From School Library Journal
Gr 4-8-Performed in radio theatre style, this audio version is a fine retelling of the Jules Verne classic. The St. Charles Players, composed of four actors, play a variety of roles with hammy gusto, although the dialogue is a bit rushed in the opening sections. This adaptation by Jeff Rack does a good job of capturing the feel of Verne's sprawling epic tale. The story is told by Professor Aronnax, who agrees to investigate a series of attacks by a mysterious sea monster. He joins the crew of the ship Abraham Lincoln. The men encounter what they believe is the monster, but turns out to be a large, state-of-the-art submarine, the Nautilus. Aronnax and a hot tempered harpoonist, Ned Land, are imprisoned on this vessel, captained by the misanthropic recluse, Nemo. Nemo takes them around the world. Verne's descriptions of the underwater world, with its exotic creatures and sunken ships, shine thanks to clear narration and evocative sound effects. As the journey continues, becoming monotonous, the program's midsection sags a bit. It picks up steam again with sequences involving a monstrous octopus and a storm. While not an essential purchase, this is an impressive attempt to adapt a classic.Brian E. Wilson, Oak Lawn Public Library, ILCopyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
The music is grand, uplifting, and often epic, especially in undersea and open ocean scenes. An organ is used effectively for the interior of the submarine, and one can almost see Captain Nemo caressing the keys. This is a full-cast recording of Verne's classic. The narrating professor is cleverly articulated with a slight foreign edge to his English. The harpooner is snappily portrayed, and Captain Nemo's voice is adamant and slightly sinister, as the character requires. Only the professor's servant is unconvincing--too young, to this reviewer's taste. Still, this is a vivid reminder of Jules Verne's narrative grandeur. D.R.W. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine





Language Notes
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French


The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature
Novel by Jules Verne, first published in French as Vingt Mille Lieues sous les mers in 1869-70. It is perhaps the most popular book of his science-fiction series Voyages extraordinaires (1863-1910). Professor Pierre Aronnax, the narrator of the story, boards an American frigate commissioned to investigate a rash of attacks on international shipping by what is thought to be an amphibious monster. The supposed sea creature, which is actually the submarine Nautilus, sinks Aronnax's vessel and imprisons him along with his devoted servant Conseil and Ned Land, a temperamental harpooner. The survivors meet Captain Nemo, an enigmatic misanthrope who leads them on a worldwide, yearlong underwater adventure. The novel is noted for its exotic situations, the technological innovations it describes, and the tense interplay of the three captives and Nemo (who reappears in The Mysterious Island).


Card catalog description
In the mid-nineteenth century, a French professor and his two companions, trapped aboard a fantastic submarine as prisoners of the deranged Captain Nemo, come face to face with exotic ocean creatures and strange sights hidden from the world above.


From the Publisher
This book is in Electronic Paperback Format. If you view this book on any of the computer systems below, it will look like a book. Simple to run, no program to install. Just put the CD in your CDROM drive and start reading. The simple easy to use interface is child tested at pre-school levels. Windows 3.11, Windows/95, Windows/98, OS/2 and MacIntosh and Linux with Windows Emulation. Includes Quiet Vision's Dynamic Index. the abilty to build a index for any set of characters or words.

ANNOTATION

A deadly and huge sea monster is sinking ships. Three men--a French scientist, his trusty sidekick, and a Canadian harpoonist are thrown from the deck of their American warship. A door opens on the side of the monster, and they are taken inside the greatest submarine in the world, the top-secret Nautilus commanded by a madman who will take them 20,000 leagues into the depths.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Follow along on this fantastic voyage as Professor Arronax, Ned, and Beth set out to capture a terrifying sea monster--before it captures them.

SYNOPSIS