Title: Curtis Creek Manifesto
Author: Sheridan Anderson
List Price: $7.95
Paperback: 48 pages
Publisher: Frank Amato Publications (May 1978)
Purchased From: eBay Store - The Full Creel

The thing I like about fly fishing is that there is not one definitive source that can tell you all you need to know about fly fishing. I was reminded of this fact the other day when I was in the book store browsing at the few fly fishing books that were on the shelves. One struck a nerve with me, something on the lines of learning to fly fish in day. I thought to myself “How could anyone do that in a day with a book that was an inch thick and 224 pages long? There’s no way, right?� The only thing that comes to mind is the Curtis Creek Manifesto.

Like everyone starting out fly fishing, I quickly realize there is a lot to learn about fly fishing. With all the fly fishing books, magazines, videos, TV shows and web sites I was literally bombarded by massive information overload. Thankfully, in the Curtis Creek Manifesto there are some basic concepts that can be narrowed down to these 48 pages brought to us by Sheridan Anderson, angler, artist, wanderer, eternal foe of the work ethic.

What sets the Curtis Creek Manifesto apart from all the other books is that it can be read within an hour’s time and allows the reader to comprehend the material presented in an easy to read cartoon format. Anderson can be considered the first fly fishing cartoonist to successfully relate the basic information needed for fly fishing with a jovial dose of humor to add some moxie to the subject.

By no means should you write this book off, as your Sunday comics. Anderson’s attention to detailed illustrations greatly exceeds this expectation and the explanations that he provides on each subject is more than enough to get you started on the water fly fishing.

The Curtis Creek Manifesto covers all the basics that are need to fly fish, today. Some of the subjects include fly fishing gear and the use there of, reading the water; basic, basic entomology; knot tying; leader description; casting and much, much more. I wanted to note that on the subject of the fly fishing gear that you may find it a little dated. It’s not a real drawback but you might find it interesting to see some of the changes that have occurred through the years.

And let us not forget, “The Eleven Commandments of Fly Fishing� which we all should follow to the letter. These are tried and true principles for the art of fly fishing.

Even though the Curtis Creek Manifesto is not the definitive source of everything fly fishing, I would definitely recommend this book over any book that suggests you can learn fly fishing in a set period of time. If you are just starting out as a beginner fly fisher or an experienced fly fisher and like to be entertained, pick up a copy today, I think you will enjoy it.

Overall rating (1-5 with 1 being "horrible" and 5 being "outstanding"):
5 out of 5

Review brought to you by Terry Will April 24, 2007. Terry is a web developer for Neiman Marcus and NOT affiliated with any fly fishing company. When not spending time with his family you will find him usually hip deep fly fishing for Rainbows and Browns in the Lower Mountain Fork River tail waters just outside of Broken Bow, OK.