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'If ever a human foot is to tread the Pole, it must be a British one!' First Mate Shandon receives a mysterious letter asking him to construct a reinforced steamship in Liverpool. As he heads out for Melville Bay and the Arctic labyrinth, a crewman reveals himself to be John Hatteras, and his lifelong obsession, the Pole. Despite experiencing appalling cold and hunger, the captain treks across the frozen wastes in search of fuel. Abandoned by his crew, Hatteras remains without resources at the coldest spot on earth. How can he find food and explore the Polar Sea? And what will he find at the top of the world? This new translation by the father of Verne Studies brilliantly conveys the hypnotic mood and gripping authenticity of Verne's second novel. This edition also includes the original, censored ending, previously unpublished chapters, and evidence of Verne's plagiarism.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I had already read and enjoyed Verne's better known works. When I decided it was time to explore some of his less well known output, I began with `The Adventures of Captain Hatteras'. I was not disappointed! This is as gripping story of one man's mission to reach the North Pole. For me the highlight was the harrowing description of hunger and hardship through the polar night.
With my limited French reading skills, I can't comment on the accuracy of William Butcher's translation. However, the English text was direct and enjoyable, and helped add to the mood of the piece.
This novel's obscurity is a mystery to me. I can only hope it becomes better known, and I recommend it to all fans of Jules Verne.
With my limited French reading skills, I can't comment on the accuracy of William Butcher's translation. However, the English text was direct and enjoyable, and helped add to the mood of the piece.
This novel's obscurity is a mystery to me. I can only hope it becomes better known, and I recommend it to all fans of Jules Verne.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This dates from 1866,and is Vernes second novel.It follows the voyage of the 'Forward'a custom-built steamship on her voyage to the North Pole.This is a book of two halves,the first,'The English at the North Pole'is the first part of the journey where we meet the obsessive Captain Hatteras,the likable Dr.Clawbonny and the well-paid but mutinous crew.After a gruelling voyage through a dangerous,shifting maze of icebergs,the ship runs out of coal and is trapped in the ice.Realising the freezing,unhappy crew would dismantle their own ship for fuel Hatteras and the doctor set out to find a stash of coal.When they return ,the Forward has been set on fire by the crew,who have now abandoned the ship and left to find safety.The second part'The Desert of Ice'deals with survival,human resourcefulness and dangerous obsession.
Sometimes this book drags a little because of the vast quantity of facts,figures and the history of polar exploration, but this does add a realistic tone.Nowadays the Pole is known and accessable,but in 1866 visiting it was pure speculation.Vernes bizzare,fictional North Pole is the highlight of the book for me,but I wonder how much more plausible it would have seemed when this book first came out.
This Oxford edition has loads of extras including Vernes semi-fictional map and hundreds of explanatory notes.These are best read after the story because they do stop the flow and give away the plot.
Overall,really entertaining,especially the part where they blow up the Polar Bears.
This is Voyages Extraordinaires No.2
Sometimes this book drags a little because of the vast quantity of facts,figures and the history of polar exploration, but this does add a realistic tone.Nowadays the Pole is known and accessable,but in 1866 visiting it was pure speculation.Vernes bizzare,fictional North Pole is the highlight of the book for me,but I wonder how much more plausible it would have seemed when this book first came out.
This Oxford edition has loads of extras including Vernes semi-fictional map and hundreds of explanatory notes.These are best read after the story because they do stop the flow and give away the plot.
Overall,really entertaining,especially the part where they blow up the Polar Bears.
This is Voyages Extraordinaires No.2
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2 reviews
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
A marvelous journey
10 Dec 2007
Format:Paperback
For those of us of a certain age, not that we lived in the 19th Century, the name Jules Verne always conjures unforgettable images of people, places and things that remain indelibly etched in the mind long, long after we've turned the last page. Jules Verne is an endless adventure; we end one, then start another and another, until we realize that we've virtually traveled to almost every place on this planet and the heavenly bodies that surround it. The fifth of his magnificent Extraordinary Voyages, The Adventures of Captain Hatteras is a breathtaking novel set in the frigid regions of the Arctic Circle and the North Pole itself, though we know now that finding an active volcano there strains credulity. It was widely believed at the time that there was an opening at the top of the world which led to the very depths of the earth. A concept that inspired Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth. And Captain Hatteras is Jules Verne at his prime, at his most imaginative stage, at his thrilling best. Its plot is simple yet intriguing: In Liverpool, a seaman named Richard Shandon, First Mate, receives an anonymous letter asking him to construct a reinforced ship and assemble a reliable crew for a rough voyage to the Northern regions of North America, and everyone, Hatteras promises, will be richly rewarded. Once up in the Arctic labyrinth one of the crewman reveals himself as Captain John Hatteras, and his mission is to be the first man to reach the North Pole. So off they go into one of the most horrendous adventures imaginable, even by today's standards.
These are just a few of the images alluded to above: sailing and trekking through sub-zero temperatures amid gigantic icebergs; cutting wind; mutiny; near starvation; bold huskies; sudden storms; castaways wintering in an ice house; a floating iceberg packed with ravenous polar bears about to leap down onto the ship and devour the bold explorers, and a breathless ending to satisfy the fastidious reader. This Oxford University Press edition is a new translation with an introduction and notes by the Jules Verne scholar William Butcher, giving this particular Verne work all the attention and justice it merits.
These are just a few of the images alluded to above: sailing and trekking through sub-zero temperatures amid gigantic icebergs; cutting wind; mutiny; near starvation; bold huskies; sudden storms; castaways wintering in an ice house; a floating iceberg packed with ravenous polar bears about to leap down onto the ship and devour the bold explorers, and a breathless ending to satisfy the fastidious reader. This Oxford University Press edition is a new translation with an introduction and notes by the Jules Verne scholar William Butcher, giving this particular Verne work all the attention and justice it merits.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Julio Verne
30 Jun 2010
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
With perhaps the exception of "Paris in the 20th century", all and one of Jules Verne are simply fascinating.
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