In this hugely enjoyable book, Alf Sharpling tells the story of his enthusiasm for sea angling and of the many adventures that he, his friend Bill and their long-suffering families encountered in the course of pursuing their mutual hobby/obsession.

His tales of their many, mostly unsuccessful, fishing trips to the coastal waters of Essex, Cornwall and South Wales are a catalogue of disasters guaranteed to amuse any fellow amateur fisherman/angler.

The inept pair get into all kinds of scrapes, make every mistake that rookie fisherman can, almost drown on more than one occasion, but refuse to give up hope in their dogged pursuit of the elusive sea bass. Whether fishing from beach, pier, cliff-top or boat, the accident-prone duo inevitably succeed in making fools of themselves, to the embarrassment of their children and the despair of their wives. Many of their predicaments will be all too familiar to those who share their piscatorial passion.

As well as being a marvellously funny portrayal of the obsessive nature of the hobby of fishing, this is also a warm-hearted depiction of friendship, parenthood and family life that can be enjoyed by anyone with a sense of humour and deserves to become a classic.