Around the World in Eighty Days Book Review

I finished reading Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days"  around a week ago and so I've had some time to gather my thoughts on it. This is a REVIEW so if you don't want to know what generally goes down in this book, stop reading now.

Phileas Fogg is the lead character, the Englishman who sets off on a journey circumnavigating the globe after a bet with friends who suggested it was impossible to be done in 80 days. He is the sort of character who is not troubled by anything, remains unbelievably positive in every situation, and somehow always finds a way around the tightest circumstance.

Personally, I don't like such characters, they are almost too good to be true, and as you read on, you just know that whatever happens, Mr. Fogg will come up with something to continue his journey around the world on schedule.

On the contrary, I can much more relate to those who have their frailties and human pitfalls. Passepartout, Mr. Fogg's French servant, is by far and away the star of the novel for me. He demonstrates passion, fight, ecstasy and despair. The reader can understand his emotions and actions. It was Passepartout who came up with the genius idea that saved Mrs. Aouda from certain death, and ultimately, it was this servant who realised at the end that they were in fact, one day ahead of themselves, a result of their eastward trek around the globe.

Around the World in Eighty Days gave a couple of interesting insights into Indian culture (the train and elephant journey across the country) and the Mormon religion (the train ride across Utah and the Mormon missionary's discourse). However, there were many parts of the story that seemed to pass by in a blur, which could possibly have been described in a lot more detail. Mr. Fogg and his accomplices did move on from one country to the next, one continent to the next, with alarming rapidity.

The best part of the book, however, was saved for the end, and for the first time, it showed emotion in the cold Mr. Fogg. Mrs. Aouda asks his hand in marriage, to which he replies with these legendary words:

"I love you. Yes, in truth, by everything most sacred in the world, I love you, and I am entirely yours!"

To say that was unexpected would be a gross understatement! It was a little masterclass from Jules Verne. The journey around the world didn't make Mr. Fogg much money in the end, but it did open his heart and he found true happiness and love.

Teaser Tuesday (18 Nov 2014) - The Assassini

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish event held by MizB at

Anyone can join in – just do the following:

                                                                                      ·         Grab your current read

                                                                                      ·         Open to a random page

                          ·         Share two (2) teaser sentences from somewhere on that page

                ·         BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away. You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

              ·         Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) lists if they like your teasers

The Assassini is a book I have only just got into the beginning of. Here's a teaser from the early pages:

"He saw a black trouser leg beside his face. He felt something blunt pressing against the back of his head."

A little grisly, but that's how it goes sometimes!

Jesus the Christ, Teaser Tuesday (28 Oct. 2014)

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish event held by MizB at

Anyone can join in – just do the following:

                                                                                       ·         Grab your current read

                                                                                       ·         Open to a random page

                            ·         Share two (2) teaser sentences from somewhere on that page

          ·         BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away. You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

           ·         Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) lists if they like your teasers

My teaser today is mainly aimed at a Christian audience, though those of other faiths or beliefs may find it intriguing and are invited to join along too.

I am quoting from the masterpiece, "Jesus the Christ," written by the fabulous orator and stimulating teacher, James E. Talmage, a man who devoted his life to the study of the holy scriptures. To this day, Jesus the Christ survives as one of the leading commentaries on the life of Jesus and contains a lifetime of study and reflection within its pages.

I have read it through from cover to cover once, and am slowly making my way through it a second time.

Here's the teaser:

"The only instance of of offspring from woman dissociated from mortal fatherhood is the birth of Jesus the Christ, who was the earthly Son of a mortal mother, begotten by an immortal Father. He is the Only Begotten of the Eternal Father in the flesh, and was born of woman."

You may need to rub your eyes and read that again! Mr. Talmage goes on to explain further in the book, but this teaser will suffice. 

I am enjoying Teaser Tuesdays a lot. It's a great couple of hours of my day to visit all of your blogs to see what you're reading. I also appreciate the visits and comments over here. Have a great week ahead and happy reading!

The 9/11 Commission Report - Teaser Tuesday (21 Oct. 2014)

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish event held by MizB at

Anyone can join in – just do the following:

                                                                                      ·         Grab your current read

                                                                                      ·         Open to a random page

                          ·         Share two (2) teaser sentences from somewhere on that page

                ·         BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away. You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

              ·         Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) lists if they like your teasers

Last week I shared a teaser from Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days," which I'm still reading this week. In fact, I'm 'half way through' quite a number of books, of both fact, fiction, and somewhere in between.

And it is somewhere in between that I'm sharing for Teaser Tuesday today.

The 9/11 Commission Report - The Attack from Planning to Aftermath is proclaimed as the authorized text on the whole dark saga. Here is the teaser:

"The threat of terrorists hijacking commercial airliners within the United States - and using them as guided missiles - was not recognized by NORAD before 9/11 . . . . . On the morning of 9/11, the existing protocol was unsuited in every respect for what was about to happen."

NORAD refers to the North American Aerospace Defence Command.

It's a very interesting read, though I highly doubt the truth behind all the events of that fateful day are contained in the pages of this book. Of that I don't think we will ever know. It remains, however, that hundreds of innocent people lost their lives on that day.

What are your thoughts on 9/11? Did you find the teaser intriguing? Eye-opening? Would you read the book?

Around the World in Eighty Days, Teaser Tuesday (14 Oct 2014)

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish event held by MizB at should be reading

Anyone can join in – just do the following:

                               ·         Grab your current read

                               ·         Open to a random page

                          ·         Share two (2) teaser sentences from somewhere on that page

                ·         BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away. You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

              ·         Share the title and author too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their To Be Read (TBR) lists if they like your teasers

My teaser today is taken from Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days."

"Mrs. Aouda thanked her deliverers profusely, by her tears more than by her words. Her beautiful eyes, rather than her lips, were the interpreters of her gratitude."

Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne

So I'm devouring my way through Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days" and enjoying it, but not as much as his "Journey to the Centre of the Earth." Not yet.

Phileas Fogg is the Englishman who talks very little and has a devoutly specific routine to his life. Until he takes on a challenge to travel around the world in just 80 days. 

Set in London in 1872, Verne continues his ahead-of-time storytelling as Fogg sets off by train, boat and elephant to accomplish his bet with his trusty servant, Passepartout.

Passepartout devised a plan to rescue an Indian lady who was about to be sacrificed, but it happened with minimal fuss or trouble, unlike the trials of life and death contained under Mount Sneffels in Journey to the Centre of the Earth.

Perhaps the more dramatic stuff will be coming soon . . .

Look what I've got to look forward to...

Man, I've got several books to start reading and have no idea when I'm seriously going to get through them! We had a book sale and some discounts so I bought them on the cheap and stored them up. Now I'm beginning to wonder what's inside and the stories and adventures that I've been keeping hidden on my bookshelf.

Question is, where should I start?