To Say Nothing of the Dog

Or How We Found the Bishop's Bird Stump at Last

By: Connie Willis

Narrated by: Steven Crossley

Connie Willis' Hugo and Nebula Award-winning Doomsday Book uses time travel for a serious look at how people connect with each other. In this Hugo-winning companion to that novel, she offers a completely different kind of time travel adventure: a delightful romantic comedy that pays hilarious homage to Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat.

When too many jumps back to 1940 leave 21st century Oxford history student Ned Henry exhausted, a relaxing trip to Victorian England seems the perfect solution. But complexities like recalcitrant rowboats, missing cats, and love at first sight make Ned's holiday anything but restful - to say nothing of the way hideous pieces of Victorian art can jeopardize the entire course of history.

Delightfully aided by the perfect comedic timing of narrator Steven Crossley, To Say Nothing of the Dog shows once again why Connie Willis is one of the most talented writers working today.

©1998 Connie Willis (P)2000 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

• Hugo Award, Best Novel, 1999

"Willis effortlessly juggles comedy of manners, chaos theory and a wide range of literary allusions [with a] near flawlessness of plot, character and prose." (Publishers Weekly)

A fun read

Part country-house farce, part chaos theory, part time travel fantasy and all fun. This book was long but held the interest and had moments of laugh-out-loud silliness. There wasn't a rush to end the story but a careful playing out of the tale that lent to a sense of near perfect closure as loose ends were neatly woven together. Highly recommended.

If P G Wodehouse Time Traveled

I LOVED this book and was very sad when it was over! Steven Crossley did an amazing job with his narration. I felt like I had landed in the England of P.G. Wodehouse which somehow got crossed up with several centuries of time travel and the hunt for the world's ugliest vase.

Connie Willis does an astonishing job of weaving together a plethora of odd and loose ends, reeling through well-researched historical tidbits all set in England of various eras; from the 13th century to World War II and the blitz and on to punting on the Thames. The boat scenes are marvelous, complete with a bulldog and various other well-drawn characters. I felt like I knew these people by the time the book was over. I would love to see them off on another adventure through time together.

I listened to this book on a very long drive to California and it was perfect, I found myself yelling at the IPod and making remarks as one might at a movie when you know the answer but the character just doesn't see it. Great fun, well plotted with more twists than Chubby Checker.

fun and wonderful story

the story has a little of everything and flows great.

Great book, great narration!

Any additional comments?

This book was hilarious and kept my interest all the way through. And the narrator absolutely KILLS IT. I've never before seen or heard a better match between book and narrator.

Lame

Good premise, kept waiting for story to improve

What a Great Find!

I read this book based on a recommendation from a co-worker. I was not familiar with Connie Willis or her works before listening to To Say Nothing of The Dog. I can not emphasize how much of a joy it was to listen to this book. I have to say the performance of Steven Crossley in reading this book was supreme. I am sure I would not have enjoyed the story as much if I had just read it rather than listen to Steven's performance. The wit and humor were amplified by Stevens reading. I even found my self laughing out-loud at times. As I approached the end of the book I was sadden by the fact that I would soon have to leave behind the friends, who made up the characters of the book, that had been part of my life for the past 2 weeks.
Your credit will be well spent with To Say Nothing of the Dog!

Top 5 pick

One of my top 5 favorite books.
The characters are excellent and real. The plot is riveting. Plenty of (well-researched) history. Delightful sense of humor throughout. The descriptions of the scenes are vivid and realistic, sometimes referring you **forward** to later periods of history. (It will make sense when you read it. I promise.) You also get a good idea of Victorian norms. #Victorian #Funny #RuralGreatBritain #TimeTravel #Tagsgiving #Sweepstakes

takes some thinking...

you really have to pay attention to understand all the little details, but it's a fun read.

A Great Escape

There was one big problem I had listening to this book. Even through the first reading I knew it was going to be a challenge to find another I liked as well. Time travel, romance, humor, and charming narration by Steven Crossley. Listening to this book is like taking a vacation to Victorian England. Go ahead, try it! You won't want to come home.

Awesome victorian comedy/mystery/time travel

It was a an awesome easy read that kept me interested all the way through.