I must be a complete idiot! There I was in a bookstore looking at a copy of, Casting A Spell by George Black. I read the title, I read the subtitle, I read the inside flap and I bought the book believing that I was going to get a historical perspective of bamboo fly rods and their makers. How could I have been so stupid?! Thank goodness another member of this forum, who is clearly more educated than I, set me straight. This is not a book about the history of bamboo rod making in America! It's an essay about the author!

Now you're probably sitting there reading this and wondering, what in the hell is this guy talking about? It is a book about the history of bamboo rod making in America, isn't it?

Well, that depends on whom you talk to.

As most of you know, this book has been the subject of much discussion on the forum, mostly stemming from the political statements made by the author. From my point of view, it's not whether I agree or disagree with his political perspectives; it's whether or not this book was an appropriate venue to voice those perspectives at all.

What this actually boils down to is actually a much larger question. What is this book about?

At least one member of this forum, (previously mentioned), believes that this book is about… George Black.

The evidence of this is contained in his statements throughout the thread which is still posted on the forum. Comments like:

"Not about the history of bamboo fly rods and not about cane rod builders"

"An odyssey"

"One man's adventures as he uncovers lost rod ephemera"

"A marvelous adventure"

"One man's journey of discovery"

"One man's detective work"

"Black doesn't for a millisecond pretend this is a book about cane rod builders"

(note: this last statement is interesting because, in the same post, he states "In my opinion, this is the finest work about cane and fly fishing to be published in the last five years". Hmmm, now I'm confused.)

Obviously, this person believes that the political statements made by the author are completely appropriate because they enlighten the reader about the subject of the book…i.e. George Black.

I, on the other hand, don't believe that this book is about the journey of George Black at all and I did not buy and read the book to get a better understanding of George Black. I bought and read the book because I was interested in the information that George Black discovered while on this, so-called, "journey", namely, some historical perspective on bamboo fly rods and their makers.

And to lecture me that I am missing the point of the book is nothing more than an opinion and, quite frankly, snobbish. And yet my comments have been referred to on the thread as "vapid", "miscast", "tiresome", "silly", etc. I would be willing to bet that the vast majority of you who read the book did so, like me, to gain more knowledge of bamboo rods and their makers. Right?

So, what's the bottom line? Are the political statements made in the book appropriate?

I guess if you believe the book is about George Black and his odyssey, then, yes they are.

If, however, you're like the vast majority of us, then no they are not, as they add absolutely nothing to the subject matter of the book.

I would also like to say that I enjoyed the book, I recommend it to others and I have stated this emphatically in my posts on the thread, that is, unless they are among the deleted.

Respectfully,

Lonnie