You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
The plot follows the life saga of three men and a fox terrier who in their desperate attempt to escape the tensions decide on a boat trip. The story is a humourous travelogue of their vacation and all things that could happen on a trip. It also is filled with bunch of side anecdotes that has nothing to do with the original plot and yet made sense and kept me entertained.
The story uncovered everything related to trips from packing to being hypochondriac to being seasick to making a fool of themselves on the way, the shenanigans did not come to a halt. Published in the year 1889, the story aged well and still made laugh at several occasions. They are filled with witty and funny lines and I had a gala time.
The story uncovered everything related to trips from packing to being hypochondriac to being seasick to making a fool of themselves on the way, the shenanigans did not come to a halt. Published in the year 1889, the story aged well and still made laugh at several occasions. They are filled with witty and funny lines and I had a gala time.
HOOPLA. Read because it was referenced several times in “To Say Nothing is the Dog” so I thought I should read it. Rather boring, dry, British humor. Have a bit of history of river travel on the Thames, but a sow slog.
I read this the first time when I was a teenager and it left me with a lasting impression of "lots of fun" of the deadpan variety. Reading it now, several (ahem !) years later, my tastes in reading have changed a bit, but it was still a very, very enjoyable read and I even laughed out loud at the German singer's story that I had completely forgotten about.
Whether it was a bout the housemaid's knee disease, his doctor friend's prescription, the travel itself with its events, the tea kettle, J.'s friend willing to play music (and failing miserably), etc., it was all so fun.
What also amused me is that the novel was written at the end of the 19th century, but you can read the same complaints about "modern" life that you hear nowadays : the changing of the landscape, the "fretful haste" and the personality change that today occurs when driving a car happened then... while sailing a boat (type "Goffy motor mania" and watch the video result for an example).
A quote to share some deadpan humour ?
"It always does seem to me that I am doing more work than I should do. It is not that I object to the work, mind you, I like work : it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours. I love to keep it by me : the idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart.
And I am careful of my work, too. Why, some of the work that I have by me now has been in my possession for years and years, and there isn't a finger-mark on it. I take a great pride in my work ; I take it down now and then and dust it. No man keeps his work in a better state of preservation than I do. The idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart."
Whether it was a bout the housemaid's knee disease, his doctor friend's prescription, the travel itself with its events, the tea kettle, J.'s friend willing to play music (and failing miserably), etc., it was all so fun.
What also amused me is that the novel was written at the end of the 19th century, but you can read the same complaints about "modern" life that you hear nowadays : the changing of the landscape, the "fretful haste" and the personality change that today occurs when driving a car happened then... while sailing a boat (type "Goffy motor mania" and watch the video result for an example).
A quote to share some deadpan humour ?
"It always does seem to me that I am doing more work than I should do. It is not that I object to the work, mind you, I like work : it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours. I love to keep it by me : the idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart.
And I am careful of my work, too. Why, some of the work that I have by me now has been in my possession for years and years, and there isn't a finger-mark on it. I take a great pride in my work ; I take it down now and then and dust it. No man keeps his work in a better state of preservation than I do. The idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart."
After reading the first chapter of this book, I couldn’t believe that I had somehow gone my entire life without it. Jerome has created a masterpiece of humor, a sort of travelogue with random reminiscences thrown in, and a little spice of thoughtfulness as well.
Published in 1889, the story follows our narrator, J., as he and two of his friends, Harris and George. Feeling weary of their everyday life, they decide to take a holiday by boating up the Thames. But the joy of this story is in the narration itself, as J. gives us plenty of asides. While the book loosely follows their journey, much the book is meandering anecdotes, a style that feels like it ought to be annoying but is honestly just pure delight. I could not stop laughing while I was reading this book, and probably read over half of it out loud to my ever-patient husband, because so much of this story was just too much fun to keep to myself.
I tried to mark pages to quote for this review, but realized that what I really wanted to do was quote the entire book, which means that you just simply need to sit down and read it for yourself as soon as you possibly can.
One of the things that I loved about this story was how while the setting was obviously dated, the story didn’t seem to be at all. The adventures and thoughts of these three were completely relatable, right from the first page where J. tells us how he visited the the British Museum and started reading about various diseases and realized that he had them all! While WebMD may have given us a more modern access to hypochondria, it is most certainly not an issue limited to our place in time!
The whole book is that way. The classic story of Uncle Podger hanging a picture (who hasn’t known someone just like him?!), the comforting realization that a full stomach makes you feel just as happy and contented as a clear conscience (and so much cheaper and more easily obtained!), the foul and dirty nature of a tow line – Jerome captures our human nature perfectly, and, in the process, reveals that we really haven’t changed that much in the almost 130 years since he wrote this tale.
Besides humorous anecdotes, Jerome also gives us snippets of history and various travel tips that are thoroughly engaging, and also manages to touch on serious topics with a deft hand, somehow slipping it between funny bits without detracting from the story or trivializing the issue at hand. His few pages on a young, unmarried mother who found that drowning herself in the river was easier than continuing to live under a cloud of shame and poverty genuinely choked me up, and added yet another layer to the fact that human nature – both of those who have been judged and those who judge – really hasn’t changed that much, either.
In short, this is a book that is very much worth reading. As I said at the beginning, I cannot believe that I have never read it before – or even heard that much about it! This book is a delight that I think everyone would – and should! – enjoy.
Published in 1889, the story follows our narrator, J., as he and two of his friends, Harris and George. Feeling weary of their everyday life, they decide to take a holiday by boating up the Thames. But the joy of this story is in the narration itself, as J. gives us plenty of asides. While the book loosely follows their journey, much the book is meandering anecdotes, a style that feels like it ought to be annoying but is honestly just pure delight. I could not stop laughing while I was reading this book, and probably read over half of it out loud to my ever-patient husband, because so much of this story was just too much fun to keep to myself.
I tried to mark pages to quote for this review, but realized that what I really wanted to do was quote the entire book, which means that you just simply need to sit down and read it for yourself as soon as you possibly can.
One of the things that I loved about this story was how while the setting was obviously dated, the story didn’t seem to be at all. The adventures and thoughts of these three were completely relatable, right from the first page where J. tells us how he visited the the British Museum and started reading about various diseases and realized that he had them all! While WebMD may have given us a more modern access to hypochondria, it is most certainly not an issue limited to our place in time!
The whole book is that way. The classic story of Uncle Podger hanging a picture (who hasn’t known someone just like him?!), the comforting realization that a full stomach makes you feel just as happy and contented as a clear conscience (and so much cheaper and more easily obtained!), the foul and dirty nature of a tow line – Jerome captures our human nature perfectly, and, in the process, reveals that we really haven’t changed that much in the almost 130 years since he wrote this tale.
Besides humorous anecdotes, Jerome also gives us snippets of history and various travel tips that are thoroughly engaging, and also manages to touch on serious topics with a deft hand, somehow slipping it between funny bits without detracting from the story or trivializing the issue at hand. His few pages on a young, unmarried mother who found that drowning herself in the river was easier than continuing to live under a cloud of shame and poverty genuinely choked me up, and added yet another layer to the fact that human nature – both of those who have been judged and those who judge – really hasn’t changed that much, either.
In short, this is a book that is very much worth reading. As I said at the beginning, I cannot believe that I have never read it before – or even heard that much about it! This book is a delight that I think everyone would – and should! – enjoy.
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Some funny passages and observations. But not much depth of character or plot progression. Didn’t really know the difference between the three men, other than knowing the narrator
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
2.5 Stars
Note: required reading for school
“What the eye does not see, the stomach does not get upset over.”
This was a hilarious book. J, George and Harris are the book version of The Three Stooges. I mean you have to have a sense of humor with a name like Jerome Jerome. The narration at points was kind of fuzzy for me but overall this book will make you chuckle at least once.
Note: required reading for school
“What the eye does not see, the stomach does not get upset over.”
This was a hilarious book. J, George and Harris are the book version of The Three Stooges. I mean you have to have a sense of humor with a name like Jerome Jerome. The narration at points was kind of fuzzy for me but overall this book will make you chuckle at least once.
A great bit of silly fun this book, with some occasional pearls of wisdom. It reminded me a lot of a literary version of Family Guy, with a main narrative which is kind of by the by, but made special by the cut aways and anecdotes.
Of its age, so don't expect anything woke.
Of its age, so don't expect anything woke.
Light, funny, and strangely relatable for a travel guide/ road trip account from the 19th century. Oh, and there's a dog.
Basically, three white-collar workers and their dog decide to take a vacation and boat down the Thames. They have no clue what they're doing, so just the description of them making arrangements (bad arrangements) and packing (as if they're going to the other end of the world) sets up a million jokes to come. They can't put up a tent, they can't do laundry but definitely pack as if they can wash clothes in the river, and it soon comes out that, for men on a sailing trip, they really don't know how to sail. Jerome also makes jokes about local tourism (read: churchyards and graves). At one point, he writes a scene where a sexton or vicar or someone vaguely related to the church desperately tries to entice him into visiting the crypts or at least a patch of the graveyard, and the author stand-in has to tear himself away with a lot of anger and shaking of the head.
My personal favorite episode involved the maze at Hampton Court. One of the author's travel companions studies a map of the maze in advance, so when they find other visitors hopelessly lost inside, he tells them he knows the way out, and this keeps happening until they've collected every visitor in the maze and it turns out the map he studied was definitely wrong.
Recommended as a fun, very British kind of read. It's fun to watch other people be clumsy for a change.
Basically, three white-collar workers and their dog decide to take a vacation and boat down the Thames. They have no clue what they're doing, so just the description of them making arrangements (bad arrangements) and packing (as if they're going to the other end of the world) sets up a million jokes to come. They can't put up a tent, they can't do laundry but definitely pack as if they can wash clothes in the river, and it soon comes out that, for men on a sailing trip, they really don't know how to sail. Jerome also makes jokes about local tourism (read: churchyards and graves). At one point, he writes a scene where a sexton or vicar or someone vaguely related to the church desperately tries to entice him into visiting the crypts or at least a patch of the graveyard, and the author stand-in has to tear himself away with a lot of anger and shaking of the head.
My personal favorite episode involved the maze at Hampton Court. One of the author's travel companions studies a map of the maze in advance, so when they find other visitors hopelessly lost inside, he tells them he knows the way out, and this keeps happening until they've collected every visitor in the maze and it turns out the map he studied was definitely wrong.
Recommended as a fun, very British kind of read. It's fun to watch other people be clumsy for a change.
A really funny book. What struck me the most is how timeless it felt. It was written in 1889 and yet, for the most part, it could just as well have been written recently. I was also surprised to find that the humour in this book reminded me a lot of Douglas Adams' one in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, written almost a century later!
However I feel that there might have been too many descriptions and stories about the little towns and villages the three men came across during their boat trip. Also, I wish the narrator's two friends had been more unique and distinct from each other, as it was you could barely tell one from the other.
I'd still recommand this book to anyone looking for a good laugh.
However I feel that there might have been too many descriptions and stories about the little towns and villages the three men came across during their boat trip. Also, I wish the narrator's two friends had been more unique and distinct from each other, as it was you could barely tell one from the other.
I'd still recommand this book to anyone looking for a good laugh.