This volume contains a generous selection of the tales of H. G.Wells, some of them famous, some forgotten. They demonstrate his immenseimaginative energy, his originality, his prophetic genius, and hismastery of a range embracing Gothic horror, social satire, lyricalreverie and Utopian fantasy.Here Wells predicts the use of the tank, the aeroplane, the parachuteand the bathysphere; he depicts the arrival of monsters from the deep,and envisages the destruction of life on our planet. Nevertheless, insocial comedy, Wells anticipates E. M. Forster. We also see why Wellsproved to be a provocation and inspiration not only to numerousscience-fiction writers but also to such eminent authors as VladimirNabokov, Jorge Luis Borges and William Golding.Entertaining, disturbing, astonishing and thought-provoking, these tales constitute a Wellsian cornucopia. Enjoy!
