There was a time when writing books about your travels was quite the thing to do—and although many of that kind of book are rather dull unless you’re particularly interested either in the person travelling or the place they traveled to (sometimes they’re dull even if you’re interested), Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome is packed so jam-full of humor, it’s a pleasure to read!
Three Men in a Boat is by my guess about as long as Northhanger Abbey or The Coral Island. Not long, but not short.
Readers 15+ will probably find the book interesting. Since it’s a travel book, not a story, it may not hold the attention of a younger audience—and some of the humor might go over their heads, too.
If you’d like my brief conclusion on this book, along with a link to the ebook, jump to the bottom. For the details, read straight on through!
The Story
Three Men in a Boat doesn’t have a plot in the ordinary sense of the word, since it’s a non-fictional record of three friends’ boating expedition in England (non-fictional, but with a bit of color added for no additional charge, the author says).
But the story is a good one, though there are no cliff-hangers or plot twists, of course. The humor draws you in, and Jerome’s effortless use of words succeeds in painting a vivid picture of his vacation trip.
7/10 for the story.
The Point
It’d be hard to isolate one main theme from Three Men in a Boat. It doesn’t seem to have been written with that purpose in mind—it’s just a fun record of Jerome’s vacation. But he frequently makes moral reflections (often with a bit of subtle humor and always with a touch of irony as though he’s laughing at himself for being thoughtful).
Sometimes his humor is a bit careless. For instance, “Reach not after morality and righteousness, my friends; watch vigilantly your stomach, and diet it with care and judgment. Then virtue and contentment will come and reign within your heart, unsought by any effort of your own; and you will be a good citizen, a loving husband, and a tender father—a noble, pious man.” This is obviously meant to be funny, and I haven’t really got a problem with it—but the flippant tone surfaces frequently in the book.
Another touch of flippancy is in Jerome’s mentions of swearing. To quote an example, “I do not wish to be insulting, but I firmly believe that if you took an average tow-line, and stretched it out straight across the middle of a field, and then turned your back on it for thirty seconds, that, when you looked round again, you would find that it had got itself altogether in a heap in the middle of the field… and it would take you a good half-hour, sitting down there on the grass and swearing all the while, to disentangle it again.” Again, off-hand humor that occasionally makes a joke out of something that’s on the borderland of things that had better not be joked about.
Since the goal of Three Men in a Boat isn’t a moral, it’s hard to give it a score. But some kind of a moral could have helped it be more cohesive from a literary point of view.
3/10 for point.
The Style
Jerome’s style flows easily, never loses an opportunity for humor, and paints word pictures just often enough to make the reader feel like he’s on the trip with him. As a result, Three Men on a Boat is a pleasure to read.
8/10 for style!
Conclusion
6/10
To recap, Three Men in a Boat is the (mostly) true story of a three friends’ vacation, written with humor and intelligence. It far outperforms your average travel story in readability. Three Men in a Boat doesn’t have much of a moral, but it’s a great read if you’re looking for something to pass an afternoon or while away a long car ride.
You can download Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome at: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/308
Any questions about the book? Thoughts of your own to share? Feel free to leave a comment below!
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Geneva D 
Three Men in a Boat is probably the most amusing book I have ever read (listened to). I’ll admit I’m often not overly interested in classics (most of my favorite books are adventure novels geared more towards kids :P). But Three Men in a Boat far surpassed my expectations in how entertaining it could be, despite the fact that it barely has a plot and has even less of a moral.
I’m not sure if it’s a book I would just sit down and read, but as an audio book to listen to while I build I’d give it a 9/10.