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3.5 

Five Weeks in a Balloon

By Jules Verne
Five Weeks in a Balloon by Jules Verne digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

Five Weeks in a Balloon tells the tale of three Englishmen who attempt to cross Africa, from east to west, in a balloon. Dr. Ferguson is the rational scientist leading the trio, accompanied by loyal sidekick Joe and the doctor’s sporting friend Kennedy.

The three embark on many adventures: They encounter natives and dangerous animals, experience problems with their ballooning technology, and struggle with the winds and the weather. Throughout the novel, the author liberally sprinkles descriptions of flora, fauna, and geography, as seen through nineteenth century eyes.

Though this is Verne’s first published book, he already demonstrates much of the formula that drive his later works: the well-defined characters led by a rational scientist, the focus on science and technology, and of course the adventure-filled plot.

The novel, first published in 1863, was topical for its time, as European interest in African exploration was strong. At the time the book was published, David Livingstone was midst-exploration in south-east Africa, and Burton and Speke had recently returned from exploring the Great Lakes region. The novel itself contains many references to actual expeditions that would have been current or recent for the original readers of the novel.

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130 Reviews

3.5
“Hành trình dài đằng đẵng với phong cách kể quen thuộc của Jules Verne khi có một nhân vật thông minh điềm đạm, một ông bạn đồng hành tính nóng như kem và một anh phụ tá luôn sẵn sàng hy sinh cho chủ. Tất nhiên truyện không thể tránh khỏi góc nhìn phân biệt chủng tộc khi cho rằng châu Phi chỉ có những bộ tộc ăn thịt người và hung dữ”

About Jules Verne

These five, and most of Verne's novels, were published in the Voyages extraordinaires series.

Jules Gabriel Verne (8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the Voyages extraordinaires, a series of bestselling adventure novels including Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1872). His novels, always well documented, are generally set in the second half of the 19th century, taking into account the technological advances of the time.

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