Audio only
Length7h 59m
About this audiobook
The question is: ´Have you ever had that moment?´ You might be sitting at your desk, cooking tea for your kids, driving to work – and suddenly you think ‘Is this it? Is this all there is?’ It is at this precise moment that we crash land into the life of one Mr. Alfred Polly: draper, dreamer and general discontent.
First published in 1910, H.G. Wells’ "The History of Mr. Polly" traces the back-story of Mr Polly and just how he got into the ‘Beastly Silly Wheeze’ of his current predicament. At the age of 37 (the Edwardian version of middle age) Polly is tired of his dead-end job as a draper and his nagging wife, Miriam. He sits on the edge of bankruptcy and decides the only solution is to burn down his shop and kill himself. However, things don’t exactly go to plan and Polly is given a new chance at life. But can he really change?
Wells’ novel falls squarely into two sections; Polly’s past and just how he became an unhappy and unfulfilled married draper, and the path he takes after burning down his shop. Widely regarded as Wells’ funniest novel, it is also his most affectionate. In addition, the book bears a strong resemblance to Wells’ own background as a bored lower class draper yet, unlike Polly, Wells was fortunate enough to be extracted from this bleak existence by the 1870 Universal Education Act. This government programme offered Wells a narrow opening into higher education and the professions, saving him from a life of drudgery.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.8 (4.3K)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon, LibraryThing, StoryGraph
GenreGeneral Fiction, Humor, Children's Literature
Length7 hrs 59 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateJul 28, 2019
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Chapter The First: Beginnings, And The Bazaar
2Chapter The Second: The Dismissal Of Parsons
3Chapter The Third: Cribs
4Chapter The Fourth: Mr. Polly An Orphan
5Chapter The Fifth: Mr. Polly Takes A Vacation
Show all chaptersShow less
6Chapter The Sixth: Miriam
7Chapter The Seventh: The Little Shop At Fishbourne
8Chapter The Eighth: Making An End To Things
9Chapter The Ninth: The Potwell Inn
10Chapter The Tenth: Miriam Revisited
The Time MachineH. G. Wells3h 26m4.1 (679K)$1.20 · $0.00
La guerra de los Mundos (Traducido)H. G. Wells6h 47m4.0 (429.4K)$5.70 · $0.00
La Guerre des Mondes (Traduit)H. G. Wells7h 13m4.0 (33.1K)$5.70 · $0.00
Der Krieg der Welten (Übersetzt)H. G. Wells7h 12m4.0 (405.5K)$5.70 · $0.00
A Guerra dos Mundos (Traduzido)H. G. Wells6h 44m4.1 (308.7K)$5.70 · $0.00
The War of the WorldsH. G. Wells6h 35m4.0 (423.2K)$1.20 · $0.00
L'île du docteur MoreauH. G. Wells5h 22m3.9 (157K)$18 · $0.00
La guerre des mondesH. G. Wells7h 38m4.0 (381.3K)$18 · $0.00
L'Homme invisibleH. G. Wells6h 13m3.8 (265K)$22 · $0.00
The Time MachineH. G. Wells3h 25m4.0 (684.2K)$0.60 · $0.00
The War of the WorldsH. G. Wells6h 35m4.0 (412.7K)$21 · $0.00
The War In The AirH. G. Wells10h 54m3.7 (2.2K)$0.60 · $0.00
The Island of Dr. MoreauH. G. Wells4h 43m3.9 (165.5K)$1.20 · $0.00
The First Men in the MoonH. G. Wells7h 32m3.8 (29.1K)$1.20 · $0.00
A Modern UtopiaH. G. Wells10h 18m3.4 (1.1K)$0.60 · $0.00
The Sleeper AwakesH. G. Wells8h 39m3.6 (7.2K)$0.60 · $0.00
God the Invisible KingH. G. Wells4h 21m3.5 (101)$1.20 · $0.00
The Invisible ManH. G. Wells5h 26m3.8 (507.2K)$21 · $0.00
El hombre invisibleH. G. Wells5h 51m3.9 (276K)$1.20 · $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
Desperate MeasuresBrenda Jackson8h 59m4.7 (670)$28 · $0.00
This Side of Paradise - The Original 1920 Edition (Annotated)F. Scott Fitzgerald11h 30m4.6 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
War LordBernard Cornwell13h 21m4.6 (33.1K)$33 · $0.00
The Great Gatsby: Original 1925 Edition (An F. Scott Fitzgerald Classic NovelFrancis Scott Fitzgerald4h 45m4.6 (9.3K)$15 · $0.00
Something Like LoveBeverly Jenkins10h 21m4.6 (2.7K)$29 · $0.00
Black History CollectionFrederick Douglass, Harriet Ann Jacobs, Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois27h 9m4.6 (2.6K)$15 · $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)$10 · $0.00
ShivajiRanjit Desai25h 13m4.6 (3.1K)$24 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 38m4.5 (9.2K)$2 · $0.00
Driving ForceElle James4h 58m4.6 (407)$20 · $0.00
Lost In TranslationAudrey Davis9h 15m4.4 (235)Free
How to Test Negative for StupidJohn Kennedy8h 13m4.7 (9.7K)$28 · $0.00
The Jeeves and Wooster Stories: The Complete Collection (33 Books)P. G. Wodehouse21h 57m4.7 (2.8K)$15 · $0.00
Birdie & HarlowTaylor Wolfe7h 50m4.6 (6.5K)$26 · $0.00
The Life of DaiDai Henwood, Jaquie Brown8h 2m4.6 (790)$26 · $0.00
Welcome to PawneeJim O'Heir6h 24m4.5 (5.3K)$24 · $0.00
Going PostalTerry Pratchett13h 36m4.5 (163.8K)$33 · $0.00
Woman UninterruptedBrodie Kane7h 1m4.6 (562)$24 · $0.00
1984 & Animal Farm (Annotated)George Orwell15h 54m4.5 (220.8K)$3.99 · $0.00
Kingsblood Royal (Annotated)Sinclair Lewis14h 42m4.6 (264)$2 · $0.00
This Is Going to HurtAdam Kay5h 47m4.4 (444.7K)$24 · $0.00
You Will Get Through This NightDaniel Howell6h 56m4.4 (11.8K)$24 · $0.00
Northanger Abbey (Annotated)Jane Austen10h 7m4.5 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
My Dear HamiltonStephanie Dray, Laura Kamoie23h 7m4.4 (63.6K)$46 · $0.00
THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS & SCREWTAPE PROPOSES A TOAST (Annotated)C. S. Lewis5h 6m4.4 (471K)$2 · $0.00
BufferingHannah Hart5h 55m4.4 (12.4K)$24 · $0.00
The Office BFFsJenna Fischer, Angela Kinsey8h 26m4.3 (45.4K)$26 · $0.00
The Collected Stories of Dorothy ParkerDorothy Parker8h 36m4.3 (13.6K)$1 · $0.00
LambChristopher Moore15h 22m4.3 (211.3K)$33 · $0.00
The Importance of Being Earnest (World's Classics Series)Oscar Wilde4h 10m4.3 (467.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Elementia Chronicles #3: Herobrine's MessageSean Fay Wolfe19h 18m4.7 (560)$40 · $0.00
Big Nate Blasts OffLincoln Peirce2h 4m4.7 (13.7K)$16 · $0.00
A Wolf Called FireRosanne Parry4h 7m4.7 (1.2K)$7 · $0.00
The Daughter of AuschwitzTova Friedman3h 2m4.6 (15.6K)$18 · $0.00
RevolutionariesSanjeev Sanyal7h 25m4.6 (1.9K)$24 · $0.00
Warriors #6: The Darkest HourErin Hunter8h 8m4.6 (70.2K)$26 · $0.00
Bible 09: 1 SamuelKing James2h 28m4.6 (1.6K)$12 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Beatrix Potter: 22 Children's Books with Original IllustrationsBeatrix Potter5h 3m4.6 (3.9K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Violet Fairy Book (Annotated)Andrew Lang11h 39m4.7 (304)$2 · $0.00
Little Lord Fauntleroy (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett7h 56m4.6 (1.5K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Nutcracker and The Mouse King (Annotated)E.T.A. Hoffmann4h 4m4.6 (1.5K)$2 · $0.00
REBECCA OF SUNNYBROOK FARM & NEW CHRONICLES OF REBECCA (Children's Book Classics) (Annotated)Kate Douglas Wiggin15h 32m4.6 (1.4K)$1.99 · $0.00
Just William (Illustrated) (Annotated)Richmal Crompton6h 30m4.6 (1.2K)$2 · $0.00
The Labors of Hercules BealGary D. Schmidt8h 17m4.6 (10.4K)$8 · $0.00
Clancy of the Overflow (The Matilda Saga, #9)Jackie French14h 24m4.6 (471)$33 · $0.00
The Great Fairy Tales - Oscar Wilde Edition (Illustrated) (Annotated)Oscar Wilde6h 31m4.6 (1.1K)$2 · $0.00
Alice's Adventures in WonderlandLewis Carroll3h4.5 (5.9K)$7.99 · $0.00
The Boy Who Followed His Father into AuschwitzJeremy Dronfield6h 54m4.5 (28.5K)$24 · $0.00
Bat and the End of EverythingElana K. Arnold2h 40m4.6 (2.3K)$18 · $0.00
Chronicles of Ancient Darkness #6: Ghost HunterMichelle Paver6h 20m4.5 (11.7K)$24 · $0.00
You may also like
The Good CompanionsJ. B. Priestley27h 34m4.1 (1.5K)$1.99 · $0.00
Narcissus and GoldmundHermann Hesse10h 37m4.3 (139.4K)$20 · $0.00
PenrodBooth Tarkington6h 21m4.0 (3K)$17
The History Of Mr. PollyH. G.7h 59m3.8 (3.8K)$3.50 · $0.00
Adventures of Huckleberry FinnMark Twain11h 13m4.0 (1.4M)$3 · $0.00
Just Patty (Annotated)Jean Webster6h 46m3.9 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Adventures of Huckleberry FinnMark Twain11h 19m4.0 (1.4M)$16 · $0.00
Everybody's FavoriteLillian Stone6h 31m3.6 (1.4K)$24 · $0.00
YOUR ERRONEOUS ZONESWayne W. Dyer1h 30m4.1 (28.6K)$16 · $0.00
Adventures of Huckleberry FinnMark Twain11h 14m4.1 (1.4M)$1.80 · $0.00
Main StreetSinclair Lewis20h 38m4.0 (35K)$2 · $0.00
Crate DiggerBob Suren6h 11m4.2 (272)$17 · $0.00
Iggy PopPaul Trynka14h 40m4.1 (3K)$25 · $0.00
ArrowsmithSinclair Lewis18h 41m4.0 (12.8K)$12 · $0.00
Main StreetSinclair Lewis18h 56m4.0 (34.5K)$1.20 · $0.00
Crash Test GirlKari Byron6h 27m4.0 (1.8K)$24 · $0.00
The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnMark Twain11h 15m4.0 (1.4M)$1 · $0.00
Schopenhauer as Educator (Annotated)Friedrich Nietzsche4h 35m3.9 (1.1K)$1.99 · $0.00
Keep the Aspidistra FlyingGeorge Orwell9h 48m4.0 (75.7K)$2.30
The Incredible Adventures of Huck Finn & Tom Sawyer - 4 Books in One Volume (Illustrated Edition)Mark Twain35h 2m4.4 (1.3K)$1.99 · $0.00