Casting Call - signed by author Chris Dorsey

Signed By Chris Dorsey!
Hardcover with Dust jacket.
Includes Companion DVD (2 hours)
300 Pages

Join in the greatest fly fishing on earth!

From one of the world’s most widely traveled fly fishermen and the largest producer of outdoor television in history comes the first of its kind celebration of the planet’s greatest fly angling. Chris Dorsey’s new book and film set, Casting Call, takes readers and viewers to epic fly waters from the American west to Alaska, across Canada, to the fabled flats of the Bahamas and Belize to the jungles, marshes and highlands of South America and many points in between. 

Internationally acclaimed photographers Dusan Smetana, R. Valentine Atkinson Marcos Furer, John MacGillivray, Francois Botha and others spent thousands of hours in remote locations to capture a stunning collection of images that help make the 300-page opus an instant classic. Each chapter also features a 10-minute corresponding film shot on location during the creation of Casting Call.

Dorsey sounds the pure thrill of the siren’s song, luring modern man back to the wild to pit his wit and skill against the strength and challenge of fish. Dorsey is well-qualified to write such a book. As a member of the Outdoor Legends Hall of Fame and recipient of several awards, he has produced over 2,000 television episodes on the pleasures of sportfishing. He’s also a talented writer with articles published in National Geographic, The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Forbes , and more. He has authored 11 books and been editor-in-chief of two different national sporting magazines.

Casting Call is a celebration of both fly fishing and the great outdoors. But Dorsey has done more than simply share the joy of fishing. He has also worked to preserve the world’s great fishing waters. This concern for conservation is woven throughout but perhaps expressed most clearly in a chapter about the wonders of fishing Montana’s Big Hole, and how it’s slowly changed over time. The unrelenting use of the river's waters has had a devastating impact on the fish that make the Big Hole their home. This, in turn, has negatively impacted the many people whose livelihoods depend on the fishermen who come to ply these waters. 

And that isn’t the only area that is being negatively impacted. The Caribbean, too, is experiencing its own losses. After describing the wonders of fishing the Caribbean flats for bonefish, Dorsey asks, “Who knows, maybe you’ll one day wade these same flats, and wouldn’t it be nice if the fish were still here?” The book closes with Dorsey's pleasure in seeing his sons experience the joys of fishing for themselves.

Despite Dorsey’s concerns for needed conservation, Casting Call isn’t a depressing book. Dorsey’s stories are filled with wry humor, and his narrative is rich with elegant similes, such as his description of Tom Brokaw’s fishing line: “There’s no premature celebration because he knows the possible sources of error are endless and, in any instant, his line could dangle like a participle." This rich wordplay is the element I liked best about the book. When Dorsey manages to plunk a mantis shrimp right in front of a bonefish’s nose, he humorously recalls the fish’s response: “Apparently feeling blessed for the gift, the six-pound bone picks it up and heads to Bimini in a flash doing to my reel what Hendrix did to a guitar."

Casting Call is exceptionally well-written and it deserves every one of four out of four stars. If I could change just one thing, it would be to make the book even longer...I wanted to keep reading! --Online Book Club