Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea is arguably Verne's masterpiece. As a classic it has aged wonderfully well: it is escapist fun, but still retains its literary and scientific significance. To dismiss it as simply an adventure story does it a disservice. Yes, Verne's oceanic journey around the world is a ripping yarn, but it is also an eerie tale of isolation and madness, packed full with geographical and scientific accuracies that make the fantastic uncomfortably believable. The narrator, oceanic scientist Professor Pierre Aronnax is on a mission to determine the animal (or otherwise) nature of an unknown being attacking ships around the world. Aronnax, along with his faithful servant Conseil and the boisterous harpooner Ned Land, are kidnapped by their target, a horned submarine called the Nautilus. Their captor is the mysterious and charismatic Captain Nemo, an intelligent, quiet man who holds a strong grudge against all who live on land. A truly enjoyable read and one of the first science fiction novels ever written, it has been adapted multiple times for the screen.