Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas – Jules Verne

Evan’s ESS = 7 out of 10

Erin’s ESS = out of 10

Content = PG (Language, Mild Sea Violence, Captivity, Intense Underwater Thematic Elements)

Why: This is easily the best novel involving underwater travel of at least nineteen thousand leagues.   It’s also twenty thousand times better than another famous novel involving a confrontation with a legendary sea creature.  Although, in a fair fight, without harpoons, we think Captain Ahab could easily take Captain Nemo... 

Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Seas is narrated by celebrated underwater aficionado, Pierre Aronnax, as he and two others are taken prisoner aboard the Nautilus.  The submarine’s captain is the legendary Nemo (no relation to the directionally challenged clown fish) who, slightly unbalanced, has a thirst for underwater exploration and a flair for revenge.  He also has an obsession with secrecy, which is why Aronnax and his friends are unable to leave the Nautilus.  While the exciting conclusion is rather vague, by no means will we reveal the fate of the main characters here on this blog.

For us, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas, contained all the excitement of an epic sea monster hunt that was not present in Moby Dick.  While it won’t make any of our top 10 lists, this novel was a nice introduction to Jules Verne, who, ever since Back to the Future 3, we wanted to read.  Verne wrote accurately about technologies well ahead of his time, which is truly amazing.  He also provides an impressive description of the underwater world, including the fabled, lost city of Atlantis.  Personally, we can’t wait to check out A Journey to the Center of the Earth.