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picto 's review for:
20000 Leagues Under the Sea
by Jules Verne
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is sold as a must-read classic by many, but I have to admit I don't get it. I'm sure it is partly down to timing. If I'd read this when it first came out, I'm sure it would have been groundbreaking, but in a modern light, it is just an interesting novelty. I mean, you can see that the book was well-researched, I learned a lot of longitudes and latitudes as well as exotic names for sea creatures, but that isn't why I read the book. I wanted less, 'on this day I went here and saw this type of creature' and more action, adventure or thrilling dialogue.
Unfortunately, that is in short supply and even the most exciting sections the action quickly gives way, or the mystery is brushed over so we can go back to cataloguing coral from the submarine.
That isn't even the main issue with the book. The main issue is the lack of any discernable character development. All the characters are exactly the same at the end of the book as at the start, no one changes, no one learns anything, it is just some guys who some tings happen to and then the book ends.
Don't get me wrong; there are things to enjoy. The Nautilus is amazing and some of the adventures that happen are interesting and well-written but without interesting characters it's all a bit pointless isn't it?
Unfortunately, that is in short supply and even the most exciting sections the action quickly gives way, or the mystery is brushed over so we can go back to cataloguing coral from the submarine.
That isn't even the main issue with the book. The main issue is the lack of any discernable character development. All the characters are exactly the same at the end of the book as at the start, no one changes, no one learns anything, it is just some guys who some tings happen to and then the book ends.
Don't get me wrong; there are things to enjoy. The Nautilus is amazing and some of the adventures that happen are interesting and well-written but without interesting characters it's all a bit pointless isn't it?