I’m definitely a book nerd. As a self-identified proud introvert, diving into the depths of the written word provides me with solace and energy. As an information junkie, books have long been part of my identity. Unfortunately, in many quarters their relevance is dwindling – that’s in part due to the rise of the internet, but also due to dwindling attention spans.

Since I reluctantly purchased a Kindle nearly a decade ago, I’ve mostly stopped buying tangible books, except when it’s something that’s either: (a) not available electronically; or (b) something that I expect to be so meaningful that I’ll want it on the shelf. The (b) column is often populated by books related to fishing.

I won’t lie – since the start of the pandemic, on many Zoom and Teams calls I’ve been jealous of the massive numbers of books on my colleagues’ shelves. To me, they’re a cultural signifier that someone is erudite and curious. Our shelves may never reach that level, but it’s a good reminder to me of the importance of books to me life. It has inspired me to order some, while they’re still available.

Bill Dance techniques of bass fishing book

Where Can You Get Books About Fishing?

Fortunately, there are a lot of books available about a wide range of fishing topics, both general and obscure. In some cases, the more specific ones (e.g., some local expert’s guide to his or her home waters) are self-published, and available either directly from the author or from local tackle shops. Not surprisingly, the Amazon behemoth has an incredible range of titles, including some hard-to-find ones. While Hanna and I put plenty of money in Jeff Bezos’ pockets, I’d prefer to buy from a small business when possible – sometimes availability, convenience and most of all price make that difficult to do.

Not surprisingly, you can also buy books about fishing from many online and brick-and-mortar tackle stores. In fact, if you’re a reader I suggest that you look or ask any time you’re in a tackle shop, because they usually have the more esoteric and/or local titles. Even Tackle Warehouse offers a decent book selection, including some bass classics, so while they may not be a reason to shop there on their own, adding one to your cart can get you over the critical $50 free shipping threshold.

If you know a specific hard-to-find or out-of-print book that you have to own, there are various places to check:

Pete Maina's Muskies Suck book about guiding

Specialty Fishing Book Stores

In an industry where Amazon has decimated many local, regional and national book sellers, some have held on by narrowing their focus to a specific niche. There are several U.S.-based businesses that deal exclusively in books (and other items) related to fishing:

Doug Hannon's Book titled Big Bass Magic

Other Fishing Book Stores

Of course, there are also fishing-specific book stores (or stores specializing in sporting books) abroad. The UK seems to have many that relate to topics like fly fishing and “coarse fishing” including Coch-Y-Bonddu Books and Medlar Press. While it’s not fishing-specific, I’ve had good success getting Japanese publications through Kinokuniya, which has great online service as well as physical outposts in New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Texas (four stores), Seattle, Oregon (two stores) and California (five stores).

Books About Fishing But Not About Fishing

While the old-school travel guides may often be obsolete due to their online replacements, there are still a lot of travel-related titles out there that will help you become a better venturing angler. While several of the shops listed in this 2015 article appear to have gone belly-up, there appear to be some travel-specific stores still surviving. They include:

Idlewild Books (NY)
Wide World Books and Maps (Seattle)
And while it’s not specific to any genre, if you find yourself in NYC it pays to lose yourself for a few days at the Strand.

Even if you already have your fill of how-to books about fishing, or tales from the bass trails, there are still many volumes that are fun and at least tangentially related to the sport we love. You might consider one of the following (all readily available):