December 9, 2025 — Two books by women in the fishing industry have landed on my desk this year. While many women work on fishing boats—these days more than ever—historically, women have worked on the land side of fishing; they build the gear, process the catch, and take care of their families. These books come from those worlds.
In 2018, Kate Mitchell, the founder of NOMAR, a maker of brailer bags for the Alaska salmon fishery, published The Bag Lady at the End of the Road, a book that tells her and her family’s story. Like many Alaska stories, Mitchell’s is one of tenacity, luck, and finding creative ways to survive. Her book begins on the plains of South Dakota, and lessons learned from her independent-spirited mother, Ruby, who said, when pushed to become a teacher, “she would get a tin bill and pick shit with the chickens before she would ever become a teacher.”