"If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all. "
— Oscar Wilde
H. G. Wells | First Editions
1866 - 1946
Celebrated novelist and short story writer in the 'fantasy' and 'romance' genres, essayist, social philosopher and historian. Together with Jules Verne, frequently considered the grandfathers of modern science fiction. An apprentice draper, teacher and biologist prior to journalism. Played a vital part in disseminating the progressive ideas which characterized the early twentieth century, becoming one of Britain's foremost popular writers writers, with scientific fantasies such as The Time Machine (1895) The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), The War of the Worlds (1898), When The Sleeper Wakes (1899), The First Men In the Moon (1901, serialized in The Strand) and In The Days of the Comet (1906). He penned numerous strange tales for various periodicals, later gathered in his classic book collections The Stolen Bacillus (1895), Tales of Space and Time (1899), Twelve Stories and a Dream (1903) The Country of the Blind (1911) etc. He also wrote a range of comic social novels which proved highly popular, notably Kipps (1905) and The History of Mr Polly (1910). Many of his works made successful (sometimes classic) early films.See below our stock of H. G. Wells First Editions, fine bindings, sets and other collectible material.
Results 1 - 17 (of 17)
The Strand Magazine October 1898.
London: George Newnes. 1898. Featuring the first publication of Arthur Conan Doyle's 'Round the Fire' story no. 5, 'The Story of the Black Doctor', with 7 illustrations by Joseph Finnemore. Also first publication of H.G. Wells' 'Mr Ledbetter's Vacation', with 8 illustrations by Shepperson. 25 x 17cm. vol. xvi, no..... More
Joseph Pennell's Pictures of War Work in England. Reproductions of a series of drawings and lithographs of the munition works made by him with the permission and authority of the British Government with notes by the artist and with an introduction by H.G. Wells.
London: William Heinemann, 1917. [War Art] FIRST EDITION. Large octavo (25 x 18cm), pp.xii; with 51 black and white plates, each with an accompanying descriptive leaf. Publisher's brown paper-covered boards with titles to plain cream label on spine and illustrated label over upper board. Offsetting to endpapers. Boards rubbed and..... More
The Autocracy of Mr. Parham. His Remarkable Adventures in this Changing World.
London: William Heinemann, 1930. [Dystopia] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 14cm), pp.[12] 370 [2]. With 10 black and white cartoons by Low. Publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to spine. With the dust-jacket also illustrated by Low, priced at 7/6. Gently toned throughout, but crisp and clean; possibly unread. Spine..... More
The Croquet Player. A Story.
London: Chatto & Windus, 1936. [Psychological Fantasy] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 13cm), pp.[10] 82 [4]. Publisher's brown mottled (almost leopard print) cloth with a plain paper title label to spine. With the pink and green-illustrated dust-jacket by Harold Jones, priced at 3/6. Black ink ownership to fly-leaf. Slight offsetting..... More
The Dream.
Leipzig: Bernard Tauchnitz, [February 1925]. [Utopian Fiction] CONTINENTAL COPYRIGHT EDITION. Small octavo (17 x 12cm), pp.294; [4]. Publisher's paper wrappers with titles to front cover and spine, and a list of recent publications dated February 1924 to rear cover. Fore and lower edges untrimmed. Rubbing to joint and edges; spine..... More
The Fate Of Homo-Sapiens.
London: Secker and Warburg, 1939. [Futurology] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 15cm), pp.vi; 330. Publisher's grey cloth with titles in gilt and red to spine. Top edge red. With the blue illustrated dust-jacket, priced at 7/6. Lightly browned and rubbed to edges. A little rubbing and toning to board edges..... More
The Invisible Man. A Grotesque Romance.
London: C. Arthur Pearson Limited, 1897. [Speculative fiction] FIRST EDITION, first Issue. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.[viii]; 246; [2] advertisements. With page 1 incorrectly numbered as 2. Publisher's pictorial red cloth titled in gilt to spine and upper with vignette in black to upper. Contents toned as usual, a few..... More
The New Machiavelli.
London: John Lane, the Bodley Head, 1911. [Modern Literature] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (19 x 13cm), pp.[8] 528 [30]. Publisher's pink cloth with gilt titles to spine and white to upper. Top edge brown. Spotting to endpapers and some browning to edges. Light wear to cloth; spine sunned to a tan..... More
The New Machiavelli.
London: The English Review, 1910. [Modern Literature] FIRST APPEARANCE, original magazine parts bound as one volume. Octavo (24 x 17cm), pp.[2] 286-329 [2]; 532-563 [1]; 673-715 [2]; 98-136 [1]; 270-308; 477-511 [2]; 682-702 [2]. Contemporary green half calf, with raised bands, gilt titles to orange label, further gilt decoration to..... More
The New World Order. Whether it is attainable, how it can be attained, and what sort of world at peace will have to be.
London: Secker and Warburg, 1940. [Futurology] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (21 x 15cm), pp.191 [1]. Publisher's grey cloth with red titles to spine. Top edge red. With the dust-jacket designed by William Kermode, priced at 6s. Light offsetting to endpapers, and a black ink ownership to flyleaf. Some marks and spots..... More
The Stolen Bacillus. And Other Incidents.
London: Methuen, 1895. FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp. [x]; 275; [1], imprint; [32], catalogue, dated November 1896. In publisher's blue cloth, with gilt titles to spine and upper board, edges untrimmed. Internally very clean, adverts mainly uncut although final four pages have been roughly opened. Cloth generally bright..... More
The War of The Worlds.
London: William Heinemann, 1898. [Science fiction] FIRST EDITION, FIRST ISSUE. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.viii; 303; [1]; [16 of publisher's advertisements dated Autumn 1897]. Publisher's grey cloth, titled in black to spine and upper. The first issue with the correct advertisements bound in at the rear. Some spotting to preliminaries..... More
The War of The Worlds.
London: William Heinemann, 1898. [Science fiction] FIRST EDITION, second issue. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.viii; 303; [1]; [32] publisher's advertisements. Publisher's grey cloth, titled in black to spine and upper. Textblock slightly shaken, some light spotting, mostly to preliminaries, bottom corner of page 23/24 lost (not affecting the text), toned..... More
The Works of H.G. Wells. Contains all his famous titles, including: The Time Machine, The Invisible Man, Kipps, First Men in The Moon, War of The Worlds, The War in The Air, etc.
London: T. Fisher Unwin, 1924. The Atlantic Edition, Limited to 620 sets of which this is No.411, SIGNED on the limitation page by the author. 28 volumes, large octavo. Portrait frontispiece, title printed in red and black. Finely bound in dark green half oasis morocco with gilt titles and decoration..... More
The Sea Lady
London, Methuen and Co. 1902. Strange Tale. FIRST EDITION, 8vo., with later ads. dated August 1908. A fantasy novel. Bound in publisher's gilt-trimmed red cloth, showing some light, acceptable wear and handling but generally in an attractive state. Wells' little known fantasy foreshadows Franz Kafka's dark fables of the totalitarian..... More
The War in the Air and Particularly how Mr. Bert Smallways Fared while it Lasted.
George Bell and Sons, London, 1908, FIRST EDITION. Crown octavo, pps.[viii]; 389. With 16 monochrome illustrations by A. C. Michael. In a robust private binding of grey cloth with morocco label titled in gilt, top edge gilt. Some light spotting else clean, in lightly rubbed binding. Wells' famous 'scientific romance'..... More
![Jeeves and the impending Doom [within] The London Omnibus. Introduction by Carl Van Doren. P. G....](/pictures/thumb/54730.jpg?v=1568109519)
Jeeves and the impending Doom [within] The London Omnibus. Introduction by Carl Van Doren.
New York, NY: Doubleday Doran and Company, Inc., 1932. [Classic Humour] FIRST ANTHOLOGY EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm). Publisher's pale green cloth blocked in dark green, pictorial dust-wrapper priced at $2.50. Jacket just a touch dusty and marginally sunned to spine else a particularly fine copy which appears to be..... More
Results 1 - 17 (of 17)