FISHING WIDOWS

Lyons is a fishing fanatic. The sight of an Orvis reel in Abercrombie & Fitch's window makes him drool. The sight of a trout breaking water makes him palpitate. He is also, alas, an urbanite usually locked in concrete city mazes. This makes him a desperate man who will, furtively, ""investigate rumors that eels are being taken through the manholes on First Avenue."" It led him to experiment with Hudson River fence fishing where eels are actually taken (""you stew him like beef stew"") and even to crazed thoughts of stocking the Steuben fountain with the little silver darlings. . . . Since exaggeration, if not outright lying, is part of every true fisherman's tackle -- Lyons doesn't hesitate to enlarge his piscatorial adventures and readers will probably take the bait. It's not really about (or for) fishing widows who get only perfunctory sympathy. But the Spiritual Brotherhood of Anglers will no doubt empathize and commiserate with his travails.