Climbing through the recesses of a mine, an English man falls into a deep chasm and finds himself suddenly trapped in a subterranean world inhabite...
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Aug 29, 2011
Dfordoom
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Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton, was one of the big guns of Victorian literature. His books were bestsellers and he garnered considerable critical acclaim as well. And yet today he is not merely mostly unread, he has become a byword by bad writing, with a literary competition for bad writing named after him.
This is partly because he was unwise enough to start one of his stories with the immortal words, “It was a dark and stormy night.” It is also because he More...
This is partly because he was unwise enough to start one of his stories with the immortal words, “It was a dark and stormy night.” It is also because he More...
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Jul 30, 2011
A book that is steeped in 19th century scientific theories of race that had already been discredited before the Nazis came to power. Even the title sounds scarily 'wrong' to modern sensibilities! But this early work of science fiction, written in 1871, is a fascinating and worthwhile read. A whole cycle of conspiracy theories have sprung up around the book, a copy of which, allegedly, sat on Hitler's bookshelf, right next to the Nietzche.
For me, the most interesting idea the book introduces More...
For me, the most interesting idea the book introduces More...
Apr 06, 2011
Greg
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I read this book because of its connections with Esoteric Hitlerism, Ariosophy and Theosophy (vril, hollow earth and such). I know that some Theosophists believe this book is actually true. I cannot agree. It seems obvious to me, for a multitude of reasons, that it is pure fiction. Bulwer-Lytton was probably intrigued by the idea of hollow earth and some other ideas which would end up being connected to Ariosophy and are related to truths but that hardly justifies believing the story is a true a
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May 30, 2010
The bulk of this novel is the standard Utopian tour guide--the standard dialogue between the ignorant visitor and the Utopian natives (here, the underground Vril-ya, near-humans evolved to a stern perfection, born with the ability to harness the powerful "vril," which they use to power their mechanical automata and wings and weapons and therapeutic devices, etc., etc.).
As a story, it has almost nothing to recommend it, but as a historical artifact, it's got at least two issu More...
As a story, it has almost nothing to recommend it, but as a historical artifact, it's got at least two issu More...
Apr 26, 2010
Yngvild
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The Coming Race is one of those fabulous Victorian stories in which our intrepid explorer discovers an alien race similar enough to humans to bear comparison, but different in at least one major way. We then get a series of dialogues between the explorer and an alien representative arguing over which is better. Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s fictional world is semi-Utopian; the alien way is more “civilised”, more “advanced”. I can see Nietzsche’s race of Übermenschen peering round the corner.
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Dec 10, 2009
Charlotte
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This book was on my must read list, in part, because of its association with Bovril - the suffix of which (-vril) comes from this book where it means a powerful energy source. The plot of the book is that a wealthy young man visits a friend who is a mining engineer and they venture deeper and deeper into the subterranean network of tunnels. At one point they find the entrance into another world and they venture in. This world is inhabited by non-human humanoids who have discovered vril an energy
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Mar 19, 2010
Cwn_annwn_13
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Written in the 1870s its easy to see how this was such a big influence on science fiction, fantasy, hollow earth theorists, utopiaists, occultists and Eugenicists. Two men go exploring underground in a mining area, one dies in a fall and the other happens upon an underground civilization and it goes from there. This civilization is nearly a utopia, they are in control of a seemingly "magic" substance known to them as Vril which be used for destructive or healing purposes. Also when rea
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Dec 18, 2011
Taro
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In commencement of this recapitulation, it must be documented by he who is myself that the creator of this compendium takes no thrift in the utilization of glosses, and is in fact quite bombastic in literary usage.
Seriously, the guy must've been paid by the number of times the editor had to search the thesaurus. Also he got bonuses for every chapter; there's 29 chapters in these 250 pages! Some chapters are actually only a page long.
But the story, is interesting. Man falls undergroun More...
Seriously, the guy must've been paid by the number of times the editor had to search the thesaurus. Also he got bonuses for every chapter; there's 29 chapters in these 250 pages! Some chapters are actually only a page long.
But the story, is interesting. Man falls undergroun More...
Sep 28, 2010
Hatebeams
rated it:
The text is what it is, a well-developed if somewhat unexciting expose on the utopia. There isn't much room to move in a story about the perfect society! The Coming Race of the title, the Vril-ya, are an ancient, completely peaceful, completely rational, completely scientific people who live in a state of utilitarian bliss (even accomodating animals and plants in their order of consideration, which is pretty advanced from a Victorian perspective). Unfortunately this level of perfection means tha
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Feb 11, 2012
Wreade1872
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Elements of this book were used to create a nazi cult to which most of the top nazis's were members. But thats not the authors fault, except that he wrote something way ahead of its time. I mean consider the fact that it was written in 1871 and at times i felt like i was watching an episode of startrek. I'd break it down into 3 parts, the start is decent the middle drags a bit as the author goes into too much detail concerning languages and other boring stuff but the last third is great. The mai
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Nov 25, 2011
Chris
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I thought this book was OK, although it was heavy on internal dialogue and even much of the external dialogue was actually rephrased into the narrator's words. The result was that there was essentially no character development and sole focus on the society that the author wanted to discuss. Naturally, the lack of character development made it difficult for me to identify with any of the characters that were in subtle conflict with each other.
As far as the society itself, I found some More...
As far as the society itself, I found some More...
Jul 22, 2008
B. Zedan
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Yeah. Um, some good parts? Heavy on the description, which can be nice, and since I read Journey to the Interior of the Earth last month, it was fun to read more hollow-earth bits. Kinda whitey-centric, but what are you gonna do with that era? Narrator was from the States, which also was unsettling, since a lot of what I've been reading is UK and Europe-based. My Big Problem with the book was that I'm kinda of the belief (most likely heartily taken from pulp sf) that the chief (positive) attribu
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Jan 05, 2011
Erik
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Having enjoyed Bulwer-Lytton's The Last Days of Pompeii as a kid and having heard a bit of the Vril Society from Morning of the Magicians, I found a paperback copy entitled Vril: The Power of the Coming Race in a Morningside Heights bookstore in Manhattan with some excitement: A classic of utopian science fiction--oh boy!
What a disappointment it was! Anyone, anywhere who could be taken in by this nonsensical, metaphysical drivel would be stupid enough to start a two-front war in Eur More...
What a disappointment it was! Anyone, anywhere who could be taken in by this nonsensical, metaphysical drivel would be stupid enough to start a two-front war in Eur More...
Apr 19, 2010
Karen
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One of the earliest SF books, it involves a man who finds a hidden world deep underground. Unfortunately the majority of the book consists of a tedious explanation of the alien society that goes on and on. Nothing really happens in the story, and anything the character does is just an excuse for more exposition.
This is the grandfather of all bad fan-fic.
This is the grandfather of all bad fan-fic.
Aug 15, 2011
Andrew
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It is surprising that this was ever a best-seller. Mediocre prose is about the best that can be said for "The Coming Race". There is not even a plot; he goes underground, he describes what he sees there, and then he leaves. I understand that it is a historically important book (particularly in Germany and among occultists), but not one that anyone should read for enjoyment.
Jan 03, 2009
Román
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Una gran novela dedicada a Max Muller interesante por muchos motivos entre los cuales uno de los curiosos es su posible influencia en las sociedades secretas alemanas de los años 30. Mi edición es de 1913 en español, publicada en Argentina en Biblioteca de la Nación. Procedente de la biblioteca paterna, la conozco desde niño
Jan 30, 2012
Mike
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Published in 1871, this book about a journey to an area under the surface of the Earth inhabited by an offshoot of the human race that mastered the universal energy (Vril), was a very powerful influence on spiritually-inclined individuals in the late 19th and early 20th century and a major precursor to the science-fiction genre.
Jul 29, 2009
andrew
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I had heard that adolf got excited by lytton and the armamen .. the coming man and I was going to write all this off .. but then I read the morning of the magicians and I also met lyttons great grand daughter who was doing some sort of vril like newage astral based meditation and was a member of some sort of english vril society !!
Feb 20, 2010
Murray
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Although written in the 19th Century this book remains original (not surprising) and gripping. It is very thought provoking about what would it be like to live in a society where individuals had extraordinary personal power. An interesting exploration of a concept - for the coming race perhaps?
Jul 15, 2011
Deanne
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Strange book because there's no real story but more like a description of the world underground. The people are described, their customs and cultures and their attitude towards the man who enters their world. He's made to feel like a child in many respects, patted on the head by the more intelligent culture.
Jan 07, 2012
Gareth
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A lost world fantasy that's intruguing for having the ideas it does at the time it was written. Partly a reaction to Darwinism and the growing women's equality movement. It's a strange story and if you can get past the flowery language, there's a worthwhile novel here.
Dec 08, 2010
Christie
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Occasionally captivating (particularly in its discussions of gender/mating rituals, US politics, and imperialism), occasionally dry-as-a-bone boring (in its explication of language). I wouldn't really read it again, but it does raise some intriguing topics about late-Victorian science and culture.
Dec 21, 2010
Anna
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Read this a year or so ago; disliked it. Things were a bit better this time around, when I read the first 40 pages or so and then called it quits. My only memories of the first go-round were the portions I had converted to rough animation (think the earlist animated version of The Hobbit). So much for my careful attention to nuance...
Jul 27, 2011
Fiona
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Amazing read. Glad to see that this is back in print. Very much of it's time, but now becoming a novel of our time. Worth thinking about.
Mar 10, 2011
{Velvetink mentioned this in connection with Burgess's The Wanting Seed....Doesn't know if it informed the cannibalism in the latter. 3-10-2011}
Feb 24, 2009
Julie
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Didactic and kind of dull, but interesting enough for his ideas and the fact that it was one of the earliest in adventure fiction.
Feb 27, 2010
Bryan
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fantastic classic early science fiction, eloquently written, wildly innovative and vivid.
Oct 13, 2010
Amanda
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Mysterious, inspiring and ultimately terrifying tale of a 19th century American's adventure with the Vril-ya race who live underground and have a highly advanced civilization.
