John Goddard and Brian Clarke, 1980

he Trout and the Fly was published four years after Marinaro's In the Ring of the Rise, and takes almost exactly the same approach to its subject, with some excellent photography of the world seen from a trout's point of view. The book is based around a theory that the 'flaring' of a fly's wings as it drifts into the window is a significant trigger to cause trout to rise and the authors designed a series of 'USD paraduns' (upside down parachute dry flies), to deceive selective trout. The flies did not catch on, partly because they are difficult to tie and partly because few trout are that selective, but the book is worth reading because of all the 'scientific' books about trout, it is the one which best brings all the threads together.

There are chapters on how to see trout, where they lie, clues to feeding behaviour, how the trout sees and what the trout sees of the angler. There is a very good section on the nymph and how to read nymph takes and the patterns are worth a go if you are a competent tyer.

I would suggest reading this book together with In the Ring of the Rise. The latter book probably has the edge on the photography and Marinaro's has a way with words that few can match, but the two definitely make a pair.