Men Like Gods

In the summer of 1921, a disenchanted journalist escapes the rat race for a drive in the country. But Mr. Barnstaple's trip exceeds his expectations when he and other motorists are swept 3,000 years into the future. The inadvertent time travelers arrive in a world that corresponds exactly to Barnstaple's ideals: a utopian state, free of crime, poverty, war, disease, and bigotry. Unfettered by the constraints of government and organized religion, the citizens lead rich, meaningful lives, passed in pursuit of their creative fancies. Barnstaple's traveling companions, however, quickly contrive a scheme to remake the utopia in the image of their twentieth-century world.
A century after its initial publication, H. G. Wells's novel offers an enduringly relevant look at an ideal society. Conceived in the aftermath of World War I, it reflects the failings of human nature but offers hope for the future, when men and women may live like gods.

A pioneer of science fiction, H. G. Wells (1866–1946) wrote thrilling adventures about time travel, space exploration, alien invasion, and scientific experiments gone awry. His tales of obsession, revelation, and discovery remain compellingly readable and relevant.

Book the First: The Irruption of the EarthlingsI. Mr. Barnstaple Takes a HolidayII. The Wonderful RoadIII. The Beautiful peopleIV. The Shadow of Einstein Falls Across the Story but Passes Lightly byV. The Governance and History of UtopiaVI. Some Earthly CriticismsVII. The Bringing in of Lord Barralonga's PartyVIII. Early Morning in Utopia Book the Second: Quarantine CragI. The EpidemicII. The Castle on the CragIII. Mr. Barnstaple as a Traitor to MankindIV. The End of Quarantine Crag Book the Third: A Neophyte in UtopiaI. The Peaceful Hills Beside the RiverII. A Loiterer in a Living WorldIII. The Service of the EarthlingIV. The Return of the Earthling