The men who fired a projectile From the Earth to the Moon are back, this time with an even more outrageous idea. Convinced that there are massive coal deposits at the North Pole, they want to tilt the axis of the earth enough to melt the ice cap. They see fortunes to be made; the rest of the world sees devastation and destruction. It’s one of Verne’s strongest satires about corporate greed and the evils of unregulated industrialization.

There are few complete and accurate translations of the novel available in English. Ron Miller, illustrator, space artist, and Verne expert, has taken an anonymous 19th century translation and updated and expanded it to restore the omitted passages. Verne’s sardonic sense of humor has never been more in evidence. The novel is narrated by Tad Davis, who has previously narrated three other Verne novels, including the Moon novel that precedes this one.