The Ode Less Travelled
FICTION
The Liar
The Hippopotamus
Making History
The Stars’ Tennis Balls
NON-FICTION
Paperweight
Moab Is My Washpot
Rescuing the Spectacled Bear
A Bit of Fry and Laurie
A Bit More Fry and Laurie
Three Bits of Fry and Laurie
Stephen Fry
The Ode Less Travelled
HUTCHINSON
LONDON
Published by Hutchinson in 2005
Copyright © Stephen Fry 2005
Stephen Fry has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988 to be identified as the author of this work
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser
First published in 2005 in the United Kingdom by Hutchinson
HUTCHINSON
The Random House Group Limited 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SWIV 2SA
Random House Australia (Pty) Limited 20 Alfred Street, Milsons Point, Sydney New South Wales 2061, Australia
Random House New Zealand Limited 18 Poland Road, Glenfield Auckland 10, New Zealand
Random House South Africa (Pty) Limited Isle of Houghton, Corner Boundary Road & Carse O’Gowrie, Houghton, 2198, South Africa
The Random House Group Limited Reg. No. 954009
www.randomhouse.co.uk
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN: 1-4295-2143-0
The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.
WILLIAM ARTHUR WARD
For Rory Stuart, a good, superior and great teacher.
Table of Contents
Foreword
How to Read this Book. Three Golden Rules
1 Metre
I How We Speak. Meet Metre. The Great Iamb. The Iambic Pentameter.