Free to read
The Time Machine
H. G. Wells
An inventor travels into the distant future and meets the Eloi and the Morlocks. Their world changes his view of human progress.
- Language
- English
- Genre
- Science fiction
- Length
- 16 chapters · About 3 hours
- First published
- 1895
- Availability
- Free
No account needed. Your place is saved on this device.
Is this book for you?
A short science fiction novel with a clear central mystery. A useful choice for reading over a few journeys.
Read it in English. This starter edition is free.
THE OPENING PAGES
Try the first few lines.
The Time Traveller (for so it will be convenient to speak of him) was
expounding a recondite matter to us. His pale grey eyes shone and
twinkled, and his usually pale face was flushed and animated. The fire
burnt brightly, and the soft radiance of the incandescent lights in the
lilies of silver caught the bubbles that flashed and passed in our
glasses. Our chairs, being his patents, embraced and caressed us rather
than submitted to be sat upon, and there was that luxurious
after-dinner atmosphere, when thought runs gracefully free of the
trammels of precision. And he put it to us in this way—marking the
points with a lean forefinger—as we sat and lazily admired his
earnestness over this new paradox (as we thought it) and his fecundity.
“You must follow me carefully. I shall have to controvert one or two
ideas that are almost universally accepted. The geometry, for instance,
they taught you at school is founded on a misconception.”
“Is not that rather a large thing to expect us to begin upon?” said
Filby, an argumentative person with red hair.
“I do not mean to ask you to accept anything without reasonable ground
for it. You will soon admit as much as I need from you. You know…Start reading this book ↗