Pond Mountain Tales

About the Book

“Pond Mountain Tales” recalls experiences of the author during his eleven-year stay at Pond Mountain, a two-hundred-acre farm, with his first wife, their three sons, and eight dogs. Close encounters with snakes, blue herons, geese, turkeys, and vultures were a daily experience. Three lakes teeming with fish framed a story of the author's fishing parties for claimants in one of his settlements. A parody of point and counterpoint between a famous plaintiff lawyer and a chemical manufacturer is also featured. The author's house at Pond Mountain sports a two-boat garage opening on both ends for his bass boats, and the two stories of the Pipe reflect the competiveness of tournament bass fishing. Turmoil and psychological paradoxes in the author's life during this period are reflected in “To Be True” and “Chocolate Pants.” Though the author has left Pond Mountain, his memories live on in these stories.

About the Author

Ed Gentle was born in Birmingham, Alabama, on February 17, 1953. He has a BS from Auburn, an MS from Miami, a BA and an MA from Oxford, and a JD from Alabama, completing his formal education in 1981. He received Danforth, Maytag, Hugo Black, and Rhodes scholarships. He has practiced law for over thirty years and is the founding partner of his law firm, which specializes in the settlement of mass torts involving medical devices, chemicals, smelters, contaminants, taxes, ERISA claims, antitrust, and other claims. He began fishing at age two and is a tournament bass angler, qualifying for the Bassing America and BAIT Classics. He was married twice, is divorced, has three sons, and lives alternatively in two lake houses with his lab, Charlie.