Time Machine: The Story of H.G. Wells (World Writers: Writers of Imagination) [Library Binding]

William J. Boerst (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: World Writers: Writers of Imagination

Explores the personal life and literary career of the wide-ranging British author known for his science fiction, histories, and novels.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Grade 8 Up-Wells was a complex man who lived an unconventional life. Best remembered for his science fiction (War of the Worlds and Time Machine), he wrote and spoke extensively on history, education, science, socialism, and politics. Married twice, he conducted an "open marriage" with his second wife, Amy Catherine Robbins, and had numerous mistresses and illegitimate children. His views on male-female liberation, atomic warfare, education, ecology, and environmentalism were often considered "radical" and ahead of his time. Boerst's prose is matter-of-fact and workmanlike. The author condenses Wells's life into a mere 94 pages, and the result is a dry succession of dates, facts, and quotations. Readers will come away with only a glimpse of the man and little real understanding of the social causes he espoused, the controversy they generated, and the succession of women with whom he was involved.
Jennifer Ralston, Harford County Public Library, Belcamp, MD
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

This succinct biography, written for the World Writers series, introduces H. G. Wells: his difficult childhood, miserable apprenticeships, romantic liaisons, scientific interests, political views, and his career as a writer. The many quotations from Wells' Experiment in Autobiography give a sense of his voice as well as his views on many subjects. Boerst concludes that though Wells was considered "the father of science fiction," he would probably have preferred to be remembered as "a great thinker on social issues." Black-and-white illustrations, primarily portrait photographs, appear throughout the text. Appendixes include bibliographies of Wells' books and those written about him, source notes, a time line, and a glossary. Carolyn Phelan

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Library Binding: 112 pages
• Publisher: Morgan Reynolds Publishing; 1st edition (December 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1883846404
• ISBN-13: 978-1883846404
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,888,111 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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