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The Undying Fire: A Contemporary Novel
Dedicated to all schoolmasters and schoolmistresses and every teacher in the world, this re-interpretation of the Book of Job is one of the author's finest discussion novels. Written in 1918, this is the story of Job Huss, the headmaster of a progressive school. It is saturated with the ideas of educational reform and of the teaching of world history as the basis for a common civilization and is one of his most ambitious dialogue narratives. Essentially it is a modernized parody of the book of Job, a prose poem which Wells greatly admired, though not particularly religious, as can be seen from his logical Science Fiction writing. In "The Undying Fire", Wells give us an updated Book of Job, focusing on the tribulations of an actual descendant of the biblical Job. The various characters from the Biblical narrative are all there, in updated form.
92 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1919
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About the author
H.G. Wells
5,457 books11.1k followersHerbert 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
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
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
July 15, 2020
I wrote a longish review, but forgot to save it. Maybe Satan is testing me..... (Not today Satan!)
H.G. Wells wrote this modernization of the Book of Job. God lets Satan torment a man, Job Huss, to see whether he would loose his faith.
The oddest thing about it is that Job Huss doesn't have any faith in Jehovah in the first place. He is essentially atheist. He does have an "undying fire" in his heart for his belief in the possibility of human improvement through science, education, empathy, and a dream of a future United Nations with a new world order of one world government. He calls that "God", and never loses faith in it. An uncareful reader might easily think Mr. Huss is referring to Jehovah, but he clearly is not. Wells remained an atheist, and Mr. Huss is his mouthpiece.
The book is structured very much like the original book of Job, so it consists mostly of monologues. And, like the original, it is bleak. Mr. Huss talks lots and lots about the horrors of being alive, with particular attention to soldiers in WWI, and the horrible life of animals, especially penguins.
Definitely not one of Well's Sci-Fi adventure stories! But it is, in my opinion, Sci-Fi of a loftier sort because it is a novel of ideas that examines the world with a scientific point of view, contrasting it with religious points of view, and proposing Utopian ideas. Again, it is very bleak. Recommended only if you find Becket, Kafka, Ligotti and Cioran as uplifting as I do.
Since there are few reviews on here, I will link to a more thorough review. A nice, longish one is this PDF version of a review given by the minister of a Unitarian church in 1919.
H.G. Wells wrote this modernization of the Book of Job. God lets Satan torment a man, Job Huss, to see whether he would loose his faith.
The oddest thing about it is that Job Huss doesn't have any faith in Jehovah in the first place. He is essentially atheist. He does have an "undying fire" in his heart for his belief in the possibility of human improvement through science, education, empathy, and a dream of a future United Nations with a new world order of one world government. He calls that "God", and never loses faith in it. An uncareful reader might easily think Mr. Huss is referring to Jehovah, but he clearly is not. Wells remained an atheist, and Mr. Huss is his mouthpiece.
The book is structured very much like the original book of Job, so it consists mostly of monologues. And, like the original, it is bleak. Mr. Huss talks lots and lots about the horrors of being alive, with particular attention to soldiers in WWI, and the horrible life of animals, especially penguins.
Definitely not one of Well's Sci-Fi adventure stories! But it is, in my opinion, Sci-Fi of a loftier sort because it is a novel of ideas that examines the world with a scientific point of view, contrasting it with religious points of view, and proposing Utopian ideas. Again, it is very bleak. Recommended only if you find Becket, Kafka, Ligotti and Cioran as uplifting as I do.
Since there are few reviews on here, I will link to a more thorough review. A nice, longish one is this PDF version of a review given by the minister of a Unitarian church in 1919.
May 2, 2019
God and Satan have a celestial powwow, a wager is struck, time to test a new Job:
"Whether he will curse or bless?'
"Whether he will even remember God."
Job Huss is a progressive headmaster about to lose his position after a fatal accident at the school, his son is feared dead fighting in WWI, his wife doesn't love him, he had cancer, and perhaps worse of the landlady at the bed-and-breakfast where he is convalescing is a real pain in the ass.
It's little wonder that a social commentator such as Wells found himself wondering about human faith and suffering at the conclusion of the Great War. A contemporary rewrite of the Book of Job must have struck him as entirely apposite.
The prologue featuring that conversation between the Deity and the Devil is Wells at his wittiest, I was hooked immediately. They play a game of 4D chess, the former characterized by His 'supreme boredom', the latter by his restless energy. They get on pretty well together.
The bet made, a new Job selected, it's down to Earth we go for some knockabout fun at the expense of representative humanity. I'm not saying this isn't a serious work by Wells, it certainly is, but he never let graver intentions get in the way of a good laugh.
Wells clearly wanted the fresh horrors of WWI to be an indelible history lesson for people in an age where he believed history was being increasingly ignored. Job argues passionately for the importance of history, while one of his adversaries, Mr. Dad, sees it differently:
"I never held with his fad for teaching history ... What's history after all. At the best, it's over and done with."
Wells's humour isn't confined to the big issues. The landlady acting as a personification of boils on the bottom is just one example. Here's another:
"Never in the whole course of my life have I met a solicitor who could invest money safely and profitably. Clergymen I have known, women of all sorts, savages, monomaniacs, criminals, but never solicitors."
The serious stuff really cute to the bone, particularly the protagonist's rant about the 'miseries of life' at the backend of chapter three. His extended metaphor comparing life to the experience of a young German soldier in a U-boat was also impressive. In the end he calls for "salvation by history."
Published one hundred years ago, still entirely prescient, as is the source material. Read this line from Dr. Barrack and change the word 'patients' for 'politicians':
"Hardly any of my patients tell the truth — ever. It isn't only that they haven't a tithe of the critical ability and detachment necessary, they haven't any real desire to tell the truth. They want to produce effects."
How very 2019.
"Whether he will curse or bless?'
"Whether he will even remember God."
Job Huss is a progressive headmaster about to lose his position after a fatal accident at the school, his son is feared dead fighting in WWI, his wife doesn't love him, he had cancer, and perhaps worse of the landlady at the bed-and-breakfast where he is convalescing is a real pain in the ass.
It's little wonder that a social commentator such as Wells found himself wondering about human faith and suffering at the conclusion of the Great War. A contemporary rewrite of the Book of Job must have struck him as entirely apposite.
The prologue featuring that conversation between the Deity and the Devil is Wells at his wittiest, I was hooked immediately. They play a game of 4D chess, the former characterized by His 'supreme boredom', the latter by his restless energy. They get on pretty well together.
The bet made, a new Job selected, it's down to Earth we go for some knockabout fun at the expense of representative humanity. I'm not saying this isn't a serious work by Wells, it certainly is, but he never let graver intentions get in the way of a good laugh.
Wells clearly wanted the fresh horrors of WWI to be an indelible history lesson for people in an age where he believed history was being increasingly ignored. Job argues passionately for the importance of history, while one of his adversaries, Mr. Dad, sees it differently:
"I never held with his fad for teaching history ... What's history after all. At the best, it's over and done with."
Wells's humour isn't confined to the big issues. The landlady acting as a personification of boils on the bottom is just one example. Here's another:
"Never in the whole course of my life have I met a solicitor who could invest money safely and profitably. Clergymen I have known, women of all sorts, savages, monomaniacs, criminals, but never solicitors."
The serious stuff really cute to the bone, particularly the protagonist's rant about the 'miseries of life' at the backend of chapter three. His extended metaphor comparing life to the experience of a young German soldier in a U-boat was also impressive. In the end he calls for "salvation by history."
Published one hundred years ago, still entirely prescient, as is the source material. Read this line from Dr. Barrack and change the word 'patients' for 'politicians':
"Hardly any of my patients tell the truth — ever. It isn't only that they haven't a tithe of the critical ability and detachment necessary, they haven't any real desire to tell the truth. They want to produce effects."
How very 2019.
May 14, 2015
I thought this book was ok. Not one of H.G. Wells' best, though I enjoyed reading it and it led to some interesting thoughts. I did find this quote from H.G. Wells in this 1918 book, 20 years before World War II, to be fascinating:
"Take some poor German boy with an ordinary sort of intelligence, an ordinary human disposition..." "Do they teach him anything of the great history of mankind? Do they teach him of his blood brotherhood with all men? Do they tell him anything of discovery, of exploration, of human effort and achievement? No. They teach him that he belongs to a blonde and wonderful race, the only race that matters on this planet. (No such distinct race ever existed; it is a lie for the damning of men.) And these teachers incite him to suspicion and hatred and contempt of all other races. They fill his mind with fears and hostilities. Everything German they tell him is good and splendid. Everything not German is dangerous and wicked..." "The boy grows up a mental cripple; his capacity for devotion and self- sacrifice is run into a mould of fanatical loyalty for the Kaiser and hatred for foreign things..."
"Take some poor German boy with an ordinary sort of intelligence, an ordinary human disposition..." "Do they teach him anything of the great history of mankind? Do they teach him of his blood brotherhood with all men? Do they tell him anything of discovery, of exploration, of human effort and achievement? No. They teach him that he belongs to a blonde and wonderful race, the only race that matters on this planet. (No such distinct race ever existed; it is a lie for the damning of men.) And these teachers incite him to suspicion and hatred and contempt of all other races. They fill his mind with fears and hostilities. Everything German they tell him is good and splendid. Everything not German is dangerous and wicked..." "The boy grows up a mental cripple; his capacity for devotion and self- sacrifice is run into a mould of fanatical loyalty for the Kaiser and hatred for foreign things..."
April 7, 2008
This book is H.G. Wells’ rewrite of the Book of Job. This book is extremely well-written, extremely philosophical and extremely dense. Job and his friends debate (or rather, orate) on the destiny and intrinsic nature of humankind and of God, and the purpose and role of education. It wasn’t that pleasant to read on the trolley, nor is it a particular page-turner, but it does offer some really beautiful and thought-provoking prose to the reader.
February 19, 2023
Another overlooked work from Wells, The Undying Fire is a discursive novel on the role of faith in the industrial world told in the form of a retelling of the Book of Job. Four men have a long conversation on the purpose of God after the horror of the Great War and whether an agnostic can have God as a vibe without cleaving to a particular denomination. The title character posits God as an ‘undying fire’, a sort of life-force or chi that together with a rigorous moral education keeps a person from lapsing into base bastardry. An homage to the schoolmaster William Frederick Sanderson (whose obit-bio Wells also wrote), and published as Wells was working on his own epic scholarly contribution The Outline of History, this unusual work argues that without a proper education and understanding of history, faith will always impede humanity’s progress beyond perpetual war and misery, although the role of God can itself provide nourishment to those who need that sort of thing. A terrific little think-piece, the novel also explores in powerful terms Wells’s own suffering around the loss of his son in the war, previously explored in Mr. Britling Sees It Through.
July 12, 2023
3.25⭐
November 4, 2023
Aiemmin olen lukenut Wellsin varhaiskauden loistavia scifi-romaaneja ja joitakuita(?) novelleja, mutta hänen filosofisempaan tai poliittisempaan tuotantoonsa en ole ennen tutustunut. Ikuinen liekki piti kuitenkin napata mukaan kun se kirjaston poistohyllyssä vastaan tuli. Onneksi tuli.
Ikuinen liekki on jatko-osa tai eräänlainen uusi versio Raamatun Jobin kirjasta. ”Kuten muinaisessa kertomuksessa, Jumalan pojat ovat koolla.” Myös Saatana on ”odottamatta saapunut paikalle” ja taas lyödään vetoa. Wells ei siis suoraan sano, että Saatana on yksi Jumalan pojista (Raamattu kun kai teologien mielestä on tämän – kuten kaiken muunkin – suhteen varsin monitulkintainen).
Jobin paikan on ottanut koulun kovia kokenut rehtori Job Huss, ja hänen kanssaan keskusteluja Jumalasta käyvät koulun johtokunnan jäsenet ja häntä hoitamaan saapunut lääkäri. Ikuisen liekin rakenne on siis aivan sama kuin Jobin kirjassa. Jobin kirjan lukeminen ei ole välttämätöntä Ikuisesta liekistä nauttimiseksi, mutta ainakin minusta Ikuista liekkiä lukiessani oli oikein hyvä, että luin Jobin kirjan toistamiseen aiemmin tänä vuonna.
Ikuinen liekki julkaistiin alkujaan vuonna 1919 eli heti ensimmäisen maailmansodan kauhujen jälkeen. Sota vaikutti rajusti myös suosikkikirjailijoihini. Se Arthur Conan Doylesta entistä kiihkeämmän spiritualistin ja Doylen lailla katolisuutta inhonneen Wellsin se sai pohdiskelemaan omaa suhdettaan uskontoon. Ottaen huomioon, että pohdiskelujen lopputulemana parikymmentä vuotta myöhemmin oli , että hän piti itseään lähinnä ateistina, on erittäin mielenkiintoista, että Ikuisen liekin on kustantanut Sley-kirjat. Sley on nimittäin Suomen luterilainen evankeliumisyhdistys.
Itse tarina on kaikille Jobinsa tunteville tuttu, joten ei siitä sen enempää. Poimitaan tähän kuitenkin muutama minusta mielenkiintoinen sitaatti.
S. 20: ”Luokaamme sitten uusi ja erilainen laji, jotain paljon viihdyttävämpää. Pankaamme esimerkiksi ihmisen aivot – ja tämä Sielu, josta aina jaksat jauhaa – muurahaisiin, mehiläisiin tai majaviin! Tai mustekalaan, joka on jo alunperinkin sangen hienotunteinen ja älykäs olento!” Eläintieteilijäksi valmistunut Wells olisi varmasti ilahtunut siitä, kuinka äärimmäisen älykkäiksi eläimiksi mustekalat ovat nykytutkimuksissa osoittautuneet.
S. 91–92: ”Miksi sulkisimme silmämme tosiasioilta? Jumalan luomistyön vaikuttimena on ollut joko suunnaton pahuus, saastainen mielikuvitus ja julma ahdasmielisyys tai sitten välinpitämättömyys ja epäoikeudenmukaisuus.” Luomistyön lisäksi noin voisi kuvata myös mm. uskontoja.
S. 136: ”Venäjällä ei näy enää jälkeäkään taiteista, tieteistä, loogisesta ajattelusta ja luovasta toiminnasta. Ehkä ne ovat kadonneet sieltä vuosisadoiksi.” Wells on edelleen valitettavan ajankohtainen.
S. 164–165: ”Jokaiselle ihmiselle olisi taattava parhaat mahdolliset olosuhteet olla paras mahdollinen itsensä.” Wells voisi tänä päivänä tienata leipänsä itsetuntoguruna.
S. 174: ”Minun nähdäkseni, kuten jo aluksi sanoin, tarkoitatte kiemuraisilla vertauskuvillanne vain hyvän tahdon ruumiillistumaa jokaisessa ihmisessä. Miksi silloin pitää puhua Jumalasta?” Niinpä.
Susanna Hirvikorven suomennos on sujuva. Sitä en tosin tiedä, mikä on se kielellisesti uudistettu laitos, jonka pohjalta hän on suomennoksensa tehnyt (sillä miksi niin mestarillisen kirjoittajan kuin Wellsin tekstiä pitäisi uudistaa?). Muutenkin Sley on tehnyt varsin hyvää työtä, sillä painovirheitä en kirjassa huomannut, ainoastaan joitakuita tavutusvirheitä (lähinnä keskelle riviä jääneitä tavuviivoja).
Ikuinen liekki on kerrassaan erinomaista Wellsiä. Se on toki erilainen kuin hänen scifi-klassikkonsa, mutta erittäin viihdyttävä yhtä kaikki. Wellsin ystävien ja Jobin kirjasta pitävien lisäksi myös uskontokritiikistä kiinnostuneiden kannattaa tähän tähän hieman unohdettuun teokseen tutustua. Hienoa, että se on saatavilla myös suomeksi.
4+/5
Ikuinen liekki on jatko-osa tai eräänlainen uusi versio Raamatun Jobin kirjasta. ”Kuten muinaisessa kertomuksessa, Jumalan pojat ovat koolla.” Myös Saatana on ”odottamatta saapunut paikalle” ja taas lyödään vetoa. Wells ei siis suoraan sano, että Saatana on yksi Jumalan pojista (Raamattu kun kai teologien mielestä on tämän – kuten kaiken muunkin – suhteen varsin monitulkintainen).
Jobin paikan on ottanut koulun kovia kokenut rehtori Job Huss, ja hänen kanssaan keskusteluja Jumalasta käyvät koulun johtokunnan jäsenet ja häntä hoitamaan saapunut lääkäri. Ikuisen liekin rakenne on siis aivan sama kuin Jobin kirjassa. Jobin kirjan lukeminen ei ole välttämätöntä Ikuisesta liekistä nauttimiseksi, mutta ainakin minusta Ikuista liekkiä lukiessani oli oikein hyvä, että luin Jobin kirjan toistamiseen aiemmin tänä vuonna.
Ikuinen liekki julkaistiin alkujaan vuonna 1919 eli heti ensimmäisen maailmansodan kauhujen jälkeen. Sota vaikutti rajusti myös suosikkikirjailijoihini. Se Arthur Conan Doylesta entistä kiihkeämmän spiritualistin ja Doylen lailla katolisuutta inhonneen Wellsin se sai pohdiskelemaan omaa suhdettaan uskontoon. Ottaen huomioon, että pohdiskelujen lopputulemana parikymmentä vuotta myöhemmin oli , että hän piti itseään lähinnä ateistina, on erittäin mielenkiintoista, että Ikuisen liekin on kustantanut Sley-kirjat. Sley on nimittäin Suomen luterilainen evankeliumisyhdistys.
Itse tarina on kaikille Jobinsa tunteville tuttu, joten ei siitä sen enempää. Poimitaan tähän kuitenkin muutama minusta mielenkiintoinen sitaatti.
S. 20: ”Luokaamme sitten uusi ja erilainen laji, jotain paljon viihdyttävämpää. Pankaamme esimerkiksi ihmisen aivot – ja tämä Sielu, josta aina jaksat jauhaa – muurahaisiin, mehiläisiin tai majaviin! Tai mustekalaan, joka on jo alunperinkin sangen hienotunteinen ja älykäs olento!” Eläintieteilijäksi valmistunut Wells olisi varmasti ilahtunut siitä, kuinka äärimmäisen älykkäiksi eläimiksi mustekalat ovat nykytutkimuksissa osoittautuneet.
S. 91–92: ”Miksi sulkisimme silmämme tosiasioilta? Jumalan luomistyön vaikuttimena on ollut joko suunnaton pahuus, saastainen mielikuvitus ja julma ahdasmielisyys tai sitten välinpitämättömyys ja epäoikeudenmukaisuus.” Luomistyön lisäksi noin voisi kuvata myös mm. uskontoja.
S. 136: ”Venäjällä ei näy enää jälkeäkään taiteista, tieteistä, loogisesta ajattelusta ja luovasta toiminnasta. Ehkä ne ovat kadonneet sieltä vuosisadoiksi.” Wells on edelleen valitettavan ajankohtainen.
S. 164–165: ”Jokaiselle ihmiselle olisi taattava parhaat mahdolliset olosuhteet olla paras mahdollinen itsensä.” Wells voisi tänä päivänä tienata leipänsä itsetuntoguruna.
S. 174: ”Minun nähdäkseni, kuten jo aluksi sanoin, tarkoitatte kiemuraisilla vertauskuvillanne vain hyvän tahdon ruumiillistumaa jokaisessa ihmisessä. Miksi silloin pitää puhua Jumalasta?” Niinpä.
Susanna Hirvikorven suomennos on sujuva. Sitä en tosin tiedä, mikä on se kielellisesti uudistettu laitos, jonka pohjalta hän on suomennoksensa tehnyt (sillä miksi niin mestarillisen kirjoittajan kuin Wellsin tekstiä pitäisi uudistaa?). Muutenkin Sley on tehnyt varsin hyvää työtä, sillä painovirheitä en kirjassa huomannut, ainoastaan joitakuita tavutusvirheitä (lähinnä keskelle riviä jääneitä tavuviivoja).
Ikuinen liekki on kerrassaan erinomaista Wellsiä. Se on toki erilainen kuin hänen scifi-klassikkonsa, mutta erittäin viihdyttävä yhtä kaikki. Wellsin ystävien ja Jobin kirjasta pitävien lisäksi myös uskontokritiikistä kiinnostuneiden kannattaa tähän tähän hieman unohdettuun teokseen tutustua. Hienoa, että se on saatavilla myös suomeksi.
4+/5
March 6, 2019
The book leaves much to be considered. Can man stand up to an obscene amount of strife? Can man stay the course he feels is right, even when obstacles attempt to thwart him? Can man keep faith in God? Though there is a plot in the book, it is more a discussion, an unfolding of ideas on the nature of God and the priorities of teaching. Mr. Job Huss, seems to be put to the timeless wager between God and Satan - will he curse or bless? Will he even remember his Creator? Laborious subject matter, though not too difficult to read. I'm sure I could read it again in a few years and delve deeper into the philosophies. I found the prologue, the discourse between God and Satan, a charming interlude, and was disappointed when the story of Mr. Huss and his colleagues was not as enjoyable. Furthermore, I found there were no one perspective I agreed with completely. I cheered for Mr. Huss who was championing for the instruction of history and the importance of molding the character of his students, but his championing for the goodness of God was not too strong. Still, though, the undying fire in his heart never died. I will read this again in the future, but for now, I'll be sticking with Wells's sci fi.
September 12, 2013
Beautiful and impactful retelling of the story of Job. One of Wells' best novels. Ever relevant.
On the courage of your heart, all things depend.
On the courage of your heart, all things depend.
September 27, 2013
Worst writing style i have ever read in a long time...
June 2, 2017
It's not easy to pick your single favourite book. This is mine.
July 21, 2019
Similarly to Tolstoy, it seems like Wells went through a ‘religious period’ of his life. Being retrospective, trying to understand and rationalise certain pivotal moment in what is now history. From the 1890’s to 1918 was a huge period of political and social change seeing the fall of monarchs, Wotld Wars, the rise of Sicialism, Women’s right to vote, the futility of war. So, it was and is only right that writers such as Kipling, Tolstoy and Wells try to rationalise there life and the world around them.
Here we have the story of Jacob Huss. It opens with God and the Devil in conversation seeing how a human would turn to when pushed to the limits, a world war, loss of a son, personal health issues and work problems. A true test of ones faith.
It was definitely a great concept for a story and one that has been told and re told many times before. Alas, in this story, Wells didn’t quite pull it off.
Here we have the story of Jacob Huss. It opens with God and the Devil in conversation seeing how a human would turn to when pushed to the limits, a world war, loss of a son, personal health issues and work problems. A true test of ones faith.
It was definitely a great concept for a story and one that has been told and re told many times before. Alas, in this story, Wells didn’t quite pull it off.
September 13, 2024
Wells' modern retelling of the Book of Job at a time in his life where he transitioned from a relatively more atheistic stance to deism. Being an enthusiast on Job myself and having read many commentaries and papers on the book, Wells does not really understand the individual mentalities of the characters he tries to represent and often portrays them in a light more gracious than it should, or portraying Mr Huss (representation of Job himself) as less driven to know God than he is. Much of the conversation is given surrounding WWI and the losses therein and those inexplicably apart from it, which could be more conveniently placed on God rather than man. Since this is Wells telling the story, he ambiguously leaves the possibility that God may exist and allow some grace instead of Job where God directly speaks and blesses the man who has sought the Lord in his suffering.
May 3, 2025
https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-undying-fire-by-h-g-wells/
H.G. Wells attempts to rewrite the Book of Job for a 1919 audience. For the love of God, why???
H.G. Wells attempts to rewrite the Book of Job for a 1919 audience. For the love of God, why???
July 27, 2020
It came out in 1919 and what it said is still relevant today...especially today...and that is downright scary.
Read
September 28, 2024i've concluded that wells isn't the author for me. this wasn't bad, i'd just preferred this discussion in essay form. also, idc
September 9, 2025
lo abandone, muy lindo pero un embole...
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