Jules Gabriel Verne was a novelist, poet, and playwright born in Brittany, France, in 1828. He is known for his wide reaching literary influence on the avant-garde and surrealism movements, especially in Europe. He is the second-most translated in the world, after Agatha Christie. His most notable works are Around the World in 80 Days, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, The Mysterious Island, From the Earth to the Moon, and In Search of the Castaways.