A classic, of course. But one I hadn't read until now.
The basics are well enough known: the narrator, his dog, and two
friends go for a holiday up the Thames in a skiff, gradually making
their way to Oxford and then returning. This was something that had
only just become possible at the time of writing, as commercial river
traffic had largely been replaced by rail transport. The book was
originally planned as a serious guide to the river, but the comic
elements rather took over, to the extent that it is regarded as a
comic novel.
The elements sometimes sit a little uneasily together: a moment of low
farce is followed by a purple discourse on the beauty of the river or
a historical vignette. For me the lowest point is the pair of
anecdotes on comic songs in chapter 8, both of which smack rather too
much of cruelty in their humour and outstay their welcome. This isn't
in general one of Jerome's flaws: he doesn't mess about with drawing
out the tension, but gives you the setup, gets on with the incident,
and goes on to the next thing. He's never short of ideas, and most of
the time if one fails he can simply carry on with the next.
I'm well known to have no sense of humour, but I enjoyed the book and
even chuckled occasionally.
Even by the standards of people who care about datedness in books,
this one seems pretty fresh: the occasional reference to a
"steam-launch" can surely be ignored or mentally rewritten. All the
pubs are still open (though one has been completely rebuilt), and
rowing boats are still available.
In fact I find the idea of recreating the trip vaguely appealing...
I read the lovely ePub version I found
here.
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