Balonem do bieguna
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Balonem do bieguna (lit. By Balloon to the Pole; with subtitle Przygody z podróży powietrznej ponad lodami, lit. Adventures in Air Travel over the Ice, in later editions changed to Ponad lodami Antarktydy, lit. Over the Ice of Antarctica[1]) is the second adventure novel for youth by Polish writer Władysław Umiński. It was first published in 1892 serialized in a magazine; it received a book edition in 1894. The novel has been subsequently reprinted several times and translated into French and Russian. The novel tells the story of an expedition to the South Pole using a technologically advanced balloon.[2]: 69–71
It was the second novel by Umiński, who, after its publication, began to gain fame in Poland as the author of popular novels for youth.[3] It was also Umiński's first novel containing a futuristic gadget (here, airship), and it is considered one of the first Polish science fiction novels.[2]: 69–71
The novel was first published in the illustrated magazine Wieczory Rodzinne in 1892 in installments (no. 1–30), and then published as a book in 1894 by Gebethner i Wolff. Over the next several decades, the book had received around ten editions, including in the years 1905, 1925, 1929, 1930, 1947, 1948, 1954, and finally, in 1955. The novel was also translated into French (Au Pole Sud en Balloon) and Russian.[4]: 436 [5]: 586 [6]
Plot
The plot of the novel concerns, as the title suggests, a journey to the South Pole using a balloon (actually an airship). This device, filled with helium, was capable of travelling against the wind and reaching speeds of up to 150 km/h. It was the work of Polish engineers (Gromski and Jelski) and named "Polonia". Three travelers (Gromski and two Americans, captain Ford and sailor Barton) use it to reach the Pole. During the return journey, they have to face the breakdown of their vehicle, but after numerous adventures, they are saved by a whaling ship.[2]: 69–71 [7]: 24 [8]: 370 [9]