Three Men in A boat

Novel

Three Men in A boat

Jerome K. Jerome

Three friends, George, William Harris and the author-himself-the narrator of the tale- sit in a room, discussing their maladies, for all of them are ill. But they know not of what. The conclusion they reach is, ‘whatever it was- had been brought on by over work’, and all they want is some rest. Thus, is hatched the great plan to ‘go up the river’, a boating trip from Kingston to Oxford on Thames. Their fourth partner in the trip is Montmorency, a Rat Terrier.

This is an evergreen classic, featuring in most, ‘Greatest novels of all time’ lists. We had an excerpt form the book in our English textbook in school. It has been on my wishlist for decades. I was reminded of it a few days back, as the blurb in an Eric Newby’s book, which I was then reading, compared Newby’s book, Slowly Down the Ganges, with Jerome K. Jerome’s story. I ordered the book and picked it up soon after finishing Newby. I realised, postponing it for years was my great loss. This is one of the funniest books that I have read. Barring a few, almost each para is replete with humour. But the reader is never tired of author’s jokes and his brand of humour. Rather, I gave in unhesitatingly, to the guffaws that burst forth as I read one funny situation after another.

Clearly, objective of the author in writing this book is not to write a travel book about his boat journey. His journey is just a pretext to narrate the funny tales he must have invented or come across in his life. He does talk about various towns and villages, the company of four sail through or halt at, but what dominates the narrative is the funny situations that occur to the author in these locations. He narrates at length the sleeping pattern of George who, ‘goes to sleep at a bank from ten to four each day, except Saturdays, when they wake him up and put him outside at two’. He talks about the drinking and eating habits of Harris, his two and only interests in life, who ‘always does know a place around the corner where you can get something brilliant in drinking line’. Unflinchingly he discusses his love for work, ‘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… to accumulate work has almost become a passion with me…but though I crave work, I still like to be fair. I do not ask for more than my proper share’. And thus, he goes on and on, as he contrives one rib-tickling situation after another. You read on untiringly relishing Jerome’s urbane humour and his easy crisp prose. I had always wondered at the uniqueness of Bill Bryson’s brand of humour. Jerome K. Jerome equals Bryson in this book. Though, he was not as prolific as Bryson.

Most book-lovers would have read this small book. I can not implore more strongly, those who haven’t, to pick it up at the earliest.