by Jules Verne retold by Noe Venable

by Jules Verne retold by Noe Venable

Classic Adventures Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne retold by Noe Venable Don Johnston Incorporated Volo, Illinois

2 Edited by: Jerry Stemach, MS, CCC-SLP Gail Portnuff Venable, MS, CCC-SLP Dorothy Tyack, MA Consultant: Ted S. Hasselbring, PhD Graphics and Illustrations: Photographs and illustrations are all created professionally and modified to provide the best possible support for the intended reader. Narration: Professional actors and actresses read the text to build excitement and to model research-based elements of fluency: intonation, stress, prosody, phrase groupings and rate. The rate has been set to maximize comprehension for the reader. Published by: Don Johnston Incorporated 26799 West Commerce Drive Volo, IL 60073 800.999.4660 USA Canada 800.889.5242 Technical Support www.donjohnston.com Copyright 2005-2012 Start-to-Finish L.L.C. and Don Johnston Incorporated. All rights reserved. Start-to-Finish and the Don Johnston logo are registered trademarks. Printed in the U.S.A. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording, or otherwise. International Standard Book Number ISBN: 978-1-4105-0123-3

3 Contents Chapter 1 The Mysterious Message...5 Chapter 2 Climbing Mount Sneffels...18 Chapter 3 Into the Earth...31 About the Start-to-Finish Author...129 About the Original Author...131 About the Narrator...132

4

5 Chapter 1 The Mysterious Message

6 Journey to the Center of the Earth When I think about the things that happened to me, I am filled with amazement. I can hardly believe that my adventures were real. It all began when I was living in Germany with my Uncle Hardwigg. My uncle was a professor of geology. This means that he studied the earth and the rocks that make up the earth. I was not only Uncle Hardwigg s nephew, but also his student. 1 of 11

The Mysterious Message 7 One afternoon, I heard my uncle shouting to me from upstairs. Henry! Come here! Come quickly! he called. I found him sitting at his desk, studying a very old book. Wonderful! he cried. Have you ever seen anything like it? What is it? I asked. This book once belonged to a man named Arne Saknussemm, said Uncle Hardwigg. Arne Saknussemm was a famous professor in Iceland in the 16th century. I ve just found his name written inside the cover of this book! 2 of 11

8 Journey to the Center of the Earth When my uncle lifted up the book to show it to me, a small scrap of paper fell out. What s this? he cried, as he snatched it from the table. The paper looked very old. There was something written on it in strange symbols, and I didn t recognize the language. 3 of 11

The Mysterious Message 9 This must be a message from Arne Saknussemm himself! cried my uncle. Hmmm, it seems to be written in the Runic language. Runic is the ancient language of Iceland. Well, my boy, we must crack the code at once! That was the beginning of a long night. My uncle sat at his desk for hours trying to translate the symbols into a language that we could understand. He thought that the language might be Latin, which I had studied in school. 4 of 11

10 Journey to the Center of the Earth As Uncle Hardwigg worked, my mind drifted away. I began to stare at a painting on the wall. It was a painting of my uncle s goddaughter, Gretchen. Gretchen and I were in love and planned to be married, but we hadn t told my uncle yet. I was lost in my thoughts of Gretchen when my uncle suddenly banged his fist on the desk. Nonsense! he cried. Then he ran out of the room. 5 of 11

The Mysterious Message 11 I looked at the paper that my uncle had left behind. He had managed to translate the symbols into letters that spelled out words, but the words didn t make any sense to me at all. I decided to see if I could figure out the code. I stared at my uncle s notes until my eyes began to hurt and my brain felt like it was on fire. I needed some fresh air, so I began to fan myself with the paper. 6 of 11

12 Journey to the Center of the Earth

The Mysterious Message 13 As I did this, I saw the paper from the back, and the ink from my uncle s pen showed right through it. I gasped in amazement because I saw some Latin words. The message was written backwards! When my uncle came back, I showed him what I had found, even though I knew it would only lead to trouble. Uncle Hardwigg trembled with excitement as we translated the message. 7 of 11

14 Journey to the Center of the Earth Here s what it said: Go to Mount Sneffels in Iceland. There, you will find a huge crater of a volcano. Inside the volcano, there are openings that go down into the earth. To find the right opening, you must go to the mountain near the end of June. Just at that time, there will be a shadow on the crater from a mountain peak called Scartaris. 8 of 11

The Mysterious Message 15 At noon, the tip of this shadow points to an opening that will lead you to the center of the earth. Go down into the opening just as I did. Arne Saknussemm Uncle Hardwigg leaped three feet into the air with joy, but I was filled with dread. Either this is a joke, or Saknussemm was mad! I cried. Nobody could survive a journey to the center of the earth! 9 of 11

16 Journey to the Center of the Earth But my uncle had made up his mind. Pack your things, my boy, and don t tell a soul. We leave the day after tomorrow! The next day, I went to see Gretchen. I was sure that she would agree with me that the whole idea was mad. But Gretchen listened in awe as I told her what had happened. What a wonderful adventure! she said. If I were a man, I d go with you! 10 of 11

The Mysterious Message 17 So that was that. Uncle Hardwigg was crazy, and Gretchen thought the trip was a wonderful idea! 11 of 11

18 Chapter 2 Climbing Mount Sneffels

Climbing Mount Sneffels 19 To reach Iceland, we had to travel by horse and carriage, and then by train and by ship. I was glad that the trip was so long because it would give me plenty of time to convince my uncle that the whole thing was a very bad idea. Mount Sneffels is a volcano, isn t it? I asked. What if it erupts? It won t erupt, said my uncle. Sneffels hasn t erupted for hundreds of years. 1 of 11

20 Journey to the Center of the Earth What about heat? I asked. Isn t the center of the earth so hot that it makes rocks melt and turn into lava? I don t think so, but we ll soon find out, he said. Nothing was going to stop Uncle Hardwigg! When we got to Iceland, my uncle hired a man named Hans to be our guide. Hans had lived his whole life in Iceland, and he didn t speak any German, but he and my uncle could both speak Dutch. 2 of 11

Climbing Mount Sneffels 21 I liked Hans right away because he never seemed to get too excited or upset about anything. He was so different from my uncle. Hans led us through the countryside to the foot of Mount Sneffels. As we made our way up the mountain with our heavy packs, I asked my uncle about the supplies that we had brought with us. 3 of 11

22 Journey to the Center of the Earth It seemed that my uncle had thought of everything. We had all kinds of tools. We had a compass to tell us which way to go. We had equipment that could measure the time of day. We needed this because the sun and stars would not help us when we were deep inside the earth. We had equipment that could tell us how far below sea level we were. We had enough food to last us for six months. And we had two rifles and a rope that was 400 feet long. 4 of 11

Climbing Mount Sneffels 23 But what will we do for light? I asked. I ve brought two special lamps, said my uncle. There could be gasses inside the earth that would explode near a flame. These lanterns are a new invention. They don t make a flame so they are safe near gasses, and they even glow brightly underwater. And water to drink? I asked. 5 of 11

24 Journey to the Center of the Earth We should find plenty of water on the way down, Uncle Hardwigg replied. I ve packed one bottle of water for each of us. We can refill the bottles as we go. It was 11 o clock at night when we reached the top of Mount Sneffels. We camped there for the night. The next morning, I woke up early and climbed a nearby peak. The view took my breath away. I could see hundreds of other mountains, all covered with snow. 6 of 11

Climbing Mount Sneffels 25 Looking toward the west, I could see the ocean. It was hard to tell where the mountains ended and the sea began. Soon, Hans and my uncle joined me on the peak. Well, my boy, we ve done it, said my uncle. Then, in Dutch, he asked Hans to tell me the name of the peak we were standing on. Scartaris, said Hans. 7 of 11

26 Journey to the Center of the Earth So this was it the peak that would cast its shadow down into the crater, pointing the way to the center of the earth. Hans led the way down into the crater of Mount Sneffels. The crater was about a half a mile across, but its sides weren t too steep, and we reached the bottom by noon. From here we could see three black pits, each with an opening that led down into the earth. uncle. Henry! Look at this! cried my 8 of 11

Climbing Mount Sneffels 27 Uncle Hardwigg was pointing to a large flat rock. There were letters carved into the rock. A. S.! Arne Saknussemm! You see, my boy, it s all true! he cried. We spent that night camped in the crater. The next day, there were dark, gray clouds hanging overhead. My uncle was in a rage. As long as there were clouds, we couldn t see the shadow, and it was already the 25th of June. 9 of 11

28 Journey to the Center of the Earth If the sky will just be kind enough to stay cloudy for six more days, we ll have to give up and go home, I thought to myself. And I can return to my Gretchen. The next two days were no better. It rained and snowed. Uncle Hardwigg was angry. Then, finally, on Sunday the 28th of June, the sun came out. 10 of 11

Climbing Mount Sneffels 29

30 Journey to the Center of the Earth Hans, my uncle, and I watched as the sunlight crept into the crater. As the sun rose higher in the sky, we could see a shadow moving across the crater. It was the shadow of Scartaris! Finally, at noon, the shadow pointed to the pit in the middle of the crater. Here it is! cried my uncle. We ve found it! Forward, my friends! Forward, to the center of the earth! 11 of 11

31 Chapter 3 Into the Earth

32 Journey to the Center of the Earth We could see that the pit was about a hundred feet across, but we had no idea how deep it was. My uncle took out the long rope. He hooked the middle of it over a rock so that the ends went 200 feet down into the pit. We ll hold onto both lengths of rope on our way down, he said. Then, when we reach the end of the rope, we ll find a place to stand. We ll pull the entire rope down by pulling on one end. If we need to go deeper, we can do the same thing again. 1 of 9

Into the Earth 33 Hans went down first, my uncle followed, and I went last. The sides of the pit went straight down, but there were many jagged rocks sticking out from the walls, and we could step on these rocks. We held onto the rope to keep our balance as we stepped from rock to rock. After a half hour we came to the end of the rope. We had climbed 200 feet into the pit. Hans pulled down the rope and hooked it over a new rock. Then we began again. 2 of 9

34 Journey to the Center of the Earth It took us ten hours to reach the bottom. We had used the rope 28 times for a distance of 5600 feet. Is this the center of the earth? I asked hopefully. Of course not! said Uncle Hardwigg. We haven t even gone one inch into the earth. Uncle, I said, we have gone just over a mile into the earth. 3 of 9

Into the Earth 35 Yes, but you must remember that we started near the top of Mount Sneffels, my uncle replied. We ve just now reached the soil of the island itself. We re back at sea level! By now, it was evening, so we decided to camp for the night. I lay on the ground looking up through the mouth of the crater, far above us. I could see a few stars, and I wondered if this was the last time I would ever see the sky. 4 of 9

36 Journey to the Center of the Earth The next morning we continued our journey through a tunnel that my uncle had noticed. The lava had flowed through the tunnel during the volcano s last eruption, and the lava had left a thick, shiny coating on the walls. Beautiful crystals sparkled like diamonds in the light from the lanterns. These crystals are made of a mineral called quartz, my uncle told me. It s a magnificent sight! I cried. 5 of 9

Into the Earth 37

38 Journey to the Center of the Earth I had to admit that I was beginning to enjoy our trip. But there was one thing that bothered me. Our water supply was getting low, and we hadn t found any water to refill our bottles. After a few days of walking, we came to a place where our tunnel crossed another tunnel. Now we had to choose which way to go. My uncle made up his mind right away. This one, he said, pointing to the tunnel that headed east. 6 of 9

Into the Earth 39 For several hours, we walked through the eastern tunnel. Then I started to feel very tired. I stopped to catch my breath. What s wrong? asked my uncle. We ve only been walking for three hours, and we re going downhill. Excuse me, Uncle, but haven t you noticed? I asked. We re going uphill! How can that be true? he cried. 7 of 9

40 Journey to the Center of the Earth I don t know, but if we keep going like this, we re going to end up back in Iceland, I said. My uncle shook his head. Well, it s possible that we chose the wrong road, he said. But there s no way to tell unless we keep walking. There s only one problem with that, I said. What s the problem? he asked. I said. We re going to run out of water, 8 of 9

Into the Earth 41 Well, Henry, there s nothing we can do about that, is there? he replied. We ll just have to drink as little water as possible. He kept walking. We walked for three days. Then suddenly, at 6 o clock in the evening, we were standing in front of a wall. We had reached the end of the tunnel. Well, that s that, said my uncle. We took the wrong road after all. We have to go back to the place where we chose this tunnel. 9 of 9

129 About the Start-to-Finish Author Noe Venable grew up in San Francisco, California. She started writing when she was very young, and has written stories, poems, and plays. Today, Noe is not only a writer, she is also a singer and songwriter. Noe has put out five CDs of her music. Two of her songs were used in a movie called Cherish. Noe also enjoys working with young people. She has taught classes in songwriting and puppet-making.

130

131 About the Original Author Jules Verne was born in 1828 in France. Verne wrote at a time when people still traveled in carriages that were pulled by horses. But Verne was always thinking about the future. In his books, he wrote about things that hadn t been invented yet, like tanks, and helicopters. Verne wrote twenty novels. His books have been made into plays, movies, and television shows, and they have also been translated into many different languages for people all over the world to enjoy.

About the Narrator Nick Sandys has performed in theaters around the world. You may have heard Nick s voice in a TV or radio ad. Nick works as a fight director helping actors make their fights look real on the stage. He also has a Master s degree in English Literature and has gone back to college to get a higher degree, called a PhD. He grew up in the ancient city of York, in the north of England.

C l a s s i c A d v e n t u r e s Journey to the Center of the Earth Suppose that someone told you they had found out about a cave that went all the way down to the center of the earth? Would you think they were crazy? That s what Henry thinks when his uncle tells him about his crazy plan. But Henry s uncle won t take no for an answer, and soon the two men are on their way to Iceland, where they have the greatest adventure of their lives. Join them as they start their journey down into the darkness. Look for other exciting Start-to-Finish books: www.donjohnston.com The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde The Invisible Man ISBN 978-1-4105-0123-3