Why is around the world in 80 days a classic

In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employed French valet Jean Passepartout, attempt to circumnavigate the world in 80 days by his friends at the Reform Club. It is one of Verne's most acclaimed works. So I do believe I saved a book's life. About to be tossed away, being a pariah of the garage sale variety, I not only took it home; I READ it. Aglow with endearing cliches, this is the source of plenty of adventure stories, many of which are films, comics, etc.

But absurd it ain't. It is fun exactly because there is a topsy turvy madness to visiting places just to prove a point. It is fun because it is rife with interesting observations, factoids, themes that in Verne's day were barely in development. There is romance, the plot is thick with well Airplanes suck ass anyway! This was the first Jules Verne book I read.

I carried it home in a heavy school bag, in the darkness after an winter afternoon in the public library. I was ten, and I had to fill my long evenings, which started at sun set around half past two.

I still remember the smell of the book, picked from the "Classics for children" section, and how I opened it and started reading. I knew almost nothing of Victorian England, of travelling to exotic countries, of the honour connected to a wager, of foul play or of religious customs in other cultures or of nature's peculiarities in different geographical areas.

According to my memory, I finished the story that same evening, and went back to the library the very next day to check out the entire stock of Jules Verne. I might be wrong, knowing the strange turns memory takes when something is considered of special importance. It might have been two or three days later. It is a fact, though, that I read all of his novels that dark winter, one after the other, completely enthralled, completely lost in the storytelling.

And as fast as I was captured, I was released again. I had that Jules Verne spell, I loved it, but I never looked back. I was done. Jules Verne made me realise the potential of books, helped me open the treasure chest of world literature, and he served as a bridge to ever bigger journeys around the literary world. I like to imagine that my journey around Jules Verne's universe took about 80 reading sessions, and that I returned the books to the library so much more enthusiastic about the world of reading that I was ready for my life as a reader.

Afterwards I instinctively felt that those books should remain in my childhood, that I might find things in them I would find ludicrous or horrible now. But the initiation rite of reading Verne when I was an impressionable ten-year-old will always be a memory of great importance to me. And of course I enjoy each minute my children spend with Jules Verne.

More routined globetrotters than I was, they ask different questions, and reflect more on the radically changed technology and knowledge since the time of Phileas Fogg, whereas I had difficulties understanding the cultural codes in the world - which my children recognise directly from long experience in international schools. The main plot remains exciting, and the cheesy conclusion is as rewarding as any modern "happy end" could be: "But what then?

What had he really gained by all this trouble? What had he brought back from this long and weary journey? Nothing, you say? Perhaps so; nothing but a charming woman, who, strange as it may appear, made him the happiest of men! Truly, would you not for less than that make the tour around the world? Luckily, we still have the option to travel with Fogg and Passepartout! However, as the novel goes on the icy man begins to thaw.

He begins to place the importance of friendship and love above his usual concerns of reserve and punctuality. In the end, he is willing to lose his bet to help a friend.

Although some would argue it doesn't have the great literary merit of some novels written around the same time, Around the World in Eighty Days certainly makes up for it with its vivid descriptions. The undoubtedly a classic story is peopled with characters who will be long remembered. It is a breathtaking roller-coaster ride around the world and a touching view of an older time. Filled with the thrill of adventure, Around the World in Eighty Days is a wonderful story, written with skill and no short order of panache.

Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. Visit About Us. That is, until he bets his friends an enormouse sum of money that he can travel around the wolrd in just eighty days!

Together with his French butler, Jean Passerpartout, Fogg sets out on a faburmouse adventure. But is he really just settling a bet, or could he be a bold thief on the run from the law? By Geronimo Stilton. Skip to main content. Toggle navigation ASIA. Edit Content. Scholastic World of English Highly innovative and progressive English learning program.

Literacy Pro Empowering students to become successful independent readers. Literacy Pro Library A simple-to-use e-Book library that transforms student into confident readers in school or at home.