Three Men in a Boat

Three Men in a Boat

Author:Jerome Klapka Jerome

Published in: 1889

Reprinted by: Wordsworth Editions Limited (1993)

Number of pages:185

Main characters:

narrator, George, Harris, Montmorency

Plot:

Three Men in a Boat is a funny book describing a few-day-lasting journey of three friends - J. , Harris and George - and their dog on the river Thames. Suffering from all kind of health problems, boredom and desire of some changes in their lives, they decide to hire a boat and float by it from London to Oxford. They hope they will satisfy their wantage by this. During these few days lots of all kinds of more or less remarkable things happens to them, and a lot of other stories tells one of the men, who is not named in the book and who represents the author. These stories create in fact main part of the book.

Comments:

The book is really easy-going, with no conflicts, easy to read. The humor definitely is there, but sometimes it is a little bit too tacky for me. The characters are quite similar so I got totally lost who is who for a few times. Also all the names of pubs etc. were a bit messy. But I really recommend reading it The level of English is OK

Extract:

It cast a gloom over the boat, there being no mustard. We ate our beef in silence. Existence seemed hollow and uninteresting. We thought of the happy days of childhood, and sighed. We brightened up a bit, however, over the apple-tart, and, when George drew out a tin of pine-apple from the bottom of the hamper, and rolled it in to the middle of the boat, we felt that life was worth living after all.

The whole book:

http://www.forgottenfutures.com/game/boat/boat.htm