Seeking recommendation: best book about the hunting life?

M

MedicineBow

New member
I have a nice little shelf of good books on the topic of -- or at least centered around -- fishing. Some are novels, some are non-fiction, some are collections of essays.

I thought I'd ask for recommendations for books centered around hunting.

I emphatically don't mean "how to" books on hunting or shooting. I'm talking about a book or collection that has hunting at its core...the hunting life, ruminations on the people, the lessons, the range of experience gathered over years at the endeavor, including the hunts themselves.

For instance, the best book of fishing essays I've read lately, perhaps ever, is "The Longest Silence," by Tom McGuane. If any of you haven't read a good collection and are curious, I recommend it. It's good, I think, because the essays are of course not exactly about the fishing, though it is full of fishing detail. They are, of course, really about the places and men and women and travels and adventures and knowledge of life one runs into while pursuing the darn fish.

Anyway...any suggestions for me?
 
So many selections to pick from but the one book that comes to mind has to be Shots at Whitetails by Larry Koller. Library of Congress Catalog number 78-98642. They didn't have ISBN's back then. Great book. Covers everything. It is a classic.

JP
 
These books can be ordered through your local library's inter-library loan program for FREE!

- The High Road To Adventure by Russell Annabel

Russell was raised by Denna Indians. He was a trapper, hunting guide, and prospector back when Anchorage, Alaska was a small town of tents and shacks. Most of his short stories were written in 1920's and 30's. Each chapter is a separate short story of hunts and trapping adventures involving moose, caribou, sheep, goats, wolves, etc.

I feel that Russell's descriptive writings easily match those of Zane Grey. You're allowed to disagree.

- North To Cree Lake by A.L. Karras

- Face The North Wind by A.L. Karras

Imagine two homeless brothers in Ohio during the Great Depression. Their father had recently died. They gathered what little camping, fishing, and hunting gear their Dad owned and headed to Saskatchewon to live off the land. They had so much FUN that 30 years ticked by before heading south again.

Jack
 
For an author, Robert Ruark. My favorites among his several books about hunting, separate from his novels, are "The Old Man And The Boy" and "The Old Man's Boy Grows Older". These are collections of essays he wrote for Field & Stream magazine, telling of his growing up in the Carolinas with his grandfather's tutelage in hunting--and in life itsownself.

These have been reprinted in both hardcover and in trade paperback. Check Amazon.com.

Art
 
My personal favorites are the books by Peter Hathaway Capstick. Death in the Long Grass, Death in the Silent Places, they are amazing stories of the way Africa was in the early part of the 20th century. After I read the first one, I read everything that he has written.
 
My personal favorites are the books by Peter Hathaway Capstick. Death in the Long Grass, Death in the Silent Places, they are amazing stories of the way Africa was in the early part of the 20th century. After I read the first one, I read everything that he has written.
Click to expand...

You can't go wrong with any of the Capstick "Death" Books. I'm a huge Capstick fan and I think his all around best book is his book on Wally Johnson. Outstanding book and covers a man that devoted his life to the craft of hunting.

Months of the Sun, by Ian Nysciens is also a very good book about a life long African hunter/poacher/game warden. Very good book but also pretty expensive.
 
It's not about "the hunting life" but a funny and informative read...





Then there's this soon to be classic...


No hunter should be without that knowledge.




Then there is fiction that makes you loose control of said bowel functions....

 
I enjoyed Charles Askins ''The hunters rifle''. Not a well rounded piece at all but it drives some important topics throughout.
 
What a great thread, thanks for starting this one. I'm currently reading "Hunting Trips Of A Ranchman" and "The Wilderness Hunter" by Theodore Roosevelt. It's a two-novels-in-one compilation and so far the first one is good reading whether I'm relaxing in camp or stuck at home or work wishing I was at camp.

I take them with a grain of salt, but I enjoyed reading Tom Brown Jr.'s "The Way Of The Scout" and "The Tracker" too.

Also, if you like bow hunting you might check out any Fred Bear or Howard Hill books.
 
I third the recommendations to Capstick's work. A friend gave me "The Last Ivory Hunter" about a year ago, it was a terrific book. Looking forward to reading some of his other books, the two mentioned above have been recommended to me repeatedly.

As to NA hunting, I don't know much in the way of good novels, most of it is just on the educational (how-to) side of things.
 
Where the red fern grows is a requisite in any outdoors oriented library.
One to have in your "fishing section" is a true story about a family afloat for more than 40 days after their yacht was sunk by killer whales.
Has tons of info regarding their quest for food and water and how they gathered both.
"Survive The Savage Sea"
Brent
 
Although not so much as a hunting story, the best book I have read about firearms is Cartridges of the World. So much information on the development of the firearm and the cartridges, powder, primers, etc. It shoud be a "must read" for all those entering into any of the shooting sports. So much basic knowledge is put in between those pages and it also makes a great reference book.
 
Many of my favorites are already mentioned.Karamojo Bell,the famous ivory hunter,wrote some worth reading.
"The Maneaters of Tsavo" was about the events that inspired "Ghosts in the Darkness"

I don't know if Russel Annabel wrote any books.He was a magazine writer who wrote of Alaska.Havilah Babcock wrote about such topics as grouse and dogs.Midway is not a bad place to browse for titles.
Pete Brown and Jack O'Connor wrote a few.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top