The Science of the Stars

Written in 1856, ten years before the publication of Jules Verne's From the Earth to the Moon, Krutohlav and his friends set off to explore the solar system in a motorized 'dragon' powered by gunpowder taking with them many kinds of sausage, cheeses, pickled cabbage and wine. A very whimsical and humorous account of how Krutohlav, a country gentleman from rural Central Europe explores the solar system. His first attempt to travel to the moon in a balloon ends in failure after crashlanding in the Egyptian desert. Instead of giving up, Krutohlav builds a new craft he calls a dragon and convinces a group of his friends to travel with him around the solar system.