Written by Greg Tuttle
Arthur Macdougall’s “The Trout Fisherman’s Bedside Book” is his most popular and easiest to find book, which is fortunate for all. Published in 1963 by Simon and Schuster, it is a handsome little book. It contains 36 wonderfully written little stories. Preceding every story is a quote from the likes of Thoreau, “The Compleat Angler”, from Dud Dean himself, and even the Bible.
The stories in this book never appeared in print before. It is the perfect book to keep beside the bed or easy chair to read a chapter or two (especially in the dead of winter) while dreaming about fishing. Luckily the story “I Want Him” is included. The last time that story appeared in print was 1928. Macdougall printed a little 8 page pamphlet with illustrations by the great Stanley Foss Bartlett. The price was 25 cents per copy!!! A lot of visiting fishermen would buy them, so a lot of copies went out of state. Even though there were 500 printed, it is pretty scarce. It first appeared in the magazine “The Northern”, in January of 1927. The version in the magazine differs slightly from the one in the book.
This little book is a great book to read and re-read. It had at least 3 printings and was printed in the United Kingdom in 1964. The U.K. book is in a slightly bigger format with white leatherette covers and a nicely decorated dust jacket. The interior text and illustrations are the same.
This book is fairly common, not so much the U.K. edition, but it is out there. For all Macdougall fans it is worthy of owning just to be able to read the story “I Want Him”.
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