TROUT IN DIRTY PLACES. By Theo Pike.

2012 1st edition. 4to (196 x 252mm). Pp256. Colour photographs throughout. Pictorial laminated boards.

"Here is a guide to the most revolutionary development in British angling for many years: fly-fishing for trout and grayling in the very centre of towns and cities throughout the United Kingdom. From Sheffield to South London, from Merthyr Tydfil to Edinburgh, this is the cutting-edge of 21st century fishing. Nothing is more surreal yet exhilarating than casting a fly for iconic clean-water species in the historic surroundings of our most damaged riverscapes - centres of post-industrial decay, but now also of rediscovery and regeneration." Contents include; profiles of fifty selected streams in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland; interviews with local conservationists dedicated to restoring the urban rivers; local flies and emerging traditions; details of how to get involved and support this restoration work, and much else besides. As the publisher says, "This book guides readers towards relaxing, good value fishing on their own doorsteps as a viable alternative to more costly and carbon-intensive destination angling: a positive ...choice in challenging moral and economic times." The first in the field in the UK, and well worth a read.