Reviews of The Big One

“Madcap . . . Essential reading . . . A classic fish tale and then some.”—The Boston Globe

A Forbes Best Sports Book of 2009: “A rollicking account of the annual striped bass and bluefish derby on Martha’s Vineyard, spiked with the you-are-there view of the beauty, folly, and humanity of the participants. Kinney follows some of the most intriguing personalities, does a bit of fishing, and documents the at-times tricky relationship between the blue-collar derby participants and the well-to-do seasonal residents of the island.”

A Popular Mechanics Best Book of the Year

“The Big One is a rollicking true story of a grand American obsession. You don’t have to be a fisherman to relish David Kinney’s marvelous account of the annual striper madness on Martha’s Vineyard, or his unforgettable portraits of the possessed. It’s a fine piece of journalism, rich with color and suspense.”—Carl Hiaasen, New York Times best-selling author of The Downhill Lie

“Fish fan or not, you will find the narratives and characters in The Big One rich and intriguing and weird and wonderful. A great read and a great tale.”—Susan Orlean, New York Times best-selling author of The Orchid Thief

“A roaring account … The Big One is a fun, two-fisted read. … I’ve fished the derby before and the excitement that surges through town is electric. Rumors, laughter and accusations fly. Kinney’s book captures these tales of chicanery, one-upsmanship and braggadocio, and just the overall weirdness.”—Cape Cod Times

“Fun ... Kinney delivers bright, boisterous prose true to the derby’s melee of egos, fishy romance, and the quixotically obsessed.”—Fly Fisherman

“What Kinney uncovers in documenting this event is the deep cultural underbelly of a fishing society that few people on the outside will understand. … [L]ike most great nonfiction, it reveals characters fiction writers would be hard-pressed to duplicate. If you fish, or love the Vineyard, or—best case—both, The Big One is well worth the time, the firewood, and the scotch.”—The Martha’s Vineyard Times

“Engaging ... [A] fine book; even if you care little for fishing, it is worth reading for the characters, the rivalry, the drama and the eccentricities of this place.”—Vineyard Gazette

“Mr. Kinney … is a journalist who takes up his story with an enthusiasm that more closely resembles that of an embedded war correspondent. Many of the individuals he encounters are colorful, their salty stories more so, and he uses graceful prose to bring them together into a lively account.”—The Wall Street Journal

“… a fascinating, crisply written book.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Who knew a book about a fishing tournament could be so damn compelling?”—Deadspin

“A great fishing book.”—MidCurrent

“Whoever said fishing is boring was dead wrong. The Big One is smart, funny, and lively. It’s populated by a cast of colorful obsessives. It’s elegantly written and deeply felt. David Kinney has crafted a portrait of a place, a culture, and a tradition with a message bigger than any Derby-winning striper: that life truly is all about the chase.”—Stefan Fatsis, New York Times best-selling author of A Few Seconds of Panic and Word Freak

“… one of the best fishing books I’ve reviewed in quite a while …”—The Plain Dealer of Cleveland

“The Big One offers an unforgettable view of a remarkable fishing derby, the island on which it takes place, the drama, the shenanigans, and its unique participants. All fishermen will love this book.”—Nick Lyons, author of The Gigantic Book of Fishing Stories

“... The Big One had me on the edge of my seat, kept me up nights and turned out to be one of the best books I’ve ever read.”—The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J.

“Catching a fish off a Vineyard beach at Derby-time is about as much fun as you can have with waders on, and in The Big One David Kinney nails the chase and captures the thrill. His book is funny, brackish and moving. A keeper.”—Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated

“He has pulled off a few feats most angling scribes can’t contemplate, most notably ingratiating himself into a closed secret society that makes The Da Vinci Code look like a church bake sale. … A keeper of a fishing book.”—Reel-Time.com

“It’s a terrific book and a great story. … Good storytelling is good storytelling, and I think the best thing I could say is this: Everyone should read one book about fishing as sports competition. This is that book.”—Dan Shanoff, Sporting News

“In The Big One, David Kinney goes deep to find big fish, bigger characters, and even a bit of controversy in this rollicking tale of the madness that is the Martha’s Vineyard fishing derby. He clearly had a great time writing this book. You’ll have a blast reading it.”—Monte Burke, author of Sowbelly: The Obsessive Quest for the World Record Largemouth Bass

“Anyone who has ever fished the Vinyard Derby should read Dave Kinney’s book. … This is fireside reading for surfcaster and boatman alike and well worth a read.”—Frank Daignault, author of the classic Striper Surf

“The Big One is to competitive fishing what H.G. Bissinger’s Friday Night Lights was to high school football—a book that uses sport as a mainline to the heart of a diverse community.”—The News & Record of Greensboro, N.C.

“Though it will probably be shelved in either the sports or outdoors section, Kinney’s account would be right at home in the anthropology department. … The book is a lot of fun as Kinney’s day-in, day-out descriptions of the tournament itself … play out like a frenzied baseball season condensed into one month of triple-headers.”—Publishers Weekly

“The author looks beyond Martha’s Vineyard’s reputation as a summer hangout for the fabulously wealthy to capture its salty roots, motley inhabitants and resident anglers, viewing them through the portal of a fishing derby. … With solid prose, Kinney nails the character of this spirited community and its defining anima, the striped bass.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Fans of you-are-there accounts of sporting competitions will definitely want to read this one.”—Booklist