Customer Reviews

The Research Magnificent

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is as funny as it is thought provoking. H. G. Wells takes us on a very entertaining and profound journey via a character named William who insists on living life nobly and thoroughly. Even as a child William had decided that this was the only aristocratic way to live and was determined to do so at all costs, and cost him it does.

William gets into all sorts of hilarious trouble for living up to his ideals with a lot of it being ironic. The very people he seeks to defend or sacrifice himself for are the ones who take advantage of him, and often he finds himself subject to the logical consequences of adhering to his particular ideal. No matter what happens, he keeps pushing forward and sticking with his principles.

I love H.G. Wells' works, and I think this is one of his best. Everything he writes is thought provoking, and this story provides plenty of food for thought. It takes on the subject of holding ideas vs. actually putting those ideals into practice without compromise. Even though the character, William, has problems as the result of doing this, he also lives a very full and exciting life.

In a way I see this story as more of an indictment against people who don't adhere to their ideals than those who do. William certainly suffers hardships for sticking with his beliefs, but he acquires confidence and courage and lives an outstanding and adventurous life because of it. I strongly recommend this book. I enjoyed it immensely and got a lot out of it.

This story is wonderful. It's funny, very entertaining, and brilliant. This is Wells at his best. The character he creates is a riot, a man who always practices what he believes. I couldn't help laughing at this guy and shaking my head, but I also admired him and must admit that I was even a bit envious of him.
I often wonder if Wells was doing a caricature of himself when he wrote this book. He was also a strongly idealistic person and it got him into trouble as well. He even made the Nazi's hit list during World War II because of his beliefs. It seems his personal life would have given him plenty of ammunition to write this story. Maybe that's why it's so outstanding.

This is a brilliant work that analyzes the tricky issue of living up to one's ideals. Wells gives us a character that takes living his beliefs to the extreme in that he follows them unwaveringly no matter how much trouble it gets him into, and it definitely gets him into trouble.

This could have gone either of two ways. It could have just as easily been a tragic tale as a comedic one. I love that Wells decided to take it in a humorous direction. I really think the point he wished to make sinks in much more powerfully, because he chose to make this a humorous account. And the story is hilarious. The character gets into all sorts of ironically funny situations as the result of his insistence on following the ideology that he has embraced.

Though the character gets into trouble and looks ridiculous at times, he's also very inspirational. He keeps getting back up no matter how many times he's knocked down and shows a lot of courage. He also lives a very full and amazing life. He sees and experiences things that most people only dream of because of the ideology that he adheres to. His life is one long adventure. I believe that's the way it is for anyone who refuses to let go of lofty ideals and insists on living true to them. Such a person would certainly run into trouble but also live an amazing life and grow stronger and more courageous each day.

I really loved this book and just can't recommend it enough. This is Wells at his most brilliant. I absolutely loved the equally noble and silly character he created. This book really gives you a lot to think about and it makes you reassess your life. It's everything a book should be and more.

Mr. Wells builds novels out of ideas as other men build them of imagery and emotions. William Porphyry Benham sets out to live the noble or aristocratic life, and the book is about what happens to him because of his beautiful obsession. Starting in his boyhood, and throughout his life, it produced profound adventures, yet also made him ridiculous, and even inspiring. It was a passion for courage, for personal nobility, for service to others, for self-sacrificing, all for the social betterment of the whole world.

This is not a review of the book but of the Kindle edition format by Digireads.com (2004). From about a third of the way into the book it appears to be missing pieces of text of various lengths, from posssibly a few words or a line to possibly more -- it is hard to tell without another edition to hand. It happens often enough to be annoying.

[I did buy the book from Amazon, via another account.]