The Mysterious Island (French: L'Île mystérieuse) is a novel by Jules Verne, published in 1874. The plot focuses on the adventures of five Americans on an uncharted island in the South Pacific. During the American Civil War, five northern prisoners of war decide to escape, during the siege of Richmond, Virginia, by hijacking a balloon. The escapees are Cyrus Smith, a railroad engineer in the Union army; his ex-slave and loyal follower Neb; Bonadventure Pencroff, a sailor (who is addressed only