When Robin was a boy, fishing with his father was an integral and much-loved part of family holidays, but as an adult he fished infrequently, with terrible technique and rare success. Until one day, feeling inspired to supplement the vegetables from his allotment with nature’s free bounty, fish, he tentatively decided to try again. Full of dizzy excitement at all the equipment available – the rods, the reels, the rigs, the lures, the tackle box complete with light in its lid, into which everything packed so beautifully – he embarked on his journey as a born-again angler.

What follows is a funny, touching and even informative book about Britain’s most popular sport. From beachcasting off the stormy Pembrokeshire coast to flyfishing for trout in tranquil Hertfordshire, Robin shares his experiences, his successes and failures, and even some of his favourite recipes. Along the way he discovers exactly why anglers feel so passionate about their chosen sport.