Jules Verne

Jules Verne (1828-1905)
French Writer, Pioneer of Science Fiction Writing

Jules Verne is best known for his imaginative adventure novels which set examples of science fiction. Famous writers he influenced include H.G. Wells (The Time Machine) and Edgar Rich Burroughs (Tarzan of the Apes).

Jules Gabriel Verne (Feb 8, 1828 – Mar 24, 1905) was born in the port of Nantes, western France, the son of a lawyer. He went to Paris to study law.

Read more – Jules Verne Biography and Work

Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Penguin

Today, November 2 (1960), Penguin Books was found not guilty of obscenity in the unprecedented trial over the famous novel by D.H. Lawrence, Lady Chatterley’s Lover.

The story is about a young aristocrat, Lady Chatterley, whose husband is paralyzed and impotent. She has an affair with her gamekeeper.

In 1928, D. H. Lawrence published his novel privately. It was instantly banned because of its obscene language and explicit sex scenes.

In 1959, Britain passed a new version of the Obscene Publications Act, making it possible for publishers to defend against charges of obscenity if they could prove that a book had “literary merit.” The following year, 1960, was the 30th anniversary of Lawrence’s death, and Penguin Books saw an opportunity to test the new law by publishing the book. Immediately, the trial commenced.

The defense called a series of 35 prominent writers and literary critics. The case lasted five days. It took the jury three hours to reach a “not guilty” verdict. When Penguin published 200,000 copies, they sold out on the first day, and most bookstores ran out of copies after 15 minutes.

The following year Penguin published a second edition and added a dedication to the jury who made Lady Chatterley’s Lover publication possible.