Mysterious Island by Jules Verne. Short summary

5 seconds

Southerners from the besieged city of Richmond want to send a balloon, but 5 Northerners take over. Because of a hurricane, they are swept to a deserted island, where they will be forced to settle.

1 minute

In 1865, there is a civil war in the United States. The city of Richmond is besieged. Southerners want to send a balloon out of it to contact General Lee. Because of a hurricane, they are forced to postpone the flight.

Five Northerners seize the balloon. The hurricane takes it to the expanse of the Pacific Ocean. The balloon falls on a sandy shore in the Southern Hemisphere. The heroes find themselves on a desert island. The northerners proclaim themselves the local «colonists» and begin to make tools.

Using homemade explosives, they drain a cave, where they set up a dwelling with windows on the sea. After a while, the colonists manage to provide themselves with food, warmth, and clothing.

One day, an orangutan comes into the Northmen’s home, which they keep and call Jupiter. He becomes a loyal friend and helper to the heroes.

The settlers fish out of the sea a crate with tools, appliances, clothes, utensils, books, and weapons. They don’t understand where these things came from. From the map from the box, the heroes realize that there is another island not far from theirs.