The Song of the Solitary Bass Fisher

James Batty seldom ventures further than 20 miles from his Cornish home. He fishes from the rocks and beaches in a handful of places and that is enough for him.

Generous with his knowledge and full of fresh ideas, Batty catches bass with lures, flies and bait. It's a myth, he says, that you need expensive gear – he beaches plenty of big bass yet is a tackle skinflint.

He loves to fish in those pre-dawn hours beloved of insomniacs, when the tide brings the big feeding bass close in to the shore.

The book's real focus is on understanding bass behaviour, then using that understanding to work out the place, time and method.

Some bass-fishers obsess over conditions – too flat, too rough, too something. James Batty offers ideas as to how to catch bass in any weather or sea-state.

His book isn't just about the hows-and-whys of bass fishing, it is a wry look at life and it will make the reader laugh – a lot.