Around the Moon (1870)

Rarely has a sequel been so much worse than the original. While From the Earth to the Moon was one of my favorite 19th century science fiction works, this sequel was tedious, unimaginative and uninspiring. As a previous reviewer noted, Verne's attempt was little more than a bland cartographic journey of the moon. ( )

Amusing sequel which improves somewhat on From the Earth to the Moon. ( )

http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext93/moon10a.txt

"At this moment the bottom of the projectile deviated somewhat from the lunar surface, in order to follow the slightly lengthened elliptical orbit. From this point, had the earth been at the full, Barbicane and his companions could have seen it, but immersed in the sun's irradiation she was quite invisible. Another spectacle attracted their attention, that of the southern part of the moon, brought by the glasses to within 450 yards. They did not again leave the scuttles, and noted every detail of this fantastical continent."

http://freesf.blogspot.com/2008/05/around-moon-jules-verne.html ( )

Everything appears larger than life, and while readers see the daily work of traveling in space, the view never detracts from the romance of space travel. Indeed, Verne constantly reminds his audience that the real adventure lies in the dreaming of such a feat and then making the dream come true. ...Around the Moon invites readers to wonder at what humanity is capable of achieving, and such an invitation is good for any era. -- Masterpieces of Science Fiction

This is the sequel to Jules Verne's earlier book, From the Earth to the Moon. Basically, we have a cartographic exploration of the lunar body, and exploration. Those aboard must also struggle to find a way back to Earth safely, so that they may continue to go on living, and not be the first human corpsicles on record.

http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/16457

http://freesf.blogspot.com/2006/11/around-moon-jules-verne.html ( )