H G Wells

 Imaginary Interviewer: Well, now we're on to one of the biggies, HG Wells. What can you tell me about him?

Humble Writer: Wells is indeed one of the biggest names in science fiction. Along with Jules Verne, he developed some of the most popular types of science fiction stories. 

II: Kind of invented them?

HW: Uh...that's not quite how I'd put it. Other people may have written stories about time travelers, for instance, but virtually every time travel story of today owes more to 'The Time Machine' than they do to any earlier work. 

II: His work is that revered?

HW: Without a doubt. Not only because other writers were influenced by him, but also because so many people read him that the value of science fiction, as a genre, was proved. 

II: And what are you reading this month?

HW: We're reading 'The Time Machine', the tale of a time traveler who has built his own time machine and used it...perhaps unwisely. 

II: What else should we know about Wells?

HW: His works are often political in nature, sometimes in a way that isn't obvious to us now because the political discussions have moved on. He was a Socialist, but that term in Great Britain in the 1890s simply didn't mean that same thing that it does now. If he were around today, he would almost certainly be left of center, but I'd hesitate to pin him down more than that. 

II: Have you read any of his work before?

HW: I've read his biggest works, 'The Time Machine', 'War of the Worlds' and 'The Invisible Man'. I've read a large chunk of his 'The Outline of History' but that was a while ago and I don't remember it anymore. 

II: Enjoyable?

HW: Oh yes, I think so. I mean, his writing is 19th century, so be prepared for long paragraphs of text. But he's a very good writer and he makes it work. I remember preferring 'War of the Worlds' to 'The Time Machine' but I don't know how that memory will stand up. 

II: Anything else?

HW: This is one of the shorter works that we'll read. So if you don't enjoy it, at least it won't take that long!