30 YEARS OF FINE ANGLING BOOKS
The Medlar Press is the UK's leading angling publisher. It has been specialising in fishing books for thirty years in 2024 and prides itself on the quality of its publications.
Jon and Rose Ward-Allen set up the company in 1994 having spent many years in London publishing houses and were driven by the traditional aims of producing excellent, thought-provoking and beautiful books.
Jon had fished from an early age and was aware of the depth of literature in angling - as well as the environmental problems affecting the sport. When the Press was set up there was hardly anyone publishing quality angling literature and history and no one in the book world attempting to put traditional values back into what can be, essentially, a very gentle pastime - it was a gap that we successfully filled and continue to fill.
Since it published its very first titles Medlar has gained an enviable reputation for producing the finest fishing books. Each book is designed and produced to very high standards. If only on account of the number of titles that we have in print in this specialist area, we are now the UK's leading angling publisher - if not Europe's.
Medlar’s fishing books include some of the great classics of angling literature but also many books from contemporary authors - works of historical or biological research, and literary works deserving of a wide audience.
As a British company, Medlar is proud to support the British printing industry and all our books are printed in the UK using sustainable paper and environment-friendly inks.
Our limited editions are bound in high quality cloth or leather, hand-finished with cover embossings and traditional endpapers. Many of the illustrations for our fishing books are commissioned from highly talented artists, and our photographs, if not provided by the authors (some of whom are superb photographers), come from our own extensive Medlar Photographic Library.
We have many regular customers, some of whom have collected our fishing books since we started. We like to think that this is mainly because we produce good books but we hope it’s also to do with the service we provide. Whether you order your books by phone, through our website or from our Amazon shop, we aim to get your books to you safely, well packaged and as soon as possible.
In 1996, Jon and Rose founded Waterlog (with the help of Chris Yates) to provide good quality, albeit eccentric reading matter for anglers who enjoy the process of fishing as much as the catch. The magazine was edited by Jon and Rose Ward-Allen, along with Andrew Herd, and produced quarterly. It ran for 100 glorious issues, culminating in a beautiful book - Waterlog 101.
See full list of Medlar books
The Medlar Press is the UK's leading angling publisher. It has been specialising in fishing books for thirty years in 2024 and prides itself on the quality of its publications.
Jon and Rose Ward-Allen set up the company in 1994 having spent many years in London publishing houses and were driven by the traditional aims of producing excellent, thought-provoking and beautiful books.
Jon had fished from an early age and was aware of the depth of literature in angling - as well as the environmental problems affecting the sport. When the Press was set up there was hardly anyone publishing quality angling literature and history and no one in the book world attempting to put traditional values back into what can be, essentially, a very gentle pastime - it was a gap that we successfully filled and continue to fill.
Since it published its very first titles Medlar has gained an enviable reputation for producing the finest fishing books. Each book is designed and produced to very high standards. If only on account of the number of titles that we have in print in this specialist area, we are now the UK's leading angling publisher - if not Europe's.
Medlar’s fishing books include some of the great classics of angling literature but also many books from contemporary authors - works of historical or biological research, and literary works deserving of a wide audience.
As a British company, Medlar is proud to support the British printing industry and all our books are printed in the UK using sustainable paper and environment-friendly inks.
Our limited editions are bound in high quality cloth or leather, hand-finished with cover embossings and traditional endpapers. Many of the illustrations for our fishing books are commissioned from highly talented artists, and our photographs, if not provided by the authors (some of whom are superb photographers), come from our own extensive Medlar Photographic Library.
We have many regular customers, some of whom have collected our fishing books since we started. We like to think that this is mainly because we produce good books but we hope it’s also to do with the service we provide. Whether you order your books by phone, through our website or from our Amazon shop, we aim to get your books to you safely, well packaged and as soon as possible.
In 1996, Jon and Rose founded Waterlog (with the help of Chris Yates) to provide good quality, albeit eccentric reading matter for anglers who enjoy the process of fishing as much as the catch. The magazine was edited by Jon and Rose Ward-Allen, along with Andrew Herd, and produced quarterly. It ran for 100 glorious issues, culminating in a beautiful book - Waterlog 101.
See full list of Medlar books
A few comments about Medlar titles :
'An outstandingly good book . . .' - Sandy Leventon in Trout and Salmon Magazine about Hugh Falkus - A Life on the Edge.
'A tour de force!' - Angling Times about Richard Walker - Biography of an Angling Legend.
'. . . one of the best texts about fish I have ever read.' - Andrew Herd in Waterlog about Aphrodite’s Carp.
'. . . the largest and most detailed study of a freshwater species ever published.' - Brian Clarke in The Times about The Complete Book of the Roach.
‘. . . drama, scandal and extraordinary insights into barbel fishing history.’ - Angler’s Mail about A Can of Worms.
‘. . . one of the best pieces of writing and thought in fly fishing literature.’ - John Betts about The History of Fly Fishing.
‘Probably the best book about fishing ever published.’ - Keith Elliott, The Independent about Casting at the Sun.
‘One of the funniest angling books ever written.’ - Halieus, Waterlog about One for the Road.
‘. . . the best account to date of . . . Scottish salmon politics' - Atlantic Salmon Trust about Saving Scotland's Salmon.
‘. . . a pioneering, not-to-be missed book' - Alexander Schwab about Fish & Fishermen.
‘. . . the angling book of the year' - Andrew Herd, Waterlog, about A Train to Catch
‘I was frequently reminded of 'the master' [John Gierach] as I read this book' - Trout and Salmon Magazine about The Glorious Uncertainty.
‘ . . . full of quirky delights . . . Nicely produced by the admirable Medlar Press, this book is well researched and great fun to read’ - David Profumo in Country Life, about Fish & Fishers of the Lake District.
'An outstandingly good book . . .' - Sandy Leventon in Trout and Salmon Magazine about Hugh Falkus - A Life on the Edge.
'A tour de force!' - Angling Times about Richard Walker - Biography of an Angling Legend.
'. . . one of the best texts about fish I have ever read.' - Andrew Herd in Waterlog about Aphrodite’s Carp.
'. . . the largest and most detailed study of a freshwater species ever published.' - Brian Clarke in The Times about The Complete Book of the Roach.
‘. . . drama, scandal and extraordinary insights into barbel fishing history.’ - Angler’s Mail about A Can of Worms.
‘. . . one of the best pieces of writing and thought in fly fishing literature.’ - John Betts about The History of Fly Fishing.
‘Probably the best book about fishing ever published.’ - Keith Elliott, The Independent about Casting at the Sun.
‘One of the funniest angling books ever written.’ - Halieus, Waterlog about One for the Road.
‘. . . the best account to date of . . . Scottish salmon politics' - Atlantic Salmon Trust about Saving Scotland's Salmon.
‘. . . a pioneering, not-to-be missed book' - Alexander Schwab about Fish & Fishermen.
‘. . . the angling book of the year' - Andrew Herd, Waterlog, about A Train to Catch
‘I was frequently reminded of 'the master' [John Gierach] as I read this book' - Trout and Salmon Magazine about The Glorious Uncertainty.
‘ . . . full of quirky delights . . . Nicely produced by the admirable Medlar Press, this book is well researched and great fun to read’ - David Profumo in Country Life, about Fish & Fishers of the Lake District.