Herbert George Wells was born in 1866 in Bromley, Kent. His
career as an author was fostered by an unfortunate accident as a child.
He broke his leg and spent the mandatory rest period reading every book
which he could find. Wells was awarded a scholarship and furthered his
education at the Normal School of Science in London. It was at the
Normal School that Wells came under the wing of the famous biologist
Thomas H. Huxley. Wells' "science fiction" (although he never called it
such)was clearly influenced by his studies at the Normal School and his
interest in biology.
H.G. Wells gained fame with his first major fiction work: The Time
Machine in 1895. Soon after the publication of this book, Wells followed
with The Island of Dr. Moreau (1895), The Invisible Man (1897), and
perhaps his most famous popular work: The War of the Worlds (1898).
Over the years Wells became concerned with the fate of human society
in a world where technology and scientific study were advancing at a
rapid pace. For a period he was a member of The Fabian Society, a group
of social philosophers in London. Wells's later works became less
science fiction and more social critique.
The accuracy of the "science" in Wells's work has often been called
into question. It is rumored that Wells and the French novelist Jules
Verne actually criticized each other's writing. Wells's claim was that
"Verne couldn't write himself out of a paper sack" and Verne accused
Wells of having "scientifically implausible ideas." The science may not
be accurate, but the adventure and philosophy in those books makes
Wells' early science fiction fun and fascinating to read.
