That Dog Don't Hunt

Book excerpt: Jim Newman, a natural born story-teller, takes the reader through joyful and humorous stories about life at the hunt camp, hunting culture, and the joys of nature and wildlife. The stories are a mix of childhood memories, folklore, facts, fiction, and laughter, with the odd political rant thrown in. This book presents hunting in the light of the harvest of food, and the emphasis is on enjoying the beauty of nature in the company of family and good friends. The stories are very human, with lots of self-deprecating (sometimes laugh-out-loud) humour throughout. Readers will learn how not to choose a hunting dog, how to spend a lot of money preparing not to hunt turkeys, and how to find bears without even trying. On a more serious note, Jim talks about how to increase the longevity of a hunt camp through great communal meals, how to make hunting a multi-generational family tradition, and the importance of standing up for hunters in conversations about gun legislation. And to those already familiar with Jim Newman’s regular column in The Nipissing Reader, the wait is over!