Around the World in Eighty Days

Jules Verne (1828-1905) is one of the most recognizable names in Western literature, coming to be known as one of the Fathers of Science-Fiction. Although he studied to be a lawyer and held stock trading jobs, he quickly learned that he had a knack for weaving adventurous stories of travels and expeditions. It didn't hurt that one of his teachers may have been inventor Brutus de Villeroi, who created the first submarine for the U.S. Navy. Verne wrote about air travel and space travel 50 years before either was possible. One of his most famous works is Around the World in 80 Days, a classic adventure novel published in 1873. The star of the book, Phileas Fogg, heads out on an expedition with his valet Passepartout in an attempt to circumnavigate the world in 80 days, based on a large wager made by his friends at the Reform Club. It is one of Verne's most acclaimed works, and Around the World in 80 Days continues to be a widely read and globally popular classic.