Select Conversations with an Uncle (Now Extinct) and Two Other Reminiscences

by H.G. Wells

*This Book is annotated (it contains a detailed biography of the author).
*An active Table of Contents has been added by the publisher for a better customer experience.
*This book has been checked and corrected for spelling errors.

Select Conversations with an Uncle, published in 1895, was H.G. Wells's first literary publication in book form. It consists of reports of twelve conversations between a fictional witty uncle who has returned to London from South Africa with "a certain affluence," as well as two other conversations (one on aestheticism that takes place in a train, titled "A Misunderstood Artist," and another on physiognomy, titled "The Man with a Nose").

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, Classics

52 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1895

About the author

Herbert George Wells was born to a working class family in Kent, England. Young Wells received a spotty education, interrupted by several illnesses and family difficulties, and became a draper's apprentice as a teenager. The headmaster of Midhurst Grammar School, where he had spent a year, arranged for him to return as an "usher," or student teacher. Wells earned a government scholarship in 1884, to study biology under Thomas Henry Huxley at the Normal School of Science. Wells earned his bachelor of science and doctor of science degrees at the University of London. After marrying his cousin, Isabel, Wells began to supplement his teaching salary with short stories and freelance articles, then books, including The Time Machine (1895), The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), and The War of the Worlds (1898).

Wells created a mild scandal when he divorced his cousin to marry one of his best students, Amy Catherine Robbins. Although his second marriage was lasting and produced two sons, Wells was an unabashed advocate of free (as opposed to "indiscriminate") love. He continued to openly have extra-marital liaisons, most famously with Margaret Sanger, and a ten-year relationship with the author Rebecca West, who had one of his two out-of-wedlock children. A one-time member of the Fabian Society, Wells sought active change. His 100 books included many novels, as well as nonfiction, such as A Modern Utopia (1905), The Outline of History (1920), A Short History of the World (1922), The Shape of Things to Come (1933), and The Work, Wealth and Happiness of Mankind (1932). One of his booklets was Crux Ansata, An Indictment of the Roman Catholic Church. Although Wells toyed briefly with the idea of a "divine will" in his book, God the Invisible King (1917), it was a temporary aberration. Wells used his international fame to promote his favorite causes, including the prevention of war, and was received by government officials around the world. He is best-remembered as an early writer of science fiction and futurism.

He was also an outspoken socialist. Wells and Jules Verne are each sometimes referred to as "The Fathers of Science Fiction". D. 1946.

More: http://philosopedia.org/index.php/H._...

http://www.online-literature.com/well...

http://www.hgwellsusa.50megs.com/

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/t...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._G._Wells

Reviews

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars rounded up to 4 Stars
The story is told by the nephew George (the narrator ) as a tribute to his uncle's memory. The uncle who recently arrived from South Africa has a desire to be a well recognized and well sought after conversationalist to dazzle society by partaking in social intercourse. He would jot down ideas for topics and practice topics of discourse with his nephew which amused, exacerbated, and bored him as well as embarrassed him when he introduced the uncle to others. These topics covered fashion, the inevitability of human "discomfort" due to passing social trends, the resemblance of ideals to interior decoration, the art of posing and dressing to be photographed, the social basis of taste in art and music, the state of being engaged, the agony of having to listen to a neighbor playing the piano, tricycles, social novels, and the effects of marriage. The book has Wells writing a witty satirical piece on some of the topics of Victorian society he sees as frivolous and silly.
This book was published in 1895 and Wells wrote in the chapter The Pains of Marriage "Do you know, George, I really believe there is a secret society of tradesmen, a kind of priesthood, who get hold of our womenkind and muddle them up with all these fancies." Gee Willikers! Wells would have made a great script writer for Mad Men a series that ran on AMC network cable from 2007-2015.

[Dave · Rating 2 out of 5]

H. G. Wells published “Select Conversations With An Uncle (Now Extinct) And Two Other Reminiscences” is a collection of 14 pieces of short fiction in June of 1895, supposedly just one day prior to “The Time Machine” and before “The Wonderful Visit” (September), and “The Stolen Bacillus” (November) which appeared later in the same year. Wells did have two non-fiction books published prior to this one, but this was his first book of fictional stories, though “The Time Machine” was based on an earlier work called “The Chronic Argonauts” which he wrote in school. The stories had previously been published in “The Pall Mall Gazette between 1893 and 1894.

These stories are short mildly humorous works mostly concerning an uncle and his observations on the state of things. They cover fashion, ideals, being photographed, music, being engaged, being in love, being married, and other topics, each being handled as a conversation between the narrator and his uncle. Also included are two other works of short fiction. Though there are 14 stories in all, they are all very short and it does not take much time to read through the entire collection.

Wells is of course known for his works of science fiction which helped to create the genre which is so well known today. However, Wells was quite capable of writing other types of works, and this collection of short fiction is a good example of his early style. I don’t want to give the impression that this is a lost treasure. This work is interesting because it was written by Wells, and there is good reason why it is not one of his better known works, and had it been written by another it would have little interest at all. It is not that it is a bad work, but rather that it is an unexceptional work. This is recommended for those who are interested in H. G. Wells and his development as an author.

[Sue Bridgwater · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe 2.5 as these are very early writings