Hi guys! Today I’m going to do a book review on The Time Machine by H. G. Wells.
Some background information
My history with The Time Machine is an interesting one. I first began it in June for a summer reading list, and read a few chapters. After that, I pretty much left it alone because I wasn’t in the mood and wanted to read my fun books (not that it’s a bad book, per se). I read a few pages here and there, but finally got back into it a few weeks ago. It honestly surprised me. I didn’t think it was going to turn out that interesting, but it had a few twists and turns at the end. Now, let’s get into the review.
Disclaimer: The Time Machine was published in 1895, and this is important to note due to slightly antiquated language.
Summary
The Time Machine starts with a conversation between the Time Traveler and his smart, philosophical friends. They argue about whether a fourth dimension would be possible, and eventually the Time Traveler shows them his small model of the Time Machine. Thus starts his adventures.
They decide to meet again later, and soon after their first meeting, the Time Traveler tests his experiment.
After starting it up, he finds himself in some future land where the humans are quite different than today’s society, in a kind of blissful utopia. He commences to explore the world of their times and gets into quite a few scrapes.
When he makes it back to his time, on the night of the second meeting, he explains his adventures to his friends, and that is where the story truly begins- with him retelling his adventures.
Characters
One really interesting thing they did with the characters is that none of them had names, except for the young girl he meets in the future. They are all called “The Time Traveler” or “The Lawyer”, etc.
The Time Traveler was quite an interesting character, taking quite a few risks. He and his friends also have some very interesting conversations about science and whether certain things are possible or not.
We should strive to welcome change and challenges, because they are what help us grow. With out them we grow weak like the Eloi in comfort and security. We need to constantly be challenging ourselves in order to strengthen our character and increase our intelligence
All in all, the characters were pretty good, nothing drew me to them specifically, but nothing made me dislike them for any reason either.
Plot
The plot was really interesting, but what I found most fascinating was the way the book explored the scientific boundaries of the time and delved into the philosophy of certain things.
We all have our time machines, don’t we. Those that take us back are memories…And those that carry us forward, are dreams
I liked the fact that his friends really thought about things and had deep conversations, and didn’t just take him at his word that his adventures had happened. That’s one of the things that bothers me in some sci-fi books, they’re too quick to believe.
It was a really revolutionary book at its time and I think it should be appreciated for that.
Rating
Overall, I really enjoyed the book (much to my surprise). It had an interesting rhythm, quite evenly paced, not quick, but not necessarily slow, either. It was designed to make you think, and it succeeded in that regard.
Because of this, I gave it four stars.
Have you read The Time Machine? Are you interested in reading it in the future? Let me know in the comments!
Book Bliss 