Riassunto
Trama e riassunto di Cinque settimane in pallone
A chi è rivolto
For readers who love adventure, travel, maps and inventions, and anyone curious about where science fiction began. Science, exploration and three friends who bicker, joke and save each other bring this balloon voyage to life.
Che cos’è questo libro
Imagine crossing Africa without touching the ground. In Five Weeks in a Balloon, Jules Verne's first novel, published in France in 1863, the English doctor Samuel Fergusson sets out to cross the continent, flying from east to west in a hot gas balloon. Much of inner Africa is still blank on European maps. Verne borrows the discoveries of real explorers to fill them. The result is a fast, funny and tense adventure, and the start of his Extraordinary Voyages.
In questo riassunto
- 1A doctor announces a daring planFree
- 2Two companions join the voyage
- 3Lift-off from Zanzibar
- 4Hunters, beasts and the first dangers
- 5Lakes, rivers and the search for the Nile
- 6Storms, thirst and the cost of weight
- 7Science, courage and friendship
- 8Empire, accuracy and the birth of science fiction
- 9How Verne tells the tale
Punto chiave 1 di 9
A doctor announces a daring plan
In London, at the Royal Geographical Society, Doctor Samuel Fergusson announces that he will cross Africa from east to west through the air. The room is stunned. Earlier explorers went on foot and paid with illness and delay.
He does not rely on dreams. His balloon will be filled with hydrogen and carry a device that heats the gas, so he can rise or sink at will. By choosing different heights, he finds different winds.
Verne wants you to believe the plan could work, so he gives the doctor numbers, reasons and a steady manner. The wonder rests on the feeling that this is science, not magic.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Doctor Samuel Fergusson
- An English explorer and scientist, he plans the expedition and leads his companions with confidence in careful reasoning.
- Dick Kennedy
- Fergusson's Scottish friend is an expert hunter who doubts the expedition but refuses to let him travel alone.
- Joe
- Fergusson's cheerful servant trusts his master completely and brings practical resourcefulness to the small travelling party.
- The Victoria
- The expedition's balloon carries Fergusson, Kennedy and Joe, using a gas heater to control its height.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 94,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 6 h 15 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about Cinque settimane in pallone
What is Five Weeks in a Balloon about?
It tells how Doctor Samuel Fergusson, with his friend Dick Kennedy and his servant Joe, tries to cross Africa from east to west in a hydrogen balloon, facing storms, wild animals, thirst and hostile encounters along the way.
When was Five Weeks in a Balloon written?
Jules Verne published it in France in 1863. It was his first novel and the start of his Extraordinary Voyages series. The plot is fiction, but the geography draws on real explorers' reports of the time.
Who are the main characters in Five Weeks in a Balloon?
The three travellers are Doctor Samuel Fergusson, the planner and scientist, Dick Kennedy, his doubtful but loyal hunter friend, and Joe, the cheerful servant whose good humour and quick wits often save the day.
Is Five Weeks in a Balloon a true story?
No, the voyage is invented and the Victoria balloon is fictional. However, Verne based the lakes, rivers and routes on the accounts of real explorers such as Burton, Speke, Livingstone and Barth.
Is Five Weeks in a Balloon worth reading today?
Yes, if you like fast adventure and early science fiction. It is easy to follow and often funny.