One of the things I most enjoy about presenting stories here is the great fun I find in discovering the personal lives of authors. Not only do our authors present us with brilliant literature, but they also give us glimpses into lives that are indeed majestic and fascinating.  People like Jack London and Edith Wharton certainly come readily to mind, giants in their own time, and for me, H.G. Wells stands out among his peers for both the quantity of his work (over l00 books!) and for the human intricacies of his private life – as colorful as almost any of his books.

Often credited, as is Jules Verne, with being the Father of Science Fiction, Wells lived during a fascinating period of history that went from the horse and buggy into the Space Age—or, at least, the imaginary space age.

Perhaps as interesting, though, as his writing career, Wells’s private life was a very symphony of contrasting and somewhat surprising twists and turns. Wells earned his Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Science degrees at the University of London. After marrying his cousin Isabel, Wells began to supplement his teaching salary with short stories and freelance articles, then books, including The Time Machine (1895), The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), and The War of the Worlds (1898).

Wells created a mild scandal when he divorced his cousin to marry one of his best students, Amy Catherine Robbins. Although his second marriage was lasting and produced two sons, Wells was an unabashed advocate of free (as opposed to "indiscriminate") love. He continued to openly have extra-marital liaisons, most famously with Margaret Sanger, and a ten-year relationship with the author Rebecca West, who had one of his two out-of-wedlock children.

Wells, an outspoken socialist, used his international fame to promote his favorite causes, including the prevention of war, and was received by government officials around the world. He is best remembered as an early writer of science fiction and futurism, riding the cusp of the industrial revolution and the ensuing modern age, well into the twentieth century.

And now, “The Remarkable Case of Davidson’s Eyes” by H.G. Wells…we begin….