Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (Collectible Editions) by Jules Verne
Product Details
Web ID: 14421858Themes and quotes
This book tells the story of Captain Nemo and his submarine, the Nautilus, as he travels through the depths of the ocean with a group of passengers who are trying to escape from the surface world. Four prominent themes in the book are: The dangers and wonders of the deep sea: The Nautilus travels through a variety of underwater environments, including coral reefs, shipwrecks, and underwater mountains, and the characters encounter a range of sea creatures. The isolation and loneliness of being a captain: Captain Nemo is a complex and enigmatic character who is deeply isolated from the rest of the world and is driven by a desire for revenge. The conflict between science and nature: The Nautilus is a marvel of science and technology, but it also has a destructive impact on the natural world, as it hunts and kills sea creatures. The power of the human imagination: Throughout the book, the characters are amazed by the wonders they encounter and are inspired to think about the possibilities of the future. Some notable quotes from the book include: "The sea is everything. It covers seven tenths of the terrestrial globe. Its breath is pure and healthy. It is an immense desert, where man is never lonely, for he feels life stirring on all sides." (Chapter 1) "We know only a few of the great things that are possible. But there are millions of minor ones that we know nothing about." (Chapter 5) "I do not accept the ordinary laws of life. I want to live, to live fully and completely, even if it means rebelling against all that is accepted and traditional." (Chapter 16)
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great book, but with a couple printing errors.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is a great science fiction / adventure story and for $10 this is a really nice copy. I imagine most people buying this are already familiar with the story so I won't bother reviewing the story other than saying: it's pretty good. The leather feels okay and the printing on it is very nice looking. The paper also feels a little higher quality than most books. Each page also has a graphic design element that makes the book feel higher end. A few pages throughout the book did have printing errors though, where there were some small drops of ink or where a word looked like it had been printed twice and the lettering was really thick. Overall though I would definitely recommend this, it's not perfect but it's a nice copy of a great story.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Beautiful and fun book
I have yet to read the book but I am looking forward to it. The book itself is beautiful: the cover, the silver paint on the outside of the pages, the many illustrations. Especially for the price, I thought this was a great deal on a very attractive addition to my classics collection. I also got the copy of A Journey to the Center of the Earth and they look great side by side.
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Great Cover
This book is beautiful inside and out, very colorful
Recommends this product
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Jules Verne's: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
First off, I will say this book, for its dated publishing and writing, has a ton of detail I would not expect from such an old novel. I was thoroughly impressed with the author's knowledge, but really turned off by how much of it was rather useless. To save some time, I will describe it as a ton of exposition about geography, biology, some history, and whatever else you can think of. The novel opens in a very engaging narrative, but after the first few chapters, this book takes a steep dive. Some parts of the book are memorable, the characters are set apart and identifiable, but there is very little growth by the end of the book, and the novel ends rather disappointingly. There are scenes that I liked and found really interesting, but ultimately, many chapters don't connect to the main story like you would think. The trip through the Persian Gulf and Red Sea has no effect on the story, other than to add more and more detail, and there are some scenes that add to Nemo's character, him being the most interesting to me, but this book reads more like an aquatic tour with some excitement than an actual adventure book. Treasure Island, I could not put down, this book was a struggle because I had to find a reason to keep reading, and I hoped the ending was assauge all those paragraphs about whales, walruses, kelp, and giant squid, but the ending was a let down, and I feel Mr. Verne lost his grip on Nemo, because throughout Nemo was cool, calm, philosophical, and mysterious. At the end, his character took a Sharp shift in direction and it felt random, but also out of place due to abrupt ending, leaving me with more questions and unfulfilled adventure. I finished the book and I will never read it again. If you love tedious details about all kinds of nothing that excite the imagination and prefer a dull read, this book is for you. The writing is fantastic and at times, it can be very inspiring, but I give this book three stars, because the story just wasn't there.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com