Jules Verne (1828-1905) was born in the Breton river town of Nantes, and had a lifelong passion for the sea. First as a Paris stockbroker, later as a celebrated author and yachtsman, he went on frequent voyages-to Britain, America, the Mediterranean. But the specific stimulus for the novel "Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Seas" was an 1865 fan letter from a fellow writer, Madame George Sand. She praised Verne's two early novels "Five Weeks in a Balloon" (1863) and "Journey to the Centre of the Earth" (1864), then added: "Soon I hope you'll take us into the ocean depths, your characters travelling in diving equipment perfected by your science and your imagination." Thus inspired, Verne created one of literature's great rebels, a freedom fighter who plunged beneath the waves to wage a unique form of guerilla warfare. This translation is a faithful yet communicative rendering of the original French texts published in Paris by J. Hetzel et Cie.-the hardcover first edition issued in the autumn of 1871, collated with the softcover editions of the First and Second Parts issued separately in the autumn of 1869 and the summer of 1870. Although prior English versions have often been heavily abridged, this new translation is complete to the smallest substantive detail. The translator, F. P. Walter, is a long-standing member of the North American Jules Verne Society. He currently lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
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Professor Aronnax, his faithful servant, Conseil, and the Canadian harpooner, Ned Land, begin an extremely hazardous voyage to rid the seas of a little-known and terrifying sea monster. However, the "monster" turns out to be a giant submarine, commanded by the mysterious Captain Nemo, by whom they are soon held captive. So begins not only one of the great adventure classics by Jules Verne, the 'Father of Science Fiction', but also a truly fantastic voyage from the lost city of Atlantis to the South Pole.
--This text refers to the
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Unbearably thrilling and romantic...full of Verne's gentle humour Daily Mail Among the deep-sea volcanoes, shoals of swirling fish, giant squid and sharks, Captain Nemo steers the Nautilus. Nemo is the renegade scientist par excellence, a man madly inventive in his quest for revenge Sunday Telegraph A tale of terror, suspense and wonder Guardian Fabulous...the pace is sharp and the story as dramatic and engaging as ever Daily Express Verne's imagination has given us some of the greatest adventure stories of all time Daily Mail
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By J. D. Waters
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Some time ago I decided to purchase books which I had read or seen films of in my youth. Treasure Island and Moby Dick were examples of this. Both were Wordsworth Classics and both were quite readable. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for this volume of Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea. I remembered the film ( with Kirk Douglas and James Mason) and wanted to read the book. But the print size is far too small for my eyesight. A disappointment. I'll stick to Wordsworth Classics in the future.
29 of 33 people found the following review helpful
By F. Mckay
Format:Paperback
Science fiction in most cases has a naturally short shelf life, as science advances and leaves the ideas contained in such books behind, often looking ridiculous and quaint. Therefore credit is due to Jules Verne for his major achievement in creating a timeless tale that still delights, years after submarines have become fairly commonplace, thousands upon thousands of people scuba dive as an every day sport and those that don't have the opportunity to witness the wonders of the deep thanks to the submersibles that take TV cameras down for countless exploration documentaries.
The authors excellent prose reads poetically and easily even after translation from it's original language, the translation in this issue is brilliantly done, and the fact that the original story was serialised means that uniform length chapters - each describing its own adventure - make for a pleasantly easy going read.
However, this is also the downfall of the book and the reason for only awarding it four stars. The chapter formula is repeated again and again and again, each one being slowed down by scientific lists of the species of life (fish, molluscs, seaweed) both in laymans terms and scientifically categrosied that appear too frequently throughout the novel. Whilst Vernes obvious enthusiasm for nature and science carry the reader along for the first half of the book, the repetitiveness of these lists not only began to bore me in the second half but added unnecessary weight to a book that I was ready to finish.
I wouldn't like to be too harsh, as it was originally intended for serialisation and thus the format is designed to be that way, but, unless you are particularly interested in reading long lists of fish (and if so I know a good fishmonger you can pester) then an abridged version of this book may enthrall you slightly more.
The characters, conseil, Ned Land, the author himself and of course the fantastic anti hero - Nemo, posess all the ingredients for a great story, and the Nautilus itself is still awe inspiring even in these days of nuclear subs and raising of (bits of) the Titanic.
There's no denying that this is a tour de force, and I highly recommend it, but be warned about the fish.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By S. Clift
Format:Paperback
Being new to the writings of Jules Verne, I had no idea what to expect, other than a fantasy story. Though I was greatly surprised. Set in the late 19th century, the story unfolds embracing the central characters both in relation to the time period and technological advances, as well as a heap of informative factual information. I couldn't put it down!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
book for a rainy day
Not a bad read, tends to Be rather drawn out in places which loses the readers interest,but on the whole not a bad read
Published 4 days ago by harry gardner
5.0 out of 5 stars
Adventure
A thrilling classic that has withstood the test of time. I enjoyed reading this as it gave me an insight into another world deep in the oceans.
Published 11 days ago by Jean Manley
3.0 out of 5 stars
20,000 Descriptions of Fish
Hailed as a masterpiece of science fiction and adventure writing Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was certainly ahead of its time considering it was published in 1870,... Read more
Published 14 days ago by Mr. Pjk Patching
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good read
Excellent story and most informative - I would have given five stars but found some of the descriptions of the flora and fauna a little repetitive.
Published 15 days ago by Ian Wilkinson
5.0 out of 5 stars
A total classic
and every school child should read this kind of book, move over Harry Potter this is a real adventure, well written and of course now classic film
Published 1 month ago by C. Newton
5.0 out of 5 stars
great
the book was brand new and is really nice buying the whole set for myself as like them all and want to read them.
Published 2 months ago by CrazyCaz1991
3.0 out of 5 stars
It's a long way to go
In general I turn my nose up at abridged versions so that is why I went for this edition. My mistake. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Kangerew
5.0 out of 5 stars
Golden classic
Don't get bogged down by the paragraphs of detail explaining each and every item witnesses under the sea and just enjoy the voyage. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Sumayya Y. Patel
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not happy - cheated. Had no chouce about giving a star
Was looking forward to reading this book on my Kindle & may have only paid 77p but it failed to download so I haven't been able to read it & will have to pay again. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Joanna Dick
5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic
A classic author and a classic book. Time has not diminished the enjoyment gained from reading this story, and I return to it every so often
Published 3 months ago by Unpredictable
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