Click to buy at Amazon
Although not set on the Plateau, Norman Maclean’s gorgeous story is what we mean when we refer to the power of pen and story to create an affection and awareness for beautiful western places. The novella describes wild and idyllic rivers that shape the narrator, his father–a Presbyterian minister–and his troubled but talented brother, all three passionate fishermen. Set on the Big Blackfoot River in Montana, the story draws us into the drama and loss of trying to save a loved one from self-destruction. (See our excerpt in Fiction.) Some might say Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It created too much love, and once remote rivers became clogged with city folks flogging fly lines.
As a businessman lover of the land I notice that all the pen-expressed love creates a new enthusiasm along with a flow of money toward pristine, healthy habitats with clean, clear water and great fishing. The new fisherman spends millions of dollars on equipment
and the outdoor recreation industry grows. The bigger the outdoor recreation industry, the more important the land becomes in its most magnificent, powerful, natural state. The economic value of the land in its wildest form becomes ever greater than the economic value of extracting via logging, mining, or grazing. A beautiful story helped conserve our heirloom gift of wild and natural western land better than a thousand lawsuits.
We have inadvertently chosen, as samples of what we like, two stories that Robert Redford made into movies, this one and The Milagro Beanfield War by John Nichols reviewed by A.J. here. Maybe we should ask Mr. Redford what else he likes — or better yet make sure he reads our authors!
Love a river, read MacLean again for the first time, and think about how we can do the same for the Colorado Plateau.
