Joe and Me: An Education in Fishing and Friendship

William Morrow & Company, 1997. Hard cover. Very Good/No Dustjacket. Every lover of the outdoors will cherish this journal about a young man and the mentor who opens his heart to the spirit of nature -- from the celebrated twenty-two-year-old author of Trout: An Illustrated History.When James Prosek was just fifteen, a ranger named Joe Haines caught him fishing without a permit in a stream near his home in Connecticut. But instead of taking off into the pouring rain like his fishing buddy, James put down his rod and surrendered. It was a move that would change his life forever. Expecting a small fine and a lecture, James instead received enough knowledge about fishing and the great outdoors to last a lifetime.The story of this unlikely friendship between two menone old, one youngJoe and Me is brimming with both the enthusiasm of youth and the wisdom of experience. As Joe passes on his affection for nature to his eager young student, James's reflections are, in turn, intimate and expansive, inspirational and full of wonder.With twenty rugged and richly colorful illustrations in the style that first brought James critical acclaim, and graceful prose that belies an insightfulness far beyond his years, Joe and Me is a one-of-a-kind journal by a talent The New York Times has dubbed "a fair bid to become the Audubon of the fishing world." Artist, writer, and naturalist James Prosek paints his view of the natural world in still lifes, landscapes, and portraits. Influenced by painter John James Audubon, Prosek creates watercolors such as Orioles Triangle (2014) that explore acknowledged taxonomies and naming classifications in nature with precise detail. Stemming from his childhood experiences in nature, Prosek’s intense relationship with nature drives him to discover susceptible animals and their habitats. He has written and illustrated numerous books such as Trout: An Illustrated History. He earned a Peabody Award for his documentary The Complete Angler in 2003 and a Gold Medal from the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University in 2012. His work is in numerous collections including Philadelphia Museum of Art, the National Academy of Sciences, Washington, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.