Fly Fishing for Dummies

Rating:
Summary: Doesn't contain the right info for a beginner/novice.
Review: As a complete novice to fly fishing, I bought this book hoping that it would give me all the info I needed to get started. Unfortunately, it didn't.

I don't really understand what the author had in mind when writing this book - it's obviously targeted at the beginner/novice, but doesn't have nearly enough info in some areas to get a beginner going, and at the same time has lots of extraneous info that's of absolutely no use to a beginner.

Specifically, the section on casting is woefully insufficient for someone who's never cast a flyrod before (just a few pages) and there's absolutely no information at all on what to do after you're got your fly out there. Do you cast upstream or down? let it drift or retrieve it? how fast? How to fish dries vs. wets vs. streamers vs. nymphs? Nothing. Nada. Zero.

At the same time, the author devotes 60 pages to fly tying. Now I suppose that folks who get involved in flyfishing may want to start tying their own flies at some point, but is it really appropriate to have 60 pages of step-by-step instructions on how to tie 12 different flies in a book targeted towards folks who've never fly fished before?

Overall, I can't recommend this book to anyone - if you're a beginner it won't tell you what you need to know to get started, and if you're more experienced you already know 90% of what's in here.

Rating:
Summary: For the fly fisherman and woman of any age!
Review: Don't let fly fishing be a drag. IDG Books Worldwide will get you hooked on this rewarding sport with its new book, FLY FISHING FOR DUMMIES by outdoors and fishing expert Peter Kaminsky. Kaminsky brings his extensive knowledge of fly fishing (writer for Outdoor Life, Field & Stream and Sports Afield) to help you with all aspects of this challenging, but relaxing, sport. Read about equipment tips and find out all you need to know to purchase the rod and reel setup that's right for you. Also covered are the essentials of the cast, from how to hold your fly rod to how fast and often you should reel in your line. If you want to fly fish, whether you are an occasional caster or a die hard fanatic, let FLY FISHING FOR DUMMIES be your only guide. As they say, "give a person a fish and feed him for a day; teach a person to fish and feed him for a lifetime."

Rating:
Summary: Flyfishing for Dummies Review#1
Review: Since I was technical editor for this book, I may not be a completely unbiased reviewer--but I really do think Peter Kaminsky's book is a great place to start learning the art of flyfishing. The book is comprehensive,very clearly organized and written in an amusing, informal style that helps to de-mystify flyfishing. Peter also went out of his way to give warmwater flyfishing and saltwater flyfishing the space they deserve--so this book isn't just about trout and salmon. The information here will prepare you for tarpon in Belize, redfish in the Gulf, blues in Rhode Island or bass and sunnies in your local farm pond. I've been teaching flyfishing and flycasting for years and I now recommend this book to all of my students.

Rating:
Summary: A great place to start learning the art of flyfishing
Review: Since I was technical editor for this book, I may not be a completely unbiased reviewer--but I really do think Peter Kaminsky's book is a great place to start learning the art of flyfishing. The book is comprehensive,very clearly organized and written in an amusing, informal style that helps to de-mystify flyfishing. Peter also went out of his way to give warmwater flyfishing and saltwater flyfishing the space they deserve--so this book isn't just about trout and salmon. The information here will prepare you for tarpon in Belize, redfish in the Gulf, blues in Rhode Island or bass and sunnies in your local farm pond. I've been teaching flyfishing and flycasting for years and I now recommend this book to all of my students.

Rating:
Summary: A "COOL" book for any Angler! Beginner or not.
Review: This book has an excellent way of teaching. It doesn't take a "Dummie" to learn. It gives good tips for knot tying, fly tying, spotting good areas to fish, and selecting your equipment. Unlike other books I have, Kaminsky makes learning flyfishing fun.

Rating:
Summary: A "COOL" book for any Angler! Beginner or not.
Review: This book has an excellent way of teaching. It doesn't take a "Dummie" to learn. It gives good tips for knot tying, fly tying, spotting good areas to fish, and selecting your equipment. Unlike other books I have, Kaminsky makes learning flyfishing fun.

Rating:
Summary: Flyfishing for Dummies Review#1
Review: When I first started to flyfish back in the day, this was the only guide I had to get me started. Fortunately, it gave me the first step I needed to have the confidence to get out there and keep trying to catch bigger and better fish. A few years later I'm still flyfishing and rarely if ever get skunked. Over the years I've read endless amounts of articles, books, you name it, but this one covered everything I needed to know. To this day still haven't learned many other good tips that hadn't already been covered by Kaminsky. I recommend this book to everyone who wants to flyfish but doesn't quite got the hang of it yet.