Wayde’s Essence

Short story by H. G. Wells, about a prominent politician who learns that the drug he has been taking for the last 17 years to dispel all self-doubt is in reality distilled water.

On the Choice of a Wife

Essay by H. G. Wells first published in 1895, offering advice to young men on choosing a wife.

Miss Winchelsea’s Heart

Short story by H. G. Wells first published in 1898, about a snobbish young woman’s rejection of a young man’s advances because of what she perceives to be his absurd surname, Snooks.

The Happy Turning

Collection of nine cheerfully optimistic essays written by H. G. Wells, published in 1945, describing his dreamworld.

Mind at the End of Its Tether

Last publication by the English author H. G. Wells, a darkly pessimistic prediction about the future extinction of the human race.

The Empire of the Ants

Short story by H. G. Wells first published in 1905, about a plague of large intelligent ants, which pose a threat to mankind’s continued existence.

The Grisly Folk

Short story by H. G. Wells published in 1921, speculating about the early encounters between Neanderthals and modern man.

The Land Ironclads

Short story by H. G. Wells published in 1903, anticipating the impact of the tank in trench warfare.

The Valley of Spiders

Short story by H. G. Wells published in 1903, about three men who are attacked by giant spiders while pursuing a half-caste girl through a desolate valley.