Beautifully Grotesque Fish of the American West

by Mark Spitzer

Fisherman Mark Spitzer takes readers on an action-packed investigation of the most fierce and fearsome freshwater grotesques of the American West ever to inspire both hatred and fascination. Through the lenses of history, folklore, biology, ecology, and politics, Beautifully Grotesque Fish of the American West depicts the environmental destruction plaguing the most maligned creatures in our midst while subtly interweaving Spitzer’s experiences of personal tragedy and self-discovery.

Join Spitzer as he noodles for flathead catfish in Oklahoma, snags paddlefish in Missouri, trotline- and electro-fishes American eels in Arkansas, studies razorback suckers in Arizona, bounty hunts for pikeminnows in Washington State, attends a burbot festival in Utah, stirs up Asian carp in Kansas, and breaks the state record for the largest yellow bullhead ever caught in Nebraska.

By examining freakish links in a vital chain and working with specialists in the field, Spitzer portrays a planet in environmental crisis and dispels the illusion that our actions don’t result in long-term, toxic consequences. Spitzer offers models for fisheries and provides other sources of hope in this informative epic of redemption that ultimately celebrates the wild and resilient beauty and remaining possibilities of the American West.

Genres: Nonfiction

ebook

Published January 1, 2017

About the author

Mark Spitzer is the author of ten or twelve books, including "Season of the Gar" (creative nonfiction, University of Arkansas Press), "CHODE!" (novel, Six Gallery Press), "Age of the Demon Tools" (poetry, Ahadada Books), "The Pigs Drink from Infinity" (poetry, Spuyten Duyvil), "Chum" (novel, Zoland Books), "Bottom Feeder" (novel, Creative Arts), "Riding the Unit" (creative nonfiction, Six Gallery Press), "From Absinthe to Abyssinia" (Rimbaud translations, Creative Arts), "The Collected Poems of Georges Bataille" (Dufour Editions), "Divine Filth" (Bataille translations, Creation Books), "The Church" (Céline translation, Green Integer), "After the Orange Glow" (forthcoming from Monkey Puzzle Press), and "Writer in Residence" (forthcoming from the University of New Orleans Press). He has published hundreds of essays, poems, stories, literary translations, etc., and has cultivated a semi-cult following as an editor of the legendary lit journal "Exquisite Corpse" (www.corpse.org). After earning three degrees in Creative Writing (a BA from the U of MN, an MA from CU, and an MFA from LSU) he taught Creative Writing and Literature for five years at Truman State University in Missouri. He is now a professor in the Department of Writing at the University of Central Arkansas, where he lives on the shores of Lake Conway and checks his droplines daily for mongo one-eyed catfish, fugly prehistoric gars, and garbage-fish like largemouth bass. He is now Managing Editor of "The Exquisite Corpse Annual," and is married to the zombie writer Robin Becker.

Reviews

[J.J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Think: Trout Fishing in America meets The Sixth Extinction in the form of Chuck Klosterman essays scripted for a TV mashup show of Dirty Jobs, Deadliest Catch, and Ghost Hunters. But better than what you're probably thinking. Also, this book provides a Where's Waldo-ish game of hilarious, subtle sex puns inside its highly literate and equally imaginative poetics.

[Shelby Burrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book that my dad and Tristan need to read. Fishes going awesome

[Corey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part travelogue, part natural history, and part environmentalist essay. Spitzer's approachable yet varied writing keeps each chapter fresh.

[Craig Hayward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved learning more about these fascinating fish--their lifecycles, their history, the status of their populations, whether they're good to eat, and how they fit into the ecosystem. Alligator gar, muskellunge, American eel, burbot, bowfin, paddlefish, white sturgeon, catfish, pikeminnow, razorbacks, and even the invasive, leaping silver carp--each if these fish is sought after, described, and situated in place and time through the lens of Mark Spitzer's journey of exploration. It is both an outward journey that crisscrosses the American West and a revealing inner journey in which these fish become metaphors and vehicles for understanding and relating to his--and our--own challenges and dreams.

[Nina Bosnjak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark Spitzer is a fan of gar so I’m a fan of him ‼️

[Tristan Ranch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was charming and witty. I'm not the strongest reader in the world, but this book delighted my from start to finish with it's evocative descriptions and clever anecdotes. I learned a lot and had fun the entire time. This is one of those books I'm going to hold onto for forever.

[Cody · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book makes me want to fish and to do more to be a part of positive change. Fun read and I learned a lot.

[Phillip Howerton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water--or to live in the water.