Fishing with Walker, edited by Peter Maskell

Mark Williams reviews a new title of collected works by the Maestro himself.

The Publisher says:

There’s a special treat in store for Dick Walker fans with the launch of a brand new book by the Maestro.

Fishing With Walker contains articles from Fishing magazine and Angling Times – none of which have appeared in book form before.

There are sections on all the major species and how to catch them; tactics, hard-hitting and side-splitting comments on a wide range of topical issues and much, much more.

Many of the supporting photographs have never previously been published.

Discover which fish was Dick’s favourite species, how he came face to face with a 7lb perch, when barbel bite best, the myth of Redmire and the mystery of the monsters of the Great Ouse.

There are controversial comments on the lack of angling on TV, the close season debate, groundbaiting and shotting patterns.

Joining him on the bankside are his closest fishing pals, Pete Thomas, Fred J Taylor, his brother Ken and their cousin, Joe.

No angler, whether he fishes purely for relaxation, or looks upon the sport as an exciting challenge, can fail to find a treasure trove of information and entertainment between the covers of Fishing With Walker.

Mark Williams says:

Very shortly after I joined Angling Times as a cub reporter, Dick Walker died, thus depriving me of a chance to meet him. But thanks to his prodigious contribution to angling literature including his AT contributions, I already knew that he was in a class of his own.

A new collection of many of his best articles, from both Fishing magazine and AT, have now been assembled in a book, Fishing with Walker, and it gives a great insight into angling and into the mind of the man many FishingMagic members rate the finest angler of the last 50 years.

What set Dick apart from many angling romancers was that all of his advice – every word – was based on his own experience. His ability to analyse an angling situation and formulate a logical way of catching fish comes through in almost every article. The editor, Peter Maskell, has selected a great many which have advice as sound today as when it was written; this is a great book for anyone learning to fish.

But sprinkled throughout the near-200 pages are pictures, anecdote and opinion which flag up the fact that Dick Walker was irascible, and happy to debunk theory, even when the opinion of his friends. Dick Walker did not suffer fools gladly.

Peter Maskell has skilfully sieved some of Dick Walker's finest writing, and Fishing with Walker makes a fine follow-up to Be My Guest, which celebrated the 25th anniversary of Dick's death. I was slightly disappointed that the contents list was not page-indexed to make dipping into the book easier, but this left me only with the option of reading every page. And if you read every page of this book, you will know more about angling, whoever you are.

Fishing with Walker is a limited edition of 500 signed hardback copies, priced at £26.95 and is available HERE