Journey to the Center of the Earth

By: Verne, Jules

A classic science fiction novel by French writer Jules Verne, this work is one of the most well-known subterranean fictions to this day. It inspired many similar works and adaptations. First published in 1864 in French as Voyage au centre de la Terre, it was quickly translated to English by several different publishers in the 1870s. The current edition was based on the translation by Frederick Amadeus Malleson that was published by Ward Lock & Co Ltd. in 1877.Our protagonist is Axel, whose overcautious and unadventurous spirit contrasts with that of his uncle Professor Otto Lidenbrock, an eccentric professor of geology. When Professor Lidenbrock obtains a mysterious runic-coded note in the manuscript of an Icelandic saga, he is determined to decipher it. Axel inadvertently solves the code and, much to his chagrin, discovers that it is a set of directions left by a sixteenth-century Icelandic alchemist to reach the center of the earth via the volcano Sn fellj kull. Reluctantly, Axel joins his uncle on a trip to Iceland, and with the aid of a local guide, Hans, begins an adventure towards the center of the earth, where they will encounter giant mushrooms and insects, an island with an enormous geyser, and battle pre-historic reptiles. One of Verne's most well-known works, this novel is a testament to Verne's love of geology, science, and cryptography.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0GQX9LLXR
• ISBN13: 9791043134951
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: Les Prairies Numeriques
• Length: 294 Pages
• Weight: 0.87 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

If you are thinking of Arlene Dahl, you will be shocked.

I grew up on the James Mason movie, "Journey to the Center of the Earth" (1959), so it was quite a shocker to read the book. You can imagine, to my dismay, the absence of quite a few characters, and the center of the story is Germany, not Scotland. Now, for avid readers, you couldn't care less about old movies, I can truthfully say that this is one of Jules Verne's best stories and is well told. What you will find more interesting and fun about this tale is the characters and their interaction. One of my favorite parts is when Harry, who did not want to go to the center of the earth with his uncle, Professor Hardwig, turned to his fiancée, Gretchen, and was planning to have her stop him. Her answer is shockingly disappointing to him. "While there is life, there is hope. I beg to assert, Henry, that as long as man's heartbeats, as long as man's flesh quivers, I do not allow that being gifted with thought and will allow himself to despair." Be prepared, as the bulk of the book is a geological journey back through time and forward again, painfully spelled out by Harry, who is the first-person narrator. The Kindle version does not have an actual picture of the runes in Chapter 1. Moreover, a tad off in pronunciation. Other than that, it is more than worth obtaining along with a hard copy for your library.