Book Review: The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells

The Invisible Man by H. G. Wells

Griffin is a scientist who is working on a way to turn living things invisible. He has two problems: his lack of funds and his lack of morals. To finance his research, he steals from his father. Griffin is afraid of "thieving" professors at his university and wants to work alone so he gets all the credit. He sets up his own lab in London. He turna a cat invisible just as his money is running out. With the landlord breathing down his neck, he decides to turn himself invisible, imaging all the freedom and possibilities he will have. To cover his escape and ensure no one steals his method, he burns down the home where he's renting rooms. He has a lot of misadventures in London, finding it hard to steal money that doesn't turn invisible like him or keep warm with no clothes (being science fiction, only his body becomes invisible). He flees to the countryside where he works on a formula to restore himself while he is wrapped up from head to foot. The locals are suspicious of the heavily bandaged and taciturn stranger. They are right to be concerned, because he has quite a temper and, for all his brilliance, not enough practical foresight to resolve his situation in a happy manner.

Wells does a great job building up suspense, starting the story in the small town inn where Griffin frantically tries to undo his experiment. His backstory is slowly revealed. The narrative focuses on eyewitness accounts, giving it a "police procedural" style long before such a genre existed. The real genre is science fiction, with an extended explanation of the mechanics of his invisibility, which is not quite convincing over a hundred years later. There's an element of horror, too, as he terrorizes people into doing what he wants. His evil streak is more his own than a result of the experiment (though one of the characters does say that the drugs involved cause mental problems). The situation serves to highlight his corruption. The story is compelling and has become a classic for a good reason.

Highly recommended--it's a quick read and Griffin is an interesting if unlikeable character.

This story was covered in Episode 311 of A Good Story is Hard to Find Podcast, go check it out!