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Title: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea

Author: Jules Verne

Narrator: Peter Husmann

Format: Unabridged

Length: 18 hrs and 44 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-24-13

Publisher: Trout Lake Media

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 1399 votes

Genres: Classics, European Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Jules Vernes classic underwater tale.

A mysterious sea monster, theorized by some to be a giant narwhal, is sighted by ships of several nations; an ocean liner is also damaged by the creature. The United States government finally assembles an expedition to track down and destroy the menace. Professor Pierre Aronnax, a noted French marine biologist and narrator of the story, master harpoonist Ned Land, and Aronnax's faithful assistant Conseil join the expedition.

After much fruitless searching, the monster is found, and the ship charges into battle. During the fight, the ship's steering is damaged, and the three men are thrown overboard. They find themselves stranded on the "hide" of the creature, only to discover to their surprise that it is a large metal construct. They are quickly captured and brought inside the vessel, where they meet its enigmatic creator and commander, Captain Nemo.

Members Reviews:

A classic that everyone should read.

This book was $2, and well worth it. I read the book 20 years ago, but decided to listen to it again. Buy the book and don't use the credit though. It will be the best $2 you spend on audible.

Written over 100 years ago it accurately predicts submarines, deep sea diving and other technologies. The narration by Peter Hausmann is great and the story can't be beat. I could write more, but at $2 try it for yourself.

A difficult story plagued by a terrible reader

This experience probably would have been much more enjoyable with a different reader. Verne can already be a little dull especially once he starts going off on his lists of every creature that swims, floats, or crawls through the ocean, or the average salinity of any given body of water, but Husmann's monotone almost metallic reading made it almost unbearable. I questioned several times if it was a robot reading but the occasional wheezing assured me there was in fact a human behind the mic. The pauses between chapters were also incredibly long, so much so, that I would check to see if my player had stopped every time.

The story is a classic but not my favorite. If you must read a Verne book I suggest "The Mysterious Island".If you must read this book I suggest any other recording.

Great translation, so-so narration

I tried very hard to like this audiobook, because it uses the best public domain translation of Verne's masterpiece currently available: the first version of F. P. Walter's translation, which is available on Gutenberg and elsewhere. (Walter has since re-translated the book in a copyrighted anthology called "Amazing Journeys: Five Visionary Classics." This anthology is THE place to start if you're just getting interested in Verne. It's available from Amazon in both paper and Kindle versions and includes many illustrations from the original French editions.) Walter's translation is clear, accurate, and idiomatic.

Unfortunately, Peter Husmann's narration falls short on a couple of key points. First - and I admit this may be subjective - he sounds like he's outside the novel looking in, rather than "inhabiting" it. His tone is slightly condescending, as if he's talking down to the listener. He's reading the book out loud, not telling the story. It may be that this was a conscious choice aimed at making the book more accessible to younger readers, but I didn't enjoy it.