Taking up a challenge from his whist partners, a mysterious English gentleman named Phileas Fogg wagers half his fortune and abandons his quiet domestic routine to undertake a daring feat: to circle the globe in a mere 80 days, an achievement unheard of in the Victorian World.

Fogg and Passepartout, his devoted manservant, avail themselves of virtually every known means of transportation in their wild race against time. All the while, a devious detective dogs their every step and introduces fresh obstacles. The resourceful Fogg faces each new trial with unshakable aplomb, through a constantly shifting background of exotic locales—from the jungles of India, a Chinese opium den, and a Japanese circus to a full-throttle train ride under attack by Sioux and a bloodless mutiny aboard a tramp steamer.

Lexile Measure: 1070L

©2000. 160 pages, paperback, 5 by 8 inches, middle school/high school.