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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne was just great. I loved the main character, Phileas Fogg. He just... makes a bet one night at a card game at his club, and just goes. He just grabs his little manservant, Passepartout, and they just go. All I could think of everytime he made any decision was Mr. Incredible before his wedding going "Hmm. I've got time."
He ends up rescuing a human sacrifice in India who just WAKES UP on a train with these guys in English fashion, and she is just "Oh... alright. This is fine."
It even includes a bumbling police officer, Inspector Fix, trying to peg Fogg of bank robbery, and ends up getting caught in this crazy whirlwind of boats, trains, ships, and elephant.
It was like a Looney Tunes episode.
He ends up rescuing a human sacrifice in India who just WAKES UP on a train with these guys in English fashion, and she is just "Oh... alright. This is fine."
It even includes a bumbling police officer, Inspector Fix, trying to peg Fogg of bank robbery, and ends up getting caught in this crazy whirlwind of boats, trains, ships, and elephant.
It was like a Looney Tunes episode.
I have never read the original book. The graphic novel was good but really too quick. As a teacher, I am glad that I read this because I think that my students will love this book.
I immensely enjoy Verne's writing. I love steampunk anyhow, and he is the quintessential steampunk author for me (even if it is a non-fantastical book of his, like this one). The novel is about... well, a crazy travel in 80 days around the world at the end of the 19th century... I can't add anything to that (without spoiling something). Adventure, romance, Baedeker, steam technology... what else would a steampunk fan wish?
I could not give it 5 stars as there is quite a lot of (negative) colonialism in the novel (the supremacy of the white, Christian European male), however it is not that much that you cringe anytime while reading. Not that I want to be apologetic towards Mr. Verne, but really, it was the completely accepted and wide spread social tone of that age, and boy, he was a man of his age all right.
It was actually a re-read for me, and I used the Hungarian audiobook, with a fantastic Hungarian actor as a narrator.
I could not give it 5 stars as there is quite a lot of (negative) colonialism in the novel (the supremacy of the white, Christian European male), however it is not that much that you cringe anytime while reading. Not that I want to be apologetic towards Mr. Verne, but really, it was the completely accepted and wide spread social tone of that age, and boy, he was a man of his age all right.
It was actually a re-read for me, and I used the Hungarian audiobook, with a fantastic Hungarian actor as a narrator.
I don't actually remember reading this book as a kid, but the story is so wound into our popular culture that I felt like I'd read it before. Either way, Around the World in Eighty Days was a quick read and rather fun.
I have to say that the writing isn't all that stellar. Verne is really much more adept at offering up the adventure than he is at actually crafting the written story. High prose, this is not. But, the story is a classic despite the writing, which is a true testament to Verne's ability to craft a plot. (Similar to how George Lucas created a great story in Star Wars, but his written dialogue is pretty much crap.)
I understand the criticism about the racism in the story, but I feel it's an unfortunate by-product of having been written in the late 19th century. Even through my much more modern lens, I didn't feel that the characters were too maligned or negatively stereotyped. But, I'm certainly not excusing the racism of the late 1800s and I'm not saying that it's not apparent in Around the World in Eighty Days -- I just didn't find it as distracting as it might have been.
I have to say that the writing isn't all that stellar. Verne is really much more adept at offering up the adventure than he is at actually crafting the written story. High prose, this is not. But, the story is a classic despite the writing, which is a true testament to Verne's ability to craft a plot. (Similar to how George Lucas created a great story in Star Wars, but his written dialogue is pretty much crap.)
I understand the criticism about the racism in the story, but I feel it's an unfortunate by-product of having been written in the late 19th century. Even through my much more modern lens, I didn't feel that the characters were too maligned or negatively stereotyped. But, I'm certainly not excusing the racism of the late 1800s and I'm not saying that it's not apparent in Around the World in Eighty Days -- I just didn't find it as distracting as it might have been.
Not a fan of the whole adventure/exploration subgenre but this is Jules Verne at its finest, there’s no denying it. Timeless classic.
Around the World in 80 Days was pretty much what I expected. Phileas Fogg makes a bet with his friends that he can travel around the world in 80 days and sets off with his newly-hired servant, Passepartout. Fogg is a calm, organized, rich man, and nothing throws him. It’s basically his money that lets him accomplish his aim.
A bit dull at points, and no actual sense of romance, but plenty of obstacles along the way.
For a book about a race around the world, it shouldn't have been quite so boring, but it was. The characters were flat and stereotypical, the plot was episodic with little cobbling it together. I'm really not sure why this is often considered a "classic." It's almost like James Patterson was writing 100 years ago....
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a great example of good, old-fashioned storytelling.
A fun read. I had put off reading this because I saw the David Niven movie version years ago and didn't care for it, but this was an entertaining story. I think I enjoyed it more knowing that it had originally been published in serial form, and readers were so struck by it that they placed bets on whether or not Phineas Fogg would actually make it in 80 days. The pursuit by Inspector Fix of Scotland Yard strongly reminded me of Inspector Javert, but a worthwhile read.