Three men in a boat (to say nothing of the dog)

Jerome K. (Jerome Klapka) Jerome (1859-1927)

Approximate level: B2
Length: 68,489 words
Reading time: 5 h 42 min
Chapters: 21
Language: English
On Project Gutenberg since: 1995

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Jerome K. Jerome’s 1889 comic novel follows three friends and a dog on a boating holiday along the River Thames. The opening uses mock-medical language and playful exaggeration as the men discuss their imagined illnesses and decide they need a rest. You will meet late Victorian vocabulary, including older medical terms and formal expressions. The prose is often built from long, carefully linked sentences, but lively dialogue and clear comic scenes give you shorter stretches to read as well. Themes include friendship, travel, leisure, and self-deception.

8,324 downloads on Project Gutenberg

Subjects

Young men -- Travel -- England -- Thames River -- Fiction
Boats and boating -- England -- Thames River -- Fiction
Dogs -- Fiction
Humorous stories, English
Thames River (England) -- Fiction
Male friendship -- Fiction

Questions about this book

What level of English do I need for this book?

The estimate is B2, based on how common the words are and how long the sentences run. It is an approximation, not a test result. With a translation under every sentence you can start one level earlier than you would with a paper copy.

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How long does it take to read?

About 5 h 42 min at a native pace, spread over 21 chapters. In a foreign language plan for more: half an hour a day finishes a book of this size in a few weeks.