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(14) Michel Strogoff (Michael Strogoff: The Courier of the Czar, 1876) (2 volumes) 111K words


The 14th novel of the Voyages Extraordinaries is an old favorite from my childhood. This one is also a straightforward adventure story, with no science fiction elements, but a good and dramatic one. I'm not alone in my appreciation: Literary critic Leonard S. 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." Perhaps a bit hyperbolic, but it has always seemed to me that, because of his eye-catching role as a SF precursor, people tend to overlook that Verne was also an excellent adventure writer, in his 19th-century style.

It's worth mentioning again that the science lectures that we got in some of his first novels, the ones that were part of the flavor of his writing but could also interrupt the pace of the story, have been absent for a while at this point. Maybe it's because we have had several adventure stories with no speculative elements. The next novel after this one will be a good opportunity to test whether this change in style is permanent, because Off on a Comet is 100% science fiction.

We'll see, but for the moment let's come back to Michael Strogoff's adventures in Siberia. I'm reading this in 2022, shortly after the invasion of Ukraine, so perhaps cheering for a Russian hero is bad timing, but I figure that 19th century Russians are not to blame for Putin's crimes.


First read or reread?: This one is a reread for me. I read it as a kid and loved it.


What is it about?: Tartars invaders led by the Emir of Bokhara, with the encouragement and help of Russian traitor Ivan Ogareff, are overrunning Siberia. The Russian garrisons and cities in their path do not have the strength to stop them. In Moscow, the Czar is marshalling the forces of the vast empire for a counter-attack. However, he must get a message of vital importance to his brother the Arch Duke who is currently in Irkutsk, the capital of Eastern Siberia, warning him of a plot to assassinate him and betray the city into the invaders' hands. Since telegraph communications are cut, the Czar calls upon his best courier, Captain Michael Strogoff, to secretly get the message pass the Siberian frontier and across thousands of miles filled with natural obstacles and fierce invaders.


After a novel told in first person, we go back to Verne's normal third person narration. This is a 2-volume novel and, even though the start of the story is comparatively sedate, it has a good pace. We'll follow Michael Strogoff as he is entrusted with his mission and travels through the European part of Russia while the country prepares for a war. The real dangers, however, will start once he reaches the Ural Mountains that mark the border with Siberia. Despite the setting, do not expect a snow-filled tale like Captain Hatteras or The Fur Country. This one takes place in the summer.

I think Verne finds a good balance here between the travelogue and the menace of enemy agents. Verne did not know Siberia in person, but for background descriptions he documented himself by reading travellers' accounts and he even sent a copy of the manuscript to the Russian writer Ivan Turgenev, for comments about the accuracy. The maps provided with the novel are very useful to follow the characters' progress.

Apart from Michael Strogoff, who is relentless in his fulfilment of his mission, we get some strong female characters, which is not always the case in Verne's novels. Not strong physically, but strong in spirit. We have Nadia, Michael's traveling companion, who is trying to get to Irkutsk to reunite with his exiled father. She looks like a damsel in distress but proves to have an iron will. There's Marfa, Michael's mother, exemplary in her determination not to betray his son's mission. On the villain's side, we have Sangarre, the Bohemian spy working for Ivan Ogareff.

For comic relief, we have the two Western journalists who are also traveling through Siberia, covering the invasion: Harry Blount, the English journalist for the Daily Telegraph, and Alcide Jolivet, French correspondent for his "cousin Madeleine" (the jocular term he uses so as not to reveal the name of the newspaper with which he corresponds). The contrasting personalities of the two journalists, their rivalry (although they'll eventually become friends) and their sometimes wildly divergent perspectives provide the humor.

As I said, there's no speculative element here, but Verne is Verne. He does have one of his usual dramatic twists, and a scientific phenomenon (the Leidenfrost effect) plays a role. As is often the case with Verne's novels, there's a climactic ending.


Enjoyment factor: Very high. Pacing is good, and the suffering and determination of the title character makes for a dramatic adventure.


Next up: Off on a Comet