Certain Personal Matters

by H.G. Wells

H.G. Wells' collection of humorous and witty essays, including such topics as "Thoughts on Cheapness and My Aunt Charlotte," "On the Choice of a Wife," "In a Literary Household," "The Language of Flowers," "The Book of Curses," "The Writing of Essays," "The Pleasure of Quarrelling," "How I Died," and many more!

Genres: Classics, Biography, Nonfiction, Memoir, Essays

Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1897

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

[River · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I didn't like HG Wells.
Turns out I love him, just not his novels. Some of these essays are absolutely hilarious, even after the test of time. They're insightful, witty, and intelligent. Often scientific, as one would expect from Wells. As in most collections, some are better than others ("The Shopman", "From an Observatory", and "An Amateur Nature-Lover" being some of my personal favorites).
It's in the public domain - so no reason not to give it a read! It's also free on Librivox, if audiobooks are your thing. I recorded some of the sections!

[Tilde · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so good

[Rowan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some gems here that hold up well despite the intervening years, full of wit and sly humor. Some favorites include: “From an Observatory,” “Through a Microscope,” and “The Amateur Nature-Lover.” I prefer these essays to his fiction. They’re in the public domain now so you can read them free on Project Gutenberg, and listen to them on Librivox (I narrated a couple of them)!

[Iain Hamill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not an autobiography per se, but an enjoyable collection of essays. Particular favourites were his thoughts on chess, shopping (Ikea!) and countryside rambling.

[Tell Tale Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not the sort of book Wells is typically known for, this collection of personal anecdotes and thoughts is still interesting for the light it sheds on Wells. A couple of the essays are speculative and can be seen to contain the seeds for many of the science fiction stories published in the thirties and forties, including one which carries the seeds of Asimov's famous story, “Nightfall.” I recommend this to anyone who wants to know more about Wells.
-Gregory Kerkman

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not an easy read, but interesting nonetheless. This is a collection of short essays, a 19th century version of a blog. It gives a glimpse into life so long ago, and also into the mind of H.G. Wells.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As Wells states in the Preface ,this book is made up of articles he published in Pall Mall Gazette, with a few in Saturday Review and New Budget.
Slight 2/3 page articles on all manner of topics, all taken in a light hearted,jovial way.
In some you can read the germ of what would appear in later novels and short stories,the best examples of which would be:The Shopman,The Extinction of Man and From An Observatory.My favourite would have to be The House of Di Sorno,a tale of the narrator finding his wife,s(Euphemia) manuscript for a novel. Despite its shortness this is a tale within a tale and i would have dearly loved Wells to have expanded upon this in a full length novel.
Many have autobiographical elements to them so are of real interest to anyone interested in the early Wells.
Wells had a strong affection for the articles within this book,and I can see why.
They are NOT dated,but OF their time,but in each of the articles a seed is shown of his comical and scientific side and early blueprints of what was to issue from his pen over the coming years 1895-98.
Remember most of these articles pre date The Time Machine.
I read this book via a 1st edition I picked up quite cheaply and it was certainly worth it.
A delightful, charming book.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some pretty witty stories, but most interestingly, his story entitled "From an Observatory" could well have inspired Arthur C Clarke's "Nightfall".