Books

London: Sampson, Low, Marston, Low, & Searle, 1875. First edition in English in book form of the first volume of Verne's Mysterious Island trilogy, preceding the Scribner Armstrong's first American edition. Octavo, original publisher's cloth decorated in gilt, all edges gilt, illustrated, tissue-guarded frontispiece. Translated from the French by W.H.G. Kingston. In fine condition. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Armorial bookplates to the pastedown and front free endpaper. An exceptional example, scarce in this condition. Often referred to as the "Father of Science Fiction", French novelist Jules Verne had a wide influence on the literary avant-garde and on surrealism. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the Voyages Extraordinaires, a widely popular series of scrupulously researched adventure novels including Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in…

In 'The Mysterious Island', Jules Verne combines adventure and elements of science fiction to tell the story of a group of castaways who endeavor to survive and solve the mystery of their abandoned locale. Using ingenuity and science, the protagonists uncover secrets including the existence of Captain Nemo, the enigmatic figure from 'Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea'.