Jules Verne: Journey to the Centre of the Earth

Hi everyone

Journey to the Centre of the Earth is my third Jules Verne though it is only my second book.
You can find all my Jules Verne reviews here.
I got my copy at the Boekenfestijn.
It has a 6-page introduction and 185 pages story.

“The intrepid Professor Lindenbrock embarks upon the strangest expedition of the nineteenth century: a journey down an extinct Icelandic volcano to the Earth's very core. In his quest to penetrate the planet's primordial secrets, the geologist - together with his quaking nephew Axel and their devoted guide, Hans - discovers an astonishing subterranean menagerie of prehistoric proportions. Verne's imaginative tale is at once the ultimate science fiction adventure and a reflection on the perfectibility of human understanding and the psychology of the questor.”

The only female characters in the book are a maid and the Axel’s fiancée. Aside from being a maid or a fiancée they play absolutely no part in the story. Very disappointing.
The two main characters are great though. They are perfect together and they have a lot of depth.

The story is rather boring and slow and there isn’t a lot of action.
I really didn’t care for ‘the compass mystery’.
But the sense of wonder and excitement throughout the story made it a lot of fun.
The book contains a lot of details about the world and about what the characters see and experience.

Verne’s style is great. It reads fast, it’s interesting and I liked the travel log format.
I love the amount of details and the scientific thought that has gone into the novel. Most of it is dated or plain wrong now but it makes for a very absorbing novel with a perfect end to the story.

3 STARS

Happy reading!
Helena