An entertaining, well-paced, quick read. I have to admit that I skipped much of the start because I didn't like the character, but then the bile-spitting turned down to a palatable level and I'm glad I stuck with it. There were a few laugh-out-loud moments for me. Conclusion: Although I'm not compelled to seek one out right away, I might look for other Fry novels at some point.
Helpful Score: 3
If you like Stephen Fry you will really enjoy this novel. Very entertaining, very funny. Well written. A fast read.
Helpful Score: 2
Amazing book. The main character. Ted, may be a bit hard to swallow. He's a pompous know-it-all blowhard, but the way the novel is constructed makes up for it. In epistolary form, you get to see him as others do, and he's in turns a goofy drunk, as well as an insightful genius whose hard demeanor belies his tenderness.
The Hippopotamus
by Stephen Fry
Hilarious! The scene with the horse has to be read to be believed. (And yes, the author is also an actor.)
From the back cover
Ted Wallace is an old, sour, womanising, cantankerous, whisky-sodden beast of a failed poet and drama critic, but he has his faults too. Fired from his newspaper, months behind on his alimony payments and disgusted with a world that undervalues him, Ted seeks a few months repose and free drink at Swafford Hall, the country mansion of his old friend Lord Logan. But strange things have been going on at Swafford. Miracles. Healings. Phenomena beyond the comprehension of a mud-caked hippopotamus like Ted ...
by Stephen Fry
Hilarious! The scene with the horse has to be read to be believed. (And yes, the author is also an actor.)
From the back cover
Ted Wallace is an old, sour, womanising, cantankerous, whisky-sodden beast of a failed poet and drama critic, but he has his faults too. Fired from his newspaper, months behind on his alimony payments and disgusted with a world that undervalues him, Ted seeks a few months repose and free drink at Swafford Hall, the country mansion of his old friend Lord Logan. But strange things have been going on at Swafford. Miracles. Healings. Phenomena beyond the comprehension of a mud-caked hippopotamus like Ted ...
