edition of Nellie Bly's Around the World in 72 days

[Ana Klimchynskaya]

Hello all, 

I am trying to find for purchase a reliable edition of Nellie Bly's Around the World in 72 days which, as we know, was inspired by Verne's novel. All I've been able to find so far are editions from publishing on demand institutions, whose reliability I don't trust. And, of course, the first edition is scarce and unaffordable. Any suggestions for a good edition that reliably contains the entire text? 

Thanks,

Anastasia

[Garmt de Vries-Uiterweerd]

Good question... I know the entire text is available online, for example here, but I couldn't tell how reliable such an e-text is. Could have been carefully edited, could be chock full of OCR errors.

Cheers,

Garmt

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[Alex Kirstukas]

Penguin Classics did an edition a few years ago, as Around the World in Seventy-Two Days and Other Writings, edited by Jean Marie Lutes. I don’t have a copy of that edition yet, but it sure looks promising. 

On Nov 19, 2025, at 8:15 AM, Garmt de Vries-Uiterweerd <garmtd...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[RFOG]

Since I found an Asimov's "Robots and Empire" electronic version in Spanish,  same translator, same edition I have in paperback, but "adapted" to neutral genre, I've stopped been confident in any electronic version, even the purchased ones. Problem here is not neutral genre but Asimov never wrote in neutral and was known as machist and women molester (when he entered in Doubleday, all women leave by other doors). I don't have problem reading neutral literature, Peter F. Hamilton (one of my modern favorite writers) do. And the end came when I purchased an electronic version of a Dawkins book because my own paper was in Spain and I needed it, to find that his opinions were not as strong as I remembered. When I went to Spain it happened the same: same edition, same translator, in this case completely different text with a lot of less strong opinions about religion.

It is soooo easy to modify and wokenish an electronic edition without noticing, that now I only get paper books, prefereable old editions, and I scan them to PDF if I need electronic version, and if I "get" a book from "somewhere", only facsimile scanned editions.

Be scare of electronic editions and this new "neohistory" epoch we are living.

BTW, I read Nelly book and it seems she traveled with a male escort, deducted from some phrases in the book.

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[Ana Klimchynskaya]

Alex,

I've seen that one and even almost bought it, but when I looked at it online I realized it has only a small excerpt from Around the world in 72 days. Deceptive marketing, I'd say...

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[jwestine_616]

There are copies of the Penguin Classics edition on the AbeBooks site and very reasonably priced.

 

-Jim

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[Alex Kirstukas]

Hi Ana,

Wow! Yes, deceptive indeed. Thanks for the warning - I was just thinking about getting that Penguin!

All the best,

Alex

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[jwestine_616]

There’s also a 2020 "enriched" edition on Amazon from Good Press.

 

Reviewed (by AI) as:

 

"The 2020 Good Press "Enriched" edition of Around the World in Seventy-Two Days by Nellie Bly is a modern reprint that includes the complete, unabridged text of her original 1890 journey, along with supplementary materials designed to enhance the reading experience."

 

Who knows...

 

From: jules-ve...@googlegroups.com <jules-ve...@googlegroups.com> On Behalf Of Alex Kirstukas

Sent: Wednesday, November 19, 2025 11:14 AM
To: jules-ve...@googlegroups.com

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[Ana Klimchynskaya]

I don't know about all of you, but I really, really strongly mistrust AI, and the word "enriched" gives me doubts. What exactly did they enrich? 

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[volker.dehs]

Hi, there is "The Nellie Bly Collection" in several volumes, edited by Tri Fritz published between 2011 and 2024 (XLibris Corporation) which seems to me to present the authentic texts:

Vol. [I]: The Books, including "Around the World" (pp. 75-186)

Vol. IV: The World (1889-1890) with texts and articles which differ from the book (pp. 315-377)

Unfortunately, these editions are not commented or annotated.

Best, Volker

[James D. Keeline]

On AI, which system is used makes a tremendous difference in the results.  Usually people default to what shows up in an AI summary on Google (perhaps using their Gemini) or the well-known ChatGPT.  The latter, as a Large Language Model, is known for paraphrasing content it can find (leading to garbage-in garbage-out results) or, if it cannot find something, it will make up something that should please the inquirer.

I use another system for work and projects that is not subject to those critical flaws.  It needs close supervision and revision to get useful results but it does work well and I have done some amazing work with it.  When the indolent use AI to avoid doing their work, you get bad results and images with people with seven fingers on a hand.  But when informed people use iti and catch the errors in a "reality check," it is possible to do good things.  You would not say that an electric drill is always bad compared with a manual.  It depends on who is handling it.

This relatively modern printing is "edited" so probably won't be complete.  I note that some of the editing may be due to stereotypes, etc. based on disclaimers I am seeing on some versions.

https://archive.org/details/nellieblysbookar00blyn/mode/2up

I thought a vintage copy with page image scans would be available on Internet Archive or HathiTrust but I have not found one n the author or titles I searched for.  But I have limited time for a deep dive.

As I recall, this was a series of articles that were sent in to her newspaper.  But that paper may not be readily available in the digital newspaper archives.  I remember having difficulty finding some stories that had been published in it, including a serial of "Topsy Turvy" around the time of the famous race around the world.  The issue there was that the story was on Sundays and only the regular daily edition was digitized on the newspaper archive I was using (I have subscriptions to four).

Again a deep dive is called for and I can't devote the time just now.

James D. Keeline

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[volker.dehs]

as for the collection published by Tri Fritz, look here:

https://nellieblyonline.net/

I had purchased the two volumes I noted, and my impression is that the texts are complete and faithful.

[jwestine_616]

For what it’s worth, this from Amazon:

 

Around the World in Seventy-Two Days: Enriched edition. A Pioneering Journey Beyond Boundaries: A Global Adventure of Courage and Determination

by Nellie Bly (Author), Good Press (Editor), Selene Dorswell (Introduction, Other Contributor)

 

In this enriched edition, we have carefully created added value for your reading experience:

- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.

- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.

- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.

- An Author Biography reveals milestones in the author's life, illuminating the personal insights behind the text.

- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.

- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.

- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.

- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.

 

It doesn’t indicate that the original text has been altered, but again, who knows…

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[James D. Keeline]

This description could apply to almost any text that they are enhancing.  I would not be surprised if this description and the added context was provided by an AI system.  The key is whether it is true and really helpful or just a word salad.

I would think that for a book listing on Amazon, you'd want to say the interesting things about this work, not just give generic template information.

I'm a little cautious about this.

On the other hand, this one holds more promise and it is probably the basis of many of the print-on-demand copies now offered.

https://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/bly/world/world.html

James D. Keeline

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[mken...@aol.com]

The link looks good. (By the way, it’s the same one that Garmt posted above ;)

I fully agree with you about the generic stuff.

Quote: «A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs»

Good for a novel, but it’s not a novel, it’s a travelogue.

It’s known that most of these print-on-demand books are just cheap copy&paste projects where no one takes the time to check the text.

If the pasted text is OK, then the book is probably OK. But as others have said before, often the text is not really OK.

Cheers,

Matthias

[d...@epguides.com]

“What exactly did they enrich?”

 

Their wallets. 😃

 

-djk

Dennis Kytasaari  d...@epguides.com  https://epguides.com/

                                  https://epguides.com/djk/

Jules Verne- "Mobilis in Mobile"     http://najvs.org/

President and Membership Coordinator  na...@ibiblio.org

 North American Jules Verne Society, Inc.

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