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MICHEL BOUVARD & FRANÇOIS ESPINASSE
A few years later, when I lived in Épinay-sur-Orge
(Isoir called it “Spinet-upon-Organ), he invited me
for a day of fishing at a private lake near Palaiseau. I
then discovered that, when your name is André Isoir,
there is a thin line between the “art of fugue” and the
“art of fishing”; once again, I was fascinated by his
meticulousness and sense of detail, from the stool
fitted with filing drawers to the clever little machine
he had devised to tie the line to the hook automatically.
After quite a while waiting for the fish to bite, I decided
to step away towards a smaller, hidden lake, where
my “defeat” would go unnoticed. And then, a miracle
happened: I caught two trout in a row… until André
came rushing over and said, half amused, half furious:
“Get out of here! Good Lord,you’re going toget us kicked
out: this is the fish reserve!” Amongst other qualities,
he has a good memory; the last time I saw him, he was
still laughing about it!