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  • To Say Nothing of the Dog

  • Or How We Found the Bishop's Bird Stump at Last
  • By: Connie Willis
  • Narrated by: Steven Crossley
  • Length: 20 hrs and 58 mins
  • 4.3 out of 5 stars (220 ratings)
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To Say Nothing of the Dog cover art

To Say Nothing of the Dog

By: Connie Willis
Narrated by: Steven Crossley
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Summary

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

"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)

What listeners say about To Say Nothing of the Dog

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Not what I expected but good,

It took me a while to get into as it is not really science fiction as I would have expected. I nearly gave up at an early stage but I'm glad I didn't.
I would describe it as a blend of historical mystery and romance, with satire and some rather amusing characters. Plenty of clues are given out as the well thought out plot develops. The story moves at a good pace and at all stages there is a lot going on, but I never lost the thread. It is witty with many twists and surprises.
A mixture of genres and not the sort of thing that would normally appeal to my taste, but good enough to keep me entertained.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Too many Americanisms for easy listening.

Either Connie Willis bowed to pressure from her American editors ,which I doubt, or she shows a disdainful attitude to both her American readers (by assuming they are uneducated) and to her British readers (by dismissing them as unimportant).

With all the research she has obviously put into this book, she must have known how many words and phrases she has included that would never have been used in Victorian England, and are unlikely to have crept into our language in the future.

'Rowlock', 'drapes', 'Postal Office', 'sailboat', 'gotten', 'fishing pole', 'exclamation point'.

We don't go 'down' to London - we go 'up' to London. We don't 'meet with' people - we 'meet' them. 'Infirmary' takes the definite article.

And as for Tossie's frequent use of the word 'cunning'!

These errors would perhaps be forgiveable if the narrator was American, but hearing a British voice reading those words grated on my nerves.

Otherwise, a pleasant book that deserved its Hugo win.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Willis by Crossley is Perfect

This is Willis at her finest with a novel that is time travel, period romance and wonderful humour that nestles up surprisingly closely to that of her muse and mentor, and J K and Jerome. Above all she evokes a wonderfully realistic sense of Victorian England. Her research is excellent which unfortunately makes her anachronistic use of American English sound all the more jarring. Crossley voices every part brilliantly. One could not ask for a better interpreter. Even when this perfect paragon of Victorian English delivers a decidedly modern North American phrase he does so with unwavering panache. I found him a joy to listen to from start to finish and for a book with so many cleverly drawn characters that is talent indeed.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

The best Sci-fi since the time travellers wife

If you like mystery stories (Agathe Christie) and Sci-fi this is the best book

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Time and tide waits for some!

I love this book so much it is going to take its place with my desert island books. The narrator is fantastic. I didn't want it to end. I fell in love with all the characters, especially Cyril!

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Not to be missed

This is light hearted and really amusing whilst also having a good storyline. I loved the author's turn of phrase and the wonderful world and characters that were created. Definitely a book not to be missed.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Entertaining, despite the Americanisms...

This is an engaging tale, but no English person EVER says "suspenders" when they mean "braces" (for trousers), "schedules" when they would say "timetables" (for trains) or "marrows field" for "a field of marrows", and it's a fishing "rod", not a "pole" in the UK.

These errors jar, which is a shame, as this is good fun!

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Thoroughly enjoyed

Fantastic book with even better narration.
Loved the characters, the mystery of it and the written colour of the English Victorian Era.
Would recommend to everyone.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

what a spectacular performance

it was the most ridiculous story ever and I loved it. I loved the dog cutest thing ever. and the hot mess that is time travel was finally revealed to me. as humanity I suggest that we DONT learn how to do it.

even when I felt the story was tedious the performer kept me engaged and in stitches. I wonder if the book would have been so much fun without him.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Time travel adventure romance - for starters!

Stick with the first couple of chapters, where you'll be nearly as confused as the narrator, Ned Henry. He's a Historian who is suffering from Time Lag after being sent back to 1940 to search for an artifact known as The Bishops Bird Stump). Action, adventure, comedy, rowing, art, jumble sales, croquet, Victorian manners, Oxford, Coventry, the Blitz, Spiritism, a cat addicted to goldfish, a dog called Cecil and a butler who can out-buttle Jeeves…. prepare to be gloriously entertained.

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1 person found this helpful