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Title: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne ISBN: 0-7861-0573-9 Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks Pub. Date: 01 August, 1997 Format: Audio Cassette Volumes: 9 List Price(USD): $56.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.17 (133 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A thrilling adventure under the sea
Comment: In 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, by Jules Verne, Professor Arronax, a professor of Natural History at a museum sets off in search of a gigantic sea monster that is destroying ships. The United States Government sends Professor Arronnax out to sea on the ship called the Abraham Lincoln to search for the monster. Professor Arronnax and his servant, Conseil, set out on the adventure.
Professor Arronnax soon learns that the monster is really a steel-plated submarine, called the Nautilus. The Nautilus crashes into their ship and Professor Arronnax, Conseil and Ned, a harpooner, fall into the water and are captured by Captain Nemo. On the Nautilus, Professor Arronnax, Conseil and Ted watch Captain Nemo as he explores the under water world. On the Nautilus they visit many places including the lost continent of Atlantis, the South Pole and the Great Ice Barrier. They search for treasure and have fights with unfriendly sea creatures. Captain Nemo, however, rams the Nautilus into other ships when they get into his way. Nemo rams the Nautilus into a war ship one day because he believes the people on the ship are responsible for killing his family and taking everything away from him that he loves. Professor Arronnax realizes that Captian Nemo is crazy and that they must escape. Professor Arronnax, Conseil and Ted plan their escape only to learn that the Nautilus was caught up in the Maelstrom, the most violent whirlpool in the world. No ship had ever escaped the current of the Maelstrom! Do Professor Arronnax, Conseil and Ted escape the Nautilus and the violent whirlpool or do they drown in the whirlpool and sink to the bottom of the sea?
I chose to read this book because I like adventure books and this certainly has adventure and excitement in it. I think that anyone who enjoys reading adventure stories should purchase this book because the characters go to many different places and always are in constant danger. I could not put the book down! This is one of the best books that I have ever read. I think that everyone will like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea because it is such an interesting book.
Rating: 4
Summary: Classic Sci-Fi
Comment: This is Jules Verne at his best, creating the enigmatic character of Captain Nemo.
The setting is the mid-nineteenth century. Deadly and mysterious calamities continue to befall ocean-going vessels, with wild reports by survivors that the culprit is a sea monster large enough to ram and sink ships. French professor M. Aronnax finds himself aboard the Abraham Lincoln, a ship charged with finding and destroying the beast. Accompanying him is his loyal servant, Conseil. The ship succeeds in locating the leviathan, but it, too, falls victim to a deadly attack. Aronnax, Conseil, and a Canadian harpooner named Ned Land are the sole survivors--rescued by none other than the "monster" itself, which turns out not to be flesh and bone, but the world's largest and most technically advanced submarine.
They meet Captain Nemo, the owner, inventor, and sovereign leader of the flag-less ship, Nautilus. He explains that they're now his prisoners for life, though they will be treated well and are free to roam the ship. Thus begins an underwater tour of the planet, narrated by the fascinated Aronnax. With today's knowledge of the seas, some of the action is laughable, but at the time this was leading-edge science fiction. Verne's vision of submarine technology, the use of electricity, scuba operations, and various other things is uncanny and typical of great science fiction writers' ability to foretell the future. The ridiculous episodes include traversing an underwater tunnel beneath the Suez to the Mediterranean; a visit to Atlantis; and a trip to the South Pole under the ice, where they break through the surface for a look-see. This would be difficult, considering that the ice is more than a mile thick with a continent of solid rock below. But remember that when Verne wrote the book in 1869, Antarctica had not been explored and remained a virtual myth.
The enduring lure of 20,000 Leagues, though, is Verne's Captain Nemo. It takes the entire book (and then some) to learn who this genius Nemo really is. What horrible ordeal has produced such a cynical man, one driven to build the self-sustaining Nautilus, to swear off all contact with the "civilized" world, never to touch land again, and to ruthlessly and brutally defend himself against any perceived threat? At one glance we see a maniacal scientist worthy of a James Bond thriller. But at closer inspection, Verne has captured the timeless personification of angst over the errors and excesses of Man's interminable war against Nature and himself. Aspects of this same character can today be found in political and environmental activism throughout the world. Actually, it strikes a cord with us all; everyone wants at some time to build what today would amount to a spaceship and shove off from this screwed up planet, saying, "Adios, idiots. It's your mess now." --Christopher Bonn Jonnes, author of Big Ice.
Rating: 4
Summary: Verne's Exquisite Voyage Beneath The Mysterious Sea
Comment: 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea ...Hmmm, where to begin my review? To be frank, I wavered for about 4 minutes on how to rate this book. Was it a 3 or 4? In the end, I chose the 4 star rating. This book had a wonderful story line, the characters, and the setting where also both wonderful. The things that really drug this book down where Verne's consistent descriptions of things that really, in actuality, could have been left out. He goes on and on classifying fish and giving very, very detailed descriptions of the submarine (The Nautilus), the way it worked, and the things on board. I guess I can understand this, I guess Verne was just trying to give a believable and complete description of the things the characters saw on their journeyIf you could, somehow, get an abridged version, I would reccomend it. This book is great and truth be told, it was worth my time reading it. I just think that unless you're a marine biologist or are just, for some reason, very interest in the classification of oceanic plant and animal life, that 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea would be best read, and probally more enjoyable with some of the 'unimportant to the story' detailed descriptions of the above-mentioned things ...in frank, LEFT OUT. Now, this is not to say that you shouldn't read this book, you should. I'm just forewarning the prospective reader that they will find some parts of the book to be 'boring' with VERY in depth classifications and descriptions. On the other hand, the story is one of great splendor and excitement. Try to remain focused on the story line and keep a clear mind that the descriptions are just Verne's way of trying to give the reader the most in-depth and detailed assessment of the voyage. Now, I know that what I have written so far is not a 'review'. I'm just trying to let people know what kind of a read they will be in for, if they so choose to read the book. Now, as for a real 'review' on what happens in this book? ...Nahhh, read it yourself. I will say this, 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea takes you to places,in your mind,betterthan any book I've ever read. You will become attatched to the characters every move and sit in anxiety, with great with anticipation, eager to find out what will happen next in this Sci-Fi classic. So, with all the above information on how the book will lag a bit at times ...I finish with this, Verne's descriptive writting leads many modern day readers into boredom and complaint. If you really open your eyes and embrace Verne's descriptive style, you will learn to enjoy this work, and have an admiration for this classic story and classic storyteller almost unequaled in all of literature. For what it is, 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea couldn't have been written better by anyone, ever. Keep your mind open and don't give up on it. I promise,you will learn to appreciate this classic ...I did
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