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The Boat
Timothy Casson, a bachelor writer, is forced to return from a contented life in Venice to an English village. Taking a house by the river where he can pursue his passion for rowing, he has to do battle with the locals to overcome his isolation and feelings of incompleteness. This most complex of Hartley's novels examines the multiple layers of Casson's relationships with servants, local society and friends.
467 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1949
About the author
L.P. Hartley
139 books196 followersLeslie Poles Hartley (1895-1972) was born in Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, and educated at Harrow and Balliol College, Oxford. For more than thirty years from 1923 he was an indefatigable fiction reviewer for periodicals including the Spectator and Saturday Review. His first book, Night Fears (1924) was a collection of short stories; but it was not until the publication of Eustace and Hilda (1947), which won the James Tait Black prize, that Hartley gained widespread recognition as an author. His other novels include The Go-Between (1953), which was adapted into an internationally-successful film starring Julie Christie and Alan Bates, and The Hireling (1957), the film version of which won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 14, 2018
This was hard work, five hundred odd pages of very frustrating, mildly irritating characters doing nothing much of interest leading to a damp squib of a denouement.
Luckily I've read enough L.P. Hartley now for this to be considered an dip in form rather than the usual excellent stuff he produced. If this had been my first of his books I never would have got round to reading The Go-Between or the Eustace and Hilda trilogy and then I really would have missed out.
Luckily I've read enough L.P. Hartley now for this to be considered an dip in form rather than the usual excellent stuff he produced. If this had been my first of his books I never would have got round to reading The Go-Between or the Eustace and Hilda trilogy and then I really would have missed out.
May 18, 2026
The Boat (1949) by L. P. Hartley, though not without its drama, is a languid comedy of social upheaval in a small English village during the early years of World War II.
Timothy Casson is a middle-aged columnist exiled to the village of Upton after being displaced from twenty years in Italy by the war. He takes a long lease on the Old Rectory because of its boathouse: he intends to do much rowing.
He soon senses that this may not be as simple as he imagined. The “sportsmen” of Upton — that is to say, the gentry — use the river for fishing and are concerned that his boat will affect their catch. The village, they feel, is being ruined by incomers from the cities and they do not want to yield any ground.
This dilemma upends Timothy. He is frustratingly impetuous, often leaping to wrong conclusions, and he vacillates constantly, never quite finding the right frequencies for communication. He mishandles his inscrutable and sensitive maids and gardener as much as he does the Rector and his extraordinary wife.
The book is frequently very funny indeed and Hartley’s characterisations are immaculate, conjuring such rich clarity of personality from dabs of dialogue and behaviour.
As various factions attempt to exploit Timothy’s predicament, the novel’s allegorical dimension becomes increasingly clear, reflecting the evasions, compromises, and territorialism that helped bring Europe to war. It is most effective when this emerges naturally through the villagers’ behaviour, rather than when Hartley chooses to underline the parallel directly.
Timothy relays his woes in letters to three friends, only vaguely known to each other, and presents himself differently to each of them, leading to great consternation when two come to visit him at the same time. This is emblematic of him: a sympathetic but ultimately weak character who craves respect and acceptance, and is not much bothered about where it comes from, so long as he is welcomed and celebrated.
Sprawling, hugely enjoyable.
Timothy Casson is a middle-aged columnist exiled to the village of Upton after being displaced from twenty years in Italy by the war. He takes a long lease on the Old Rectory because of its boathouse: he intends to do much rowing.
He soon senses that this may not be as simple as he imagined. The “sportsmen” of Upton — that is to say, the gentry — use the river for fishing and are concerned that his boat will affect their catch. The village, they feel, is being ruined by incomers from the cities and they do not want to yield any ground.
This dilemma upends Timothy. He is frustratingly impetuous, often leaping to wrong conclusions, and he vacillates constantly, never quite finding the right frequencies for communication. He mishandles his inscrutable and sensitive maids and gardener as much as he does the Rector and his extraordinary wife.
The book is frequently very funny indeed and Hartley’s characterisations are immaculate, conjuring such rich clarity of personality from dabs of dialogue and behaviour.
As various factions attempt to exploit Timothy’s predicament, the novel’s allegorical dimension becomes increasingly clear, reflecting the evasions, compromises, and territorialism that helped bring Europe to war. It is most effective when this emerges naturally through the villagers’ behaviour, rather than when Hartley chooses to underline the parallel directly.
Timothy relays his woes in letters to three friends, only vaguely known to each other, and presents himself differently to each of them, leading to great consternation when two come to visit him at the same time. This is emblematic of him: a sympathetic but ultimately weak character who craves respect and acceptance, and is not much bothered about where it comes from, so long as he is welcomed and celebrated.
Sprawling, hugely enjoyable.
November 20, 2025
I do think Hartley is one of the best writers of all time. This book was phenomenally well-written but it was a LOT longer than I anticipated. The craftsmanship was excellent, and I enjoyed reading this, but I don’t feel like it impacted me and absorbed me in the way others of his books have. I think Hartley has really mastered the art of creating a searing and contemplative exploration of profound themes and ideas in his work, and that gives his novels a kind of epic quality. Above all else, this book is a meditation on politics: domestic, regional, national, and international, and it would make a fantastic book to study at school.
I think that while the principal themes explored in this book (loneliness, community networks, the effect on the mundane of wider global conflict) are incredibly pertinent in today’s worlds, the setting of the book in WW2 naturally dates it in a way that distances it from today. Whereas in The Perfect Woman, the novel is all the more impactful for its setting. Of course Hartley couldn’t have foreseen how the world would change, but I do think that this reception is interesting.
I think that while the principal themes explored in this book (loneliness, community networks, the effect on the mundane of wider global conflict) are incredibly pertinent in today’s worlds, the setting of the book in WW2 naturally dates it in a way that distances it from today. Whereas in The Perfect Woman, the novel is all the more impactful for its setting. Of course Hartley couldn’t have foreseen how the world would change, but I do think that this reception is interesting.
October 2, 2017
ugh maybe two stars Didn't enjoy any characters. Grey gray silver polished where the plating is gone. Kept putting it down and praying it would improve in the next session as friend recommended and I love some of Leslies' short stories
December 17, 2022
A long, slow read but so good in parts, especially when you get past half way.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews