Books with title The First Men In The Moon: Classics

Of the enormous body of work produced by H. G. Wells — more than a book a year over the course of half a century — the early science fiction novels that first made him famous have proved to be the most enduring and have earned him the sobriquet "the father of modern science fiction."In the 1901 classic The First Men in the Moon, Wells reveals not only a fertile imagination at ease with biological and astronomical phenomena, but also a passionate concern for man and society. His "first men in the moon" prove to be the eccentric Mr. Cavor and his traveling companion, Mr. Bedford, who navigate a gravity-defying sphere through space before executing a rough landing on the moon. As castaways from earth, they practice lunar locomotion, get lost in the wilds of a moon jungle, and confront intelligent life forms living in lunar caverns. Through the adventures of these two earthlings, the author is able to look at mankind from a distance and, in his words, "burlesque the effects of specialization." The result is a delightful tale filled with adventure, romance, and fantasy that is still capable of stirring the imagination of readers in the 21st century."[Wells's science-fiction novels] achieve a near poetry which makes them part of the popular mythology of their age … the best of his work has a vitality, a verve, an imaginative compulsion unsurpassed by any of his contemporaries." — N. C. Nicholson, author of H. G. Wells.

A pair of unlikely explorers journey to the moon in this imaginative tale of science and adventure from the author of The War of the Worlds Hounded by creditors, Mr. Bedford retreats to a remote English village, where he meets the eccentric Mr. Cavor. Though he may not look it, Cavor is a genius and one of the world’s greatest inventors. His breakthrough is cavorite, an astonishing new substance manufactured from helium that is not bound by the laws of gravity. Bedford immediately sees the business potential of Cavor’s creation, reckoning a ship made of cavorite could take him the moon—the first step on a path to riches beyond his wildest dreams.   When Bedford and Cavor set out for the moon in a cavorite sphere, they find the Earth’s satellite to be more wonderful than either of them ever imagined. But they soon discover they are not alone on the lush lunar surface—and the natives are not exactly friendly.   A thrilling adventure story that offers fascinating insights into the nature of mankind, The First Men in the Moon is a timeless classic from “the father of modern science fiction.”   This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.

FNH Audio presents an unabridged reading of H.G. Well's classic science fiction tale. Bedford ran away from London to escape his debtors and to write a play. Instead of the peace and solace he sought, he found Cavor, an eccentric scientist on the eve of a fantastic discovery. Together they create Cavorite, a material that allows them to construct a flying machine capable of reaching the moon! Join Bedford and Cavor as they go on an adventure unlike any that man has had before!

What good would the moon be to men? Even of their own planet what have they made but a battleground and theatre of infinite folly? Small as his world is, and short as his time, he has still in his little life down there far more than he can do.A chance meeting forms an unlikely friendship between a London businessman (Mr. Bedford) and a physicist (Mr. Cavor), who is developing a new material, aptly named “cavorite,” that negates the force of gravity. Soon the material is tested successfully and the two men build a ship that capable of transporting them to the Moon!What awaits our two enterprising men destined for the surface of the Moon?

Mr. Bedford is a British businessman with many financial problems. He is working on a play to bring in some money. He rents a small countryside house to get some peace while writing the play. However, every day a scientist passes by his house, making odd noises. After two weeks Bedford questions the scientist, Dr. Cavor, about his odd behaviour. It turns out that Cavor is developing a new material, cavorite, which is supposed to shield off gravity.As they discover when some cavorite is prematurely produced, it shields the air above from Earth's gravity, making that air weightless, and then shoots off into outer space by the pressure of the air below. Bedford tells Cavor of the financial possibilities of this. Cavorite is later used to build a small spherical spaceship, which they use to travel to and land on the Moon.At the Moon, the two men at first discover a desolate landscape, but as the sun rises, the thin atmosphere of the Moon, frozen out overnight, begins to melt and vaporize. Soon strange fast-growing plants start to grow in the landscape, producing a very thorny vegetation called "bayonet scrub". Bedford and Cavor leave the capsule, but they get lost in the rapidly growing jungle, where strange creatures can be seen. Growing hungry, the pair sample native flora, described as fungus. Soon after ingestion a hazy euphoric state overtakes them, and they wander drunkenly, speaking gibberish, before falling unconscious.They are captured by the insect-like Moon men (referred to as "Selenites", after Selene, the moon goddess), who have formed a relatively advanced society underground. After some time in captivity, Bedford and Cavor manage to flee. They discover that gold is a common mineral here, seeing their chains are made of gold. They are able to kill several of their captors and numerous other Selenites due to their superior strength that results partly because of previously having lived in the Earth's stronger gravity. They find some Selenites carving up Mooncalves, a large creature they farm, in another cave and fight their way past them. When Bedford and Cavor reach the surface, they devise a plan to locate their spaceship, which involves them separating. Bedford finds his way back to the spaceship and returns to Earth while Cavor becomes injured and is unable to escape recapture by the Selenites, although Bedford finds a note from him.Back in Britain, Bedford undertakes to publish the details of the story, including some additional material from Cavor received through one-way radio transmission from the Moon. Apparently, Cavor had enjoyed a period of relative freedom in the Lunar society, during which a few of their number learned English. He also managed to build or access a radio transmitter, which he uses to tell the story of his time inside the Moon using Morse code.Cavor recounts near everything that happened to him after being re-captured, but some pieces of his story are not received due to curious "interference" with the radio signal. Through these messages, Bedford learns of Cavor's meeting with the "Grand Lunar", who is the ultimate ruler of the Selenites and the Moon. At this meeting, Cavor inadvertently portrays humanity as predatory, delighting in war, and with little redeeming value. In response, the Grand Lunar decides to cut off all contact with the Earth. Cavor's transmissions end in mid-sentence as he is trying to say how to make cavorite, and his fate is never revealed. (non illustrated)

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface.We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

This book is an illustrated version of the original The First Men in the Moon by H. G. Wells. “As I sit down to write here amidst the shadows of vine-leaves under the blue sky of southern Italy, it comes to me with a certain quality of astonishment that my participation in these amazing adventures of Mr. Cavor was, after all, the outcome of the purest accident. It might have been any one. I fell into these things at a time when I thought myself removed from the slightest possibility of disturbing experiences. I had gone to Lympne because I had imagined it the most uneventful place in the world. "Here, at any rate," said I, "I shall find peace and a chance to work!"And this book is the sequel. So utterly at variance is destiny with all the little plans of men. I may perhaps mention here that very recently I had come an ugly cropper in certain business enterprises. Sitting now surrounded by all the circumstances of wealth, there is a luxury in admitting my extremity. I can admit, even, that to a certain extent my disasters were conceivably of my own making. It may be there are directions in which I have some capacity, but the conduct of business operations is not among these. But in those days I was young, and my youth among other objectionable forms took that of a pride in my capacity for affairs. I am young still in years, but the things that have happened to me have rubbed something of the youth from my mind. Whether they have brought any wisdom to light below it is a more doubtful matter.”

The First Men in the Moon by Herbert George Wells is the unheralded novel by one of the founders of a science fiction genre. After the actual bankruptcy, the n character of the novel tries to hide in a province and start a new life as a novelist or playwright. But his neighbour turns out to be an oddish scientist who invents antigravity material. The main hero became friends with the oddish scientist and tempts him with a prospect of “commercialization of the invention”. Inspired by this idea, at the accelerated pace, they build a space vehicle in a shape of a sphere covered with antigravity material. While opening and closing the windows, our heroes fly away from Earth that doesn’t pull them anymore to the Moon, which quickly attracts them. At first, the Moon seemed completely lifeless and deserted but it began to in all senses at daybreak. The frozen at night air melts and in the beginning moon animals appear from underground caves and then selenites, intelligent Moon inhabitants emerge. Our travellers from Erath lose their spaceship in grown Moon jungles and then are captured by selenites. Eventually, they manage to escape from the underground. The main hero, nearly frozen to death in the Moon evening, reaches their spaceship after all, but the scientist is taken again as a prisoner by selenites…

“Why do people read science fiction? In hopes of receiving such writing as this—a ravishingly accurate vision of things unseen; an utterly unexpected yet necessary beauty.” So says Ursula K. Le Guin in her Introduction to The First Men in the Moon, H. G. Wells’s 1901 tale of space travel. Heavily criticized upon publication for its fantastic ideas, it is now justly considered a science fiction classic. Cavor, a brilliant scientist who accidentally produces a gravity-defying substance, builds a spaceship and, along with the materialistic Bedford, travels to the moon. The coldly intellectual Cavor seeks knowledge, while Bedford seeks fortune. Instead of insight and gold they encounter the Selenites, a horrifying race of biologically engineered creatures who viciously, and successfully, defend their home.