General Books on Fishing Techniques & Understanding Trout

In my final section I have decided to omit books written by scientists (yes, biologists may teach us a great deal about trout and aquatic insects but they can be pretty boring!) and the dryer manuals on fishing techniques, no matter how erudite.

Clarke, B. & Goddard, G., The Trout and the Fly, Benn, 1980 (there is also a rather unimposing looking later paperback edition).  Considered revolutionary at the time, The Trout and the Fly is a very good book on river fly fishing and well-illustrated with colour plates and line drawings.  It covers all aspects of the sport – spotting fish, rivercraft, natural insects, artificials, techniques etc. – and is accompanied by a film (purchased separately) available on DVD.  It was perhaps not quite as revolutionary as the maketing men led us to believe; the new designs of trout flies, for example, were little different from flies that had been around in the USA for some time before the publication of the book.

Gierach, J., Fly Fishing Small Streams, Stackpole Books, 1989.  This is an excellent introduction to fly fishing on small rivers and an illustration of how good an angler John Gierach must be – even if he appears modest with respect to technique.  Anyone who fishes small streams would benefit from reading this book and while I have read other books on this subject they don’t come close to it.

Harding, E.W., The Fly-Fisher and the Trout’s Point of View, London, 1931.  OK this book is a little on the dry side, and difficult to get hold of, but it’s an illuminating work nevertheless.  I’m not really into anthropomorphism (why then did I curse that little blighter lying close to a sunken branch when it refused everything I threw at it?) but Harding adopts a fairly logical and scientific approach.

Mottram, J.C., Fly-Fishing: Some New Arts and Mysteries, 1915 (re-published by FFCL 1984).  A real ‘thinker’s’ book this one.  I don’t always agree with Mottram – I think, for example, he underestimates the importance of movement in artificial flies – but he is the kind of writer who makes us think about the central issues.

Proper, D., What the Trout Said (about the design of trout flies and other mysteries), first USA edition 1982 (revised and augmented UK edition, Swan Hill Press, 1993).  Another thought-provoking book with a title reminiscent of Harding, Mottram and Skues.  Once again, not really an anthropomorphic book but a work where logical thinking about the trout’s eyesight, senses and feeding habits teaches us how to tie flies.  I don’t agree with everything Datus Proper says but then I often disagree with things I wrote myself a number of years ago.

Ritz, C., A Fly Fisher’s Life: the art and mechanics of fly fishing, Reinhardt, 1959 (I have the revised 1972 edition).  Maybe this seems a strange choice but it’s a book I return to gain and again.  Is it for the pictures of huge trout, sea trout and salmon?  Is it because of the personalities that adorn its pages – Charles Ritz himself, Ernest Hemingway, Arnold Gingrich, Jon Tarantino, Lefty Kreh, Albert Goddart, Al McClane, Frank Sawyer, Maurice Simonet, Dermot Wilson et al?  Is it because of all the rivers I have not fished but would love to fish – Aaro, Andelle, Em, Madison, McKenzie, Risle, Salza, Soca, Traun?  Is it for the technical stuff on rod design and casting?  Or the wealth of material on artificial flies and fishing techniques?  I don’t know, perhaps it is all these things.  In truth, the style of prose in the English language edition is a tad unusual but it is easy to read nevertheless.  It is a book that embraces many things and has widened my perspective on fly fishing.

Weaver, M., The Pursuit of Wild Trout, Merlin Unwin, 1991.  Last, but by no means least, is a book that may well have escaped the attention of many anglers.  It is an excellent starting point for newcomers to river fly fishing but there is much too to interest old hands.  In some respects it is the antithesis of A Fly Fisher’s Life.  There is no glitz and glamour and although there are chapters on fishing in Ireland and the USA most of the rivers referred to are in England.  I have fished them too such as the East Lyn of Devon and the Derbyshire Wye.  The book is logically developed, beautifully illustrated and well-written and I particularly like the selection of artificial flies contained within the book.  Because it is an attractive book, I pick it from the shelves pretty frequently.