In Lords of the Fly, Burke examines the growing popularity of the tarpon, and chronicles the destruction brought on by greed, environmental degradation and the shenanigans of a notorious Miami gangster--and how all of it has shaped our contemporary fishery.
What Susan Orlean accomplished for the strange, hermetic world of orchid hunting in her 1998 classic The Orchid Thief, Monte Burke does for another strange, hermetic world in his wonderful Lords of the Fly: Madness, Obsession, and the Hunt for the World-Record Tarpon.
A fascinating look at the narrow but wild world of tarpon fishing ... Burke constructs the rise and fall of this unique fishing tale with impressive narrative control and an obvious reverence for its vivid characters. Ably captures the swagger, attitudes, and angling derring-do of a golden age of fishing history.
Burke’s writing is vivid and lyrical ... Told with an angler’s eye for detail, even the glossaries of fishing terminology and fly-fishing techniques will engage readers ... Fly-fishing fans will be hooked.
