The River Why
David James Duncan
 A coming of age story narrated by Gus Orviston, the oldest son in a fishing mad family. Frustrated with life in Portland and the constant bickering of his bait fishing mother and tweed wearing fly fishing father over the proper way to fish, Gus moves to a small cabin in the foothills of the Oregon Coast Range. Once there he begins to follow an "ideal schedule" that has him doing nothing but eating, sleeping and fishing. In the course of doing nothing but what he loves to do he begins to notice the scars that humanity has inflicted on the river and woods he loves. As he wrestles with what to do he begins to relate with the people in his neighborhood, and discovers a beautiful fisherwoman that helps him discover that there is more to life than just fishing.