Lifelines

Angling. Is there anything better? Setting up for a day's fishing at a favourite haunt, the beautiful countryside an enchanting backdrop to the anticipated aquatic battle that lies ahead. The dip of a float or a twitch on the rod top indicating some unseen interest in the angler's bait, before the float plunges under or the rod top rips round… now let the battle commence!

Of course, angling offers so much more than the ultimate outcome of a fish or two. The serenity, the beauty and the solitude that our waterways offer the intrepid piscator are truly amazing. Angling is spiritual; it's therapeutic and it manifests healing properties for the mind. There is an innate desire to fish in all of us that dates back through thousands of years of mankind's development; many anglers truly believe they were born to fish.

These sentiments are shared amongst the contributors to Lifelines. In all, twenty-eight actors, entertainers, filmmakers, authors, journalists and anglers bring you a selection of short stories centred around angling. Some are true, others are works of fiction.

Comedian, actor and one half of Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing Paul Whitehouse reminisces on his experiences on the middle Dee one burning hot August weekend, Luke Jennings (creator of Villanelle and bestselling author of the Killing Eve series) takes us into the realms of the supernatural, and international wildlife filmmaker and Passion for Angling director Hugh Miles tells of a fatal encounter with the pumas of South America. Whether you're an angler or not yourself, you are sure to enjoy these and many other fantastic contributions. There's even a winter's ghost story to keep you company on a cold and windy night!

This is the perfect book to dip in and out of (if you can put it down) and has been expertly compiled by authors Nathan Walter and Rod Sturdy, who have chosen to donate all profits from the book to good causes, including the John Wilson Fishing Enterprise (jwfe.co.uk) which helps children and adults deal with mental health issues through angling.

Tight Lines!