The Time Machine

5b H.G. Wells. London: The Readers Library, 1920.

Notes

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells is a foundational science fiction novella that tells the story of a nameless Time Traveller who invents a machine capable of transporting him through time. Traveling to the distant future, he arrives in the year 802,701 and discovers a seemingly utopian world inhabited by the gentle, childlike Eloi. However, he soon learns that this surface paradise hides a darker reality: the Eloi are preyed upon by the subterranean Morlocks, a more sinister and industrial race. As the Traveller explores further into Earth’s distant future, he witnesses the eventual decline of humanity and the dying of the planet itself.

Wells uses the story as a vehicle for social and philosophical commentary, particularly on class division, evolution, and the consequences of unchecked technological progress. Written in 1895, The Time Machine was one of the first works to popularize time travel as a scientific concept rather than a magical one, and it introduced the now-iconic idea of a machine specifically built to navigate time. With its blend of adventure, speculative science, and social critique, the novella remains a landmark in science fiction literature and a powerful reflection on the potential future of humanity.

Description 

Purple cloth binding with gilt boarder ornamentation and lettering to upper board and spine. Original dust jacket. Two inches of spine dust wrapper torn at foot. Slight chipping to boarders of dust wrapper. Bumped points. Good condition.