Fly Fishing by J R Hartley

J R Hartley’s best-known catch to date is the public imagination/ But here are his elusive fishing recollections told in a series of sometimes vividly comic chronological cameos, ranging over period and location – from Yorkshire schooldays in the early 1930s, through memorable outings on chalk stream, spate river and loch, to a startling conclusion half a lifetime later on a Scottish summer night.

Complemented by is protégé Patrick Benson’s evocative illustrations, and with his angling expertise lightly threaded throughout, J R’s Story will touch every fly fisherman’s experience. But it is a book, too, that will appeal to everyone, even those who have never held a rod, for the engaging portrait that emerges of the ultimate reluctant hero.