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Adventures of the Rat Family (Opie Library)

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Adventures of the Rat Family is one of Verne's most unusual stories, in which he diverged from his usual formula to write his only fairy tale and one of his few pure fantasies. First published in France over a century ago, it is now published in an elegant children's edition by Oxford University Press (72 pp., ...). Included are all 17 original color illustrations by Felician Myrbach-Rheinfeld, reproduced from the January 1891 holiday issue of the fashionable Parisian journal Le Figaro illustre.

Adventures of the Rat Family was not published in book form until after Verne's death, with the
appearance of the 1910 anthology Yesterday and Tomorrow, containing only a few of the engravings and a text revised by Verne's son, Michel, his literary executor. The Oxford edition is
the first time that Adventures has been published in book form in any language with all of the original illustrations.

As Adventures of the Rat Family attests, Verne's writing is far more diverse than his reputation as the father of science fiction suggests. He wrote more than 60 novels, as well as numerous short stories, plays, articles and poems, covering a range of genres and literary forms. He was actually most prolific in the genres of adventure, mystery and comedy.

Adventures of the Rat Family deals with evolution, a problematic and controversial idea when the story first appeared in 1891, and one that was surely prohibitive for American publishers. This was especially true since Adventures of the Rat Family was also one of Verne's few stories accessible to a very young audience. However, like many fairy tales, its larger significance requires more sophisticated adult reading.

Verne portrays a magical movement up and down the evolutionary ladder, as a close-knit family of rats is transformed into various lower forms of life, from mollusks to birds. The instigator of these deeds is a genie, hired by a cruel prince who desires the family's daughter, although she loves another.

Verne both recognizes and mocks the idea of evolution by having his characters change from one species to another, finally making a metamorphosis into men and women. Added amusement is
provided by one cousin who never quite catches up as he makes each transformation, always retaining a feature of his previous incarnation, until finally he has a donkey's tail even after
becoming a man.

Verne had long been interested in evolution and basically accepted the theory. His 1858 play, M. de Chimpanze (untranslated), is of a chimp that readily adapts to high society, and a giant prehistoric man is sighted in Journey to the Center of the Earth. Verne portrays a "missing link" species in his 1901 novel, The Aerial Village, and speculates that the tribe will be incorporated into an imperial colony. "The Humbug" is the story of a P.T. Barnum-like character whose successful hoax convinces New Yorkers that he has unearthed the bones of early man near Albany.

By cloaking his use of the evolutionary theme within the fantasy of Adventures of the Rat Family, Verne hoped to circumvent disapproval of his more serious and controversial subtext. He had first related the story during a European lecture tour in 1887, and he was so delighted with the idea that he enlarged it into a novella. He cleverly imbued it with his satirical expertise, lending it a light touch that concealed much of its bite. Verne was skilled in comedy, especially when it involved bizarre characters in unusual locales, as demonstrated by his treatment of the stuffy British travelers in Around the World in 80 Days.

Adventures of the Rat Family is a rewarding, one-of-a-kind story that will be enjoyed in different ways by all ages.