Jun 01, 2004 02:22 AM
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(Updated Jun 01, 2004 10:22 AM)
Books are wonderful things. So people tell me. They make you worldly and wise, they say. Now, both of these sounded like nice things to be, and so once in a while, I slip into a library in an attempt to work on that. Of course turning the first few pages of many a book, I promptly abandon the exercise and instead turn to surmise why there are very few worldly wise people around.
It is during one of these missions that I chanced upon a copy of the book, ''Three Men in a Boat''. I've previously read an extract from it as a kid, and enjoyed it then. But try as I may, I am not a kid anymore, and was unsure if I would view it with the same excitement now. A little later though, defeated and disappointed by the actual book I was after, I decided to give this one a try. A few pages into the book and I knew I've hit upon a gold mine, of humor that is.
Simply put, this book is a first person account of a leisurely boating expedition of three men, George, Harris and the author, and a dog, Montmorency. Supposedly overworked and feeling ill from their daily grind, the three friends decide that a jolly boat trip on the river Thames for a fortnight is their perfect cure. What unfolds is a hilarious sequence of misadventures as our men and the dog finally prevail over the seemingly endless troubles caused by unreliable weather, towing ropes, a tea kettle, big steam launch boats, a can of pineapple chunks and an army of swans, among others.
Jerome cunningly exploits a rather innocuous boat trip to take a hilarious dig at human nature. The writing style is verbose, but this verbosity is the main source of humor, not much unlike many of the writings of Mark Twain. Now and then, the author meanders from the story at hand to narrate related anecdotes from the past -- all of them equally silly and laugh-out-loud funny. The best of these is the author's experience transporting two smelly cheeses on behalf of his friend, first in a horse drawn cab and later in a train. Also, in a few serious moments, he gives a brief description (and sometimes history) of the places they visit along the way, thus painting a picture of the Thames in Victorian England. But it is plainly obvious that the book was never intended to be a travelogue in the usual sense.
In a very concise preface, the author notes ''George and Harris and Montmorency are not poetic ideals, but things of flesh and blood - especially George, who weighs about twelve stone.'' And it shows. That despite the fact that the book was written in the late 1800s.
The roguish Harris (who always knows ''the right place just around the corner that serves the best drink'' no matter where he is), the laid-back George (who is a bit wiser but also occasionally a miserable impostor), the plucky fox-terrier Montmorency (upon which the author cleverly attaches a rather impish human personality), and lastly the author himself are all characters that ring so true even today. In all likelihood, your mind will be playing out similar anecdotes from your own past as you read their exploits.
About the only problem I had with the book was the usage of some hard to understand words. Whether it is because of my own limitations in vocabulary or the age of the book, I can not say. In any case, such words were tolerably few and far between. A closely related problem was my unfamiliarity with some of the boating terms used in the book. Oh yeah, another one, and this is no exaggeration. The book is almost certain to send you into fits of uncontrollable laughter fairly often -- so read it in a public place at your own risk.
In all, I'll say that this old, picaresque, riot of a story is an illustrious predecessor of modern day observational humor. If you dig the Jerry Seinfield brand of humor, you are in for a special treat. Don't walk, run to get your copy.
[ N.B. There is a sequel called ''Three Men on the Bummel'', which is allegedly about a cycling expedition through continental Europe. Except for this, I have no idea about the sequel. ]
