The first book of this English year was Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne. There were some really good moments in this book, and, overall, I really enjoyed reading it. My top three moments were as follows: When Captain Nemo showed the crater to the Professor, Conseil, and Ned; when Nemo took them under the Suez isthmus; and when Captain Nemo showed them the large pearl he was farming.
When Nemo showed the passengers of the Nautalis the crater where he mines coal, he went in through a small hidden passageway underwater. I found this to be really interesting, as it makes it so the only vessels that can get in are submarines and maybe airplanes (but they never come or they haven’t been invented during the time of the book). I also found Captain Nemo’s explanation of the crater’s origin to be quite intriguing as well, including how he believes it was filled with water. Nemo also explained that he got all of his coal from subterranean mines in this crater. Another part that I found was entertaining was the shot Ned Land made on the bird in the crater. For whatever reason, that portion of it really appeals to me, although I can’t really explain why. Perhaps it is just the skill that Verne has pictured this character to have.
The next part that I enjoyed is when Nemo piloted the Nautalis through the a subterranean passage underneath the Suez Isthmus, letting them pass from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. On the way there, there was a place where the bed of the sea was raised above the rest of the sea, forming a strip across the sea. Nemo said that this was the place where the children of Jacob passed when they fled from Egypt led by Moses. He states that there were likely chariots and weaponry under that sand that could be unearthed in the future.
Finally, I enjoyed the part where Nemo showed the passengers the giant pearl he was farming. They were all wearing diving dresses, which means they couldn’t communicate verbally, which added to the complexity of the moment. I also found it really funny that the professor’s first impulse was to reach out and try to grab the pearl from the clam. Nemo had been waiting years for that thing to grow, and wasn’t about to let it get removed. On their way out of the cave that the pearl was in, a native fisherman was attacked by sharks. Nemo went to the rescue, and, not only did he save this man’s life, he also gave him a bag of gold ingots into the bargain! Nemo is normally isolated from all other men of the world, but this time it was a fellow countrymen (this man was from India, like Nemo himself). Nemo’s goal was to gather money from wrecks at the bottom of the sea and take the money and give it to the poor, so this was a really wholesome moment.
There you have it! Those were my top three favorite moments from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne. I enjoyed the parts about the Suez Passage, the volcano crater, and when Nemo displayed the large pearl. I really enjoyed this book, and, honestly, I wish I had read it sooner. I would definitely recommend this book, particularly to technically minded people who like details.