Hector Servadac. [Off on a Comet]

x, [4], 370, [4] pp. 8vo. Original green cloth, gilt & black titles, gilt decorations including images of planets and hot air balloon. Translated from Verne's original French by Ellen E. Frewer, with 96 engraved illustrations. One of Verne's lesser-known works, Hector Servadac (also titled Off on a Comet in some translations) tells the story of a group of people living on a piece of land that has broken away from Earth after the comet Gallia collides with it. They observe strange discrepancies between the natural laws of Earth and those that apply to their surroundings, struggle among one another to establish power, and ultimately decide to work together to escape the comet. Originally published in French in 1877 as Les Voyages Extraordinaires: Hector Servadac Voyages et Aventures a Travers Le Monde Solaire, this American edition was printed in New York the following year.