H. G. Wells Books

This is a book way ahead of its time. It chronicles the invasion of Earth by the inhabitants of neighbouring Mars, from the point of view of the anonymous protagonist. Some of the ideas may seem somewhat inane upon reading the book presently, but bear in mind that it was written over a hundred years ago, where the concept of interaction with extra-terrestrial beings was thoroughly infantile.
The book is seemingly written as a documentary with the hard-hitting authenticity of a late-night news bulletin as opposed to a fantastical yarn spattered with conspicuously impracticable fairytale imagery. This therefore creates a tangible sense of realism that causes the reader to wonder how they might have fared were they thrust into the same situation.
Wells manages to keep the suspense mounting throughout, exploring the reaction of tense and fearful pre-WW1 humanity to the physical embodiment and culmination of their apprehensions, and the novel concludes in a way rather pleasingly unexpected, and that could almost serve to be the twisted moral of this paranoid parable.
If you are looking for a book in which you can examine character developments and interactions, then The War Of The Worlds is at best inappropriate. However, it is a valuable contrivance insofar as instigating speculation as to mankindýs position in the universe, and indeed the position of those civilizations and cultures traditionally or habitually thought of as subservient to oneýs own.
The casual reader might have some difficulty with Wellsý linguistic manner, and indeed may have only come across some of the vocabulary used through listening to MatronsApron, yet Wells still manages to explain events thoroughly and concisely.
To conclude, then, The War Of The Worlds is a literary landmark that unquestionably invented the entire science fiction genre, and should appeal to fans of action, fans of adventure, fans of science fiction, and conspiracy theorists alike. With this book, H.G. Wells has proven to be a social commentator, sublime documentarian, sci-fi pioneer, and a splendid storyteller.

Mankind's big question is answered in this extradornary story written by a spectacular author. Ogilvy the protagonist of the story is the brains to help stop the horrendous incident the world is feeling. Aleins!.......quick run!, the thought of that just rushes the adrenaline to someone. An extra-terrestrial spaceship crash lands on earth, Ogilvy saw the crash and was shocked about what he witnessed when the hatch of the spaceship opened. What came out of there was not human....... The author really knew how to catch someone's "heart" from not flying away. Other then that the book is a very good book. Really interesting points if you like science fiction. But then again he could of made it sound more realistic with the explosions and action going around the story.

This is a book way ahead of its time. It chronicles the invasion of Earth by the inhabitants of neighbouring Mars, from the point of view of the anonymous protagonist. Some of the ideas may seem somewhat inane upon reading the book presently, but bear in mind that it was written over a hundred years ago, where the concept of interaction with extra-terrestrial beings was thoroughly infantile.
The book is seemingly written as a documentary with the hard-hitting authenticity of a late-night news bulletin as opposed to a fantastical yarn spattered with conspicuously impracticable fairytale imagery. This therefore creates a tangible sense of realism that causes the reader to wonder how they might have fared were they thrust into the same situation.
Wells manages to keep the suspense mounting throughout, exploring the reaction of tense and fearful pre-WW1 humanity to the physical embodiment and culmination of their apprehensions, and the novel concludes in a way rather pleasingly unexpected, and that could almost serve to be the twisted moral of this paranoid parable.
If you are looking for a book in which you can examine character developments and interactions, then The War Of The Worlds is at best inappropriate. However, it is a valuable contrivance insofar as instigating speculation as to mankindýs position in the universe, and indeed the position of those civilizations and cultures traditionally or habitually thought of as subservient to oneýs own.
The casual reader might have some difficulty with Wellsý linguistic manner, and indeed may have only come across some of the vocabulary used through listening to MatronsApron, yet Wells still manages to explain events thoroughly and concisely.
To conclude, then, The War Of The Worlds is a literary landmark that unquestionably invented the entire science fiction genre, and should appeal to fans of action, fans of adventure, fans of science fiction, and conspiracy theorists alike. With this book, H.G. Wells has proven to be a social commentator, sublime documentarian, sci-fi pioneer, and a splendid storyteller.

A good compilation of swords and sorcery, most of it is easily available. The Elak story should be coming back into print in early 2008. Features: 'Turutal' by Ray Capella (a brilliant piece of fan fiction set in the Hyborian Age), 'The Gods of Niom Parma' by Lin Carter, 'The Hills of the Dead' by Robert E Howard (a Solomon Kane story), 'Thunder in the Dawn' by Henry Kuttner (Elak of Atlantis), 'Thieves' House' by Fritz Leiber (Fafhrd & the Grey Mouser), 'Black God's Kiss' by CL Moore (Jirel of Joiry), 'Chu-Bu and Sheemish' by Lord Dunsany, 'The Master of the Crabs' by Clark Ashton Smith, 'The Valley of Spiders' by HG Wells, and 'The Bells of Shoredan' by Roger Zelazny (Dilvish the Damned).

When the Sleeper Wakes was a pretty good book. It was a little boring in some spots though. This wasn't one of H.G. Wells' better stories. I reccomend others like the Invisible Man or The War of the Worlds or The Time Machine.

This is my absolute favorite of all amongst Wells' social novels. Yes, he's best known for his science fiction now, but he had a genuinely brilliant eye for social satire. In my opinion, The Wife of Sir Isaac Harman is his funniest, despite some indirect hints of anti-Semitism in his sometimes stereotypical portrait of Sir Issac himself.

He is not the main character, however: his wife Ellen is, as she gropes her way from a child-bride's terrified dependency upon her husband's will to finding a life and work of her own, with the help of a bumblingly romantic writer of domestic comedies. (Unlike several of Wells' other novels of women's intellectual growth, Ellen does not end up falling madly in love with a scientifically-minded iconoclast bearing a suspicious resemblance to Wells, thank goodness.) Occasionally, the writer character gets a trifle preachy, but who could resist a protagonist who suddenly declares herself a suffragette and smashes the nearest shop window because the time in jail means a holiday from her husband?

Well worth the read, in short.

This novel is another story of a scientist. Here, a man named griffin
has invented a substance that can turn him invisible. This is a tale
exploring alienation and a man's role in society, and some of the
English class structure.

Griffin decides to use his new found ability to gain power and
wealth. However, his isolation due to his invisibility leads to severe
problems with his mental state. Super powers ain't all great.

It was a cold and snowy February day when a stranger walked to a small country inn and ordered a meal and a private room. This stranger guards his privacy and desires solitude. His luggage consists of many bottles of powders and fluids as would be used by an experimental investigator. The local general practitioner visits the stranger, and sees something he can't believe. Then someone steals money from the Reverend Bunting although he and his wife see nobody. Later Mr. & Mrs. Hall, innkeepers, see the stranger's room is empty, until the chair moves around as if possessed by spirits. When questioned by Mrs. Hall the stranger removes his nose! Then the bandages and spectacles go, and the people see no head! When the constable comes to arrest him, the man removes all his garments and disappears into thin air. The crowd tries to grab him but he escapes.

Mr. Thomas Marvel, a wandering tramp, is found by this Unseen and convinced to work for him. They return to the inn to fetch books and clothing. This sets off a commotion among the people there, and another chase. The panicked people fled from the streets and locked themselves in their homes. There was a story about "flying money" that was removed from shops and inns. At another inn Marvel seeks shelter, he has escaped from the Invisible Man. When this Unseen enters to take Marvel away, a bearded American fires at the Unseen with his revolver. Later the Unseen visits a physician for treatment of his wound (his blood can be seen). The Unseen has met Dr. Kemp at college, and is fed and clothed.

The Unseen explains the scientific principles of optical density in a general way. If the refractive index of a substance was lowered to that of air it would be invisible in most cases (Chapter XIX). The Unseen kept his work secret because of the thefts in the scientific world of science. But the Unseen acquired money by foul means which cursed his work! Griffin tells of the previous experiments that led to invisibility (Chapter XX). The next chapters gives Griffin's history. But Kemp has written to the police, and they arrive. Griffin escapes once again, and Kemp warns the police about what must be done (Chapter XXV). Griffin is mad and inhuman, "pure selfishness". His attempts to kill Kemp lead to his own destruction, and his body becomes visible after death (Chapter XXVIII).

If accurate, this story provides a snapshot of life in London and its suburbs at that time. It also tells that carrying arms was nothing unusual. H. G. Wells shows his literary skills in making believable an impossible condition. There are those who still believe that describing something in words makes it real (like "childproof guns", etc.). Readers of Wells' later works can judge how close to the truth his writings were. This fable warns against uncontrolled scientific experiments, from poison gas to atomic bombs, or the current craze for cloning or "genetic modification" The story of unseen theft of money can also be a warning against a Private Banking Cartel and its continual devaluation of the currency to help Big Business in its struggle against small businesses and working people. In this story the people unite to terminate the Unseen; this doesn't always happen in the real world.

Awesome sci-fi action and horror novel.

Recently a scientist named Griffin has found a way to turn skin, blood, and tissue invisible. Griffin has checked into a hotel in a small town in Iping. He is a tall man with a shiny pink nose. His head is wrapped in bandages, and he wears a pair of glaring blue glasses. In his room he sits in his chair, smokes his pipe, talks to himself, and does strange experiments. As soon as this man comes to town, weird things begin happening like floating furniture and unexplained robberies. What is this man doing in this small town? Citicens in this town start to hear voices and see doors and windows unlock themselves. Could this man be the cause of the occurrences? This book has many plot twists and surprises. It keeps you on the edge of your seat. While reading this book you want to know what happens next. This book will captivate all readers. The Invisible Man is an extremely exciting book that must be read!

After watching LXG, and the idea of being invisible, I bought this book and it was great. Its based back in the 19 hunderds so dont think its easy to follow, but its fun to read. It starts off in Febeuary, in a town called Iping were a very pecular stranger comes wrapped in bandeges, wareing dark goggles, a long brim hat, and a long trench coat. He dosen't go to chruch, dosen't interact with the people and keeps to himself. Soon after his arival strange things happen like, a robbery when the victams here a sneeze and theres no one there, a person see's down the strangers sleeve and there's noting there, and a case were the furniture goes mad.

A very creative stroy for a mind of the 1800's, H.G. wells delivers you a thrilling story of mystery, acton, and not stop thrillers. A defent must buy classic.

The book is clearly a classic. The story was very entertaining and captivating. The style of writing was very British and sometimes a bit difficult to understand. All in all I would recommend it as a good read.

I didn't know very much about Wells beyond THE TIME MACHINE and THE WAR OF THE WORLDS (which I've only encountered via the movie versions) until a friend gave me a copy of this terrific collection. It was great to have almost three complete novels by him as well as other selections in one volume. The excerpts made me want to read the whole of THE FOOD OF THE GODS, THE WHEELS OF CHANCE, and TONO-BUNGAY. There's not a poor choice in this book. Including the majority of IN THE DAYS OF THE COMET (not available elsewhere as one reader states) makes sense to me, since it seems like such an important book-bridge between his science fiction and social novels. The editor also includes most of THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON, which manages to be wildly imaginative, beautifully written, incredibly hilarious, and deeply chilling, often in the same paragraph. There's so much other great stuff in this anthology, which is a bargain at $14. The editor's comments were very helpful in placing the selections within Wells' creative growth and intent, and in placing Wells within the broader context of his day. I can't understand the venom of some of the other reader responses. Do they have some personal grudge against the editor? Perhaps they were former students and he graded them poorly. You'd think Wells was their grandmother and they were defending her honor. Wells speaks for himself quite well, I think. And the truth is if Wells' later stuff is so outstanding, and its absence worthy of being bemoaned and bitched about, why is it mostly all out of print? I'm definitely going to check out later Wells, but wouldn't be doing so without this marvelous introduction to spur me on.

I didn't know very much about Wells beyond THE TIME MACHINE and WAR OF THE WORLDS (which I've only encountered via the movie versions) until a friend gave me a copy of this terrific collection. It was great to have almost three complete novels by him as well as other selections in one volume. The excerpts made me want to read the whole of THE WHEELS OF CHANCE, THE FOOD OF THE GODS, and TONO-BUNGAY. There's not a poor choice in the book. Including the majority of IN THE DAYS OF THE COMET (not available elsewhere as one reader states) makes sense to me, since it seems like such an important book-bridge between his science fiction and social novels. The editor also includes most of THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON, which manages to be wildly imaginative, beautifullly written, incredibly hilarious, and deeply chilling, often in the same paragraph. There's so much other great stuff in this anthology, which is a bargain at $14. The editor's comments were also very helpful in placing the selections within Wells' creative growth and intent, and in placing Wells within the broader context of his day. I can't understand the venom of some of the other reader responses. Do they have some personal grudge against the editor? You'd think Wells was their grandmother and they were defending her honor. Wells speaks for himself quite well, I think. And the truth is if Wells later stuff is so outstanding, why is it mostly all out of print? I'm defintely going to check out later Wells, but wouldn't be doing so without this marvelous introduction to spur me on.

I come to this reader having read a few Wells novels: "War of the Worlds", "The Invisible Man", "The Time Machine". I didn't know much else about Wells' life or career. In reading this anthology, I found out quite a few new things, though not enough to claim that I'm an expert on the subject. Wells did live a long time, and this anthology uses a lot of space presenting things about Wells that I alreay knew. I know that Bison Books prints editions of "The Sleeper Awakes", "In The Days of the Comet", and "The Last War." The other reviewers of this book seem to miss the point that this book is meant to be an introduction. And an introduction is supposed to have a range and also be complete. A figure like Wells may be impossible to encapsulate in such a small volume, but I think for new readers, this might be the book for you. If you want to know the roots of science-fiction, where else can you look but at the master himself?

I am absolutely shocked by the strident, outrageous, and embarrassingly ignorant responses of these readers (who, by the way, lack the courage to sign their indictments and condemnations). If some "invisible" critics don't even want their names attached to their own reviews, where's the value? I urge prospective readers to ignore these Griffens. No anthology can adequately represent a literary career as long and prolific as that of Wells, who wrote 1,000+ pages of short stories, dozens of novels and nonfiction works, hundreds of articles, and thousands of letters and public statements, not to mention the autobiographical and scientific writings. Saying the task is similar to anthologizing Dickens or Trollope is entirely inaccurate, since the breadth and quality of their nonfiction output was negligible comparative to their fiction, whereas Wells was one of the most astute, far-wandering, and all-encompassing intellectual and imaginative forces of his day. Right from the start, Huntington ought to be applauded for being bold enough even to attempt such an endeavor (Huntington's audacity and admiration Wells would surely appreciate). One of these critics says: "One wonders precisely who this 'reader' is for!" NO. One wonders if these "critics" spent enough time from penning their own masterpieces of destruction for their own sake to actually peruse the editor's introduction and prefaces to his selections. These critcs are eviscerating this anthology because it doesn't correspond to their own "inner" collections. Huntington clearly define THE H. G. WELLS READER as an introduction, i.e. for someone who is either totally unfamiliar with Wells or for someone who might think of him as having only "written that Martian book." In 496 pages the editor does a commendable job of presenting Wells. Not the entirety of Wells, which is impossible to accomplish in even a 1,000-page anthology (not the hot trend nowadays in publishing). But Huntington explains his intentions and criteria and even admits the unavoidable limitations inherent in any collection: "I have selected the texts for this anthology with an eye for quality and to what I see as the central issues and styles of Wells. In the case of such a prolific and varied artist, there is danger of dispersal and dilution. I have therefore confined the selection strictly to fiction." That seems as cogent and clear as any manifesto I've encountered. Huntington continues: "I have also narrowed this selection by limiting it to work Wells published in the first decade and a half of his writing career. Later Wells is a fascinating area [obviously the editor has read the totality of Wells prodigiously], but only to readers who already have a sense of what early Wells is about. If I have emphasized the scientific romances, it is with a sense of how it leads into social novels like TONO-BUNGAY [excerpted] and THE HISTORY OF MR. POLLY." Why critique the editor for including readily available work after praising him for not neglecting "work that is out of print." Shouldn't that be the range and purpose of introductory readers? In fact, even that reproach is misleading. A hefty portion of THE H. G. WELLS READER is gathered from currently o.p. works. of which the editor includes nearly all of two novels (THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON and IN THE DAYS OF THE COMET, the former only recently reprinted by Modern Library) and one complete novel (THE HISTORY OF MR. POLLY, presently unavailable from a U.S. publisher) as well as a sampling of short stories (including the masterpieces "Aepyornis Island" and "The Country of the Blind," two of Wells's most perfect and haunting tales). IN THE DAYS OF THE COMET is not now available. The editor also excerpts the excellent yet unfortunately o.p novels THE WHEELS OF CHANCE and THE FOODS OF THE GODS. Easily two-thirds of this collection is unavailable elsewhere. Where one would expect Huntington to include all or gigantic chunks of THE TIME MACHINE, he has selected a previously excised and startling episode of the Time Travellor's travels not in many editions. How can an editor not include a healthy dose from Wells's masterpiece, THE WAR OF THE WORLDS? Key events on Moreau's island and from Griffen's psychic deterioration are also represented. One would expect Morlocks, Beast People, and Invisibly Inspired Mischief to abound, but, refreshingly, one encounters an anarchist, Selenites, and the incomparable Mr. Polly. Not bad for 496 pages. If one accepts the editor's view of Wells as a genius and satirist of society and the human condition, then this reader suddenly exhibits a critical strategy and brilliant architectural arc. No longer is it a potpourri of science fiction and mockery of social mores, but an evolution of Wells's satire from its guise as science fiction to its heartfelt and radical comedic critique of contemporary society. I'd prefer reading anything in this anthology than such mediocre Wells's "larks" as BOON and BEALBY. Another critic states that "Wells is a fugitive in the history of the novel and a questionable presence in the development of social sciences." WHAT? "Fugitive in the history of the novel." What does that nonsense mean? He was one of the forerunners, not among the fugitives. No one was hunting H. G. Wells. Certainly not George Orwell, Joseph Conrad, Jules Verne, or Upton Sinclair. Not even, as far as I can ascertain, Tommy Lee Jones. A questionable presence in the development of social sciences? WHAT? Wells's radical theories, accurate predictions, and prescient and resonant insights proved crucial to many scientific disciplines, both "hard" and "soft," from biology to sociology and futurism. "It doesn't tantalize prospective readers." Should that be the purpose of readers? Methinks, this anonymous cowardly lion mistakes books for burlesques. Both "reviewers" are slamming this work for not following their preferred and personal table of contents, which is entirely unjust. If one wishes to find fault with THE H. G. WELLS READER, one might critique it for not having a larger page count (thereby making possible the inclusion or more stories or excerpts from later novels) or a better proofreader. Instead, these "reviewers" snipe for what's not there, rather than responding to the formidable introduction and succinct and priceless prefaces. I challenge anyone to compose a better biographical, aesthetic, and critical profile in under ten pages than what Hujtington manages in his introduction. This collection doesn't stink, just the supposedly informed "critics." Kudos, kudos, kudos to Huntington. Only wish it could've been longer.

This anthology stinks. I hope that this terrible collection doesn't hamper anyone else's attempt to put together a decently representative collection of Wells material. Huntington and his publishers should have read all of Wells before trying to assemble a collection of his work.

Wells remains a major 20th century intellectual--still up for grabs by the right and left, a fugitive in the history of the novel, and a questionable presence in the development of social sciences. I don't think this anthology does justice to Wells, it insults his critics and fans, and it does not tantalize prospective readers.

One word: "Booooo."

Oh, it gets off to the same start as "Looking Backward". Someone mysteriously falls into a sleep that lasts for two hundred years, and wakes up in a transformed world. After that, it's a whole different book.

In this case, the sleeper wakes not into a socialist world, but into a world wholly governed by property ownership - his. His original fortune, plus a few others, have ballooned due to compund interest. Currency consists of checks drawn on his account, passed back and forth in exchange for life's needs. His self-appointed estate managers are regents in all but name, and don't much like the idea of turning over the reins to He in Whose name they tyrranize the country.

But the ones who rescue him aren't much better. They seem to have invented the sound-bite, or Word as they call it (p.116), and want the sleeper only so they can replace the current oligarchy with their own, but under his name. Wells's cynicism appears elsewhere also, especially in anticipating religion as a commercial service, advertised like pantyhose. Once you start seeing prescient passages in this book, it's hard to stop. Wells anticipated moving sidewalks, air war (a decade before the first airplane), and even a form of internet addiction. Although the details differ, "to live outside the range of electric cables [including phone and video] was to live a savage."

The editors have added overy thirty pages of biography, bibliography, and scholarly analysis of Wells's different editions of this text, plus at least 15 pages of endnotes. Perhaps this material will interest the specialized reader, but I am not that specialist. Wells's text, for my taste, doesn't need the help. It does, however, cement his reputation as a social critic and seer.

-- wiredweird

A deeply burdened insomniac in nineteenth-century Great Britain falls into a great trance for where he does not awaken for 203 years. When he awakens, Graham, as he is known, finds himself in a twisted alternate reality in where laborers (one-third of the population) are treated as scum, where the entire numerical system is now in dozens, and with a hierarchical government, power rests only in the hands of a small dictatorship known as the Grand Council. Also, money has piled up and has been secured to make Graham the most powerful man on the earth and in all of human history. When Graham wakes up, he is shocked to find that the suppressed people have been praying for the "Sleeper" to wake, but also that the Grand Council has been planning his murder. However, he is saved by a group of resistance, lead by a man named Ostrog, whose objective is to expel the Grand Council out of power. Eventually, the Council is brought down to its knees. When Graham notices that the people are still oppressed, he tries to make the world turn back to democracy, but Ostrog strongly disagrees. The tension builds up, until Ostrog makes the order that the Black Police (from South Africa) are to maintain the order in England and throughout Europe, coming in aeroplanes. Graham cannot believe that he has been betrayed, as Ostrog had escaped earlier. Graham, who has had some flight experience, decides to pilot the only plane left, and goes down fighting, with the rest of the world and all of humankind with an unforeseeable future. The Sleeper Awakes, by H.G. Wells, is an excellent science-fiction novel because of three main qualities: its revolutionary science-fiction, its suspense, and its action.

When Graham awakens in the twenty-second century, he is immediately overwhelmed by the changes in this time then from the old Victorian period. Horse-drawn carriages are obsolete, and sidewalks are moving platforms in which everyone travels on. Also, books no longer exist, and there are holograms that show dramas and interpretations of life instead. The numerical system as we know has now been replaced by a twelve-number single-digit system. H.G. Wells is a fantastic science-fiction writer, in the fact that he wrote of airplanes eleven years before one ever flew, and fifteen years before any fought in battle.

Suspense has a prominent role in the Sleeper Awakes. When Graham was introduced to a room inside the Grand Council building, he was stranded for several days without any news from the outside. However, he hears a noise from the roof spaces above, and thinks that he sees a shadow. Then, blood drops from above, and splatters onto the carpet. The reader is on the edge of his seat, with the urge to find more answers. Several men come through the roof space, and the resistance begins.

The Sleeper Awakes takes place in a twisted, alternate future, in which the lower class is now beginning to rise against the affluent members of the higher classes. When Graham is taken by a resistance group to a local hall, members of the red police (security forces of the Grand Council), a large battle occurs. Laborers everywhere are fighting in the name of the "Sleeper", and the Red Police are trying to recapture him. The fighting gets so out-of-control that an entire skyscraper falls over onto its side, creating a massive explosion. Another intense sequence of action occurs when Graham is fighting in his monoplane, where he fights against the whole Black Police, where he comes to his demise, instead of living out the rest of his life unaccustomed this new world.

In the course of four days, Graham discovers a brand new world completely alien to him and his time in the 1890's. Even the "Sleeper" was not enough to hold off his enemies, as his monoplane crashes into the cold ground of the earth. This story does, however, renew the word science-fiction. The greatest reason that this novel should be read is that H.G. Wells had basically started the science-fiction genre, and we continue to read his classics today. The Sleeper Awakes should be read due to this and because of its futuristic setting, its thrills, and its many skirmishes throughout. I rate this novel five stars out of five.

A. Chappell

It was all right... just all right. Some of the ideas stated were interesting and even prophetic, like the harnessing of wind power for electricity. Some parts reminded me of Fahrenheit 451.

The greatest disappointment was the ending. I was expecting Wells to use the story's build-up to say something clever and meaningful regarding the state of humanity, along with perhaps some useful suggestions, even if unfeasible. But it just ended in an unsatisfying way, almost as if he suddenly got tired of it and wanted to work on something else.

This is not a good "Wells starter book" -- The Time Machine is far better -- but as a study in fiction styles it is all right.

In 1897 a gentlemen falls asleep to wake up in 2100. In the future he finds himself owner of much of the world as his money, which grew while he slept, was used to take over the world by buying up all businesses and property. Now the "Sleeper" finds himself in the middle of a power struggle between those who have and those who have not.
The characters are bland, the future feels like a false front, like one of those towns used in a Wild West movie, and even after pages and pages of details everything still seems vague. I can't picture much of what he writes about as he seems to skim over scenes, leaving out details, and shooting ahead to what parts of the story he believes are important.
His idea about cities of the future, while interesting, is not interesting enough to carry a whole plot.

Science fiction fans simply looking for an entertaining story will want to skip this book. Its speculations, with a couple of exceptions, are dated -- Wells admitted such only ten years after it was written. The socialist values it expounds make one wonder whether Fabian Wells would have ever been satisfied with capitalism no matter what it did. The characters, again as Wells admitted, are Everyman and an implausible businessman villain.

And yet Wells kept playing with this story over 21 years. It also was probably quite influential on a young Robert Heinlein, a Wells admirer. (It has moving roadways amongst other things.)

The story? A man wakes up from a two hundred year coma to find out he's the richest man in the world. The capitalists who run this world hope he'll play along with them, continue to let them run the world using his money. But Sleeper Graham has other ideas and becomes a Socialist messiah to the oppressed.

Students of science fiction's history will recognize a plot with a starting point similar to Edward Bellamy's _Looking Backward_ -- to which Wells gives a nod. They'll also be interested in the understandably wrong predictions about aerial warfare. Students of Wells will definately want to read this, one of his second-tier works.

This book is a particularly good edition because it features a useful afterword noting the many changes Wells made in this story. It was first published as _When the Sleeper Wakes_, an 1899 magazine serial. It was changed for the book publication of the same year and further changed for the 1910 and 1921 editions.

Like other reviewers, I am sadly disappointed by this collection of work. I was (mistakenly) expecting science fiction, which this book is NOT. It's more literary reading, something I do not enjoy. This is my own fault perhaps as I believe now that misunderstood the title.

That however is not the extent of my disappointment with the book. While it did have a couple of excellent stories (perhaps 5% of those included), some work was far to esoteric for my enjoyment. Still others, I didn't understand at all.

This was supposed to be a collection of stories that describe 'apocalyptic situations' but, I felt like I was reading a collection bad poetry disguised as short story work.

I can't recommend it, but there are obviously people out there who enjoy this sort of work.

I was initially excited to discover the collection and didn't see how such a broad-based compilation could go wrong. I'm an avid reader of post-apocalyptic fiction, science fiction and futurism, so I'm no slouch, but this turned out to be quite different from what I was hoping for.

While a few of the pieces are good reads, so many of them are abstract, esoteric, or even reminiscent of the scribblings from slightly disturbed angst-ridden teenage diaries. There's no good "meat" here, no concrete scenarios, suspense or drama to drive fear into your heart and make your mind race. The circumstances under which "apocalypse" occurs are rarely even revealed. Even the subject matter is open to interpretation - "apocalypse" is made to mean many things, not simply the end of the world. Which it does, of course, but that's not what I was hungry for when I picked up this book. The book description should have done a better job of managing those expectations.

Perhaps if you are looking for a broad literary "treatment" of the subject, that kind of interpretation will appeal to you (or if you enjoy the just plain bizarre) then this collection is for you. It was not for me.

This is a fun collection of stories from some well known and serious talent (Gaiman, Lovecraft, Poe) and some newly minted authors. I found myself particularly amused by "These Zombies Are Not A Metaphor," the work of one of the new authors named Jeff Goldberg. I'll be keeping an eye peeled for future work from him.

Justin Taylor has put together a wide-ranging, mind-bogglingly excellent anthology about one of my favorite subjects. Every piece inspires. I couldn't recommend it more highly.

"THESE ARE THE WAYS THE WORLD ENDS--THIRTY-FOUR NEW AND SELECTED DOOMSDAY SCENARIOS"

This is a gorgeous book, from presentation to content. The selections are humorous, serious, simple, complex, and much more--thirty-four stories, some short, some long, make for a wide spectrum of apocalypses. Taylor, in the foreword, expounds on his conception of an apocalypse:

"It's worth pointing out that the word Apocalypse comes from the Greek, and literally means "a revelation" or "an unveiling." It can be used to describe cataclysmic changes of any sort. Revolution, for example, or social upheaval. [...] There are micro-Apocalypses that mark moments in our lives: childhood's end, a relationship's sudden implosion, Death."



The selections do span the gamut--some were written so long ago as to be in the public domain, and some were freshly minted in the late 2000's; some focus on religious upheavals, some macro, some micro; there are personal upheavals, student rantings, surreal recountings of madmen; and of course many take the reader through more conventional "end of the world" scenarios. And even with all that diversity, perhaps guided by the introduction, the theme of the anthology runs strong.

If there were a criticism I could make of this volume, that, ironically, would be it. I consider myself a bit of an Apocalypse afficionado--I particularly enjoy reading such stories, along with dystopias--and I would have thought that I could never grow tired of reading well-wrought incarnations of such--and these stories were all well-wrought and well-edited, there is no doubt about that--but this volume overwhelmed me. I was tired, even weary, by the time I had wended my way through the collection (and that in the course of several "sittings")..

The lead story, a piece of flash fiction by H. P. Lovecraft, starts the anthology out elegantly, and slowly. It warns you, implicitly, that you're in for some heavy reading, even if you're a fan of Mr. Lovecraft's writing (and not just his mythos, which more people are familiar with, and is much easier to get into third hand). On that end of the scale, there's also a piece from Edgar Allan Poe that is ponderous but worth an examination, entitled "The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion".

Some of my favorites included:

"The Apocalypse Commentery of Bob Paisner" by Rick Moody -- This is an essay detailing the allegorical depths of the Book of Revelation with regard to Bob Paisner's life. The tone is both erudite and a bit delirious, and the piece as a whole is both informative and immersive--I found myself eagerly wondering where Moody was going to take us next, what dark or clinical humor would next be presented.

"Fraise, Menthe, et Poivre 1978" by Jared Hohl -- Another piece of meta-fiction, this follows a group of people through the more traditional trope of being the last survivors in a ruined post-apocalyptic city. What makes this piece stand out is the manic bent of the narrator and the push for the show to go on--the story weaves the primary narrative with a small handful of abbreviated stageplays that emphasize much about human nature, hope, and despair, while retaining a very human humor.

"An Accounting" by Brian Evenson -- An "honest" accounting of how one explorer fell into becoming a reborn Jesus and how he helps his flock survive. I don't want to say too much about this, but the voice is clear, the narrative is well woven and unrolls at a compelling pace, and other than, perhaps, the initial fanaticism he encounters, it is all quite believable.

"Some Approaches to the Problem of the Shortage of Time" by Ursula K. Le Guin -- This is a clever set of abstracts that are ever timely and consider a novel scenario for the end of the modern-day universe. The shortage of time is pervasive, and this story is brief to give you a maximum pleasure for what it takes.

"Think Warm Thoughts" by Allison Whittenberg -- A bite-sized slice of apocalypse that is poetically poignant; every word counts.

"When We Went to See the End of the World by Dawnie Morningside, age 11 1/4" by Neil Gaiman -- This is the end of the world, everyone and everything together, through the playful, somewhat naiive eyes of an eleven year old. It's told in the vein of "What I did over Summer vacation", and is very evocative, sweet, and strange.

"The Escape--a Tale of 1755" by Grace Aguilar -- This is an elegant tale of a woman's love for her husband, religious persecution, and a prison escape. It is written with a very modern feel despite its age (originally published in 1844).

That's not to say I disliked the other stories; and on another day I would have different favorites, though there were some pieces that didn't work for me. But I hope this selection will help give you a feel for the collection as a whole, beyond my simple regard for it. In all, it's a beautiful collection, and I recommend it strongly, with the caveat that you may want to take it in small doses.