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em_wemily 's review for:
The Invisible Man
by H.G. Wells
2.5/5
Plot Summary:
An albino scientist with a short temper turns himself invisible, thus becoming 'the Invisible Man.' He gets kicked out of his apartment, tries to find a new place to squat, and realizes he can't. So, he disguises himself as a man all-wrapped up so that he can at last interact with people. He then antagonizes the owners of the inn he's staying at, until he's forced out again after revealing his secret in a rage. During this time, he commits a robbery. He runs about and tries to force a homeless man to do his bidding, but the homeless man runs away from him. Then, he turns to an old acquaintance from school, who turns him into the police. He vows to terrorize the community and get revenge on the old school friend, by killing him. Eventually, he chases the old friend through the streets, until everyone else (who is now on alert) pounces on him and kills him.
Epilogue: The homeless man who ran from the Invisible Man kept the scientist's old journals and notes and tries to see what valuable information he can discover for himself.
TLDR (with spoiler): Angry scientist starts becoming a homicidal menace after he turns himself invisible and is eventually killed.
My Thoughts:
It's alright. Nothing incredible, nothing horrible. It's entertaining enough, but I'm very surprised it's as famous as it is. The Afterword (by Gregory Benford) said that it was very unique that Wells made a story about a protagonist with whom his audience at the time could not sympathize with. Benford also said Wells is acclaimed for making his readers think about the world in a different way, given all the new discoveries in science. Was absolutely no other author doing this in the late 1890s that Wells was such a standout writer? I don't know. I wasn't awed.
I have no strong feelings on this book at all. Just a giant 'meh.'
Plot Summary:
An albino scientist with a short temper turns himself invisible, thus becoming 'the Invisible Man.' He gets kicked out of his apartment, tries to find a new place to squat, and realizes he can't. So, he disguises himself as a man all-wrapped up so that he can at last interact with people. He then antagonizes the owners of the inn he's staying at, until he's forced out again after revealing his secret in a rage. During this time, he commits a robbery. He runs about and tries to force a homeless man to do his bidding, but the homeless man runs away from him. Then, he turns to an old acquaintance from school, who turns him into the police. He vows to terrorize the community and get revenge on the old school friend, by killing him. Eventually, he chases the old friend through the streets, until everyone else (who is now on alert) pounces on him and kills him.
Epilogue: The homeless man who ran from the Invisible Man kept the scientist's old journals and notes and tries to see what valuable information he can discover for himself.
TLDR (with spoiler): Angry scientist starts becoming a homicidal menace after he turns himself invisible and is eventually killed.
My Thoughts:
It's alright. Nothing incredible, nothing horrible. It's entertaining enough, but I'm very surprised it's as famous as it is. The Afterword (by Gregory Benford) said that it was very unique that Wells made a story about a protagonist with whom his audience at the time could not sympathize with. Benford also said Wells is acclaimed for making his readers think about the world in a different way, given all the new discoveries in science. Was absolutely no other author doing this in the late 1890s that Wells was such a standout writer? I don't know. I wasn't awed.
I have no strong feelings on this book at all. Just a giant 'meh.'