Classic
Around the World in Eighty Days
by Jules Verne
Summary
The precise English gentleman Phileas Fogg wagers his fortune that he can circle the globe in eighty days and sets off at once with his resourceful French valet Passepartout. Verne turns the itinerary itself into suspense, throwing missed steamers, an elephant rescue in India, and a dogged detective who believes Fogg is a bank robber across their path. The novel's clockwork plotting and its celebration of modern speed made it an instant international favorite.
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Historical Context & Significance
Verne published the novel in 1872, when new railways and the Suez Canal had genuinely shrunk the world, and newspapers ran the serial as if the journey were real. Its premise has inspired real record attempts from Nellie Bly onward.