The Croquet Player - Softcover

Wells, H G

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1473333237 ISBN 13: 9781473333239

Publisher: H. G. Wells Library, 2016

Synopsis

This book contains H. G. Wells' 1936 novella, "The Croquet Player". A soul-corrupting evil has invaded the remote English village of Cainsmarsh, infesting the minds of the local residents. An old woman fears her own shadow; a petrified farmer plots the murder of a scarecrow; family pets are brutally killed, and previously-happy couples descend into anger and violence. A prophetic insight into the primitive distrust that threatens the modern world, "The Croquet Player" is not to be missed by fans of horror fiction. Herbert George Wells (1866 - 1946) was a prolific English writer who wrote in a variety of genres, including the novel, politics, history, and social commentary. Today, he is perhaps best remembered for his contributions to the science fiction genre thanks to such novels as "The Time Machine" (1895), "The Invisible Man" (1897), and "The War of the Worlds" (1898). Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. We are republishing this book now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially commissioned new biography of the author.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

Something is horribly wrong in the remote English village of Cainsmarsh. An elderly woman stiffens in dread at her own shadow; a terrified farmer murders a scarecrow; food prepared by others is eyed with suspicion; family pets are bludgeoned to death; loving couples are devoured by rage and violence. A spirit-corrupting evil pervades the land, infesting the minds of those who call Cainsmarsh home. Is this vision real, or a paranoid fantasy generated by an even darker, worldwide threat? And is the call to resist the danger itself a danger? These are questions that disturb the calm of an indolent croquet player who happens to hear the tale of the unlucky village.

H. G. Wells’s ambiguous story of horror is a modern classic, a prophetic, disturbing glimpse of the primitive distrust and violence that gnaw at the heart of the modern world.

The prodigious literary visions of H. G. Wells (1866–1946) are cornerstones for today’s science fiction and fantasy. His novels include The Sleeper Awakes, In the Days of the Comet, The Last War, and The War in the Air, all available in Bison Books editions. John Huntington is a professor of English at the University of Illinois, Chicago. He is the author of The Logic of Fantasy: H. G. Wells and Science Fiction and the editor of The H. G. Wells Reader: A Complete Anthology from Science Fiction to Social Satire.

About the Author:

Often called the father of science fiction, British author Herbert George (H. G.) Wells literary works are notable for being some of the first titles of the science fiction genre, and include such famed titles as The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, The Island of Doctor Moreau, and The Invisible Man. Despite being fixedly associated with science fiction, Wells wrote extensively in other genres and on many subjects, including history, society and politics, and was heavily influenced by Darwinism. His first book, Anticipations of the Reaction of Mechanical and Scientific Progress Upon Human Life and Thought, offered predictions about what technology and society would look like in the year 2000, many of which have proven accurate. Wells went on to pen over fifty novels, numerous non-fiction books, and dozens of short stories. His legacy has had an overwhelming influence on science fiction, popular culture, and even on technological and scientific innovation. Wells died in 1946 at the age of 79.

About this edition

• Publisher: H. G. Wells Library
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1473333237
• ISBN 13: 9781473333239
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 66