“Indeed if fish had fish-lore and Wise-fish, it is probable that the business of anglers would be very little hindered.”

“We are lost, lost,' said Gollum. 'No name, no business, no Precious, nothing. Only empty. Only hungry; yes, we are hungry. A few little fishes, nasty bony little fishes, for a poor creature, and they say death. So wise they are; so just, so very just”

“All these anglers who claim that catching fish is secondary, that it’s the trip and being outdoors that counts, they are just liars! If you go fishing, you want to catch fish! If the fish didn’t matter, you might as well stay on the beach barbecuing sausages.”

“The next best thing to fishing is thinking about it or talking about it, or both. The well-read angler reflects more vividly on his pastime. And usually fishes better, too. The more you read about fishing, the greater will be your enjoyment, on-stream and off.”

“No wise fish would go anywhere without a porpoise.”

“Ideas are like fish. If you want to catch little fish, you can stay in the shallow water. But if you want to catch the big fish, you’ve got to go deeper. Down deep, the fish are more powerful and more pure.They’re huge and abstract. And they’re very beautiful.”