This science fiction novel follows a scientist whose discovery makes him invisible but increasingly dangerous. His arrival at a village inn, wrapped in bandages, begins a mystery that soon turns violent.
183 pages 3h 33m reading time
One of the founding works of science fiction, and still the best-known story about a person who can't be seen.
Imagines how unchecked power, combined with freedom from being watched, could turn a brilliant man cruel and lawless.
Shows science used without care or conscience, with a scientist who cares more about his discovery than about other people.
Made the invisible man a lasting figure in popular culture, retold in many films, starting with the famous 1933 Hollywood version.
Shaped the way later stories picture invisibility, from the man wrapped in bandages and dark glasses to the idea of invisibility as a curse rather than a gift.
Set in a real village
Iping, where the story opens, is a real village in Sussex, near where Wells spent time as a youth.
First told in weekly parts
The story first ran in installments in the magazine Pearson's Weekly before it came out as a book.
Called a grotesque romance
Wells gave the book the subtitle "A Grotesque Romance," pointing to its strange mix of horror and comedy.
H. G. Wells 1897