From the Publisher
Written almost a century before the daring flights of the
astronauts, Jules Verne's prophetic novel of man's race to the
stars is a classic adventure tale enlivened by broad satire and
scientific acumen.
When the members of the elite Baltimore Gun Club find themselves
lacking any urgent assignments at the close of the Civil War, their
president, Impey Barbicane, proposes that they build a gun big
enough to launch a rocket to the moon. But when Barbicane's
adversary places a huge wager that the project will fail and a
daring volunteer elevates the mission to a "manned" flight, one
man's dream turns into an international space race.
A story of rip-roaring action, humor, and wild imagination,
From the Earth to the Moon is as uncanny in its
accuracy and as filled with authentic detail and startling
immediacy as Verne's timeless masterpieces 20,000 Leagues
Under the Sea and Around the World in Eighty
Days.
From the Jacket
"The reason Verne is still read by millions today
is simply that he was one of the best storytellers
who ever lived."-Arthur C. Clarke
From the Trade Paperback edition.
About the Author
Jules Verne was born into a family with seafaring tradition in
Nantes, France, in 1828. At an early age he tried to run off and
ship out as a cabin boy but was stopped and returned to his family.
Verne was sent to Paris to study law, but once there, he quickly
fell in love with the theater. He was soon writing plays and opera
librettos, and his first play was produced in 1850. When he refused
his father's entreaties to return to Nantes and practice law, his
allowance was cut off, and he was forced to make his living by
selling stories and articles.
Verne combined his gift for exotic narratives with an interest the
latest scientific discoveries. He spent long hours in the Paris
libraries studying geology, astronomy, and engineering. Soon he was
turning out imaginative stories such as Five Weeks in a
Balloon (1863) and Journey to the Center of the
Earth (1864), which were immensely popular all over the
world. After From the Earth to the Moon
(1865), Verne received letter from travelers wishing to sign up for
the next lunar expedition. His ability to envision the next stage
in man's technology progress and his childlike wonder at the
possibilities produced 20,000 Leagues Under the
Sea (1870) and Michael Strogoff (1876).
His biggest success came with Around the World in Eighty
Days (1872).
Verne's books made him famous and rich. In 1876 he bought a large
steam yacht, outfitted with a cabin in which he could write more
comfortably than on shore. He sailed from one European port to
another and was lionized everywhere he went. His books were widely
translated, dramatized, and later filmed. He died at Aminens in
1905.
Format: Mass Market Paperbound
Published: April 25, 2006
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
The following ISBNs are associated with this title:
ISBN - 10: 0553213970
ISBN - 13: 9780553213973