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THE COREY FORD SPORTING TREASURY by Corey Ford

THE COREY FORD SPORTING TREASURY

By

Pub Date: June 1st, 1987
Publisher: Willow Creek

Scores of well-cast tales and articles about the sporting life, most humorous, some poignant, from the late fisherman/hunter/author. A warm introduction by old pal ""Doc"" Hall places Ford squarely in the tradition of fellow Algonquin Hotel ""Round-table"" humorists Robert Benchley and Ring Lardner, and ushers in the major portion of the book, 49 comic stories that Ford wrote for Field & Stream in his popular ""The Minutes of the Lower Forty"" column. These short tales detail the antics of the members of a good ole' boys' sporting club as they concoct one scheme after another to increase their hunting and fishing opportunities. The humor here is largely whimsical, poking gentle fun at the boozing, fanaticism, and self-importance of the club members as well as their enemies (anyone not enamored of hunting or fishing). But some of the tales seem dated now, offensive in their misogyny: in one, a club member explains that he's a bachelor because the only woman he ever romanced turned his hunting dog into a prissy pet; in another, a boy woos fishing instead of a girl, hence the title, ""There's Always Dames."" But still timely is the handful of essays that follows, particularly ""How to Guess Your Age,"" a riotous inventory of the rigors of aging (""It seems to me that they are building staircases steeper than they used to""), and the single most effective piece here, ""Just A Dog,"" a heartwrenching letter written by Ford to the hunter who accidently shot his beloved hunting dog, Cider. The book closes with the moving story ""The Road to Tinkhamtown,"" in which a dying sportsman dreams of hunting with his old dog. Charming, deftly penned relics from the days when a man and his dog ruled the most; but contemporary readers may find the sentiments too quaint to embrace.