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The Mighty Orinoco
Early Classics of Science Fiction
Translated by Stanford L. Luce
Edited by Arthur B. Evans
Sales Date: 2005-12-12
First English edition of a classic Verne adventure, with a unique feminist twist.
Jules Verne (1828-1905) was the first author to popularize the literary genre of science fiction. Written in 1898 and part of the author's famous series Voyages Extraordinaires, The Mighty Orinoco tells the story of a young man's search for his father along the then-uncharted Orinoco River of Venezuela. The text contains all the ingredients of a classic Verne scientific-adventure tale: exploration and discovery, humor and drama, dastardly villains and intrepid heroes, and a host of near-fatal encounters with crocodiles, jungle fever, Indians and outlaws — all set in a wonderfully exotic locale. The Mighty Orinoco also includes a unique twist that will appeal to feminists — readers will need to discover it for themselves. This Wesleyan edition features notes, and a critical introduction by renowned Verne scholar Walter James Miller, as well as reproductions of the illustrations from the original French edition.
CONTRIBUTORS: Walter James Miller, Stanford Luce, Arthur B. Evans.
Inrtoduction
THE MIGHTY ORINOCO
PART ONE
M. Miguel and His Two Colleagues
Sergeant Martial and His Nephew
On Board the Simon Bolivar
First Encounter
The Maripare and the Gallinetta
Island after Island
Buena Vista at La Urbana
A Cloud of Dust on the Horizon
Three Boats Navigating Together
At the Mouth of the Meta
A Halt in the Village of Atures
A Few Observations by Germain Paterne
Respect for the Tapir
The Chubasco
San Fernando
PART TWO
A Few Words about the Past
The First Leg of the Journey
Two Days in Danaco
FInal Advice from Manuel Assomption
Beef Cows and Electric Eels
Terrible Fears
The Campsite near Maunoir Park
The Young Indian
Across the Sierra
The Ford of Frascaes
The Mission of Santa Juana
En Route
Two Months at the Mission
Au Revoir!
Notes
Bibliography
Jules Gabriel Verne: A Biography
About the Contributors
ARTHUR B. EVANS is Professor of French at DePauw University and Managing Editor of the scholarly journal Science Fiction Studies. He is series editor for Wesleyan's Early Classics of Science Fiction series. STANFORD LUCE is Professor Emeritus of French at Miami University in Ohio. WALTER JAMES MILLER is Professor of English at The School of Professional and Continuing Studies at New York University.
"Jules Verne was the Michael Crichton of the 19th century, a fabulist whose ability to link technology with imagination to create riveting pop-culture products was uncanny."
~The New York Times
""Jules Verne was the Michael Crichton of the 19th century, a fabulist whose ability to link technology with imagination to create riveting pop-culture products was uncanny.""
~The New York Times
""Surprisingly, this is the first English translation of Verne's 1898 novel[and] features Verne's usual mix of action and the fantastic A beauty.""
~Library Journal
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