Author: Tom
Quinn
Publisher: Quiller
publishing Ltd in 2017
Rating: ***
Angling has a rich literary history dating back centuries,
countless books have been published which tell the tales of fishing disasters
and the “one that got away”. Tom Quinn has tapped into this abundant resource
to complete his latest work, an anthology of such tales. The book is nicely
presented and is ideal for reading by the fireside on cold winter days and nights
when you are trapped indoors, an entertaining mood lifter.
He has selected eloquent writers whose tales are well
crafted, which results in this book being of a high literary standard. However, I do think there is scope for a
wider spread of writers and eras. On
several occasions he has included the work of the same author in successive
pieces which leads you to think Quinn has read a book and listed the stories
that he believes fit, adding them into the book as he has found them.
I would also like to see a more diverse range of subject
matter included such as Zane Grey’s swordfish tale, John Bailey’s sturgeon tale
from “Trout at Ten Thousand Feet” or Buller’s lost pike on Loch
Lomond all of which really fire the imagination and the desire to
get out and fish. Perhaps he is saving
those for a later edition, which having read this work, I would look forward to
reading.