Also known as 'Claudius Bombarnac', this book is a novel penned by Jules Verne, best remembered today for his works 'Around the World in 80 Days' and 'Journey to the Center of the Earth'. This novel follows the eponymous hero who happens to be a reporter assigned by the Twentieth Century media outlet to cover the travels of the Grand Transasiatic Railway which runs between Uzun Ada, a harbour on the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea, and Peking, China. Accompanying him on this journey is an interesting collection of characters, including one who is trying to beat the round the world record and another who is a stowaway.