When his father and grandfather introduced him to trout fishing at the Flag River in the wilds of northern Wisconsin, eight-year-old Tony was—in a word—hooked. Stream fishing and its sense of exploration quickly took hold, and the thrill of catching the elusive trout by drifting a worm stuck with him forever. However, spending family time together proved to be even more rewarding. A brush with mortality inspired the now-grown Tony to write A Trout Fisherman’s Soul, a light-hearted memoir that passionately describes how four generations of family trout fishermen built a rich tradition on the Flag River near Lake Superior. Tony lovingly describes a trip with his brother and their two sons, intermingled with flashbacks to times spent fishing with his father and grandfather. He feels an even deeper kinship with them when he realizes he has become the person passing on the family’s passion for the sport. A true testament to tradition, A Trout Fisherman’s Soul reveals that in the end it’s not the catch that feeds the soul, but the love of family. "An intimate, entrancing sketch of a family that found joy and affirmation in nature." -Kirkus Reviews "... [Dincau's] careful reconstruction of dialogue keeps things afloat, revealing the fishing trip not as a rote ritual, but as an event full of lively knowledge, history, and tradition. The author's tone is folksy and personable, if sometimes saccharine, and features unpredictable phrases, such as when he describes a recurrent conversation growing on him "like a comfortable beard." Although this memoir is ostensibly about Midwest trout fishing and family life, its underlying backbone is its almost Proustian curiosity about memory, time, and death and its search for vindication of one's existence in the natural order. An intimate, entrancing sketch of a family that found joy and affirmation in nature." - Kirkus Reviews "With a scientist's detailed observations of the natural world, a staunchly devoted family man's love of tradition, and a sportsman's passion, Dincau dug deep into the rich soil of family lore and memory to produce this lovely, satisfying memoir. Dincau sifts through this memory-imprinted landscape to create an oral history, which...illuminates the universal, eternal gifts of family, tradition, gratitude and the beauty of the natural world. Spend a lazy summer day with this book in your favorite outdoor spot. Let its wisdom settle deep within you. Take your family with you, tell them your stories, tell them you love them." - Lana Henry associate editor/writer, 008 Magazine "At first glance, A Trout Fisherman's Soul is an entertaining, highly readable story about fishing in summertime Wisconsin, full of amusing anecdotes and colorful characters. But the book is much more than that...Dincau takes the time to reflect on his life, family, and career. He uses the experience of a fishing expedition, something he has done since his childhood, not only as a vehicle for his reflection, but also as an allegory of our expedition in life...What makes the book so compelling is not that the adventure is extraordinary, but precisely because it is ordinary. Dincau shows how ordinary events can give our life meaning, if we take the time to properly appreciate them. If you enjoy books about fishing and nature, you will like A Trout Fisherman's Soul; if you want to better appreciate your life, you will love it." - Peter Hetherington, Author of Unvanquished: Joseph Pilsudski, Resurrected Poland, and the Struggle for Eastern Europe, winner of the Amicus Poloniae and Benjamin Franklin awards, and winner of the IndieReader Discovery Award for History Professional geologist Tony Dincau is an outdoorsman and devoted family man with his wife, Snezana, a son, two daughters, and a black Lab. He has worked for the past twenty-five years as an exploration geologist in the oil and natural gas industry in Cajun country: Lafayette, Louisiana. He earned a bachelor's degree in geology from the University of Minnesota-Duluth and a master's degree in geology from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He visits his hometown of Proctor, Minnesota, a small railroad town, to keep ties with his family and the northland. A lover of kids and sports, Tony spent many years coaching his children's youth sports teams. He grew up as the oldest of three boys who all took a keen interest in athletic and outdoor activities.