The Country of the Blind, and 32 Other Stories (The original unabridged edition) (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Unabridged Victorian Speculative Tales of Science, Horror, and HumanityBy H. G. Wells
Length18h 59m
About this audiobook
The Country of the Blind, and 32 Other Stories gathers H. G. Wells's shorter fiction in its original unabridged form, revealing the breadth of his imaginative method beyond the famous scientific romances. The title story, a parable of perception, power, and cultural arrogance, stands beside tales of marvels, experiments, dislocations, and social unease. Wells's prose is lucid, ironic, and intellectually restless, situated at the fin-de-siècle moment when realism, Gothic inheritance, imperial anxiety, and emerging science fiction converged. Herbert George Wells (1866–1946) was trained in science under T. H. Huxley and shaped by the debates of evolutionary biology, socialism, education, and technological modernity. His fiction often transforms contemporary scientific speculation into moral inquiry. His own movement from modest origins to public intellectual life sharpened his interest in class, authority, human adaptability, and the limits of supposedly enlightened civilization. This collection is recommended to readers who wish to encounter Wells as a master of the short form, not merely as the author of The Time Machine or The War of the Worlds. It will especially reward those interested in early science fiction, philosophical fantasy, and stories that turn ingenious premises into enduring questions about humanity.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A comprehensive Introduction outlines these selected works' unifying features, themes, or stylistic evolutions.
- The Author Biography highlights personal milestones and literary influences that shape the entire body of writing.
- A Historical Context section situates the works in their broader era—social currents, cultural trends, and key events that underpin their creation.
- A concise Synopsis (Selection) offers an accessible overview of the included texts, helping readers navigate plotlines and main ideas without revealing critical twists.
- A unified Analysis examines recurring motifs and stylistic hallmarks across the collection, tying the stories together while spotlighting the different work's strengths.
- Reflection questions inspire deeper contemplation of the author's overarching message, inviting readers to draw connections among different texts and relate them to modern contexts.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.2 (4.7K)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon, LibraryThing, StoryGraph
GenreScience Fiction, General Fiction
Length18 hrs 59 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateSep 5, 2013
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Country of the Blind, and 32 Other Stories (The original unabridged edition) (Annotated)
22XVI. THE RED ROOM
2Introduction
23XVII. THE PURPLE PILEUS
3Author Biography
24XVIII. A SLIP UNDER THE MICROSCOPE
4Historical Context
25XIX. THE CRYSTAL EGG
5Synopsis (Selection)
26XX. THE STAR
Show all chaptersShow less
6INTRODUCTION
27XXI. THE MAN WHO COULD WORK MIRACLES
7I. THE JILTING OF JANE
28XXII. A VISION OF JUDGMENT
8II. THE CONE
29XXIII. JIMMY GOGGLES THE GOD
9III. THE STOLEN BACILLUS
30XXIV. MISS WINCHELSEA’S HEART
10IV. THE FLOWERING OF THE STRANGE ORCHID
31XXV. A DREAM OF ARMAGEDDON
11V. IN THE AVU OBSERVATORY
32XXVI. THE VALLEY OF SPIDERS
12VI. AEPYORNIS ISLAND
33XXVII. THE NEW ACCELERATOR
13VII. THE REMARKABLE CASE OF DAVIDSON’S EYES
34XXVIII. THE TRUTH ABOUT PYECRAFT
14VIII. THE LORD OF THE DYNAMOS
35XXIX. THE MAGIC SHOP
15IX. THE MOTH
36XXX. THE EMPIRE OF THE ANTS
16X. THE TREASURE IN THE FOREST
37XXXI. THE DOOR IN THE WALL
17XI. THE STORY OF THE LATE MR. ELVESHAM
38XXXII. THE COUNTRY OF THE BLIND
18XII. UNDER THE KNIFE
39XXXIII. THE BEAUTIFUL SUIT
19XIII. THE SEA RAIDERS
40Analysis
20XIV. THE OBLITERATED MAN
41Reflection
21XV. THE PLATTNER STORY
42Memorable Quotes
The War in the AirH. G. Wells9h 31m$14 · $0.00
Die Riesen kommen!H. G. Wells9h 48m3.6 (15.9K)$1 · $0.00
Der LuftkriegH. G. Wells12h 54m3.6 (9.4K)$1 · $0.00
INTERGALACTIC ENTERPRISE: 60+ Space Sci-Fi Novels in One EditionH. G. Wells, Percy Greg, Jules Verne, David Lindsay, Edward Everett Hale, H. Beam Piper, Philip K. Dick, E. E. Smith, Murray Leinster, Fritz Leiber, Richard Stockham, Irving E. Cox, Frederik Pohl, Edwin Lester Arnold, John Jacob Astor, Gustavus W. Pope310h 42m$1.99 · $0.00
The Greatest Science Fiction Classics of H. G. Wells (Unabridged) (Annotated)H. G. Wells98h 56m4.4 (139)$2 · $0.00
Greatest Science Fiction Classics of H. G. Wells (Annotated)H. G. Wells98h 56m$2 · $0.00
Men Like Gods (Annotated)H. G. Wells11h 7m4.3 (153)$2 · $0.00
Tono-Bungay (Annotated)H. G. Wells17h 8m3.9 (9.2K)$2 · $0.00
An Englishman Looks at the World (Annotated)H. G. Wells12h 43m$2 · $0.00
Die Insel des Dr. Moreau (Kommentiert)H. G. Wells, Felix Paul Greve6h 16m4.0 (175)$1 · $0.00
First and Last Things - A Confession of Faith and Rule of Life (Annotated)H. G. Wells7h 45m$2 · $0.00
Select Conversations With An Uncle & 2 Other Reminiscences (The original 1895 edition) (Annotated)H. G. Wells3h 22m3.3 (127)$2 · $0.00
The War of The Worlds - A Science Fiction Classic (Complete Edition) (Annotated)H. G. Wells8h 27m$2 · $0.00
The Wheels of Chance (Complete Edition) (Annotated)H. G. Wells8h 7m$2 · $0.00
The Door in the Wall and Other Stories (Annotated)H. G. Wells6h 7m$2 · $0.00
THE PORTAL OF TIME: Sci-Fi Time Travel Collection (Annotated)H. G. Wells, Ayn Rand, Mark Twain, H. Beam Piper, Philip K. Dick, Fritz Leiber, Andre Norton, Lester Del Rey, August Derleth, Frederik Pohl53h 17m$2 · $0.00
La guerra de los mundos (Anotado)H. G. Wells8h 9m4.3 (35)$2.99 · $0.00
Die Zeitmaschine (Kommentiert)H. G. Wells5h 40m$1.50 · $0.00
The Dream (Annotated)H. G. Wells10h 18m$2 · $0.00
H. G. Wells: Collected Works (Annotated)H. G. Wells427h 28m4.5 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
Before the Coffee Gets Cold: A Toshikazu Kawaguchi Book SetToshikazu Kawaguchi18h 55m4.5 (1.4K)$40 · $0.00
PRIMAL 2055 - EscapeJack Silkstone6h 47m4.4 (232)Free
Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen (Annotated)H. Beam Piper8h 23m4.5 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
Philip K. Dick: SF Boxed SetPhilip K. Dick29h 38m4.5 (608)$1 · $0.00
Magician's EndRaymond E. Feist17h 5m4.4 (21.7K)$40 · $0.00
Good OmensNeil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett12h 14m4.4 (1M)$29 · $0.00
The Emperor's FistJay Allan8h 37m4.5 (272)$26 · $0.00
The DispossessedUrsula K. Le Guin13h 26m4.4 (189.3K)$33 · $0.00
1984 (Nineteen Eighty-Four)George Orwell11h 10m4.3 (5.3M)$7 · $0.00
Lost ValleyWalt Browning7h 47m4.3 (5.4K)$20 · $0.00
The Best of H. G. Wells: The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine & The Invisible ManH. G. Wells14h 58m4.3 (3K)$2 · $0.00
AgincourtBernard Cornwell16h 18m4.3 (41.4K)$40 · $0.00
Frankenstein (The Uncensored 1818 Edition) (Annotated)Mary Shelley9h 25m4.3 (1.7M)$3 · $0.00
The World Wasn't Ready for YouJustin C. Key11h 34m4.4 (812)$5 · $0.00
Godzilla vs. KongGreg Keyes10h 32m4.3 (1.4K)$20 · $0.00
Alas, Babylon (Annotated)Pat Frank12h 32m4.3 (11.6K)$2 · $0.00
Day of WrathWilliam R. Forstchen4h 36m4.3 (1.9K)$14 · $0.00
StargodsIan Douglas12h 15m4.4 (732)$5 · $0.00
Two Plays for VoicesNeil Gaiman2h 4m4.3 (1K)$16 · $0.00
The Mysterious IslandJules Verne22h 13m4.2 (87.3K)$2 · $0.00
WhistlerAnn Patchett10h 45m4.6 (4.6K)$29 · $0.00
Demon CopperheadBarbara Kingsolver21h 3m4.5 (949.4K)$46 · $0.00
To Kill a MockingbirdHarper Lee12h 18m4.5 (7.4M)$29 · $0.00
Remarkably Bright CreaturesShelby Van Pelt11h 17m4.4 (1.7M)$29 · $0.00
The Old Man and the Sea (Annotated)Ernest Hemingway4h 27m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
White HotIlona Andrews13h 18m4.5 (136.9K)$5 · $0.00
The Ghost by the Billabong (The Matilda Saga, #5)Jackie French14h 58m4.6 (773)$33 · $0.00
Cast in BloodMichelle Sagara16h 35m4.6 (607)$33 · $0.00
The Captain Blood Trilogy (Annotated)Rafael Sabatini29h 20m4.6 (1K)$3 · $0.00
Ship of the Line (Annotated)Cecil Louis Troughton Smith11h 13m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
The George Orwell CollectionGeorge Orwell24h 46m4.5 (14.4K)$12 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 38m4.5 (9.2K)$2 · $0.00
Driving ForceElle James4h 58m4.6 (407)$20 · $0.00
When God Calls the HeartBrian Bird, Michelle Cox3h 24m4.6 (439)$10 · $0.00
Five Little IndiansMichelle Good10h 34m4.5 (64.5K)$29 · $0.00
Lolth's WarriorR. A. Salvatore13h 20m4.6 (2.4K)$33 · $0.00
The Things We Cannot SayKelly Rimmer13h 48m4.5 (359.1K)$33 · $0.00
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du BoisHonoree Fanonne Jeffers29h 49m4.5 (58K)$8 · $0.00
Going PostalTerry Pratchett11h 23m4.5 (189.9K)$29 · $0.00
Glen AffricKarine Giebel22h 51m4.5 (3.2K)$46 · $0.00
You may also like
The Country of the Blind, and 32 Other Stories (The original unabridged edition)H. G. Wells18h 28m4.1 (1.9K)$1 · $0.00
The Snail on the SlopeArkady Strugatsky, Boris Strugatsky9h 35m4.0 (8.8K)$20
The Black Hole WarLeonard Susskind12h 46m4.2 (14.3K)$23
Erewhon (A Dystopia)Samuel Butler9h 34m3.6 (9.9K)$1 · $0.00
The Twilight Zone Companion, Second EditionMarc Scott Zicree16h 46m4.5 (1.8K)$28 · $0.00
The Country of the Blind, and Other StoriesH. G. Wells17h 21m4.1 (5.2K)$2.30 · $0.00
The Greatest SF Stories of Philip K. DickPhilip K. Dick29h 33m4.4 (325)$2 · $0.00
The Luminous DeadCaitlin Starling14h 10m3.7 (29.6K)$5 · $0.00
Again, Dangerous VisionsHarlan Ellison41h 5m4.2 (4.7K)$40
FlatlandEdwin Abbott Abbott3h 43m4.1 (255.7K)$20 · $0.00
The Sound of His HornJohn William Wall4h 1m3.8 (1.2K)$17
The Dark Tower, and Other StoriesC. S. Lewis5h 6m3.8 (4.3K)$15
Men like GodsH. G. Wells8h 46m3.7 (1.8K)$17
The Country of the Blind, and 32 Other Stories (The original unabridged edition)H. G. Wells18h 42m3.9 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
In Search of Lost Time - The Complete Seven-Book Series (Annotated)Marcel Proust141h 38m4.6 (2.9K)$2.99 · $0.00
Amusing Ourselves to DeathNeil Postman4h 49m4.3 (51.8K)$14
Geometry Unfolded: 5 Classic Works on the Principles of GeometryClaude Fayette Bragdon, Edwin Abbott Abbott, Charles Howard Hinton, Bernhard Marks, Bertrand Russell25h 24m4.4 (11)$1.99 · $0.00
This Simian WorldClarence Day59m3.4 (76)$2 · $0.00
A Tranquil StarPrimo Levi3h 53m3.9 (853)$15 · $0.00
Tales of the UnexpectedH. G. Wells8h 47m4.0 (30)$2 · $0.00