What do you think?
Rate this book
Select Conversations with an Uncle
Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.
142 pages, Paperback
Published June 23, 2013
22 people want to read
About the author
H.G. Wells
5,303 books11.2k followersHerbert George Wells was born to a working class family in Kent, England. Young Wells received a spotty education, interrupted by several illnesses and family difficulties, and became a draper's apprentice as a teenager. The headmaster of Midhurst Grammar School, where he had spent a year, arranged for him to return as an "usher," or student teacher. Wells earned a government scholarship in 1884, to study biology under Thomas Henry Huxley at the Normal School of Science. Wells earned his bachelor of science and doctor of science degrees at the University of London. After marrying his cousin, Isabel, Wells began to supplement his teaching salary with short stories and freelance articles, then books, including The Time Machine (1895), The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), and The War of the Worlds (1898).
Wells created a mild scandal when he divorced his cousin to marry one of his best students, Amy Catherine Robbins. Although his second marriage was lasting and produced two sons, Wells was an unabashed advocate of free (as opposed to "indiscriminate") love. He continued to openly have extra-marital liaisons, most famously with Margaret Sanger, and a ten-year relationship with the author Rebecca West, who had one of his two out-of-wedlock children. A one-time member of the Fabian Society, Wells sought active change. His 100 books included many novels, as well as nonfiction, such as A Modern Utopia (1905), The Outline of History (1920), A Short History of the World (1922), The Shape of Things to Come (1933), and The Work, Wealth and Happiness of Mankind (1932). One of his booklets was Crux Ansata, An Indictment of the Roman Catholic Church. Although Wells toyed briefly with the idea of a "divine will" in his book, God the Invisible King (1917), it was a temporary aberration. Wells used his international fame to promote his favorite causes, including the prevention of war, and was received by government officials around the world. He is best-remembered as an early writer of science fiction and futurism.
He was also an outspoken socialist. Wells and Jules Verne are each sometimes referred to as "The Fathers of Science Fiction". D. 1946.
More: http://philosopedia.org/index.php/H._...
http://www.online-literature.com/well...
http://www.hgwellsusa.50megs.com/
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/t...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._G._Wells
Wells created a mild scandal when he divorced his cousin to marry one of his best students, Amy Catherine Robbins. Although his second marriage was lasting and produced two sons, Wells was an unabashed advocate of free (as opposed to "indiscriminate") love. He continued to openly have extra-marital liaisons, most famously with Margaret Sanger, and a ten-year relationship with the author Rebecca West, who had one of his two out-of-wedlock children. A one-time member of the Fabian Society, Wells sought active change. His 100 books included many novels, as well as nonfiction, such as A Modern Utopia (1905), The Outline of History (1920), A Short History of the World (1922), The Shape of Things to Come (1933), and The Work, Wealth and Happiness of Mankind (1932). One of his booklets was Crux Ansata, An Indictment of the Roman Catholic Church. Although Wells toyed briefly with the idea of a "divine will" in his book, God the Invisible King (1917), it was a temporary aberration. Wells used his international fame to promote his favorite causes, including the prevention of war, and was received by government officials around the world. He is best-remembered as an early writer of science fiction and futurism.
He was also an outspoken socialist. Wells and Jules Verne are each sometimes referred to as "The Fathers of Science Fiction". D. 1946.
More: http://philosopedia.org/index.php/H._...
http://www.online-literature.com/well...
http://www.hgwellsusa.50megs.com/
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/t...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._G._Wells
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 11, 2019
This short, very early Wells work is a curio which will be of interest primarily to completists. Written on the cusp of the 20th century, it is an amusing meditation on the mores of the late Victorian era, as told in the form of short anecdotal vignettes. The reader comes away with the distinct impression that this work is more (auto)biography than fiction, as Wells, through the voice of his "now extinct" uncle critiques the aesthetics and customs of the day. The results seem to support the old adage that the more things change, the more they stay the same. Engaging enough, but insubstantial and inessential.
November 13, 2021
“The lady asked me if I had been to Chicago.”
I chuckled. I could imagine no more hideous insult to my uncle.
...“She informed me that I ought to have gone to Chicago, and that America was a great country., and I remarked that I had always thought it was so great that one could best appreciate it at a distance.”
This book is a collection of short stories which were published in Pall Mall Magazine before 1895. They were collected here and published one day ahead of the publication of The Time Machine, making this technically Wells’ first book.
This is very different from the Wells you are familiar with. If you are a fan of The Time Machine or The War of the Worlds and are looking for more of that you will be disappointed. This book is closer to works like The Wheels of Chance or Love and Mr. Lewisham. The stories are anecdotes, little observations of different aspects of human character, as told to “George” by his “uncle.” While “George” can be assumed to be Wells, the uncle is a fictional character. The stories are funny and satirical, covering a wide range of human follies.
In this you can see the beginnings of the character observations Wells would bring to all of his great novels. Not a towering classic, but an enjoyable book that can be read entirely in an afternoon. Recommended for any true fan of Wells.
-Gregory Kerkman
I chuckled. I could imagine no more hideous insult to my uncle.
...“She informed me that I ought to have gone to Chicago, and that America was a great country., and I remarked that I had always thought it was so great that one could best appreciate it at a distance.”
This book is a collection of short stories which were published in Pall Mall Magazine before 1895. They were collected here and published one day ahead of the publication of The Time Machine, making this technically Wells’ first book.
This is very different from the Wells you are familiar with. If you are a fan of The Time Machine or The War of the Worlds and are looking for more of that you will be disappointed. This book is closer to works like The Wheels of Chance or Love and Mr. Lewisham. The stories are anecdotes, little observations of different aspects of human character, as told to “George” by his “uncle.” While “George” can be assumed to be Wells, the uncle is a fictional character. The stories are funny and satirical, covering a wide range of human follies.
In this you can see the beginnings of the character observations Wells would bring to all of his great novels. Not a towering classic, but an enjoyable book that can be read entirely in an afternoon. Recommended for any true fan of Wells.
-Gregory Kerkman
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews