Listen free for 30 days

Try for $0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
The River Why cover art

The River Why

Written by: David James Duncan
Narrated by: Dick Hill
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $32.31

Buy Now for $32.31

Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

The classic novel of fly fishing and spirituality republished with a new afterword by the author.

Since its publication in 1983, The River Why has become a classic. David James Duncan's sweeping novel is a coming-of-age comedy about love, nature, and the quest for self-discovery, written in a voice as distinct and powerful as any in American letters.

Gus Orviston is a young fly fisherman who leaves behind his comically schizoid family to find his own path. Taking refuge in a remote cabin, he sets out in pursuit of the Pacific Northwest's elusive steelhead. But what begins as a physical quarry becomes a spiritual one as his quest for self-knowledge batters him with unforeseeable experiences.

Profoundly reflective about our connection to nature and to one another, The River Why is also a comedic roller coaster. Like Gus, the listener emerges utterly changed, stripped bare by the journey Duncan so expertly navigates.

©1983 David James Duncan (P)2016 Blackstone Audio
Coming of Age Literary Fiction
Show more Show less

What the critics say

"A veritable epic of flyfishing...done in a high-velocity, exuberant style, sprawling in scale, heedless of form.... The feeling for and evocation of the imperiled natural world is rhapsodic in its intensity; the writing energetic, literary in a distinctly American way.... So amiable is the prevailing tone that the flowing narrative is able to absorb Koranic and Eastern mysticisms, Tao, Sufism, Zen-the religions of oneness and gospel of love-without turning into the kind of maudlin choral chanting that so often disfigures treatments of fusion of self and the world." ( Publishers Weekly)
"This is a modern-repeat, modern -tale of maturity and redemption." ( Christian Science Monitor)
"A whirlwind, madcap, humorous and sensitive novel." ( New York Times)

More from the same

Author:

Narrator:

Love Books? You'll Love Audible.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Transform your day

Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Listen everywhere

Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Carry your entire Library

Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Listen and learn

Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Reach your reading goals

You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Find your niche

WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.

 Try for $0.00 $14.95 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

What listeners say about The River Why

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Audible.ca reviews

Amazon Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Anonymous User

Listened for class

I had to read this book for class. I didn’t like it. I find the story to be exceptionally bland and there is no real closure. Things are just kind of forced and all the “high” points in the story are boring. It would be great for a god fearing fisher person, or someone who is questioning faith and needs a very “it sorta happens” approach. However, the faith element is more of Gus being thrust into it because the authors plan was to make Gus believe in God rather than Gus wanted to. However, listening to the book was better than reading it.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!