Home Waters

“You do not have to be a devout angler or have previously read A River Runs Through It to enjoy Home Waters. The book is a testament to the power of place and the love that binds us, throughout the generations. Home Waters is a keeper.”

—FLATHEAD BEACON

“marvelous… graceful and compelling… this is a great book.”

—CHICAGO TRIBUNE

“Throughout ‘Home Waters,’ Maclean shows that he’s a real writer. But he’s also a real reporter with a long career for the Chicago Tribune.”

—CHICAGO SUN-TIMES

“Maclean’s writing is often intimate. Family lore, told and retold, can be a fuzzy thing, but some memories about his father, like their first time fishing together, remained spectacularly vivid and personal.”

—THE WASHINGTON POST

“The prose in Home Waters, which is often transporting, flows with a shadow-cast grace. What’s more, John Maclean generously welcomes the reader into his family… The best word I can think of to describe Home Waters also happens to be the Maclean’s family word: beautiful.”

—FIELD & STREAM

“Home Waters is wherever we, as anglers, outdoorsmen and women, came to love and learn about place, play, and the people we call family or close friends. In this view, John Maclean's Home Waters is a wonderful reflection on how a sense of place and shared activity, especially sport, defines our lives, our families, and the meaning we find in them.”

—DAVID BROOKS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MONTANA TROUT UNLIMITED

“‘Home Waters’ details the history of the family, the area’s geology, the ancient trail through the Blackfoot Valley that the Indians followed to hunt the buffalo in the plains. There is a host of characters who vibrate to a different frequency than most of us.”

—THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

“This memoir is an ode to its inspirations.”

—THE NEW YORK TIMES

“[Maclean’s] Hemingway-esque prose is as clear as a mountain stream, flowing with a poetic cadence and lyrically describing the many splendid natural treasures to be found under the Big Sky. A sure bet for readers who enjoy American and natural history and a must-read for fishing enthusiasts.”

—BOOKLIST

“Maclean offers a lyrical love letter to Montana’s Blackfoot River, fishing, and his storied family in this captivating memoir… Fans of his father’s novella will relish the details that served as its inspiration and are here rendered in Maclean’s sharp yet poetic prose… This richly observed narrative is sure to reel readers in.”

—PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“In addition to patient nature writing and an introspective approach to the literary inspiration he has received from the land, Maclean discusses the genesis of Norman’s famous book and mystery surrounding the death of one of the characters. Lovers of literature and nature will be captivated by this heartfelt tribute to place and family.”

—KIRKUS REVIEWS (STARRED REVIEW)

“Beautifully written”

—JOHN WAYNE JOURNAL

“In this welcome companion to an American classic, John N. Maclean casts a story of place, family, and legacy; of highland streams and woodlands, and the gifts waiting in their depths; of a quiet father with much to share; and of the sometimes meandering, sometimes tumbling courses that carry us through life. A spare, patient, and compelling reminiscence that stays with you.”

— EARL SWIFT, AUTHOR OF "CHESAPEAKE REQUIEM: A YEAR WITH THE WATERMEN OF VANISHING TANGIER ISLAND"

“Finally, a brilliant, intimate, and reliable chronicle of the remarkable Maclean family and the origins of a great book, welded seamlessly to the memorable angling days and writing life of a central member. I loved ‘Home Waters.’”

— NICK LYONS, AUTHOR OF "SPRING CREEK"

“I can honestly say I loved ‘Home Waters.’ Reading it felt like a visit with old friends—the characters from A River Runs through It—whom you haven’t seen in a long while, during which you learned some things you’d never known before. John N. Maclean’s book does a wonderful job of illustrating the importance of family and place—something we can all relate to even if the particulars of our stories are very different.”

— KIRBY LAMBERT, MONTANA HISTORICAL SOCIETY