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About the Author
H.G. Wells was a professional writer and journalist, who published more than a hundred books, including novels, histories, essays and programmes for world regeneration. Wells's prophetic imagination was first displayed in pioneering works of science fiction, but later he became an apostle of socialism, science and progress. His controversial views on sexual equality and the shape of a truly developed nation remain directly relevant to our world today. He was, in Bertrand Russell's words, 'an important liberator of thought and action'.
John Sutherland is the Lord Northcliffe Professor of Modern English Literature at University College London and a visiting professor of Literature at the California Institute of Technology. He is the author of many books.
Simon J. James is Lecturer in Victorian Literature at the University of Durham. He has written on, and edited volumes of, George Gissing, H.G. Wells and Charles Dickens.
'Hole!' said Mr Polly, and then for a change, and with greatly increased emphasis: ''Ole!' He paused, and then broke out with one of his private and peculiar idioms. Read the first page
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The book is the reassuring tale of one mans eventful stumble toward utopia, which should offer hope to fretful drifters the world over.
Three quarters of the book chronicles the painfully comic descent of Mr Polly from youthful apprentice in a leading department store to the middle aged, unhappily married and bankrupt-in-all-but-name owner of a regional gentlemans outfitters. Mr Polly manages to gain weight, while his hair recedes and number of friends dwindle. Polly retreats behind the pages of his beloved books, until he finally decides to put an end to his increasingly miserable existence. This is the turning point of Mr Polly's life. He comes out of the botched attempt a hero, yet rejects his previous life and goes off in search of a new one. This Mr Polly finds.
Although the tone of the novel is definitely black this book should definitely leave you feeling good about yourself. It offers hope that a happy life is out there for everyone and that it is never too late to go out and find it.
It remains vital and relevant today because the underlying themes Wells identifies such as feeling trapped in an unhappy marriage, dislike of your job, and constrained by circumstance remain common today, what is so liberating about Mr Polly is his clumsy, but ultimately successful attempts to change his life
He is not an all round good egg by any means, but you can't help but like him. His joy at finding people who listen to him and enjoy his books is infectious through the pages and reminds me of the end of Patrick Hamilton's Hangover Square when the principal character is appreciated for once due to his good nature and conversation. While he has his darker side he is one of the great fictional creations.
I expect the person recommending it for the book club was thinking, after the shattering... Read more
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