Great Slave Lake by Joseph Crew is a story of friendships, secrets, and male bonding. Jim, Ernie, Ben, and Donald, four middle-aged white males have been buddies since their college days. They share a love of outdoors, especially fly-fishing. Author Joseph Crew has created a clever ensemble of characters that, despite their similarities of sex, age, and ethnicity, are anything but a homogenous group. This story is a thought provoking read that probes big questions some middle-aged men are invariably faced with about marriage, divorce, children, and political beliefs. This character based, thoughtful story, is presented beautifully from start to finish.