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The Snowfly
The Snowfly is a page-turner that takes you on a hunt through Vietnam, Soviet Russia, and a vast Canadian wasteland. The holy grail that burns at its core is the snowfly, a legendary insect--enormous, white, and exceedingly rare--that attracts trout of such size that they couldn''t possibly exist in the world as we know it. But in The Snowfly , such things can and do exist.
Bowie Rhodes is a UPI reporter and a fly fisherman of extraordinary talent. He learns about the myth of the snowfly early in his childhood. Legend has it that the giant snowfly hatches every seven to ten years, never on the same river twice. It brings to rise only trout that strain the imagination--trout that are so huge they would have to have lived forty years or more; trout so wily that they never allow themselves to be caught, or even seen; trout so hungry for this fly that they will risk exposure to rise for the hatch. The snowfly is the sacred quest of only the most obsessed trout hunters, and has been seen by no living man or woman, existing only in myth and in a lost manuscript. Rhodes''s reporting brings him to the extremes of humanity--in the jungles of Vietnam, in the labyrinth of Brezhnev''s Soviet Union, in a poisoned Canadian wasteland of uranium mines. His hunt for the manuscript takes him deep into his own heart of darkness.
The Snowfly is a richly imaginative and sensual novel. The world Heywood creates is broader, and more wild, with more mystery lurking beneath the surface waters than our own. Or is it? The Snowfly makes it all seem gloriously possible.
Bowie Rhodes is a UPI reporter and a fly fisherman of extraordinary talent. He learns about the myth of the snowfly early in his childhood. Legend has it that the giant snowfly hatches every seven to ten years, never on the same river twice. It brings to rise only trout that strain the imagination--trout that are so huge they would have to have lived forty years or more; trout so wily that they never allow themselves to be caught, or even seen; trout so hungry for this fly that they will risk exposure to rise for the hatch. The snowfly is the sacred quest of only the most obsessed trout hunters, and has been seen by no living man or woman, existing only in myth and in a lost manuscript. Rhodes''s reporting brings him to the extremes of humanity--in the jungles of Vietnam, in the labyrinth of Brezhnev''s Soviet Union, in a poisoned Canadian wasteland of uranium mines. His hunt for the manuscript takes him deep into his own heart of darkness.
The Snowfly is a richly imaginative and sensual novel. The world Heywood creates is broader, and more wild, with more mystery lurking beneath the surface waters than our own. Or is it? The Snowfly makes it all seem gloriously possible.
455 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
30 people are currently reading
464 people want to read
About the author
Joseph Heywood
50 books189 followersSee also Joe T. Heywood
Joseph Heywood is the son of a career USAF officer. His dad was from Rhinecliff, New York on the Hudson River in Dutchess County, and his mother is from Mize, Mississippi in Sullivan County. His mother’s maiden name was Hegwood and she had only to change one letter to convert to her married name.
He is a 1961 graduate of Rudyard High School in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (Chippewa County). Played football, basketball, baseball, and ran track.
1965 graduate of Michigan State University (BA-Journalism). Joseph played on the Michigan State Lacrosse Club for three years, crease attack, tri-captain in 1965. He was in the last class of mandatory ROTC for land grant universities and predictably chose the Air Force.
In 1965, he married Sandra V. Heywood (1943-2002) of East Lansing. Five children, one dog. Widower.
1965-1970, USAF Instructor Navigator, KC-135 tanker, honorably discharged as captain. Vietnam veteran. Air Medal with 6 Oak Leaf Clusters.
Graduate studies, Western Michigan University, 1974-75, completed course work for MA in English Literature; no degree.
Joseph worked for The Upjohn Company [now Pfizer], 1970-2000, retiring as vice president for worldwide public relations.
He walks every day in all weather conditions, and have hunted and fished Michigan since 1958, mostly alone.
Joseph Heywood's Woods Cop mysteries are based on the lives of Upper Peninsula conservation officers, and for going on seven years has spent about one month a year on patrol with officers, in all kinds of weather, all times of day and under sundry conditions. He worked in all 15 Upper Peninsula Counties as well as in another 15-16 counties BTB (Below the Bridge).
In preparation for work with COs, he often hikes alone at night (flashlight for emergencies) using only ambient light. He has spent nights alone in jungles and on mountains. Has canoe-camped in Michigan, Missouri and Arkansas, over the years he has had one close encounter with a wolf (six feet away in tag alders on the Iron River), and with a cow elk and her calf (in Idaho). Too many close meetings with black bears to count, no injuries.
He loves to take photographs while walking, hiking and fishing, and use some of the pix for his paintings.
Joseph always carry a ruck with emergency equipment, compass, etc. even for short sorties on foot in the U.P. It’s too easy to get under cedars and old growth in an overcast and get hopelessly turned around. He does not use a GPS. "When it comes to lost in the woods there seem to be two categories of people: Them that have been and them that will be. Iron ore deposits can make compass navigation interesting…."
The Upper Peninsula is not just a setting and base for Joseph Heywood but serves as a character in many of his novels. "When I write, I try to take readers to places and events in the U.P. they might not have occasion to visit or experience on their own. For me, the U.P. is a natural jewel and I am always surprised by how little people from BTB know about it."
"The day we arrived in the U.P. to report to Kinross Air Force Base (later renamed Kincheloe, and since decommissioned) my mother cried as we drove up the several-mile two-lane to the front gate; looking at all the woods passing by, I had a feeling I was coming home."
Joseph Heywood is the son of a career USAF officer. His dad was from Rhinecliff, New York on the Hudson River in Dutchess County, and his mother is from Mize, Mississippi in Sullivan County. His mother’s maiden name was Hegwood and she had only to change one letter to convert to her married name.
He is a 1961 graduate of Rudyard High School in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (Chippewa County). Played football, basketball, baseball, and ran track.
1965 graduate of Michigan State University (BA-Journalism). Joseph played on the Michigan State Lacrosse Club for three years, crease attack, tri-captain in 1965. He was in the last class of mandatory ROTC for land grant universities and predictably chose the Air Force.
In 1965, he married Sandra V. Heywood (1943-2002) of East Lansing. Five children, one dog. Widower.
1965-1970, USAF Instructor Navigator, KC-135 tanker, honorably discharged as captain. Vietnam veteran. Air Medal with 6 Oak Leaf Clusters.
Graduate studies, Western Michigan University, 1974-75, completed course work for MA in English Literature; no degree.
Joseph worked for The Upjohn Company [now Pfizer], 1970-2000, retiring as vice president for worldwide public relations.
He walks every day in all weather conditions, and have hunted and fished Michigan since 1958, mostly alone.
Joseph Heywood's Woods Cop mysteries are based on the lives of Upper Peninsula conservation officers, and for going on seven years has spent about one month a year on patrol with officers, in all kinds of weather, all times of day and under sundry conditions. He worked in all 15 Upper Peninsula Counties as well as in another 15-16 counties BTB (Below the Bridge).
In preparation for work with COs, he often hikes alone at night (flashlight for emergencies) using only ambient light. He has spent nights alone in jungles and on mountains. Has canoe-camped in Michigan, Missouri and Arkansas, over the years he has had one close encounter with a wolf (six feet away in tag alders on the Iron River), and with a cow elk and her calf (in Idaho). Too many close meetings with black bears to count, no injuries.
He loves to take photographs while walking, hiking and fishing, and use some of the pix for his paintings.
Joseph always carry a ruck with emergency equipment, compass, etc. even for short sorties on foot in the U.P. It’s too easy to get under cedars and old growth in an overcast and get hopelessly turned around. He does not use a GPS. "When it comes to lost in the woods there seem to be two categories of people: Them that have been and them that will be. Iron ore deposits can make compass navigation interesting…."
The Upper Peninsula is not just a setting and base for Joseph Heywood but serves as a character in many of his novels. "When I write, I try to take readers to places and events in the U.P. they might not have occasion to visit or experience on their own. For me, the U.P. is a natural jewel and I am always surprised by how little people from BTB know about it."
"The day we arrived in the U.P. to report to Kinross Air Force Base (later renamed Kincheloe, and since decommissioned) my mother cried as we drove up the several-mile two-lane to the front gate; looking at all the woods passing by, I had a feeling I was coming home."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
November 1, 2023
The story is a vast international conspiracy that links spies, sexpots, bumbling journalists, a famous macho writer, and trout fishers hunting for a mythic insect. Our main character, Bowie Rhodes was Born in 1945 in a shack deep in the Michigan forests of the Upper Peninsula. He grows up tall, exceptionally good-looking, reasonably adept at writing, and very, very curious about the relationship between his father, a chain-smoking trout-fisherman, and his powerfully over dominant mother. He’s haunted by memories of a dead man his father pulled out of the a nearby stream, as well as by the beguiling attractions of Raina Chickerman, (is that name for real you ask?) ...Yes, indeed it is! She's the brilliant, sexually precocious, trout-fishing daughter of the closest upstream neighbor. As Bowie grows up, gets a scholarship to Michigan State, and studies journalism, he becomes positively obsessed with Raina, who appears at odd moments, teases him sexually or intellectually, sometimes both at the same time, then blows away before he can touch her...and with her a lost manuscript about the snowfly, a legendary insect that hatches once every 20 to 40 years and is simply irresistible to big dumb trout. Bowie’s journalistic pursuits take him to Viet Nam, England, and Russia, where he finally tracks down the missing manuscript, which is written in some kind of unbreakable code by a mysterious German scientist. Naturally, other good and bad guys want this manuscript also. The trail leads to a bunch of renegade mountain men, led by Raina and that famous macho writer, all of whom are waiting for the snowfly to help them land the biggest fish of all. This madcap fish story updates the Grail quest with unsettling violence, preposterous schemers, and an abundance of overly sexy women who dispense pithy statements on the meaning of life and can’t wait to jump into the nearest trout stream. This is the first book that I've read by this author, but he is visiting my library in a few weeks, and I thought it would be nice as well as polite, to at least have some idea of what he writes...but I'm still not really sure that I know the answer to that yet. I'm still in the dark as to if this was intended to a comedy or if it's just the result of the author having too much trout stream water on the brain. I can't wait to meet this guy! It was to say the least entertaining, so I'll hold at the 3.5 rating until I better understand if the author is absolutely brilliant, or a great deal in need of psychological help:)
January 19, 2012
This might be one of the top twenty books I've ever read. As in other sports books, this book implies that it's about fly fishing ... but it's really reaches beyond that. If a person had to categorize it, he could probably stick it in the "Quest" pigeon hole, or maybe "Be careful what you ask for." Heywood has the ability to knock you on your ass laughing at some incredibly funny line or circumstance and then follow it up with some utterl profound insight. Yeah, I liked this book.
August 27, 2007
Ok, I am currently reading it, but its richness, and complex story telling (almost magical realism), as well as insights into human foibles and fly-fishing, has it in my top five.
Who wouldn't want to follow a reporter around the world as he fly fishes in places like Vietnam and England.
Who wouldn't want to follow a reporter around the world as he fly fishes in places like Vietnam and England.
January 6, 2021
Pretty good story with plenty of high adventure fishing from the Viet Nam, Britain, Russia, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Gave it 4 stars on the strength of his writing about fly fishing...
September 23, 2014
Amazing, local, and such a great book. had to read it for a class, but I enjoyed it so much. very mysterious, awesome characters, romantic, all that.
College reading.
College reading.
May 19, 2019
A must read even if you do not fish!!!!!!
July 10, 2017
Spoiler alert: I gave this 5 stars (It was amazing.) because it was amazing but I'm not sure it was amazingly good or amazingly convoluted, confusing, over the top crazy and confusing. Yes, it is about fly fishing but the people part is wild. There were parts that I just didn't understand. Quotes that I didn't understand, try as I did. There were so many characters I was continually backtracking to remind me where they fit in. I'd like to talk to someone about this. Irene?
August 24, 2014
Really good book- I didn't want to read it because I was really stuck on Woods Cop series and often it seems weird to try an author's alternate protagonists, but I have to say this was well worth the read. I would consider this a good vacation book, wish I had been on vacation when I read it. Bowie Rhodes is a very good lead character and the author does a nice job making trout fishing the central theme, but you don't have to be a fly fisherman to enjoy it! Thanks Sheri for the recommendation!
Read
June 21, 2007Going into detail would ruin the book. I will say that is was hands down one of the best novels I have read in ages. It kwpt me spellbound through its many pages. There is LITERALLY somethiong for everyone in this book. If you like espionage, love stories, unsolveable mysteries, flyfishing, it is all in there. Read!
July 13, 2011
I really liked the beginning and couldn't put it down..then about pg 117 I was like wait..another girl another bedroom and then another girl..I'm sorry..nothing was happening except the same old same old..Closed it up and that was that..on to better reads..life is too short. I liked the first Woods Cop book so I thought I would like this too..it got such rave reviews..*sigh*
August 22, 2021
Remarkable read.
July 4, 2020
I'm surprised a plethora of dudes haven't sworn up and down that I need to read this book, that it changed their life, that meaning was dripping from every metaphor and plot point, that the no-nonsense protagonist captured their own wandering souls perfectly...the kind of raving usually reserved for "Infinite Jest" and "Desert Solitaire". This book is typical fodder for that kind of guy.
As it was, I found it overwrought and difficult to follow with a convoluted plot, about 75% more named characters than were necessary, and vaguely misogynistic in that bro kind of way.
I would only recommend it to people from Michigan. They'd probably enjoy all the geographical references.
As it was, I found it overwrought and difficult to follow with a convoluted plot, about 75% more named characters than were necessary, and vaguely misogynistic in that bro kind of way.
I would only recommend it to people from Michigan. They'd probably enjoy all the geographical references.
September 28, 2024
Lovely story about a man searching for himself through his obsession with trout fishing; looking for the elusive snowfly that only hatches every decade or so, attracting massive-sized fish. Heywood's writing is eloquent, his metaphors and analogies evocative, and he knows a thing or two about pacing.
Like the elusive snowfly, Heywood's character takes a tortuous road to manhood and the ability to live life for the present. He is likeable, even in his immaturity. His reward lies more in his self-discovery than in the final encounter with the snowfly.
Excellent read.
Like the elusive snowfly, Heywood's character takes a tortuous road to manhood and the ability to live life for the present. He is likeable, even in his immaturity. His reward lies more in his self-discovery than in the final encounter with the snowfly.
Excellent read.
August 2, 2020
Far-ranging story centered on trout fishing and the lore of the snowfly. True? not true? Many other elements: Viet Nam war, Russia (USSR), Bletchley Park, and many familiar Heywood themes: the UP, Michigan rivers, and the characters who populate the area and the books. The book was intriguing enough to send me to the author's website with a question, to which he kindly responded. Thanks, Mr. Heywood.
July 2, 2021
This novel is a testament to testosterone. It also gets fantastical at times, detracting from credibility but there was enough to like as I did read to the end.
Except how does one dine al fresco in the Michigan North Woods in summer with no mention of insects?
The book was too ambitious. The story, less one hundred pages and with a tighter, more credible plot, would have made it a wonderful tale for lovers of adventure, fly fishing and wild places.
Except how does one dine al fresco in the Michigan North Woods in summer with no mention of insects?
The book was too ambitious. The story, less one hundred pages and with a tighter, more credible plot, would have made it a wonderful tale for lovers of adventure, fly fishing and wild places.
October 25, 2022
Always Surprising
I enjoy reading books by Heywood because they are not predictable who done it. I have learned many facts U never would have known and my life is richer for it
I wasn't excited about the part with Hemingway. Kind of spooky. But I definitely believed the story of Punky right up to the end!
I enjoy reading books by Heywood because they are not predictable who done it. I have learned many facts U never would have known and my life is richer for it
I wasn't excited about the part with Hemingway. Kind of spooky. But I definitely believed the story of Punky right up to the end!
November 9, 2022
This is probably the best book of Joe Heywood's that I've read. The complex plot of a small boy infatuated with fly-fishing and learning of the snowfly and his trip over the next 30 or 40 years all over the world in different cultures and settings to solve the mystery of what is and where is the snowfly?
January 24, 2021
I have read several of Joseph Heywood's Woods Cop and Luke Bapcat books but this book was completely different. The story telling and main character were really interesting though the story line is somewhat confusing. I didn't want the book to end.
April 9, 2021
If the author had stuck to the story of the Snowfly and left out all the sex scenes I would have been happy to finish this book. It did not seem necessary to the story at all. I was surprised as the other books I’ve read of his are not at all this type. I quit reading a third of the way through.
August 21, 2018
A great book if you love stories about fishing in Michigan. A bit quirky, but worth the read.
November 1, 2018
This was the story of a quest and the passion and longing that come from that pursuit. Compelling and strong characters, both male and female. I really enjoyed it.
February 7, 2020
Is it If you fish, you must read this.
Is it obsession or sport? No one truly knows, but Heywood gives us as good an explanation as there may be. Loved this book.
Is it obsession or sport? No one truly knows, but Heywood gives us as good an explanation as there may be. Loved this book.
June 9, 2021
Excellent book. Travels, trials, and tribulations of a young man growing up and persuing his love of fly fishing, and seeking the elusive and possibly nonexistent 'Snowfly'.
July 8, 2022
This was a good enough read but certainly nothing special. Basically a story of one man's obsessions.
September 1, 2023
Exceptional. I was told to read it because it was so good.
I thought it would be boring. Anything but!! Everyone I’ve recommended it to has loved it. It’s a keeper.
I thought it would be boring. Anything but!! Everyone I’ve recommended it to has loved it. It’s a keeper.
July 22, 2025
I probably would have enjoyed this book more if I knew anything about fishing.
July 22, 2009
I was really excited to read more Joseph Heywood after I read Chasing A Blond Moon, but this book was a real disappointment for me. I think I got about 2/3 of the way through before I just had to stop reading it.
I love his large cast of colorful characters. However, I could not stand the continuous cycle of
1. main character meets girl
2. main character sleeps with girl, often at her prompting
3. main character leaves, regardless of any negative consequences
AND
1. main character is in new town/location
2. main character meets locals and either
a. becomes best friends with them to the point of them saving his life and/or renaming him in their own language
b. them being "bad guys", altercation ensues, and main character emerges as hero.
Perhaps I will try another Woods Cop mystery before giving up on Mr Heywood entirely. Alas.
I love his large cast of colorful characters. However, I could not stand the continuous cycle of
1. main character meets girl
2. main character sleeps with girl, often at her prompting
3. main character leaves, regardless of any negative consequences
AND
1. main character is in new town/location
2. main character meets locals and either
a. becomes best friends with them to the point of them saving his life and/or renaming him in their own language
b. them being "bad guys", altercation ensues, and main character emerges as hero.
Perhaps I will try another Woods Cop mystery before giving up on Mr Heywood entirely. Alas.
June 30, 2013
I won this book in a goodreads firstreads giveaway.
The Snowfly is a fantastic book! I usually don't get into long books since I feel that they usually drag on for too long, but The Snowfly never felt like that.
The Snowfly follows Bowie Rhodes from his childhood to his adult years as he from time to time hears about the mythical Snowfly, said to only hatch every ten. Bowie, who is a great fisherman from childhood to adulthood, is constantly searching for info on the Snowfly throughout his life.
However, while his search for the Snowfly is the main idea behind the book, it is interesting just to read about Bowie's life, see him grow up, make new friends, see old ones die, and go through hell in war as a reporter. Even if there was no Snowfly plot at all, this would still be a fantastic book to read.
5/5 Stars
The Snowfly is a fantastic book! I usually don't get into long books since I feel that they usually drag on for too long, but The Snowfly never felt like that.
The Snowfly follows Bowie Rhodes from his childhood to his adult years as he from time to time hears about the mythical Snowfly, said to only hatch every ten. Bowie, who is a great fisherman from childhood to adulthood, is constantly searching for info on the Snowfly throughout his life.
However, while his search for the Snowfly is the main idea behind the book, it is interesting just to read about Bowie's life, see him grow up, make new friends, see old ones die, and go through hell in war as a reporter. Even if there was no Snowfly plot at all, this would still be a fantastic book to read.
5/5 Stars
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 4, 2012
After reading Ice Hunter, the first of the Woods Cop series, I noted that the SYKM website noted for The Snowfly "Grady Service and Luticious Treebone of the Woods Cop series first appear in this title".
With that thought in mind, The Snowfly was a big disappointment. Their appearances were limited to 2 pages, 2 paragraphs, and 2 sentences - widely separated.l
The narrative had interesting parts (after discounting the protagonists apparent irresistability to women) in his fly fishing, journalisn, Viet Nam sojurn, and round trip to Russia.
However - SPOILER FOLLOWS -
his encounters with Ernest Hemingway, postulating the author's suicide was faked and the cultish pursuit of the Snowfly and supernatural trout at the end of the book knocked a star and a half from my rating.
With that thought in mind, The Snowfly was a big disappointment. Their appearances were limited to 2 pages, 2 paragraphs, and 2 sentences - widely separated.l
The narrative had interesting parts (after discounting the protagonists apparent irresistability to women) in his fly fishing, journalisn, Viet Nam sojurn, and round trip to Russia.
However - SPOILER FOLLOWS -
his encounters with Ernest Hemingway, postulating the author's suicide was faked and the cultish pursuit of the Snowfly and supernatural trout at the end of the book knocked a star and a half from my rating.
September 5, 2013
I would give this book 4.5 stars if I could. I found this book by chance and I am really glad I did. My husband's friend (they are both fly fishermen)recommended this book, he bought it and it sat on our book shelf for a few weeks. I picked it up and I was hooked after just the first few pages. The main character "Bowie" traveled to interesting places and met the most fascinating people. Reading this book was like sitting down to a delicious meal - everything was so rich and thought provoking I couldn't wait to get to the next course/chapter. I was sad when the book ended but I would recommend this book to most of my friends - especially my friends that love the outdoors and adventure.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews