Get Hooked On The Lure Of The Month

Book of the month clubs fulfilled our fetish for literature. The fruit of the month was a salvation for troubled souls with finicky relatives on their gift list.

Now you can can give your favorite angler a monthly fix with the fly of the month and lure of the month.

The company, Fishing Enthusiast, caught the attention of this outdoor writer because the concept is gutsy, even if the price is high. And the motive is respectable.

Matthew Wanderer wanted to do more fishing.

“I spent four years in Chicago doing the corporate thing,” said Wanderer, who founded the company seven months ago. “I was traveling five hours to fish every weekend. Finally, it occurred to me that I had to get out of the city.”

The product is simple, and appeals to virtually any angler.

The fly of the month includes two or three sizes of one pattern packed in an aesthetically simple box. Also in the package is a single sheet that includes a clever quote or two, a short paragraph about the designer and the origins of the fly or lure.

Also listed are the materials used to make the pattern and a suggested list of reading involving the fly.

“The story behind the fly is what sets the product apart,” Wanderer said.

Practically speaking, a disciplined person could buy three dozen flies at a local fly shop for a third of the cost.

But where would you get the time to research the background material? Where would you get those simple little boxes? Who would remind you to send the package each month?

The service for 12 months costs $130 for flies or $140 for lures. The budget program, which delivers a gift every other month, costs $70 for flies and $75 for lures.

Contact Fishing Enthusiast Gift of the Month, 2579 Telluride Trail, Suite L, Green Bay, WI 54313, telephone (800) 597-0634.

Check it out on the Internet at www.planetfish.pair.com/

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo