Sprayfly

After a reading marathon, I have finished the first book of Jules Verne’s ‘Michel Strogoff- De Moscou à Irkoutsk’. Devotedly, I have immediately progressed onto the second book in the series of two.
Admittedly, the prospect of reading what could be considered as ‘more difficult’ French literature did scare me slightly. Apart from ‘Jean de Florette’, ‘Manon des Sources’ and ‘La Gloire de mon Pere’ this is the only true french literature I have read. I must admit that until now I have taken the easier route of reading translated English literature such as ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘The Lord of the Rings’. Whilst, strictly speaking, the language in these books is not necessarily much easier than Verne’s writing, I feel that I now need to move on to some real French literature if I wish to further progress.
The first book of two takes you through the journey of a man called Michel Strogoff, a courrier of the Russian czar.
It so happens that Siberia is under invasion by the Tartars and a political exhile called Ivan Ogareff is on the run. Michel Strogoff must run a very important errand for the czar and will have to travel all the way from Moscow to Irkoutsk to deliver an important warning to the czar’s brother, the Grand Duke. However, if Ivan Ogareff, a fearsome general, manages to escape to Siberia and join the tartar army then the grand duke is in great peril, for Ogareff has his mind set on killing the Duke. Strogoff must leave russia and travel across the vast Siberian plain into invaded territory by chariot, by horse or by foot. He is in great peril and at all costs, he must not be recognised. Will Michel Strogoff reach Irkoutsk before the tartar army? Will he survive all the perils and obstacles in his path?
This is a truly excellent piece of literature that will have you on the edge of your seat all the way. Well worth a read. I’ll let you know how I get on with the sequel.