From the Earth to the Moon

Tbh, this book is kind of boring. This probably makes me a Philistine, but I feel I need to say it. I actually like 19th century literature, so I went into this with a completley open mind. The first chapter is funny, and the rest is a slog through 19th century theory about whether you can actually shoot a guy into space from, like, a cannon. Also, he gets weirdly side-tracked with money - the amount of bets and investments, etc. My real problem with Jules Verne when he gets really science-y is that either (a) his theories are very wrong, or (b) his theories are remarkably close to being right. I don't know enough about astrophysics to appreciate the difference. He could be giving me the exact specs I'd need to build a working rocket, and I woulnd't know the difference. I knwo the characters' antics are supposed to be funny, but it's still just boring, the way Donald Duck in Mathmagicland is boring. A cute, cartoonish character trying to teach you math is still math class. I'm glad this book was written.