Название книги: "Первые люди на Луне" автора Герберта Уэллса. Книга описывает приключения двух братьев, которые отправляются на Луну и становятся первыми людьми, ступившими на поверхность этого космического объекта. Они сталкиваются с опасностями и неожиданными испытаниями на пути к своей цели, но благодаря своему уму и смекалке
H.G.Wells opens his tale of humankind’ dawn on the moon by describing an ordinary working-class household in 19th century England — the Wellses are a close-knit patriarchal family trapped in a world that they have come to grow thoroughly bored with. Life in Thorndyke, Wells’s fictionalized town, revolves around the docks, where Nathaniel, the father, works for the Devonport Shipping Company; Emma, his wife; and their teenage sons Jack and George. Their existence lacks both adventure and excitement; Wells suggests that even the novel Carter's Revenge might be preferable. When the call comes one evening to announce that the first settlers are due to set out the following day, Wells' village characters realize that this is a once-in-a-lifetime mission, a terrifying adventure at last, even if it means leaving behind all the familiar comforts and routines of their workaday lives. Nathaniel's dream is to work his way up from ship's boy to captain, as he has done countless times in his father's footsteps, but now the voyage has taken him beyond his wildest imaginings; he is part of a colony to be planted on the Moon. Emma's response is less enthusiastic, reminding him that the children need someone to support them while they grow up, and she doesn't want to leave them alone in Thorndyke. The village girl Betsy, however, is expectant and eager to see strange places, to travel to unknown countries. She has never been on horseback but dreams of riding across the high moors to the neighbouring city of Ilfracombe, situated on the Atlantic coast. Although not internationally renowned for their literature, Wells is concerned that the English are becoming increasingly unsatisfied with their government, politics, and surroundings. It is implied that escape is desperately sought after by the villagers, yet going to live on a completely new world — even one that is not amongst the stars — represents an immense leap that could have disastrous consequences. To borrow a phrase coined by Edward Bellamy in Looking Backward (Wright, 84), "if England goes mad, who's going to stop it?" The novel closes with the departure of Le Fanu's ship John Bull, which will bring back its Lebanese settlers and take two British families up to make the life-changing excursion. Betsy and her father leave the Wellses, tearfully bidding farewell to those who were to care for her during her growing years, feeling more sure than ever that leaving the safety of her past behind is worth a lifetime of unforeseen confrontations. Life aboard the ship is chaotic until the moment when the cry “The Sea!” is heard, signaling the beginning of the long canoe voyage to rendezvous with the waiting lunar colony. Yet whether or not the story ends well remains to be seen: 610 colonists died during the boat ride to the Moon Capital, Absyrtus, which the narrative elaborates is one of the most advanced and beautiful cities in the Solar System. Having shed his wife's suitcase into the sea, perhaps it's only a matter of time before the families clash, failing to assist each other or necessarily accepting one another. In the process, one unintended disaster could lead to other catastrophes, dividing and uniting them in their trials, shaping their lives ever so slightly, and driving them to their ultimate conclusion.
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