Reviews

Propeller Island by Jules Verne

blueyorkie's review

3.0

A reasonably average Jules Verne. In an extravagant new venture, wealthy Americans have financed a vast artificial island driven by propellers and equipped with the latest equipment. They will cross the Pacific to pursue the ideal climate and visit several archipelagos. The characters are stereotyped in the usual J. Verne way. We mainly follow a quartet of musicians invited to the island: a serious one, a stubborn curmudgeon, a pleasant joker and a dreamy poet. Among the notables of the island, there is the lively Calistus Munbar, inspired by a certain Barnum. The cruise is not very hectic at first, but a lot will happen, the adventures spreading out in an exponential crescendo. Not so bad, but in my opinion, Jules Verne has already been more in verve.

storiwa's review

This was titled "The Floating Island" when I read it in 1996.

hulkytwobelts's review against another edition

adventurous funny reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

eswee's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

The amount of technical detail and social structures in this book is astonishing! Especially when you come to think of it, most of that stuff wasn't invented back then. The thought of tourist taxes, ordering your things by cable (the current internet)and other social habits that seemed true science fiction but real today, puts things in perspective. Nevertheless, some parts were a bit drowsing therefore it only gets 3 stars.

I reread this for IGGPPC bookworms and weirdly remembered not even half of the story! There is a forbidden love romance and quite an amount of action too. But it still remains a slow read, not something to read in one day. And therefore I can't change my rating to anything above 3 stars even though it's one of those books that you keep in the back of your mind and can't stop thinking about for two years...