Three Men in a Boat (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Jerome K Jerome (Author)

Book Description

Series: Penguin Classics | Publication Date: March 25, 2004

Martyrs to hypochondria and general seediness, J. and his friends George and Harris decide that a jaunt up the Thames would suit them to a T'. But when they set off, they can hardly predict the troubles that lie ahead with tow-ropes, unreliable weather-forecasts and tins of pineapple chunks not to mention the devastation left in the wake of J.'s small fox-terrier Montmorency. Three Men in a Boat was an instant success when it appeared in 1889, and, with its benign escapism, authorial discursions and wonderful evocation of the late-Victorian clerking classes', it hilariously captured the spirit of its age.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jerome K Jerome (1859-1927) became an actor and published a couple of volumes of humorous pieces and light essays about the theatre. He achieved lasting fame with THREE MEN IN A BOAT. He later went on to become one of the founders of the humorous magazine, The Idler, and continued to write articles and plays. Jeremy Lewis has recently written a biography of Cyril Connolly and has edited the Raffles books.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics/Press (March 25, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0141441216
• ISBN-13: 978-0141441214
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #220,238 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars To say nothing of the dog!, June 15, 2006

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Three Men in a Boat (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Imagine Bertie Wooster and two of his idiot friends out on a boat... with no Jeeves. That about describes "Three Men in a Boat : To Say Nothing of the Dog," Jerome K. Jerome's enchanting comic novel about three young men (to say nothing of the dog) who discover the "joys" of roughing it.

The three men are George, Harris and the narrator, who are all massive hypochiandriacs -- they find that they have symptoms of every disease in existance (except housemaid's knee). To prop up their failing health, they decide to take a cruise down the Thames in a rented boat, camping and enjoying nature's bounty.

Along with Monty -- an angelic-looking, devilish terrier -- the three friends set off down the river. But they find that not everything is as easy as they expected. They get lost in hedge mazes, end up going downstream without a paddle, encounter monstrous cats and vicious swans, have picnics navigate locks, offend German professors, and generally get into every kind of trouble they possibly can...

Even though it was published more than a century ago, "Three Men in a Boat" remains as freshly humorous as when it was first published. While editor/playwright/author Jerome K. Jerome wrote a lot of other books, this book remains his most famous. And once you've read it, you'll see why.

Jerome's real talent is in finding humor in everyday things, like trying to erect a tent in the woods, getting seasick, or questioning whether it's safe to drink river water. Written in Jerome's dry, goofy prose, these little occurrances become immensely funny. One of the funniest parts of the book is when the boys listen to a fishermen telling of his prowess, only to accidently knock down his record-breaking stuffed fish.... and discover it's made out of plaster. Oops.

But Jerome takes a break from the humor near the end, when the boys find a drowned woman floating in the river. And here he becomes solemn and quietly compassionate: "She had sinned - some of us do now and then - and her family and friends, naturally shocked and indignant, had closed their doors against her."

But back on the funny stuff. The capstone on all this humor is the "three men." These guys are basically pampered Victorian aristocrats, who have a romantic yearning for the great outdoors. You'll be laughing at them and with them, as they struggle through the basics of boating and camping.

Funny, wacky and creepily true to life, "Three Men in a Boat" is an enduring comic classic in the vein of PG Wodehouse. Not to mention the dog!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant piece of Victorian dalliance., February 13, 2006

By 

Sailoil - See all my reviews

This review is from: Three Men in a Boat (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

J.K. Jerome was one of those hard working writers who became an overnight success after years of rejection. His best known work, Three Men in a Boat, took a bath with the critics. They saw him as a jumped up clerk writing "threepenny shockers" and not a serious novelist.

The people of Victorian Britain did not agree with the critics, and bought this book in their droves. In contrast to the usual three volume monsters of the day this book is a small and light read. The plot follows the cruise of three friends from London to Oxford in a rowing skiff, but the author charges off on frequent hares to illuminate his tale.

As a result we learn quite a bit about victorian life, the standard of inns, the behaviour of landladies, how to shop, plenty of sound advice on packing, storage, camping, food, dogs, cats, boats and a host of other things.

I somehow doubt I am brave enough to follow the recipe for "Irish Stew", but maybe there are some hardier souls than I out there who are up for the challenge. I did think they were wise not to add in the rat, regardless of how upsetting the dog may have found this discrimination.

The introduction and notes in the Penguin version are also useful for those who want to colour in a little of the background of the author and victorian life, and who don't automatically know who John of Gaunt and Ethelred and Edward the Confessor were and what the Magna Carta was and why it pained John so to sign it.

If Bill Bryson wrote this book it would probably be called "A short history of England from pre-history to the Late Victorian Period".