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3.42 AVERAGE
3.42 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
fast-paced
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, Colonisation, War
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Our understanding of outer space must have been wild in the time when HG Wells was alive.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
“The Moon, by the way, was to be a surprise.”
"The First Men in the Moon" stands as a significant, if somewhat underappreciated, installment in the pre-space-age science fiction genre. Though it doesn’t quite soar to the literary or imaginative heights of "The War of the Worlds", nor does it have the enduring fame of Jules Verne’s "From the Earth to the Moon", H.G. Wells’ lunar tale still holds its own as a clever and ambitious work, revealing much about the author’s idealistic vision of science, society, and human potential.
The novel follows the unlikely duo of Mr. Bedford, a pragmatic businessman, and Mr. Cavor, a dreamily brilliant scientist who invents "Cavorite," a substance that negates gravity. Their improbable voyage to the Moon leads them not just to another world, but into contact with a subterranean alien civilization, the Selenites, whose structured, hive-like society offers a strange reflection of human social order.
Wells was never just interested in spectacle, and that’s true here too. The Moon isn’t a barren rock but a fully imagined world, full of symbolism. Where Verne emphasized technical realism and mechanical detail, Wells leans into allegory and speculation. The Selenite society is portrayed as advanced, orderly, and strangely harmonious, suggesting Wells’ own vision of a more rational, less chaotic future for humanity, one led by intellect rather than impulse.
Still, the novel has its rough edges. The pacing is uneven, particularly in the middle, and Bedford's narration, driven by greed and self-interest, can be grating at times. Cavor, by contrast, is more engaging, and it’s through his scientific wonder and idealism that the book shines brightest. It’s clear that Wells sees in Cavor not just a quirky inventor, but a representation of what humanity could be if it embraced knowledge over ambition.
"The First Men in the Moon" may not be Wells’ best-known work, and it hasn’t aged quite as elegantly as Verne’s comparable moon tale. But it remains a thoughtful and imaginative piece of speculative fiction. As one of the earliest serious attempts to envision moon travel, and to use it as a lens for social critique, it holds an important place in science fiction history. And in its vision of science as a gateway to understanding rather than domination, it’s unmistakably Wells.
adventurous
slow-paced
Take a somewhat fascinating scifi idea, populate it with 2 idiots as MCs, and also make it wikipedia. It's not bad for all. Just not great.
This book was really interesting, it was written well but it reminded me a lot of 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth'.
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated