Three Men In A Boat

The story of three men and a dog as they make their leisurely way up the Thames in a small boat. Written in the gentler times of 1889, the story is as funny as any you will read. Do not be put off by any films you may have seen - the book is beautifully written and is a joy to read.

Jerome Klapka Jerome was born in Walsall, Staffordshire, England on May 2nd, 1859, the son of a preacher and coal mine owner. Leaving school at the age of fourteen after his mother's death, Jerome worked such diverse jobs as a railway clerk, a journalist, and a schoolmaster. Though also an actor, playwright, and editor, Jerome found fame through his writing. His first book, On Stage and Off, was published in 1888. Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow, a collection of essays, followed in 1886, and Jerome married Georgina Elizabeth Henrietta Stanley Marris in 1888. In 1889, Jerome published the humorous Three Men in a Boat, an account of a trip that Jerome, two friends, and a dog named Montmorency took up the River Thames. Though panned by critics, it was embraced by the public and brought Jerome fortune and fame. He continued to publish works, including the famous morality play, The Passing of the Third Floor Back (1907). Other works include The Diary of a Pilgrimage (1891), Novel Notes (1893), The Second Thoughts of an Idle Fellow (1898), Three Men on the Bummel (1900), Paul Kelver, a novel (1902), Tommy and Co (1904), They and I (1909), and All Roads Lead to Calvary (1919). Jerome died in 1927.

"I like work: it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours." (from Three Men in a Boat)

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