Traveling Light

A Year of Wandering, from California to England and Tuscany and Back Again

“In Traveling Light [Barich] simply does it—goes fishing, goes to the races, goes to Europe. He dramatizes his restlessness without gathering wool” (The New York Times).
 
Here is a travel book with a difference: ten chronological chapters from a year of wandering, from the Pacific Northwest to Tuscany and back again to the trout-laden streams of California. Join Bill Barich as he travels the globe, from the trout streams of Northern California to the auction ring at Saratoga, where millions of dollars may be gaveled away for a yearling thoroughbred; from seedy London pubs to a run-down Florentine palazzo during a glorious Italian spring. Learn the science of English beer brewing, the art of fly tying, how to generate hydroelectric power, the proper analysis of the Daily Racing Form, and the best way to eat artichokes.
 
Freshness, wit, and Barich’s distinctive voice create a luminous travelogue crackling with an inimitable curiosity and an elegance of style that marks every step of this remarkable journey.
 
“Barich is a wonderful writer. His angle of vision is his own, his prose is a delight.” —Larry McMurtry, Pulitzer Prize–winning author
 
“I had a fine time with Traveling Light. Barich is a splendid prose stylist . . . I will continue to look forward to anything he writes.” —Jim Harrison, New York Times–bestselling author
 
“Witty, knowledgeable, good writing . . . Start Barich now and keep reading him.” —Thomas McGuane, author of The Longest Silence: A Life in Fishing