The Mysterious Island follows the adventures of a group of castaways who use their survivalist savvy to build a functional community on an uncharted island. A hot-air balloon carrying five passengers and a dog escapes from Richmond, Va., during the American Civil War. It is blown off course and deposited near an obscure island. One of the castaways nearly dies after a skirmish with pirates; he is saved by the unexplained appearance of medicine after the pirates are unexpectedly routed. The group later discovers that their secret helper is the reclusive Captain Nemo (first introduced in Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea), who dies and is buried at sea in his submarine. The castaways are eventually saved by a passing ship.

The Mysterious Island follows the adventures of a group of castaways who use their survivalist savvy to build a functional community on an uncharted island. A hot-air balloon carrying five passengers and a dog escapes from Richmond, Va., during the American Civil War. It is blown off course and deposited near an obscure island. One of the castaways nearly dies after a skirmish with pirates; he is saved by the unexplained appearance of medicine after the pirates are unexpectedly routed. The group later discovers that their secret helper is the reclusive Captain Nemo (first introduced in Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea), who dies and is buried at sea in his submarine. The castaways are eventually saved by a passing ship.

Although The Mysterious Island is technically a sequel to Vernes' enormously popular Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, this novel offers a vastly different take on similar thematic motifs. As with all of Verne's best-known works, The Mysterious Island is a masterpiece of the action-adventure genre, with a heaping dash of science fiction influence thrown in for good measure.

"First Mate Shandon receives a mysterious letter asking him to construct a reinforced steamship in Liverpool. As he heads out for Melville Bay and the Arctic labyrinth, a crewman reveals himself to be John Hatteras, and his lifelong obsession, the Pole. Despite experiencing appalling cold and hunger, the captain treks across the frozen wastes in search of fuel. Abandoned by his crew, Hatteras remains without resources at the coldest spot on earth. How can he find food and explore the Polar Sea? And what will he find at the top of the world?"--Back cover.

The mysterious island: The adventures of five Americans on an uncharted island in the South Pacific.

One of the earliest science fantasy stories ever written, From the Earth to the Moon follows three wealthy members of a post-Civil War gun club who design and build an enormous columbiad -- and ride a spaceship fired from it all the way to the moon!

One night in the reform club, Phileas Fogg bets his companions that he can travel across the globe in just eighty days. Breaking the well-established routine of his daily life, he immediately sets off for Dover with his astonished valet Passepartout. Passing through exotic lands and dangerous locations, they seize whatever transportation is at hand - whether train or elephant - overcoming set-backs and always racing against the clock.