Sunday, January 14, 2018

Fortnightly Book, January 14

After Cinq semaines en ballon, Jules Verne published Voyages et aventures du capitaine Hatteras, a tale of an expedition to the North Pole. It is rarely read today, but at the time consolidated Verne's reputation as someone who could deliver a resounding adventure story. It has two parts Les Anglais au pôle nord and Le Désert de glace. Early working titles indicate that Verne had originally thought of the work as a Robinsonade on the deserted ice, which a significant portion of it still is, but the story in its final form goes well beyond a tale of survival.

I'll be reading The Adventures of Captain Hatteras in William Butcher's 2005 translation, which is, I believe, the first unabridged translation into English.

To the North!

Map from Journeys and Adventures of Captain Hatteras by Jules Verne
(Édouard Riou's original illustrated map for the book.)