Synopses & Reviews
The Self-Propelled Island is the first unabridged English translation of Jules Vernes original story featuring a famous French string quartet that is abducted by an American businessman and taken to Standard Island to perform for its millionaire inhabitants. The quartet soon discovers that Standard Island is not an island at all, but an immense, futuristic ship possessing all the features of an idyllic haven. Equipped with the most opulent amenities, Standard Island travels the Pacific Ocean, traversing the south archipelagos and stopping at many “sister” islands for the pleasure of its well-heeled inhabitants. These inhabitants soon meet with the danger, in its various forms, that is inherent in ocean travel. Meanwhile, the French quartet is witness to the rivalry that exists between the two most powerful families onboard, a rivalry that keeps the future of the island balancing on the edge of a knife.
First published in English in 1896, the novel was originally censored in translation. Dozens of pages were cut from the story because English translators felt they were too critical of Americans as well as the British. Here, for the first time, readers have the pleasure of reading The Self-Propelled Island as Verne intended it.
Review
“Were in the midst of a marvelous Verne renaissance. . . . The Self-Propelled Island is a novel of great appeal, especially to Americans: by sending northern and southern aristocrats to sea in literally the same boat, it not only features one of Vernes fabulous futuristic vehicles but also unfolds one of his shrewdest, wittiest political satires.”—Frederick Paul Walter, Verne translator and former vice president of the North American Jules Verne Society
Review
“William Butchers text has an easy, graceful rhythm; it preserves the allusive complexity of the original prose.” —Michael Crichton
Review
“A lively modern translation of one of Vernes tensest, tautest thrillers, a lean, ferocious, breakneck yarn readers will devour in a single evening. William Butcher renders action scenes with great color and dash, dialogues with sparkling fluency. . . . His research, commentaries, and analyses are riveting new contributions to our understanding of this Protean novelist. Outstanding entertainment, admirable scholarship.”—Frederick Paul Walter, Verne translator and specialist
Review
"[W]e're in the midst of a Verne renaissance brought on by new manuscripts, improved translations, and scholarly reassessments. . . . Thanks to efforts such as Mr. Butcher's . . . it's now possible for the rest of us to see Verne more clearly than ever before.”—John J. Miller, Wall Street Journal
Review
"Lighthouse at the End of the World might be best read under the covers, after bedtime, by flashlight. It is a wondrous, old-fashioned adventure story, likely to bring out the little boy, the castaway, the pirate and the lighthouse-keeper in every reader."—Susan Salter Reynolds, Los Angeles Times Book Review
Review
“Its a cracking good novel, and William Butchers commentary is superb.”—
SFRA ReviewReview
"To read Jules Verne is one of the great treats of childhood. To read Jules Verne later in life is to discover a writer just as satisfying but even richer, one who is not only a natural storyteller but also a mythmaker, a social critic and an innovative artist. . . . There's a lot more to Jules Verne than what you find in those old, albeit quite wonderful, Disney movies."—Michael Dirda, Washington Post Book World
Review
"The Meteor Hunt is quite simply a work of the foremost literary importance. In the translation and accompanying commentary you have lucid, expert work by the foremost authorities in the field."—Brian Taves, coauthor of The Jules Verne Encyclopedia
Review
“Darn good entertainment; excellently annotated, too.”—Booklist
Review
“Verne the natural storyteller and social critic comes through in this first-ever authentic version of a novel that can be classed as comico-satirical—a genre-bending masterpiece.”—Choice
Review
“
The Meteor Hunt is a charming novel, and the translators have gone to great lengths to keep it authentic and fun. . . . In this winning edition,
The Meteor Hunt will surely add to the Verne renaissance currently underway.”—
Rain Taxi Review of BooksReview
"Dazzling and macabre, literary and philosophical, The Circus of Dr. Lao has been acclaimed as a masterpiece of speculative fiction and influenced such writers as Ray Bradbury."and#8212;Good Reads
Review
"[The Circus of Dr. Lao, Second Edition is] a splendid fable of a miserable-looking little circus that visits a dusty Arizona town and leaves an unforgettable impression."and#8212;Nick Owchar, Los Angeles Times Books Blog
Review
and#8220;The Circus of Dr. Lao is a fascinating work: a labyrinth of meanings and images that sucks in the imagination, teases it and impishly plays with it. It gives nothing away, but offers much sustenance to those willing to take the risk of stepping into the tents housing its bizarre attractions.and#8221;and#8212;Locus Online
Review
“Its spiked with ‘gold fever and an insatiable lust for difficult travel that should make todays Lonely Planeteers take notice.”—Publishers Weekly
Review
“Proof that the Frenchmans fiction never disappoints, this version is the first authentic English translation of Vernes original manuscript and restores the story as he originally wrote it. . . . Full of adventure and action, the novel also succeeds in providing social commentary on the evils of greed and debauchery. The differences between Vernes manuscript and his sons are highlighted in the preface and demonstrate how his sons unfortunate rewrites completely altered a wonderful story that includes fascinating depictions of the arctic wilderness and the hardships of living there.”—Erica Swenson, Library Journal
Review
“Baxters new annotated text of The Golden Volcano has a twofold value: its the first to be based on Jules Vernes original manuscript, plus it provides a clear, modern rendering of a first-rate action thriller. It echoes Bret Hartes westerns while anticipating Jack Londons arctic sagas, and some of the scene painting here is horrifyingly naturalistic—see, for instance, the scenes of desolation and death along Chilkoot Pass. The Golden Volcano is a work of exceptional power and interest.”—Frederick Paul Walter, Verne translator and trustee of the North American Jules Verne Society
Review
“The Golden Volcano is a beautifully written and elegantly translated adventure tale with a biting social commentary. It is a page-turner as well as a piece of literary history—a truly stirring and unusual work.”—Peter Schulman, translator of Vernes The Secret of Wilhelm Storitz
Review
"The rousing conclusion of The Golden Volcano offers Verne at his best, integrating social satire, imaginative but plausible science, and rousing adventure."—Brian Taves, Science Fiction Research Association (SFRA) Review
Synopsis
At the extreme tip of South America, Staten Island has piercing Antarctic winds, lonely coasts assaulted by breakers, and sailors lost as their vessels smash on the dark rocks. Now that civilization dares to rule here, a lighthouse penetrates the last and wildest place of all. But Vasquez, the guardian of the sacred light, has not reckoned with the vicious, desperate Kongre gang, who murder his two friends and force him out into the wilderness. Alone, without resources, can he foil their cruel plans? A gripping tale of passion and perseverance, Vernes testament novel paints a compelling picture of intrigue and heroism, schemes and calamities. The master storyteller returns here to the theme of civilization against its two oldest enemies: pitiless nature and men's savagery.
Synopsis
The Meteor Hunt marks the first English translation from Jules Vernes own text of his delightfully satirical and visionary novel. While other, questionable versions of the novel have appeared—mainly, a significantly altered text by Vernes son Michel and translations of it—this edition showcases the original work as Verne wrote it. The Meteor Hunt is the story of a meteor of pure gold careening toward the earth and generating competitive greed among amateur astronomers and chaos among nations obsessed with the trajectory of the great golden object. Set primarily in the United States and offering a humorous critique of the American way of life, The Meteor Hunt is finally given due critical treatment in the translators foreword, detailed annotations, and afterword, which clearly establish the historical, political, scientific, and literary context and importance of this long-obscured, genre-blending masterpiece in its true form.
Synopsis
Abalone, Arizona, is a sleepy southwestern town whose chief concerns are boredom and surviving the Great Depressionand#8212;that is, until the circus of Dr. Lao arrives and immensely and irrevocably changes the lives of everyone drawn to its tents.
Expecting a sideshow spectacle, the citizens of Abalone instead confront and learn profound lessons from the mythical made realand#8212;a chimera, a Medusa, a talking sphinx, a sea serpent, witches, the Hound of the Hedges, a werewolf, a mermaid, an ancient god, and the elusive, ever-changing Dr. Lao himself. The circus unfolds, spinning magical, dark strands that ensnare the townand#8217;s populace: the sea serpentand#8217;s tale shatters loveand#8217;s illusions; the fortune-tellerand#8217;s shocking pronouncements toll the tedium and secret dread of every personand#8217;s life; sensual undercurrents pour forth for men and women alike; and the dead walk again.and#160;Dazzling and macabre, literary and philosophical, The Circus of Dr. Lao has been acclaimed as a masterpiece of speculative fiction and influenced such writers as Ray Bradbury.
Synopsis
The Golden Volcano thrusts two Canadian cousins—unexpectedly bequeathed a mining claim in the Klondike—into the middle of the gold rush, where they encounter disease, disaster, extremes of weather, and human nature twisted by a passion for gold. A deathbed confidence sends the two searching for a fabulous gold-filled volcano on the shore of the Arctic Ocean. But nature, both human and physical, hasnt finished with them, and their story plays out with the nail-biting adventure of an action thriller and the moral and emotional force of high drama. Like many of the works left unpublished when Jules Verne died, The Golden Volcano was altered and edited by his son, Michel. This first translation from the original manuscript allows readers of English to rediscover the pleasures of Vernes storytelling in its original form—and to enjoy a virtually unknown gem of action, adventure, and style from a master of French literature.
About the Author
Jules Verne (1828-1905) was born in the French seaport town of Nantes. He is the author of many classics of science fiction and adventure, including 20,000 Leagues under the Sea, From the Earth to the Moon, and Around the World in Eighty Days. Frederick Paul Walter is an adult services librarian in Albuquerque and vice president of the North American Jules Verne Society. He cotranslated and coedited (with Walter James Miller) Jules Vernes “20,000 Leagues under the Sea”: The Completely Restored and Annotated Edition. Walter James Miller is an emeritus professor of English in the School of Continuing and Professional Studies at New York University. He translated and edited The Annotated Jules Verne: From the Earth to the Moon.