Their Fathers' Work: Casting Nets with the World's Fishermen by William B. McCloskey, Tom McCarthy (Editor), Jonathan Eaton (Editor), Pamela Benner (Editor), Paul C. Uhl (Designed by)

Product Details

Synopsis

Fishing is a hard and fiercely independent life, one of the world's last hunting occupations, and one of the most hazardous. Change has been a constant, with traditional fisheries modernized, stocks threatened by overfishing and pollution, and political pressures increasing, yet at heart fishing remains the same. There is still the hunt, the wait, the bitter disappointment of a busted trip, and the sleepless work fueled by elation when the nets come back full. Sons—and sometimes now, daughters—still follow fathers to sea. And the sea is still dangerous; among the shipmates we meet are some who have since been lost, and others who have barely survived. Their Fathers' Work takes us out there, on a fascinating, compelling journey with an author who has been chronicling fishermen's lives for twenty-five years.

"McCloskey's honesty and willingness to follow his story doggedly to the ends of the earth make this a book for one's permanent collection." —­­Washingtonian

"McCloskey's work is imbued with wild, natural moods, an evocative background against which his sources drift through fear, frustration and, in some cases, fortune." —­­C.J. Chivers, Providence Journal

"McCloskey writes with first-hand knowledge and passion about the sea and the men and women who fish it, survive it, and sometimes drown in it. He describes these proud people with warmth and respect, honoring their work passed down from their fathers and their fathers' fathers." —­­Audubon Naturalist News

"With all his experience across space and time, McCloskey occupies a unique position among observers of the world fishing industry. He's been there. He understands the good and the bad, the foolish and the wise. He has perspective." —­­Alaska Fisherman's Journal

"There can't be another like William McCloskey in the worlds of fishing and writing. Imagine someone whose appetite for his subject is so strong that he spends half his lifetime hiring out as a working-stiff fisherman on commercial boats all over the world, then draws his conclusions in vivid, scalding, haunting terms. His realistic ideas might offend both knee-jerk conservationists and plundering meat-fishermen­—­the surest sign that he has done his job well. When you finish this book, you will feel like wiping the salt spray from your face. A superb piece of work by a master fisherman and writer, and the perfect companion piece to books like The Perfect Storm." —­­Jack Olsen, author of The Climb Up to Hell, and Hastened to the Grave

"A splendid, subtle portrait of the fisherman's life." —Kirkus Reviews

Kirkus Reviews

A splendid, subtle portrait of the fisherman's lifeþfrom Hokkaido to Norway, Chile to the Java Seaþby McCloskey (Highliners, 1978, etc.). After a stint in the Coast Guard, McCloskey shipped out on his first fishing vessel 20 years ago, and he has evidently been keeping notes on every voyage since, detailing the days and nights of those who pursue one of the most dangerous jobs on Earthþfishing. He has fished for king crab in the Bering Sea in winter, when the crabs are at their plumpest and the sea its nastiest; he has chased cod on the 1,000-year-old foggy and doomed Grand Banks fishery; he experienced the industrial-scale sardine fishery of Chile and the artisan fishing of Indonesia from small wooden boats (no radar here; fish are tracked at night by their phosphorescent wakes). He has spent a good amount of time with the Japanese fleet and shares with them a lust for the delicacies of the deep. And he has served on patrol boats enforcing compliance with the welter of maritime laws. Thus, as McCloskey explains the taking of shrimp and cod and squid, he is also able to speak knowledgeably about ship machinery, fishing ports, trawling and purse seining, the grand Law of the sea and the lesser laws governing salmon catches and whale harvesting, and the continuing havoc wreaked by the Exxon Valdez (ten years later, the herring have not returned, nor have the harlequin duck and pigeon guillemot). And best of all, McCloskey feels and conveys the atavism inherent in hunting the ocean, which he balances with deflating counterpoints. Says one old hand, "It's a livin', b'y, but it ain't much of a life now, is it?" Tales of fishermen at peril in high seas are hugely gripping.What makes McCloskey's book so memorable is that it invests in the everyday lives of fishermen the same compulsive readableness. (color photos, not seen)

Biography

William McCloskey is a retired member of the John Hopkins University applied physics laboratory. McCloskey's particular passion is commercial fishing. He began hiring out on sabbaticals and vacations 25 years ago. He has fished all over the world with First and Third world crews of many nationalities. "What such writers as Owen Wister and J. Frank Dobie were to the cowboy, Bill McCloskey may be to the Alaska fisherman."--Anchorage Times. "McCloskey invokes vividly the strenuous but exhilarating life of men against the implecable ocean."--Library Journal. "With all his experiences across space and time, McCloskey occupies a unique position among observers of the world fishing industry. He's been there. He has perspective."--Alaska Fisherman's Journal.