Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

Michael Strogoff
Michael Strogoff
Michael Strogoff
Ebook406 pages5 hours

Michael Strogoff

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

Read preview

About this ebook

"Michael Strogoff: The Courier of the Czar" is a novel written by Jules Verne in 1876. Critics, including Leonard S. Davidow, writing from Reading, Pennsylvania, in his 1937 introduction to The Spencer Press reprint as a volume in its "Classic Romances of Literature" series consider it one of Verne's best books. Davidow wrote, "Jules Verne has written no better book than this, in fact it is deservedly ranked as one of the most thrilling tales ever written." Unlike some of Verne's other famous novels, it is not science fiction, but a scientific phenomenon is a plot device. The book was later adapted to a play, by Verne himself and Adolphe D'Ennery. Incidental music to the play was written by Alexandre Artus in 1880. The book has been adapted several times for films and cartoon series.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJan 1, 2014
ISBN9781609770860
Author

Jules Verne

Jules Gabriel Verne was born in the seaport of Nantes, France, in 1828 and was destined to follow his father into the legal profession. In Paris to train for the bar, he took more readily to literary life, befriending Alexander Dumas and Victor Hugo, and living by theatre managing and libretto-writing. His first science-based novel, Five Weeks in a Balloon, was issued by the influential publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel in 1862, and made him famous. Verne and Hetzel collaborated to write dozens more such adventures, including 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in 1869 and Around the World in 80 Days in 1872. In later life Verne entered local politics at Amiens, where had had a home. He also kept a house in Paris, in the street now named Boulevard Jules Verne, and a beloved yacht, the Saint Michel, named after his son. He died in 1905.

Read more from Jules Verne

Related to Michael Strogoff

Related ebooks

Short Stories For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for Michael Strogoff

Rating: 3.8081631367346938 out of 5 stars
4/5

245 ratings4 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is rather a different Jules Verne novel from any others of his I have read, being set entirely within Russia and featuring mostly Russian characters (with the exception of an English and a French journalist who are there merely for comic relief). The title character is a courier for Tsar Alexander II (the Tsar who liberated the serfs in 1861), who must make a desperate journey into a Siberia which has been invaded by the Tartars, aided by a Russian traitor. While the novel starts a bit slowly, the second half is exciting with a number of dramatic and some quite shocking episodes. The ending felt a bit rushed and was as cliched as might be expected. Overall, a good read.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    What I like most about Verne's books is the way in which they may be read simultaneously as pure adventure fiction and as curious historical artifacts. The most famous examples of the second type are his science fictions works for both their astounding clairvoyance and fascinating misjudgments (like cities powered by compressed air), but in Michael Strogoff there is a perfect example of a different sort. Here we see a story whose setting is a giant stereotype. With the benefit of retrospect it's interesting to see Verne glorifying the Czarist state as one worthy of the protagonist's single-minded devotion, rather than as the brutal, regressive autocracy it is now well-known to have been. Verne's version of Imperial Russia is as a bulwark against a faceless horde of murderous, half-savage "Tartars". Again, with historical perspective a present-day reader almost can't help but envision this same story flipped to the alternate point of view, with the villains recast as a subjugated indigenous people struggling to regain self-determination from a distant overlord. Worth a read for its typically compelling Jules Vernian episodes as well as for its portrait of--not simply one man's, but an entire era's--ethnic prejudices.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    It is the 19th century. Michael Strogoff is a courier for the Czar, and is tasked with bringing a letter to the Czar's brother in Siberia. This is a very long journey, and there is peril, as there have been uprisings along the way. Michael is travelling under a pseudonym. It was ok. I found sections more interesting that included the women characters in the book: Nadia, who Micheal meets part-way; she is also travelling to Siberia; and his mother, who he is supposed to avoid, so as not to reveal who he really is.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This was an amazing book by Jules Verne. Not only was I taken along for the wild ride across Russia with all of the things it had to offer, but the twist I did not see coming and it managed to propel me towards the climax of the story and imbue the ending with so much grandeur. This is a darker Verne book, yet one that will surely be remembered and that I felt had a very strong plot-line, characters, and descriptions. Overall, a great novel!4.5 stars!

Book preview

Michael Strogoff - Jules Verne

.abook_preview_excerpt.html}ےG䯤􂪙n]ZFI-J&G@@ωkUys¯j;|W7W\~Ul18_||SX}M/O7׭'A۟lP8:0펏_o.]1vO:mooގt% S׾0U4]g7ՈxSu#VT|M< |<4j6b`5x)s*u~hc]*4}Bxz+.ntUKI.c??C=VvpK؂*yXmt8NImꂭq!=~x~ M\˜z| חM~(<`q|Vivn<]?/7VPW&\K\.cRU9e~iiJϘf=9Oh{\?' x9Sc]7-g,S^ 6rLC)bC?Х=mC]YY۸mc5N}_s?3~+;H7@> őJB6k&#^jb!!^f[si$ UVW۫:+^?,ǴKҵ_ x~6\"~;(*ޅag,YV&#YQϧh>О7~3F%bțz\0xVó3:DH~wأ+?aIq. 𹔽kOb .hBEށմ=2~mNc{QlGS {Ѥ&Ma0}ڥŐK,-W1}4$gfhCEς9BIi {:ѵf6lU7f#m;AC& G8sUAaTØAxN O?R~x@zShuh߯@E^vY|=  s4)Jf;q=gdy:{gùj[hIL4Bך)-.MQL(jK3r?O? [>unmht l*wn<8΅πX6Ӣ7WQ[iFX t.VtGB re`qc[NOtHM-oj~oeƦ~%p,89%#ŵ:ۡAŰX]VIvQz<=QqiJ )wx n\0{Cbr?Vǻ(9t?[a77a>\)| ڔka(˧-|jJ7F]TO0AtM2[@0ῂtwLTFD$/$ H-L(_disąrjŖn\?g8md Q$ Ԃ&mb2 DXWV;yfvP[Hr&\T~vtm 2{h:N~6Nьr(27 a;GކjW:ʣ! \|_,"՚,ʾ!ryW{,dTl9EӨ3&7!mb1$;(f"KC{|eay]xyrW 3B6䀩܊ჍΖXH4>s!K'nqpBlpEZMa?5 l6 ui8$eMQD7 ##C8Λ}6hWCAZ|M̍\`dqH'Î@}I'W6TXjp{d{8Q0+OLg3<_G6-(i.P­xRiO}rCLפFf \`~,WGPǂS툯'qcaocU#awqo[m71pt dYX$ܮEf:&dቖ=@!@ mHqօbWMawR;ybA Y:,kV1(7 nG>$qZdA{PR ?/?q붗4O$iW@{MhNNS?`ڥrŦzsbL<󽃙iS}L=4⻷#%s]dbuY1PAn @~aWc֭sSOL 03O1ǻi7ܔEY -o+<7-@׽ )VD5Et rfKp' ԛ7Lզ#>3W JWc?l3SkNհ [S,"ʹ&|:ΗoɊd\p03luR3 T=bߎFiE{u1.LHᬸlIz~aܝ:a^tu/g(n|ƟzYt. ut 5'3z2!LĠ d{ rzc [v_C'òb]WƶX군BEhc'n7s_U5\HkqC=mrYWb߸yo[|0AgCrp]p2 Op>Z^&fJ_HsɝeyȦ>1[@NDA^/+ 78RKsff,F;II)Sz-ա$IܯĒ:2fnI;zm8Kuc5+G ^a}ސ v+q0|]}> ҘFyT 6u,=m!cu=GZX9][f-w/k݌` FYf +ǸLC~afĈ5lD0 b"x:yF8a$by ~t=k- 7(=(Ĕ^;i3iFzCv7p~N$%׍EOͧ3dQ`X>=Q5m 9`.y5m Dޜ ȒyP:|k#S9y懧 QM[V\sL w J\s)}(NV઒Y3tkpZ Q( ,hrk2=aRǍ%p!թaE0{ Jn(Kҩfz-ғҧ`,J6Ge#v\dX%)1|%hyZo䋅yi9n l |= ,~ h B)6n馽}Џdg{?jGmIBnUA~;4Pf~e_D,03"H:-H"m)T~>WXbq 7 ;b6 gm 8̝ [u`6<8IŵL*wtp Hr@r@sW9ѱNXiwUlJj;f)_(~@ 8P*?ɢyUP`1;>`N'# ,,s7U-E2ݑ1wf=Nl:@|" x]›RNhR7mO&@1z T7r*T=Gsam_=bx{}&`uvdo03+9˙G1wt;*f.0{1gP1! tn/^8P y+ e' VKŢ0őZb׵=QiدppLJ-?Y3fœ1<&hwڃUM = G-LğtK#\2횼'3^XnZ&%"Ji*c^SWi8b+yb<-BhՀ2<|əPyIB1Qo+VE\8n1[~ʹ Yh)wF4_ 6MM 1Z nUg]TbR38!$wg(ƍҎJnYT7 myL/E 9Z:%:t񤟣41]v*DR[xH%^xau3m*G!+T_ʼ/0&=7JvWhy8պMD%+*$?:p50or['sUfPQ>k=(zR&~u^l\= Meayʮe;&) cxW/8o]EIWСsv%^ ۜv''I7djvW+YT_m#w("S0zUv C~ ϽKY(Muv{:ʥN6u$@՟S5Zo6_>!_VE]REaXz v[iMlͲPBNLN1R]XU($rEKQVzI~B5m򎵩FHhl*EX1t7 ^7S}UQhF\§-+3?KۊOOBL!g3g56KeJb"0Y{Gr4jGk<̫…t|iIKe*͔ Yi^"R{QسJ8]B&5\Cͣ4b(<[&g@")RQX۪\ZuafN^ҭݍ=H|Nz)}Q4)]maqh/DN;)|4- AQKt^'![a4 $z0<>Zb;8@]Y5̝HcY+X:U`fMfw[d[1Y'_3Soۗ!bۚH=;^pdns ֪*Y~K0y_{bHF)e`ȡBi_~}'Aw pxʯ淾:R,^%V賔O(^1TVϒ>X~B)h`i7[zʈHX<[Č0#ko[vktfscoMi\lb'^NV 6*l[>£n5i;]3CTr3F͈~,%UjuDv%4^{iCɛŜ[_F$ K,9|\6;ɤWI(0x @0=5)FTɜB3ې#s=g- w=肻úBr"Ж2~|fR3Rxp6VeQ Pb3䢔^؟xgQ*#[()#A{iYv:kVJCՋ?jJ:E-Ƙ~\-so ,؏E_KM&Io<ۀp`lwŠbdaK\{M~;(#H|3P@id_,=2Gbâ !&DBr: g+{w}+a:)2 }8= 2GU")O ;ɗ̥m mP m4MP7-;fRӖJ,XzϛA%`wgMnsp]^ԥ{4GX(S.0=J_߱e3PÃ2akz#T ?b#=(5LbӛGquWcOv35x}Ttlb+]nNJK/阚e-ʜD7 ɖS^+,wԪPʼ1~/A?um^˖b9N̠ AMЄ% V6-VAAdUy¯sŹ~+zҸľټo*|n |U_hg.>b]=7>]t?X/ܤX1~L9Uz63ga_Kݦt/$]Jp~9K9^Uet++a?_ց|Jd]՞.[ԦZc[`K6LZjR[͊b]I[UC|9EiW4)=ò GT9g=mP}#lO)+3"ѥʹf6EiΛSةǝ,3[ԗB%*y8EGE۳|#:UP eli# /ꃚ"lfL\Mܰ孀ͺ4XW˹@f<{\߅va;xbeU/u;v O]P-FhTo9'Ehlu :t x*1QX+OPא7*KW `Hi/^:~x4g,2[R)֛A`KjZ ,7ٳrIJ)dD9MM`e%,/qBѣ~0v|0CU?Hv_Wƻr w MCYw&CWʳ6+ZXOSXGQcUtaVfXCD/njqn[S )m"9@9IS~AٱeGYYwAE͍\OhX'}ĪAq߫pM^?RN;&lml^7MIhӚ+<7m:s,"SC&FFl4f~O HL~& _a3Sœ'`Yė[ U /9^X MĮ=q#_R-hЩo`:IGC0L \5,?SL^d=!3sQV#޺ݵXmluKjG>*a۬{k7 ULRnEb ~%<ޟ$>ɠg&I{8^u.-mϏ+~OoB Uǽͬzվcv@7frRP -£ii8ΗTCII0"37iV&f1hk|ݒoɮ\FM[lVza*vcrBJM9"QWm66zu z7 *Ҳ7NrUIC/ObCci:\Q`%1) ]Ӟ2w9ߟ'QGġw31ikO^W}v#Yi_Uݻ*[&&3JkԦëWҟ2v"CߘHIeȬSjX߹ތqK_Ŷ ]:}Q<ӪAr%r33v{)KKp\JM2SHnOv'j 3s=JYQG:S9H{%ܓ"iatf)Qnserس+:gE2fyj }T:="RDu @UNY &9Ysn hKYEz5\6"džg)V|q꠳z=qf6@c}9e/&wq0M(ɅnԦyN[+c SӬff\gB9i؊ٸ϶ U 9Je5e3iz[/ӕwV/%|r2NoKȹXK὇o\~IV`|/ ]U]{Gl&b6psЂ'f4Z(g*3sa ?;;T5O'@be8<
Enjoying the preview?
Page 1 of 1