This 19th century story of a scientist who constructs a time machine and travels 800,000+ years into the future holds up remarkably well. I suppose this is in part due to how far into a strange future the narrator takes us, but also due to Well's writing style, which picks and chooses details carefully, smoothly dropping the reader into the worlds he creates. ( )

We never learn much of the identity of the time traveller (op cit, it does have two 'L's in the book, is that a British spelling?), the beginning of the book refers to him as the time traveller. The story is told in a first-person narration. He is British, and he is male, probably in his prime. It is the classic story, a bit different from the movie versions. We meet the Morlocks, and Weena, strange creatures we encounter only briefly, and learn of man's fate.

The story is well told and moves quickly. He doesn't pause to build suspense, we can feel the urgency of the time traveller's actions.

H. G. Wells suggests man is his own demise, one has to wonder if he was making a political statement, but doesn't stress it as we would expect authors to do today. The book is around 260ish pages, but felt shorter as it reads pretty easily. It is in the public domain and available for free from Project Gutenberg. ( )

http://www.book-blog.com/2009/11/well... ( )

A great, almost haunting novel. Wells does not get nearly enough credit for The Time Machine. There is much more here than meets the eye. ( )

The Time Machine is a short novella detailing the journey of a man who found a way to travel along the 4th dimension. It's a story about the evolution of humankind. And a story about the end of time. But more than all of that with The Time Machine, H. G. Wells managed to redefine what a science fiction story is. The Time Machine is not a classic because of immaculate storytelling. The novel is uneven in pacing and style. It is a classic because the common ideas, themes, and mythos of time-travel and time machines originate within these pages, and have continued to influence and captivated ever since. ( )

(unabridged audiobook read by Ralph Cosham): I was pleased to learn that this brief book is almost nothing like the 2002 movie, since that was horrible. Rather, this is the story of a man simply referred to as The Time Traveller, a native of Victorian England who spends the bulk of the story telling of his adventures in the year 802,701 and beyond. The reader hears things more or less secondhand and after the fact, as opposed to the more suspenseful (and much more common) everything-as-it-happens mode. Despite the extra step of disconnect from the action, this style actually adds to the realism, truly showing the future through the eyes and impressions of the Time Traveller, who can share many theories but few concrete facts. I was fascinated by the description of the world many hundreds of thousands of years hence, and even felt inspired to write my own time travel story, just for fun. Highly recommended. ( )

The classic sci-fi story of a man from the 1800's who invents a time travelling machine, and goes back and forth in time, eventually very far forward in time. Much better than the movie. ( )

I feel as if the term 'Classic' for a book is banded about far too much. In my mind, a classic is a book that really has no equal, one that you feel compelled to read due to its enthralling nature. In all honesty, I fell that if The Time Machine was not written by H.G. Wells and was instead the work of a largely unknown Victorian author, save for the novelty of the subject, it would not be thought of in this terms. Whilst not a total bore to read, it is the very definition of a middling book. When it comes to fiction, there is obviously so much out there that it would be impossible for one to read it all. To that effect, one should seek out the true cream of fiction. The Time Machine to me is an average story, one that does not call out to be re-read in the future as say The Three Musketeers does. And so I wouldn't really recommend it unless you were a completest for Wells, as nothing really stands out as a reason to pick up this book. ( )

I think that The Time Machine is one of the best books I’ve ever read. I really liked the beginning of the story, how it was set at a dinner party and the talk of time travel was just a mere idea and then the next day the Time Traveler had a long story to tell the dinner guests. I found the Time Traveler’s (far out) and (wild) way of thinking to be very inspirational, and that we should all be open minded and reach for our dreams like he did. In the novel, the Time Traveler travels through time to a period where humans have evolved into child-like people and are extremely frail and lazy. The other human evolved species are the Morlocks who are quite the opposite, being hard working, tough, and more monster-like. This future that we see in the book is definitely not what we would expect to see for the human race, and I liked that it was unique.
However, I did not like the ending to the book at all. The Time Traveler was my favorite character, and I feel that his disappearing into another era leaves many unanswered questions to the reader. The fact that we do not know the whereabouts of the Time Traveler is very unsettling, and the reader also doesn’t know why he chose to go time travel again. Also, I did not like how there were political views, such as the theory that communism was to blame for the state of the Eloi, in the novel.
The main characters in the book were the Time Traveler, Mr. Hillyer, and Weena. The Time Traveler is a brilliant inventor living in Richmond, London. The book begins at one of his many dinner parties that he hosts with other distinguished men. The Time Traveler and other dinner guests begin discussing the idea of Time Travel, then the Time Traveler proceeds to show his doubtful guest’s his model of the time machine, which works perfectly disappearing into thin air. At the next dinner party, the time traveler mysteriously shows up late, in a very disgruntled state. After he recollects himself, he informs everyone that he has travelled through time and begins to tell his story to his dinner guests, one of which being Mr. Hillyer.
Mr. Hillyer is one of the time travelers dinner guests, he is also the narrator in the beginning and end of the novel. Mr.Hillyer is one of the more inquisitive and curious dinner guests. He allows himself to believe that the Time Traveler may be right, where as the other men who instead of listening to the time traveler, try to find way’s that he could be wrong. Near the end of the novel, Mr. Hillyer comes to ask the Time Traveler about his story, and instead finds him missing along with the Time Machine. Mr. Hillyer then waits many days for the Time Travelers return, which never comes. He leaves hoping that the Time Traveler has found a place better than the present to reside in.
Weena is an Eloi, a small frail creature who is described as female but since it is difficult to distinguish the difference between genders of the Eloi it is never really known. The Time Traveler meets Weena when he saves her from drowning in the river. They then become good friends, and is the Time Travelers only friend in that era. Weena becomes somewhat of a side-kick to the Time-Traveler, helping him in his endeavor to find his Time-Machine. When Weena and the Time Traveler are in the Porcelain Palace, they stop to camp for the night with a small fire and fall asleep. The Time-Traveler then awakes in the grasp of many Morlocks, and Weena is nowhere to be found. Yet again, the novel leaves unanswered questions on what happens to Weena, but the reader is lead to believe that she has been eaten by the Morlocks.

"The Time Machine" is the story of a man who travels forward in time, and comes into contact with the distant descendants of the human race.

I thought that this book was just barely likable. I'm glad it was relatively short, though I wouldn't say it was a "bad" book. It's worth reading, but I'm sure it was more of a novelty for the first few years after it came out than it was considered great literature. Wells' book "The Invisible Man" was far superior to this one, and I would recommend that over "The Time Machine" any day of the week.

That being said, it is a "classic", so reading it is required for those of us who want to be "well read". ( )

I’m not much of a science fiction reader so this was a little difficult to get into. Quick story but not at all what I expected. Amazing to see what people thought the future would look like. H.G. Wells is one creative writer. ( )

The Time Traveler goes forward, 800,000 years into the future and recounts an odd world to a group of friends on his return. He tells them of two different branches of the human species, very opposed.
The book really hilights the wrongs of society today and promotes the Communist theory. It was very interesting and not boring. I love HG Wells War of the Worlds and this was just as action filled. Classic sci-fi. ( )

http://books.moonsoar.com/archives/20... ( )

The Alien Voices Presents: The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
This version of the classic book is an audio play starring Leonard Nimoy and John de Lancie. Nimoy does a wonderful job with the narration as the time traveler. The music score and audio effects add to the drama. Faithful to the original book, this work is a great option for those who enjoy the audio format for books. ( )

This book is said to be part of the Victorian Era of Literature, and I agree, it has that same elegant style of writing, that becomes captivating, and pulls you into the story. What differs with Wells’ story is that it’s a Victorian style of writing with the added themes of Sci-Fi, making it a unique and wonderful read. This dystopian story, differs slightly then the others I have read, it is a less evident example of it then I have read in others, but as the Time Traveller comes to this futuristic land, you can see hints of this dystopian society, although how sure can the reader be, is this a misunderstanding by a arrogant time traveller, of the lives of these futuristic people, or do they really live in fear, in this seemingly utopic society, turned dystopic from two races striving to survive?

I also loved the sci-fi appeal to it. It has a lot of similarities to so many sci-fi shows, literature and stories we grow up with now. The story has so many parts and themes; I think most readers, no matter their tastes in genres, will have some aspect they could enjoy. Suspense, adventure, Victorian style of writing wrapped in a sci-fi backdrop.

Review can also be found at by book review blog
http://juliebooks.blogspot.com/2009/0... ( )

This is a short book. I found that I was sort of drawn into the story, eventually. I certainly think that if I'd written it I'd have gone in different directions, quite literally, probably the past! But that wasn't his intention. Wells intended to go where others hadn't been in thought or deed. I suppose that is what stirred me to read it, knowing that it was one of the first of an entire genre wondering where the future might take us. I probably won't read any more Wells books unless I find 'The Invisible Man' which I had begun and then lost but was enjoying more than The Time Machine at the beginning of the two books. I have recently seen the statue of the alien that someone created in honor of a character in Well's book War of the Worlds. That also stirred my interest in finishing the book. ( )

This novella by H. G. Wells is about society and decay. A nameless traveler living in the end of the nineteenth century builds a time machine and shows us a bitter image of the future. Humankind is living in a pacifistic, communist and vegetarian society, having all they need and worrying about nothing. What seems like perfection in the first place, later turns out to be a dystopia on its own. It is a great promethean parable, criticizing the two-class-system, but also showing the dangers of nihilist communism. And although the later chapters are weaker in the story they are most beautifully and atmospherically written.

Whoever wants to understand Wells has to read this book, the very first of his fancies. ( )

When reading a book, if you know how the book ends before you reach it, it is only the quality of the keeps you going. Unfortunately, if writing is, as Nabakov says, all in the quality of writing then this one seems rather thin. it is the idea, more than anything else, that caries it. And whilst the idea was brilliant when it came out, now it is worn and worn again. Getting to the end was something of an ordeal. Interesting note that no one mentions is Wells' socialistic view of how society divides into Morlocks and Elois. ( )

HG Wells’ The Time Machine is considered a classic science fiction novel. It is a time travel story where a scientist goes forward in time to the year 802,700. He discovers a seemingly utopian society of Eloi, a simple-minded beautiful people in flowing clothes that eat fruit and appear to have no disease, strife or concerns. The Time Traveler begins to doubt the perfection of this time period when he discovers the Morlocks, a race of people who have evolved into nocturnal underground creatures who feed on the Eloi. He theorizes that the human race has evolved into two very different ones. He believes that the wealthy used the underclass as slaves or as workers. The Eloi stayed above ground and grew soft and round, since the Morlocks supplied them with manual labor by toiling below. The Time Traveler must rescue his machine, as well as save his life. The story is told as a recounting in the Time Traveler’s own words, through a friend. The Time Traveler’s discoveries lead him to appreciate the time in which he lives, and abandon his assumptions that as the world ages it will become perfected. The delicate balance between members of society and social classes should be respected. The Time Traveler learns that he cannot assume that things are always what they seem, and that he must look deeper to see that the time period in which he lives is better than he imagined. He is also very isolated in the future, due to the language barriers. He struggles to stay alive and must rely upon his own strengths. He also develops an intimate relationship with an Eloi named Weena. Intimate in the sense that he feels compassion and empathy for her, and struggles to keep her alive.
I really liked The Time Machine, because it is suspenseful and a classic. The language is not as modern as some, since it was written in 1895, but the premises hold up well. The moral lesson is still a valid one. You should value all members of society and their contributions. I think teens will appreciate that this is a small book, and a quick read if the vocabulary in the first chapter doesn’t turn them off. The vocabulary and style may be a little difficult for some younger teens. I think boys and girls will be interested in this book if they like science or are interested in time travel.

This is a simple book about a scientist who travels to the future to find that man has broken off into two different species. Wells obviously had a very negative opinion about the industrial revolution and its effect on the human species. It is a well-done tale, and probably laid the groundwork for authors like George Orwell and Orson Scott Card. ( )

My opinion of The Time Machine is that it is a really well written science fiction novel. The action and scenes are described in great detail. This science fiction novel is based upon the idea that you can build a machine to go forward or backward in time. This story is also based on an idea that I would say is controversial. The human race is split up into two different races. One of the races is the morlocks who are humans that live underground and build machines. They can not see in the light for it blinds them. Then there is the upper world people who only eat fruits and vegetables. For some mysterious reason the upper world people fear the morlocks. This is a really good book to read, I would suggest this book to all of my friends. J.M. ( )

Before I actually read this book, I assumed that I had read it as a child, but now I am less sure. Perhaps I only saw the movie and knew the story line because the story line is that well known. Not certain. There were certainly ways in which it felt like a new read. At any rate, given how long ago it was written and given that I did know the story line, I assumed I would not enjoy the read all that much. I was wrong.

To begin with, my copy is a Penguin, which means it had a readable and helpful Introduction and useful footnotes. The Introduction grounded me in Wells' context: His visions of our technical future, many details of which have proven true, although not those in this story, as yet, predate both radio and the airplane. So his imagination was impressive. On the other hand, he lived well into the 20th Century, so he was not so "pre-historic" as I thought of him being. Acutely, he saw future history as being "a race between education and catastrophe". Finally, there were many ways he was truly a man of his time, as well, grappling, as so many of his time did, with the moral and ethical implications of Darwin's recently published Origin of Species.

I am in some ways an unforgiving or narrow-minded reader of fiction: I look for character development, plot and emotional grab. These attributes are not what make this book important. In my reading of the text itself, I found that the narrative contains more intellectual speculation than dramatic action, no character development and little or no depiction of meaningful relationships. For a whole novel, that would have been a bit much; for a novella, it did not bother me, especially as I was reading for historical interest and not, primarily, for fun. The language is mildly Victorian-verbose, but not too badly so. I also found that knowing the story line ahead of time freed me to appreciate the process of reading it. I found the ideas complex enough that I would consider re-reading it sometime.

The rating is in context of its being a classic, not in comparison with contemporary R&R reads. ( )

The time machine is an old Classic! A scientist that builds a time machine is rejected by his peers that you can actually travel in time. Since noone gives him the benefit of the doubt that he can travel in time, he does so to prove that he can in time. So when he gets back in time he relizes that he back farther than he wanted to. So when he gets back to that time period, he also gets his time machine stole, therefore making him starnded in that prehistoric time untill he is able to get time machine back and go home. he finds these natives that that don't really talk, but who are also a very mute clan.

Mr. Wells, again, writes a fabulous tale. He manages to create a robust character, who turns out to be more introspective than most when faced with cannibals, from a man traveling through Time and recounting his adventure at a dinner party. It's a lovely book, full of sound speculation, most of which could be true. The way the Time Travelers different hypotheses change as he is confronted with more facts is a great window into reason; the facts with which he is confronted are a testament to Mr. Wells imagination. This book is tight and thoughtful. ( )

Not nearly as good as I hoped it would be. The story went...nowhere. No real answers, just assumptions about what possibly happened. Written in a very cold manner, I felt no real connection with the characters...including the Time Traveler. ( )