Journey to the Center of the Earth starts with a quirky, excitable German professor named Otto Lidenbrock, who discovers an old Icelandic manuscript with a mysterious coded message. When his patient, good-natured nephew Axel helps to decode it, and they realize it describes a secret path leading deep into the Earth’s interior.

Lidenbrock, being the kind of man who can’t resist an adventure (or proving he’s right), immediately decides they have to go see for themselves. Axel is less enthusiastic — he’s more worried about getting stuck underground forever — but he ends up going along. They travel to Iceland, hire a calm, capable local guide named Hans, and descend into a dormant volcano.

There they find strange rock formations, underground oceans, prehistoric creatures, and all sorts of natural wonders that seem impossible. The book mixes Adventure Fiction with early Science Fiction, much like Verne does in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The tone is part scientific curiosity, part high adventure — full of wonder, danger, and that 19th-century optimism that anything can be explored if you’re brave (and stubborn) enough.

A final word about this rereading. Journey to the Center of the Earth, has been o constant on my To-Be-Reread list for a long time. But having said that, I must admit that this, my 3rd or 4th reading did not live up to my memory-expectations. The first part was slower than I remembered, taking far too long to get to the fun parts.

Having said that, if you have not read it yet, you certainly should. For me, this may have been my last reading of this undoubted Classic.

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