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coolhand773's review
3.0
It's easy to see why this is such a well-known classic. Wells writes with an elegance which has been abandoned in modern fiction. Despite the decades of sci-fi which has been penned since this classic was written, his time-traveling premise was devised ingeniously enough to weather the ravages of time, imitation, and scientific discovery. Of particular interest were the instances in which his rabid Progressivism peeks into the story and the reader can hear Wells' radical, political ideology blend with his fictional narrative.
Overall, a well-written classic which deserves the accolades for being an inventive and entertaining novel.
Overall, a well-written classic which deserves the accolades for being an inventive and entertaining novel.
annavonwillingh's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
merphynapier's review
3.0
I really don't know how to rate this. It was a tough read for a classics novice like me. the story was interesting but the marathon style and slightly sense writing made me feel like I was dredging through it a lot of the time. I think I would have enjoyed this a lot more of I were more used to reading classics. so I want to try it again someday in the future. But then ending was fantastic.
teelight's review
3.0
This is another classic that I think is a bit overrated. It's not that it's bad or anything, it just isn't what it is made out to be. War of the Worlds is much better.
dozylocal's review
3.0
This little story of time travel was way shorter than I expected!
A tale of someone who builds a time machine, travels way into the future, has an adventure, and arrives back in the past in time for dinner with friends he had shown a prototype of his machine to barely 24 hours before. He proceeds to describe his trip, his experiences, and his adventures after which is not clear who actually believes him or not. In parallel to the "future world" and the story of what happened to him, there is a lot of theorising around how humanity would look so far in the future - particularly in terms of appearance and society based on the needs of the time.
A tale of someone who builds a time machine, travels way into the future, has an adventure, and arrives back in the past in time for dinner with friends he had shown a prototype of his machine to barely 24 hours before. He proceeds to describe his trip, his experiences, and his adventures after which is not clear who actually believes him or not. In parallel to the "future world" and the story of what happened to him, there is a lot of theorising around how humanity would look so far in the future - particularly in terms of appearance and society based on the needs of the time.
emsmith's review
4.0
This was so good! I rocketed through it in a day and I really enjoyed it. Cannot believe it was written so long ago
alexvb's review
3.0
I enjoyed the story so much. The ending was chilling. As with most SciFi had moments of pure dread and fear thinking about space and future earth etc. But it is short and I needed more.
cloudmercury's review
5.0
This text is way ahead of its time at the fin de siecle. It details the findings of a time traveller who travels into the future when mankind has seemingly overcome all problems and have therefore become weak and childlike in appearance due to having a lack of challenges to strengthen them. This book was most appealing to me because of the Morlocks, who are the other descendant path of mankind, suggested to be the working class.
There are clear links to the fears of the fin de siecle in this book and mentions of technological advances. It is intriguing to see what sort of future H.G. Wells envisioned.
The end of the book is what had the greatest impact on me. The time traveller resolves to bring proof back of his adventures but does not return after three years. The possibilities of where he could be or why he has been away for so long are endless and I love that it is left to the reader's imagination.
There are clear links to the fears of the fin de siecle in this book and mentions of technological advances. It is intriguing to see what sort of future H.G. Wells envisioned.
The end of the book is what had the greatest impact on me. The time traveller resolves to bring proof back of his adventures but does not return after three years. The possibilities of where he could be or why he has been away for so long are endless and I love that it is left to the reader's imagination.
zelph's review
4.0
It's been a long time since I first read this. It was fun to revisit this world and adventure with my son for his school. This time around I enjoyed some of the ideas more than the story itself. My favorite quote in addressing the future society was this:
"It is a law of nature we overlook, that intellectual versatility is the compensation for change, danger, and trouble. There is no intelligence where there is no change and no need of change. Only those animals partake of intelligence that have to meet a huge variety of needs and dangers."
I thought this is very pertinent today as we increasingly look to the government to remove our "danger" and move more and more to a welfare state. In the end, others solving your problems creates a weak person. Good stuff.
"It is a law of nature we overlook, that intellectual versatility is the compensation for change, danger, and trouble. There is no intelligence where there is no change and no need of change. Only those animals partake of intelligence that have to meet a huge variety of needs and dangers."
I thought this is very pertinent today as we increasingly look to the government to remove our "danger" and move more and more to a welfare state. In the end, others solving your problems creates a weak person. Good stuff.
darwin8u's review
3.0
A classic from the Dean of SF. My only gripe is I wish he had flushed the little book out a little more. Still, the benefit of him not expanding the novella, is he allowed that work to be done by generations of SF writers following in his footsteps.