A review by krep___
The Amphibian by Alexander Belyaev

2.75

Sometimes described as the Russian Jules Verne, Belyaev was writing in the 1920's, half a century after Verne. The science of his Amphibian, as a consequence, is better informed though not as visionary. The Amphibian Man, in his freedom and innocence, suffers horribly from his contact with the corrupt outside world (which happens to be set in contemporary Argentina). The underlying criticism of the greed and corrupting influence of capitalism is an interesting artifact of this Soviet-era writing. Aside from this political and historical aspect, the book offers little to adults; the writing style, similar to Verne's, is plain and romantic with simple characters. It is perhaps best suited to 10-12 year olds, the age at which I was reading Verne, although it may have limited appeal even for that group, as there are lot more fun and exciting reading options nowadays.