The Introduction was the best part of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

I did enjoy this book and I'm glad I read it but ... the introduction by Ray Bradbury was the best part of this book. If you are going to get a copy to read - get this one - specifically for the introduction. As for the book itself, well, the action parts and story line are great. The problem is that Verne seems to have felt that he needed to include every single bit of background research he did into the book. He didn't seem to waste anything he had found in in his research.. He goes on for several pages listing the types of fish that can be found in a particular area. Whenever we come across a sunken ship we are treated to several pages of the history of the ship and the ships that preceded it into whatever cove we are in along with who actually made it back to make the report. Some of this stuff is interesting, but mostly, it's unnecessary filler. I found myself skipping over the taxonomic lessons and skipping to the actual story line.

The story line is great. Totally enjoyed it. Spoiler - they get attacked by 10 giant squids, not one. They also get trapped under the ice at the south pole and have lots of other adventures you don't see in the movies. All in all a worthwhile read, but it is a bit tedious because about half of the book is devoting to listing fish and their attributes (this one had a spotted tail with a blue underbelly, the next one had rings and a white belly and on and on and on.)

Do I recommend it? Well ... yeah - good story, better then what they show in the movies, you just need to gloss over the endless filler.