree with the assessment above, but I enjoyed the book... mostly I guess because I live about 30 miles from where Mitch Keller took up residence and writes about... thus I was familiar with some of the places he writes about, and live in/through the hard, cold Catskill winters Keller endured... as noted above, fishing is more of a side-note and his motivation for doing the things he did....

Ed

User avatar
bearbutt
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 1390
Joined: 12/31/06 19:00

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#9

Post by bearbutt »

Eperous wrote:
01/07/21 17:04
... as noted above, fishing is more of a side-note and his motivation for doing the things he did....
Well, exactly.

There's some very good writing in the book, I'll say that much. At the start Keller's a bit naive as an angler, and what he's getting into by quitting the rat race and heading to a cabin in the sticks, and does a decent job of learning as he goes. This isn't a book about big fish and big egos. The fish, his gear, and his cabin are all pretty modest affairs. He maybe overdoes the stuff about his penury, and though he's always broke he always seems to have money for a drink. But it's the Catskills, after all, and drinking's probably the one sport there that eclipses fly fishing.

Here's his description of the bar at the Antrim:

"No business talk, no money talk, no politics or football or baseball; just hour after hour of brown trout, brook trout, rainbow trout, rivers, pools, riffles, rods, reels, graphite, bamboo, fiberglass, lines, knots, casting, hauling, hatches, duns, spinners, dry flies, wet flies, streamers, stone flies, nymphs, midges, hackle, dubbing, vises, Montana, Idaho, Michigan, Maine, Pennsylvania, Argentina, strategies, philosophies, points of view, weather, seasons, waders, wading boots, wading staffs, nets, vests, books, articles, stories, anecdotes, gossip, personalities."

bb

bob2935
Master Guide
Posts: 921
Joined: 12/21/04 19:00

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#10

Post by bob2935 »

I really liked East Branch. His journey from the heart of NYC to shack in the middle of nowhere to me was a nice change of pace in the fishing book world. Though I love fishing books(god knows how many I own) many of the themes seem so repetitious and not all that introspective. Not to mention all the bombast that tends to go along with fisherman. East Branch kind of reminded of the Middleton book based on him working as a garbageman in Denver. Really liked it's dark theme and he obviously was a fantastic writer. To me Keller captured the bleak experience of being poor in Margaretville with the fishing being more of secondary aspect to the story. To me his writing placed me there right with him in that minimalist mindset that typically does not last all that long. Also enjoyed that he was not a fishing expert in any sense. So tired of the blowhards.

Loved the book.

Bohemian Bob

User avatar
GerardH
Bamboo Fanatic
Posts: 1067
Joined: 06/20/19 08:45
Location: Wyoming, MN

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#11

Post by GerardH »

After waiting over 6 weeks for my copy to arrive (finally cancelled my order and then reordered and Amazon promptly sent it out priority shipping for free), I dove into it this weekend and what a great read...to say it was captivating is an understatement. The writing was excellent and Keller pulled me in right out of the gate with his sincere self-portrait by painting himself as a flawed character with a simple dream and single driving ambition. In some respects, the story was somewhat familiar -- a nonfiction, adult version of My Side of the Mountain. In the world of trout bums, Keller is the real deal -- not the '60s "turn on, tune in, drop out" counterculture that Gierach was part of -- he was escaping a life he could no longer live and completely immersed himself into the lifestyle of a 24/7 trout angler and starving writer. This is great cabin fever reading and I highly recommend it.

Thank you for this thread and turning me onto this book.

canogacreek
Guide
Posts: 122
Joined: 03/12/16 18:09
Location: Seneca Falls NY (Finger Lakes)

Re: East Branch by Mitch Keller

#12

Post by canogacreek »

Thanks to all of you for bringing this book to my attention. Wow, what a great read, especially for someone who has spent some time in the Catskills. I would have loved to been in Roscoe when the Antrim Lodge was going strong. A great read during a long winter.
"What was big was not the trout, but the chance. What was full was not my creel but my memory".
Aldo Leopold

Post Reply

Return to “Book Talk”