BOOKCLUB
reviews
L
134
et your boat of life be light, packed with
only what you need - a homely home and
simple pleasures, one or two friends,
worth the name, someone to love and someone
to love you, a cat, a dog, and a pipe or two,
enough to eat and enough to wear, and a little
more than enough to drink; for thirst is a
dangerous thing.” –From this book itself
e book does absolute justice to the
aforementioned quote. is is a light-hearted
read, wonderfully comic and very “cosy” in a
sense.
Originally meant to be a travelogue, the
book describes the journey of three friends and
a dog along the river ames. ere are entire
sections describing the various piers/ports one
would encounter, and things to see in the
various towns and suburbs along the river,
reminiscent of its original goal. ese may
seem irrelevant and boring, but they are very
minimal and nicely written too; nothing of the
overbearingly meaningless chapter-long rants
about knots and whales in Moby Dick. Apart
from this insigni�cant aberration, the book is a
masterpiece. One of the rare instances in which
you actually burst out laughing while reading.
e language is surprisingly simple yet ornate,
and the structure much simpler than what you
would expect out of a 19th-century classic. e
overall undertones are positive, funny and very
congenial. ere is none of the pessimistic
bitterness, or the complex interplay of
emotions and situations, or the rendition of
some epic story, or even some complicated plot
theme. Just 3 people and a dog in a boat rowing
THREE MEN
IN A BOAT
- Jerome K
Jerome
across the ames, tumbling into interesting
situations!
Despite its not-so-grand outlook, the
book is a work of genius, in that it inevitably
makes the reader go in-sync with the affability
and optimism the author seems to want to
convey. Written in the �rst person, the writing
seems very happy; and the descriptions of
everyday routine, very relatable. e book is
pretty short, avid readers may complete in a
day, albeit it took me one and a half weeks.
Again, extremely hilarious!
Highly recommended for everyone;
except if someone is hell-bent on reading
serious “hard” literature only. (Even then, a
light-hearted read might be warranted to posit
an alternative genre!) You will de�nitely come
out of the book a happier man!
Satwik Pasani
3136, Batch 2014