The publication of a deluxe edition of Richard Brautigan's Trout Fishing in America enshrines a novel written forty years ago that was immediately recognized as an important invention by discerning readers and became a cult classic. Trout Fishing in America is a landmark in American prose fiction. "Trout Fishing in America" is the title of the book; but it is also persons, places, things, and a state of mind. On the endpapers of this edition we have printed in two colors the various uses of the phrase in the novel. This is a humorous book; it is also very poignant, and it is surreal. Richard's friend the writer Ron Loewinsohn was named on the dedication page of Trout Fishing in America and was an early reader of the manuscript-in-progress. He has written a new introductory essay for this book. This edition also contains a portrait of the author, a photograph taken in 1967 by Edmund Shea, published here for the first time. Shea, also a long-time friend of Brautigan, is an artist-photographer whose pictures appear on the covers of most of Brautigan's books.

This letterpress edition is published by Arion Press, which "produces some of the most beautiful limited-edition books in the world," according to the New York Times. The format is 11.75 by 8.75 inches. The type is Monotype Bookman, with handset foundry type for display. The binding is handsewn with linen thread over linen tapes, in boards covered with blue and gray cloth. On the gray cloth is printed the title and author's name, separated by a drawing of the fish by Richard Brautigan that appeared on the dedication page of the first edition. The edition is limited to 400 numbered copies for sale.