作者簡介

H. G. Wells（H. G.威爾斯）

Herbert George Wells (or H. G. Wells) is considered, along with the French writer Jules Verne, to be the father of science fiction. He was born in Bromley, near London, in 1880, to a modest family. When he was eight, he broke his leg and was confined to bed for a long time. His father brought him books from the local library and he became a keen reader.
Due to his family’s economic situation, Wells could not go to school, but he read and studied on his own. He became so proficient that a school offered him the position of student-teacher. This meant that he was able to pay for his own education by teaching younger pupils. He then went to Imperial College in London to study biology, and graduated in zoology at the University of London.
His novels have been hugely popular since their publication, and some of them have become films. He invented themes that became classic in science fiction. He also predicted technological developments that became reality, like space travel. A crater on the dark side of the Moon is named after him. Some of his stories are very realistic: Orson Welles’ radio adaptation of his novel The War of the Worlds convinced people that an invasion from Mars was really happening in New Jersey. He also wrote about social justice and human rights. H. G. Wells died in London in 1946, probably from a heart attack.

H. G.威爾斯和法國作家凡爾納（Jules Verne, 1828–1905），被世人並列為科幻小說的始祖。1880年，H. G.威爾斯生於倫敦近郊布朗利（Bromley）的一個中庸家庭。八歲時他不慎摔斷腿而長期臥床，父親便到當地的圖書館借書給他看，從此養成他求知若渴的閱讀習慣。
後來因家庭的經濟狀況供不起威爾斯去上學，他便自己閱讀與學習。他才智淵博，受聘於學校擔任課輔教師，藉由教導年輕學子而支付學費。他後來進入倫敦皇家理工學院攻讀生物學，畢業於倫敦大學的動物學系。

他的小說一出版就很暢銷，有些甚至被改編成電影。他創新的主題，成為科幻小說的經典。他曾經預言的科技躍進如今成真，譬如太空旅行等。月球背面的一個隕石坑還用他的名字來命名。

他筆下的故事非常真實，美國導演奧森．威爾斯（Orson Welles）曾經把他的小說《世界大戰》（The War of the Worlds）改編成廣播劇，讓大家還真的以為火星人入侵紐澤西。他的作品也涉及社會正義和人權等議題。