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Five Weeks in a Balloon

Jules Verne

Book Overview: 

Join three intrepid explorers as they seek to cross and explore the continent of Africa from Indian Ocean to Atlantic Ocean, except they’re doing it by hot air balloon. Scholar and scientist Samuel Ferguson, his manservant Joe, and his friend Richard “Dick” Kennedy engage in this mighty scientific feat, as they face danger after danger, enjoy adventure after adventure, and experience the literal highs and lows of Africa from the view of a hot air balloon.

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Book Excerpt: 
. . .ould have sufficed in most cases, but the practical results secured from these experiments have been insignificant.

"I therefore resolved to go about the thing more directly; so, at the start, I dispensed with ballast altogether, excepting as a provision for cases of special emergency, such as the breakage of my apparatus, or the necessity of ascending very suddenly, so as to avoid unforeseen obstacles.

"My means of ascent and descent consist simply in dilating or contracting the gas that is in the balloon by the application of different temperatures, and here is the method of obtaining that result.

"You saw me bring on board with the car several cases or receptacles, the use of which you may not have understood. They are five in number.

"The first contains about twenty-five gallons of water, to which I add a few drops of sulphuric acid, so as to augment its capacity as a conductor . . . Read More

Community Reviews

Jules Verne. Mention that name and you think of Around the World in 80 Days, Journey to the Center of the Earth, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and a few more classics. But, in addition to this Verne also wrote a total of 54 Books that are part of his Voyages Extraordinaires series. 54 books!!!! Why

Tell me, what is more exciting than going on a five-week balloon trip across the yet unexplored continent of Africa, following along the pathways of the wind through lands full of exotic charm and danger, your reading mind itself a balloon filled with hot air floating swiftly across the textual land

Verne's first full-length novel, while setting the formula for many of his later books, is definitely not one of his best: the science is sketchy and the plot is basically a series of small misadventures in a row that the three main characters escape with usually not too much difficulty and a just m

Si tratta del primo libro dei "Viaggi Straordinari" di Verne, precede di dieci anni Il giro del mondo in 80 giorni e ne anticipa a grandi linee l'andamento.

Abbiamo un'introduzione più corposa di quanto non si vedrà in seguito, con parecchio spazio dedicato non tanto ai preparativi in sé quanto alle

3.5/5 stars

As for difficulties," replied Ferguson, in a serious tone, "they were made to be overcome.

Pros of reading a Victorian Era classic

♦ Complicated vocabulary, detailed descriptions and lots of facts about the time period. Now, if you didn't know, I happen to be an avid fan of everything V

If you like trigger-happy wild game hunters and hardcore Victorian racism, this could be the one for you.

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