Anne's House of Dreams

Filiquarian Publishing, LLC published this book under the idea that it is in "public domain status." Meaning, it is not any better than you would find online. The book is readable, but emphasis (bold or italics) are done by an underscore before and after the word(s). Example: "_His_ is the lightning flash, we sang. _His_ is the deep, salt sea." (page 82) To me, it is annoying to read it this way. You occasionally find extra quotation marks and a double dash (--) in the place of an ellipsis (...). On page 41, you get all of the above.

The binding is right up there with self-published titles. The cover is as basic as it gets, and has no text on the spine (see picture.) The back cover has merely a UPC barcode. On my copy, the glue they used for the spine was pressed out and made a rather strange bind. By strange, I mean cheap-looking.

Anyway, if you are looking for an inexpensive copy of this book and don't care about the bindery or text issues, then this book is for you.

The Anne of Green Gables series was the defining series of my childhood. I consider it essential reading for any little girl (or boy!) and have enjoyed reading the books as an adult just as much as I did when I first discovered them.

Garbage audio version. the store made it look like I was getting a version by a different narrator. This one is unlistenable with the narrarator’s horrible sharp S’ which hurt your ears. Wish I could get a refund.

This HG Wells book is quite fascinating to read, partly because it is written so badly. Needless to say, the "science" in this science fiction is laughably wrong. The quality of the prose is somewhat amateurish. But it's an entertaining book which does have some interesting ideas. Although we can't currently transform a panther into a human by changing the genes one by one, generation by generation, to transform such an animal into a human, some people do think of transforming elephants into mammoths by adding mammoth genes gradually to make the transformation. Or in the reverse direction, one could start with a human and add all kinds of other genes to make a human partly animal, like adding fish genes to tomatoes. Maybe the message Wells wanted to communicate was that humans are not so distant from animals as some would have liked to believe at that time.

It has a kind of gloomy dream-like atmosphere which creates a kind of alternative universe where surgery can effectively change the species, a bit like alchemists using chemical reactions to transform elements into each other. It's certainly suitable for light reading to help get to sleep at night. This is the kind of book I would consider giving to a teenager. At least it's more realistic than "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes".

Finished reading for the second time - I first read it several years ago. The side characters are fascinating as always this series. Leslie’s story is so memorable. Love this book as a stand-alone. I don’t have to reread the other ones to enjoy this one.

I ordered the book of "Anne's House of Dreams" expecting it to be the Bantam Edition depicted in its advertisement. However, I received a different edition of the book. I was promised the edition I was looking at (Bantam Edition-pink book with just Anne on the cover) and was disappointed to see that it was a different edition.

The book wasn't to my liking. I said what I wanted to say I do not understand why I must write so many words that aren't needed it seems like a waste of my time and the person that has to review what I wrote.

The Time Machine

Chapter 1 begins by explaining the fourth dimension - Duration - after the three dimensions of Length Breadth, and Thickness. You can move around in Space but not in time. [Actually, we are always moving in the fourth dimension of time, but its not under our control.] If you can overcome gravity with a balloon why can’t you overcome Time? [Flying machines had not been invented in 1895.] The guests are shown a model machine that will go into the future then return. A lever was pushed and the machine suddenly vanished! The next week his friends returned but the Time Traveler (call him George) wasn’t home. Suddenly he entered with dusty and dirty clothes, hungry and thirsty. After hurriedly eating his meal George explained what happened. He got on his Time Machine and pushed the start lever. The sun hopped across the sky, a day passed like a minute.

Everything seemed strange. He pushed the stop lever and found himself under a shower of hail. He saw great buildings. Small slight men appeared, simply dressed, and speaking a strange language. They seemed child-like. These people were strict vegetarians eating only fruit. Animals like cattle were extinct. The year was 802,701 AD! He found a great heap of granite rubble. Three were no small houses, only large palaces. The people dressed alike, no differences between the sexes. Was there a need of the traditional family? Selective breeding produces better products. [Intelligent design?] There was neither social or economic struggle, commerce and advertising was gone. Population control ended an increasing population. Does the lack of struggle cause changes in the people? Will it lead to languor and decay? [Does this explain the problems of those with inherited wealth?]

George finds his Time Machine missing from where he left it (Chapter 5)! Can it be recovered? He notices covered wells on the land. Also, there are no aged and infirm among the people. George found living places, dining halls, and sleeping apartments. But no manufacturing or industry. These little people stayed inside after dark. In the early morning George went outside and saw white ape-like creatures in the distance. The sun was hotter in this future world. Later he sees another of these pale creatures. Animals that live largely in the dark have large eyes that reflect light. The perfect security of the beautiful “Eloi” led to their degeneration. What would the subterranean “Morlocks” be like?

The Morlocks are carnivorous (Chapter 6). Down below George hears the noise from big machines. The Morlocks tried to keep him from escaping to the upper world. The Eloi might have been the aristocracy and the Morlocks their servants, but a new relationship arose (Chapter 7). George searches an abandoned and decaying building and finds a box of matches and an iron bar. The trip through the forest isn’t complete when night falls and the Morlocks arise. Can he keep a fire going to keep them away? George returns to find his Time Machine in a building. Is this a trap? Yes, but he can work the machine to return to the past. His visit to the future revealed a dying planet (Chapter 11).

Backwards ran time until George arrived at his beginning (Chapter 12). Do his visitors believe this story? [No physical evidence except withered white flowers.] Was George suffering from overwork? The next day George vanished with his Time Machine. He has never returned. Will he ever return? The ‘Epilogue’ aks if the growing pile of civilization will inevitably fall back upon humanity. [This 1895 novella asks some interesting questions about the future of mankind. Will an expanding sun cause the destruction of its planets? Will mankind ever learn to live in peace and harmony? [No, conflicts are inherent in living things.] No one can ever make a good movie from the original work.

Title: Anne’s House of Dreams
Author: L.M. Montgomery
Read by: Justine Eyre
Publisher: Tantor Media
Length: Approximately 7 hours and 50 minutes
Source: From the Kewaunee Public Library through the Overdrive System

The fifth novel of the series, Anne’s House of Dreams starts with Anne and Gilbert finally having their dream wedding. Times were different back then – Anne couldn’t have Diana as a bridesmaid as she is already married. The happy couple set off for their new home near the village of Glen St. Mary where Gilbert will be helping his Uncle with his medical practice with the goal of eventually taking over. There they settle into their little “house of dreams” with Anne starting the role of keeping house for Gilbert.

This novel doesn’t focus solely on their new marriage, but it is more about the neighbors and friends that they make while in their house of dreams. There are great characters and side stories. Leslie Moore is a beautiful and tragic neighbor. She was married young at 16 to the odious Dick Moore under pressure from her mother to keep the family home. An accident while on a trip to the Caribbean renders Dick brain damaged and handicapped. While he is easier to handle, Leslie is unable to have a family or great love in her life. What will happen to Leslie?

Captain Jim is an elderly neighbor who watches the light house with his cat and tells fantastic stories of his adventurous youth. Miss Cornelia Bryant does not have a great fondness for men, but she knows that Anne is one of the “race that knows Joseph” which seems akin to “kindred spirits”.

I always think of the Anne of Green Gables series as a happy story, but there is a dark chapter of loss in this book as Anne and Gilbert lose their first child. Anne is not strong after this and maid Susan Baker comes to live with the Blythes to help them out. It’s hard to think of strong vivacious Anne losing a child and being in such a weakened state. Listening to my own family stories, this happened to my own Great-Grandmother in the 1920s and a nurse was brought in to take care of her.

Anne’s House of Dreams was delightful to listen to on audiobook. Justine Eyre is a great narrator and have good voices for the various characters. It is an enjoyable tale to listen to, although I did feel emotional during a few moments. Hopefully no one was looking into my car to see my tears dripping down my cheeks.
Favorite Quotes:

“My library isn't very extensive but every book in it is a friend.”

“I'd like to add some beauty to life," said Anne dreamily. "I don't exactly want to make people KNOW more... though I know that IS the noblest ambition... but I'd love to make them have a pleasanter time because of me... to have some little joy or happy thought that would never have existed if I hadn't been born.”

Overall, Anne’s House of Dreams is a wonderful story full of unforgettable characters and showcases the early years of Anne and Gilbert’s marriage. It is wonderful as an audiobook.

The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells is quite a creepy tale. But most of the books that Wells wrote tended to ere toward the creepy side of things. Which is why I’m quite fond of his work, more than most horror writers out there today. Wells just has a way of painting marvelous pictures and getting under your skin with his words that just makes you crave more of his dark mind.
And The Island of Dr. Moreau makes you question a lot about humanity as a whole. It makes you curious if these events actually happened, or if it’s possible to do the things that Dr. Moreau and his partner did. It makes you curious if there is really an island out there where animals are dissected and turned into human-ish beings. Then it makes you wonder what was Wells thinking when he wrote this piece, because who would have thought to take an animal and dissect it and turn it into a human. The only other person I can think of is Mary Shelley with Frankenstein. Because in my opinion what goes on in The Island of Dr. Moreau is some Frankenstien-esque stuff.
And as the story goes you want to believe that Dr. Moreau and his partner aren’t bad men, you want to believe that they are good. That they have some form of humanity in them and that they aren’t mad men, that want to create this race of animalistic-humans. But no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t find a single shred of anything that made me like them. To be honest, I think I like the captain of the boat that wanted to toss Edward overboard into the sea a lot better than I like the doctor and his companion. And with that being said it makes me feel horrible for Edward who had to stay on the island and listen to the shrieks of the puma as it was tortured. As I read I could hear the poor animals wails and wanted to be able to intervene, even though I know that’s impossible. That’s how hooked Wells gets you, he gets you to this plateau where you feel like you’re in the story and that you can actually change the outcome-but you can’t.
I definitely recommend this story, as well as other classics by H.G. Wells. He’s a brilliant writer, that swoops you from your reality into his twisted world.

As with many of H.G.'s stories, it is a tail told by a narrator. Also at first, you may not notice his slipping in of social underpinnings.

Pendrick, our narrator starts out trying to tell how he was disenshipped and disappeared at sea for a year to turn up alive. His explanation is so fantastic that no one believes him. However after we read his account, we do.

He spent the bulk of his time on an isolated island with the mysterious Dr. Moreau, Moreau's right hand man Montgomery, and a menagerie of unique people. Where did they come from and what are they doing on this island? As the story unfolds, Pendrick realizes he is the next either on the operating table or for supper or maybe something more sinister.

This story has shades of William Golding's "Lord of the Flies". However, I can swear that I work with the very same creatures every day. Moreover, I will never look at my cat in the same way.

Somehow, I missed the movie version of this book, so I cannot compare them.

As with many of H.G.'s stories, it is a tail told by a narrator. Also at first, you may not notice his slipping in of social underpinnings.

Pendrick, our narrator starts out trying to tell how he was disenshipped and disappeared at sea for a year to turn up alive. His explanation is so fantastic that no one believes him. However after we read his account, we do.

He spent the bulk of his time on an isolated island with the mysterious Dr. Moreau, Moreau's right hand man Montgomery, and a menagerie of unique people. Where did they come from and what are they doing on this island? As the story unfolds, Pendrick realizes he is the next either on the operating table or for supper or maybe something more sinister.

This story has shades of William Golding's "Lord of the Flies". However, I can swear that I work with the very same creatures every day. Moreover, I will never look at my cat in the same way.

Somehow, I missed the movie version of this book, so I cannot compare them.

'The Island of Dr. Moreau', published in 1896 is, like its predecessor 'The Time Machine', a seminal work of science fiction that influenced virtually all subsequent stories that featured scientists pursuing scientific research while losing their humanity. Dr.Moreau is not the first 'mad scientist' in literature by any means. Hawthorne and Balzac created a few. More specifically, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein precedes Moreau in 'playing God' by recreating life and thus also establishing the creator/creation relationship that so many spiritual believers pursue.

The narrative, from shipwreck survivor Edward Prendick, is first person, imparted to his nephew. Prendick is rescued by a man named Montgomery who, along with various animals and a strange, misshapen manservant, is en route to his home island. He emphasizes that Prendick is an uninvited guest but agrees to take him in and confines him to one portion of an enclosure near the beach. Montgomery is very circumspect in the level of detail concerning his 'employer' Dr. Moreau that he imparts to Prendick and tells him to stay in his quarters.

Prendick grows alarmed when he hears the anguished cries of the puma that he saw Montgomery bring ashore to the island and gradually discovers other misshapen 'Beast-Men', some resembling hogs,some apes, hyenas and leopards. The 'leopard man', unlike the others, who are largely passive, pursues Prendick until Prendick is able to cast a stone at him and stun him.

Noticing later that the door to the laboratory is unlocked, he sees a horribly disfigured, bandaged creature he assumes to be the puma. He thinks that he will be the next target for Moreau's experiments and flees into the jungle. He comes across a group of these men, with one of them reciting the laws. This 'sayer of the law' leads what resembles a call and response prayer meeting:

“Not to walk on all fours; that is the law. Are we not men?”

“Not to suck up drink; that is the law. Are we not men?”

“Not to eat flesh nor fish; that is the law. Are we not men?”

“Not to claw bark of trees; that is the Law. Are we not men?”

“Not to chase other men; that is the law. Are we not men?”

The leopard man has broken most of those commandments (a beheaded rabbit has also been found) and must, therefore, be punished. These are laws that Moreau has given them as codes of conduct, much like the Old Testament god gave the ten commandments to the Hebrews, placing himself in the role of Jehovah.

When Prendick is recaptured, Moreau sits him down and tells him his rationale. Moreau is indifferent to the experience of pleasure and pain and has no qualms in pursuing his experiments.

“There is building up as well as breaking down and changing. You have heard, perhaps, of a common surgical operation resorted to in cases where the nose has been destroyed. A flap of skin is cut from the forehead, turned down on the nose, and heals in the new position of part of an animal upon itself. Grafting of a freshly obtained material from another animal is also possible—the case of teeth, for example. The grafting of skin and bone is done to facilitate healing. The surgeon places in the middle of the wound pieces of skin snipped from another animal, or fragments of bone from a victim freshly killed...These creatures you have seen are animals carven and wrought into new shapes. To that—to the study of the plasticity of living forms—my life has been devoted. I have studied for years, gaining in knowledge as I go.”

Moreau claims that these creatures are not men but were humanised animals. And yet he has given them a set of laws to enforce their behavior that state that they are men. It becomes apparent that Montgomery makes these periodic trips in search of animals and supplies (they seem to have an abundant supply of ammunition and alcohol). The question that arises for me is that just as there must be a fresh supply of animal subjects for experimentation there should also be human specimens, should there not? He makes clear that he has no intention of making surgical use of Prendick and yet where have all these grafted human parts come from? At the time of this story, there are only three humans on the island: Prendick, Montgomery and Moreau. In addition to this, how has Moreau endowed these creatures with rudimentary, human-like intelligence and the power of speech. Moreau dismisses Prendick's concerns, stating that a pig may be educated. Hypnotism can replace old inherent instincts with new suggestions, which apparently extends to teaching them human speech.

These practical objections stray from the fact that 'The Island of Dr. Moreau' is another of Wells' scientific romances. The same question could be lodged at Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, who reconfigures human body parts but also endows his creature with speech, intelligence and, conceivably, a soul. These are philosophical fantasies. The archetype of Moreau is Wells' emphasis here. His novel is a fantastical treatment of man's God complex and the pursuit of scientific experimentation lacking ethical concern. Moreau is a forerunner of many modern fictional megalomaniacs, including many James Bond villains, Fu Manchu and, lamentably, true-life experimenters such as The Nazi doctor Josef Mengele.

Subsequently, order on the island begins to break down. The puma escapes and Moreau pursues it. In the ensuing struggle, both of them die. Prendick is quick to restore their order by insisting that Moreau did not die. He just abandoned his human form. The law is still the law because Moreau is in the sky watching them. They appear to believe him. Montgomery increases his drinking and shares his alcohol with the Beast-Men, eventually leading to a struggle with one of them in which he is killed.

Prendick is now left with the Beast-Men. He lives in harmony with them for a while and even acquires a faithful Dog-Man. He engages in limited conversation with the Ape Man who, because he and Prendick both have five digits, assumes that they are are equal. The Ape Man even has a philosophy insomuch as he coins new words and feels that this creative activity is the proper use of speech. He calls it 'big thinks' to distinguish it from 'little thinks', the everyday interests of life.

Eventually the Beast-Men, in the absence of indoctrination from Moreau, revert back to their natural habits. Each of the laws is gradually abandoned and forgotten and they become the predators they were born to be. Prendick is particularly concerned with this development as he expects to become prey at some point in the devolution/evolution process. His attempts at building a raft are futile. Fortuitously, a boat floats close to shore, carrying two corpses, one of which is the captain of the boat that rescued Prendick.

After Prendick leaves the island and is rescued he is thought to be a raving madman when he tries to tell what has happened to him on the island, leading him to remain silent. He feels none of the sense of sympathy and belonging that he expected to feel back in civilization:

“No one would believe me, I was almost as queer to men as I had been to the Beast People. I may have caught something of the natural wildness of my companions.”

He cannot help feeling that all humans he encounters are not Beast-Men subject to reversion at any time. He feels overwhelmed by the nonsensical babbling of humans.

“Then I would turn aside into some chapel, and even there, such as my disturbance, it seemed that the preacher gibbered Big Thinks even as the Ape Man had done; or into some library, and there the intent faces over the books seemed but patient creatures waiting for prey.”

Like Gulliver at the end of his travels, Prendick avoids human contact. He doesn't feel at home in horses' stables like Gulliver but he lives in rural seclusion, indulging in reading and experiments in chemistry.

Like the best science fiction writers, Wells doesn't use the vehicle of fiction as a mouthpiece for his own scientific theories. Wells does propound theories but he doesn't put them to the test of scientific plausibility. He hasn't forgotten the essential fact that he has a story to tell. 'The Island of Dr. Moreau' is another of his building blocks for constructing the foundation for modern science fiction.

The Island of Dr Moreau is H.G. Wells’ novel about a mad scientist who takes the idea of anthropomorphizing animals to an extreme. It is a horror story, but it explores a number of philosophical questions as the horror unfolds.

Edward Prendick, a biologist, is near death when he is rescued from a lifeboat after being forced to abandon ship. When he recovers his senses, he finds himself on a schooner with a drunken captain, a doctor named Montgomery, a deformed man who attends the doctor, a caged puma, and an angry pack of muzzled dogs.

Montgomery, having been booted out of medical school in London, is on his way to an isolated island. Through no fault of his own, Prendick is booted off the ship, leaving him with no choice but to join Montgomery on the island.

The island, of course, is home to the mysterious Dr. Moreau. It’s probably impossible to spoil a story this old, but I won’t say much more about the plot, except to note that Prendick encounters creatures who are “human in shape, and yet human beings with the strangest air about them of some familiar animal. Each of these creatures, despite its human form, its rag of clothing, and the rough humanity of its bodily form, had woven into it, into its movements, into the expression of its countenance, into its whole presence, some now irresistible suggestion of a hog, a swinish taint, the unmistakable mark of the beast.”

That quotation gives you a sense of Wells’ prose style which, to readers raised on genre authors who write eight word sentences and three sentence paragraphs, might seem laborious. Perhaps it is, but it is a style uniquely Wells’ own.

Prendick discovers that human-like beasts on the island are (rather reluctantly) following a set of laws. Transgressions are enforced by punishment that is “sharp and sure.” But, just as the promise of swift punishment does little to deter criminal behavior or misbehaving children, threatening to punish beasts who eat the flesh of other animals (or humans) isn’t likely to change their nature. And like all systems of punishment-based law, the system does no good if those who violate the law are not caught.

Philosophical questions that the novel raises include the difference between man and beast and the justice of a system that forces the island’s inhabitants to live in fear of laws they do not understand. The novel could be viewed as an allegory of legal systems and particularly of religious law, where obedience is coerced by instilling fear of punishment by a higher power. It can also be seen as an indictment of totalitarian government, where the “sayer of the law” uses ruthless tactics to dictate obedience among the masses, who are viewed as incapable of governing themselves (or whose self-governance is feared). And the novel can be seen as a caution against attempts to replace the natural with the unnatural, perhaps a forerunner of the debate about genetic engineering. On a simpler level, while the novel isn’t very frightening when viewed as a horror story, it is an entertaining tale, made all the more interesting by convincing characters, both man and beast (and in-between).

The Island of Dr. Moreau is one of H.G. Wells’ fantasy tales. Among his earlier tales, the story centers on Edward Prendick, a man who is rescued at sea only to be stranded on a mysterious island presided over by an infamous vivisectionist (Dr. Moreau) who left England under pressure to pursue his biological experiments aided by a man by the name of Montgomery and some peculiar looking creatures. Prendick begins to explore the island and comes to realize the situation and flees for his life. He comes across a group of beings in the forest who resemble humans but are grotesque. Moreau and Montgomery pursue him and they finally convince him that he will be safe and Moreau tells him that the creatures are really animals he has transformed into human-like creatures. Things begin to go wrong when they come across an animal that has been killed, thereby breaking one of the rules Moreau has created. The culprit is tracked down and killed. Things take a worse turn when a puma escapes and Moreau chases it and is killed. The story continues to its inevitable destructive end.

Dr. Moreau resembles Mary Shelley’s Dr. Frankenstein and the theme of trying to transform creatures. All of Wells’ novels are exciting and full of strange adventures and this one is no exception.

This H.G. Wells novel about a mad scientist and his animal-human hybrids is justifiably a classic, and a clear precursor to modern "biopunk" stories like The Rook or Leviathan (The Leviathan Trilogy). I was also surprised to recognize its influence on Jurassic Park, with its plot of biomedical experiments breaking free and taking over their island home, and on Flowers for Algernon, with its themes of intelligence backsliding into chaos. The Island of Dr. Moreau is a little slow-paced and expository by modern standards, but it never overstays its welcome. And even over a hundred years since its publication, it remains a chilling glimpse of the potentials of science unmoored from ethics.

The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells is quite a creepy tale. But most of the books that Wells wrote tended to ere toward the creepy side of things. Which is why I’m quite fond of his work, more than most horror writers out there today. Wells just has a way of painting marvelous pictures and getting under your skin with his words that just makes you crave more of his dark mind.
And The Island of Dr. Moreau makes you question a lot about humanity as a whole. It makes you curious if these events actually happened, or if it’s possible to do the things that Dr. Moreau and his partner did. It makes you curious if there is really an island out there where animals are dissected and turned into human-ish beings. Then it makes you wonder what was Wells thinking when he wrote this piece, because who would have thought to take an animal and dissect it and turn it into a human. The only other person I can think of is Mary Shelley with Frankenstein. Because in my opinion what goes on in The Island of Dr. Moreau is some Frankenstien-esque stuff.
And as the story goes you want to believe that Dr. Moreau and his partner aren’t bad men, you want to believe that they are good. That they have some form of humanity in them and that they aren’t mad men, that want to create this race of animalistic-humans. But no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t find a single shred of anything that made me like them. To be honest, I think I like the captain of the boat that wanted to toss Edward overboard into the sea a lot better than I like the doctor and his companion. And with that being said it makes me feel horrible for Edward who had to stay on the island and listen to the shrieks of the puma as it was tortured. As I read I could hear the poor animals wails and wanted to be able to intervene, even though I know that’s impossible. That’s how hooked Wells gets you, he gets you to this plateau where you feel like you’re in the story and that you can actually change the outcome-but you can’t.
I definitely recommend this story, as well as other classics by H.G. Wells. He’s a brilliant writer, that swoops you from your reality into his twisted world.

As with many of H.G.'s stories, it is a tail told by a narrator. Also at first, you may not notice his slipping in of social underpinnings.

Pendrick, our narrator starts out trying to tell how he was disenshipped and disappeared at sea for a year to turn up alive. His explanation is so fantastic that no one believes him. However after we read his account, we do.

He spent the bulk of his time on an isolated island with the mysterious Dr. Moreau, Moreau's right hand man Montgomery, and a menagerie of unique people. Where did they come from and what are they doing on this island? As the story unfolds, Pendrick realizes he is the next either on the operating table or for supper or maybe something more sinister.

This story has shades of William Golding's "Lord of the Flies". However, I can swear that I work with the very same creatures every day. Moreover, I will never look at my cat in the same way.

Somehow, I missed the movie version of this book, so I cannot compare them.

As with many of H.G.'s stories, it is a tail told by a narrator. Also at first, you may not notice his slipping in of social underpinnings.

Pendrick, our narrator starts out trying to tell how he was disenshipped and disappeared at sea for a year to turn up alive. His explanation is so fantastic that no one believes him. However after we read his account, we do.

He spent the bulk of his time on an isolated island with the mysterious Dr. Moreau, Moreau's right hand man Montgomery, and a menagerie of unique people. Where did they come from and what are they doing on this island? As the story unfolds, Pendrick realizes he is the next either on the operating table or for supper or maybe something more sinister.

This story has shades of William Golding's "Lord of the Flies". However, I can swear that I work with the very same creatures every day. Moreover, I will never look at my cat in the same way.

Somehow, I missed the movie version of this book, so I cannot compare them.

'The Island of Dr. Moreau', published in 1896 is, like its predecessor 'The Time Machine', a seminal work of science fiction that influenced virtually all subsequent stories that featured scientists pursuing scientific research while losing their humanity. Dr.Moreau is not the first 'mad scientist' in literature by any means. Hawthorne and Balzac created a few. More specifically, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein precedes Moreau in 'playing God' by recreating life and thus also establishing the creator/creation relationship that so many spiritual believers pursue.

The narrative, from shipwreck survivor Edward Prendick, is first person, imparted to his nephew. Prendick is rescued by a man named Montgomery who, along with various animals and a strange, misshapen manservant, is en route to his home island. He emphasizes that Prendick is an uninvited guest but agrees to take him in and confines him to one portion of an enclosure near the beach. Montgomery is very circumspect in the level of detail concerning his 'employer' Dr. Moreau that he imparts to Prendick and tells him to stay in his quarters.

Prendick grows alarmed when he hears the anguished cries of the puma that he saw Montgomery bring ashore to the island and gradually discovers other misshapen 'Beast-Men', some resembling hogs,some apes, hyenas and leopards. The 'leopard man', unlike the others, who are largely passive, pursues Prendick until Prendick is able to cast a stone at him and stun him.

Noticing later that the door to the laboratory is unlocked, he sees a horribly disfigured, bandaged creature he assumes to be the puma. He thinks that he will be the next target for Moreau's experiments and flees into the jungle. He comes across a group of these men, with one of them reciting the laws. This 'sayer of the law' leads what resembles a call and response prayer meeting:

“Not to walk on all fours; that is the law. Are we not men?”

“Not to suck up drink; that is the law. Are we not men?”

“Not to eat flesh nor fish; that is the law. Are we not men?”

“Not to claw bark of trees; that is the Law. Are we not men?”

“Not to chase other men; that is the law. Are we not men?”

The leopard man has broken most of those commandments (a beheaded rabbit has also been found) and must, therefore, be punished. These are laws that Moreau has given them as codes of conduct, much like the Old Testament god gave the ten commandments to the Hebrews, placing himself in the role of Jehovah.

When Prendick is recaptured, Moreau sits him down and tells him his rationale. Moreau is indifferent to the experience of pleasure and pain and has no qualms in pursuing his experiments.

“There is building up as well as breaking down and changing. You have heard, perhaps, of a common surgical operation resorted to in cases where the nose has been destroyed. A flap of skin is cut from the forehead, turned down on the nose, and heals in the new position of part of an animal upon itself. Grafting of a freshly obtained material from another animal is also possible—the case of teeth, for example. The grafting of skin and bone is done to facilitate healing. The surgeon places in the middle of the wound pieces of skin snipped from another animal, or fragments of bone from a victim freshly killed...These creatures you have seen are animals carven and wrought into new shapes. To that—to the study of the plasticity of living forms—my life has been devoted. I have studied for years, gaining in knowledge as I go.”

Moreau claims that these creatures are not men but were humanised animals. And yet he has given them a set of laws to enforce their behavior that state that they are men. It becomes apparent that Montgomery makes these periodic trips in search of animals and supplies (they seem to have an abundant supply of ammunition and alcohol). The question that arises for me is that just as there must be a fresh supply of animal subjects for experimentation there should also be human specimens, should there not? He makes clear that he has no intention of making surgical use of Prendick and yet where have all these grafted human parts come from? At the time of this story, there are only three humans on the island: Prendick, Montgomery and Moreau. In addition to this, how has Moreau endowed these creatures with rudimentary, human-like intelligence and the power of speech. Moreau dismisses Prendick's concerns, stating that a pig may be educated. Hypnotism can replace old inherent instincts with new suggestions, which apparently extends to teaching them human speech.

These practical objections stray from the fact that 'The Island of Dr. Moreau' is another of Wells' scientific romances. The same question could be lodged at Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, who reconfigures human body parts but also endows his creature with speech, intelligence and, conceivably, a soul. These are philosophical fantasies. The archetype of Moreau is Wells' emphasis here. His novel is a fantastical treatment of man's God complex and the pursuit of scientific experimentation lacking ethical concern. Moreau is a forerunner of many modern fictional megalomaniacs, including many James Bond villains, Fu Manchu and, lamentably, true-life experimenters such as The Nazi doctor Josef Mengele.

Subsequently, order on the island begins to break down. The puma escapes and Moreau pursues it. In the ensuing struggle, both of them die. Prendick is quick to restore their order by insisting that Moreau did not die. He just abandoned his human form. The law is still the law because Moreau is in the sky watching them. They appear to believe him. Montgomery increases his drinking and shares his alcohol with the Beast-Men, eventually leading to a struggle with one of them in which he is killed.

Prendick is now left with the Beast-Men. He lives in harmony with them for a while and even acquires a faithful Dog-Man. He engages in limited conversation with the Ape Man who, because he and Prendick both have five digits, assumes that they are are equal. The Ape Man even has a philosophy insomuch as he coins new words and feels that this creative activity is the proper use of speech. He calls it 'big thinks' to distinguish it from 'little thinks', the everyday interests of life.

Eventually the Beast-Men, in the absence of indoctrination from Moreau, revert back to their natural habits. Each of the laws is gradually abandoned and forgotten and they become the predators they were born to be. Prendick is particularly concerned with this development as he expects to become prey at some point in the devolution/evolution process. His attempts at building a raft are futile. Fortuitously, a boat floats close to shore, carrying two corpses, one of which is the captain of the boat that rescued Prendick.

After Prendick leaves the island and is rescued he is thought to be a raving madman when he tries to tell what has happened to him on the island, leading him to remain silent. He feels none of the sense of sympathy and belonging that he expected to feel back in civilization:

“No one would believe me, I was almost as queer to men as I had been to the Beast People. I may have caught something of the natural wildness of my companions.”

He cannot help feeling that all humans he encounters are not Beast-Men subject to reversion at any time. He feels overwhelmed by the nonsensical babbling of humans.

“Then I would turn aside into some chapel, and even there, such as my disturbance, it seemed that the preacher gibbered Big Thinks even as the Ape Man had done; or into some library, and there the intent faces over the books seemed but patient creatures waiting for prey.”

Like Gulliver at the end of his travels, Prendick avoids human contact. He doesn't feel at home in horses' stables like Gulliver but he lives in rural seclusion, indulging in reading and experiments in chemistry.

Like the best science fiction writers, Wells doesn't use the vehicle of fiction as a mouthpiece for his own scientific theories. Wells does propound theories but he doesn't put them to the test of scientific plausibility. He hasn't forgotten the essential fact that he has a story to tell. 'The Island of Dr. Moreau' is another of his building blocks for constructing the foundation for modern science fiction.

The Island of Dr Moreau is H.G. Wells’ novel about a mad scientist who takes the idea of anthropomorphizing animals to an extreme. It is a horror story, but it explores a number of philosophical questions as the horror unfolds.

Edward Prendick, a biologist, is near death when he is rescued from a lifeboat after being forced to abandon ship. When he recovers his senses, he finds himself on a schooner with a drunken captain, a doctor named Montgomery, a deformed man who attends the doctor, a caged puma, and an angry pack of muzzled dogs.

Montgomery, having been booted out of medical school in London, is on his way to an isolated island. Through no fault of his own, Prendick is booted off the ship, leaving him with no choice but to join Montgomery on the island.

The island, of course, is home to the mysterious Dr. Moreau. It’s probably impossible to spoil a story this old, but I won’t say much more about the plot, except to note that Prendick encounters creatures who are “human in shape, and yet human beings with the strangest air about them of some familiar animal. Each of these creatures, despite its human form, its rag of clothing, and the rough humanity of its bodily form, had woven into it, into its movements, into the expression of its countenance, into its whole presence, some now irresistible suggestion of a hog, a swinish taint, the unmistakable mark of the beast.”

That quotation gives you a sense of Wells’ prose style which, to readers raised on genre authors who write eight word sentences and three sentence paragraphs, might seem laborious. Perhaps it is, but it is a style uniquely Wells’ own.

Prendick discovers that human-like beasts on the island are (rather reluctantly) following a set of laws. Transgressions are enforced by punishment that is “sharp and sure.” But, just as the promise of swift punishment does little to deter criminal behavior or misbehaving children, threatening to punish beasts who eat the flesh of other animals (or humans) isn’t likely to change their nature. And like all systems of punishment-based law, the system does no good if those who violate the law are not caught.

Philosophical questions that the novel raises include the difference between man and beast and the justice of a system that forces the island’s inhabitants to live in fear of laws they do not understand. The novel could be viewed as an allegory of legal systems and particularly of religious law, where obedience is coerced by instilling fear of punishment by a higher power. It can also be seen as an indictment of totalitarian government, where the “sayer of the law” uses ruthless tactics to dictate obedience among the masses, who are viewed as incapable of governing themselves (or whose self-governance is feared). And the novel can be seen as a caution against attempts to replace the natural with the unnatural, perhaps a forerunner of the debate about genetic engineering. On a simpler level, while the novel isn’t very frightening when viewed as a horror story, it is an entertaining tale, made all the more interesting by convincing characters, both man and beast (and in-between).

The Island of Dr. Moreau is one of H.G. Wells’ fantasy tales. Among his earlier tales, the story centers on Edward Prendick, a man who is rescued at sea only to be stranded on a mysterious island presided over by an infamous vivisectionist (Dr. Moreau) who left England under pressure to pursue his biological experiments aided by a man by the name of Montgomery and some peculiar looking creatures. Prendick begins to explore the island and comes to realize the situation and flees for his life. He comes across a group of beings in the forest who resemble humans but are grotesque. Moreau and Montgomery pursue him and they finally convince him that he will be safe and Moreau tells him that the creatures are really animals he has transformed into human-like creatures. Things begin to go wrong when they come across an animal that has been killed, thereby breaking one of the rules Moreau has created. The culprit is tracked down and killed. Things take a worse turn when a puma escapes and Moreau chases it and is killed. The story continues to its inevitable destructive end.

Dr. Moreau resembles Mary Shelley’s Dr. Frankenstein and the theme of trying to transform creatures. All of Wells’ novels are exciting and full of strange adventures and this one is no exception.

This H.G. Wells novel about a mad scientist and his animal-human hybrids is justifiably a classic, and a clear precursor to modern "biopunk" stories like The Rook or Leviathan (The Leviathan Trilogy). I was also surprised to recognize its influence on Jurassic Park, with its plot of biomedical experiments breaking free and taking over their island home, and on Flowers for Algernon, with its themes of intelligence backsliding into chaos. The Island of Dr. Moreau is a little slow-paced and expository by modern standards, but it never overstays its welcome. And even over a hundred years since its publication, it remains a chilling glimpse of the potentials of science unmoored from ethics.

When rescued shipwreck victim Edward Prendick falls foul of the ship's captain, he finds himself forcibly put ashore with the other passenger and his menagerie of animals. On a remote island, Edward is given shelter by the mysterious Dr Moreau. But who are the strange 'humans' who he sees around, and what does Moreau want with his assorted livestock?

Quite a horrible read, especially in the earlier part, with its focus on vivisection. Later it degenerates (in my view) into a bit of a second rate adventure story and failed to hold my interest. Harking back to Shelley's 'Frankenstein', there is, of course, a subtler sub-text, raising such questions as how far should scientific experimentation go, and what defines a human.

Won't forget the plot-line in a hurry though not the greatest read.

H. G. Wells is a great writer. He wrote early science fiction. A serious student of literature is well served studying H. G. Wells. I love most of his work. This book, "The Island of Dr. Moreau" is well written. But speaking for myself only, it is almost too perverse and painful. This is strictly a matter of personal taste. I never find unnecessary suffering anything that I can enjoy. The worst part of the book for me involved vivisection. This is not to say it is not well written. But it is not the kind of work I would read to my children or grandchildren. It is not a work I would read again unless I had a specific reason to do so.

I certainly am glad I read this work and many other works of H. G. Wells. But due to the dark nature of this work, it is my least favorite work of this very fine author. Thank You...

While I'm sure this book can be analyzed to death regarding animal experimentation and the supposed superiority of man, I opted to simply enjoy this book, and was fairly well impressed.

Prendick is abandoned on an island with strange and uncivilized inhabitants, taken in by Montgomery and his master, the stern Dr. Moreau. Over the next weeks, Prendick is more and more put off by the behavior of the other humans on the island, until he encounters true animalistic humans on the island. On confronting Moreau, Prendick learns that they are not humans brought down with experiments, but animals raised up to humanity. Moreau is their God, and issues them edicts which they must never break: kill no animal, walk on two legs, do not bend to slurp and drink as the beasts do. The forcibly created society of the beasts enforces these rules on one another, even as they struggle and often fail to comply.

Over the course of the book, we see terrible behaviors both from the experiments and from Moreau himself. In the end, Moreau is killed and the animals return to their original natures, and the reader cannot help but think this is how it not only must be, but always SHOULD be.

Delightful horror. I listened to the first audio release by Librivox, which was read by a variety of volunteers. Since then, a single-reader release has been issued, for those who demand consistency.

With this book the author is back to her former glory and Anna is as good as ever. She and Gilberth go trough life, which is far from being always good, and their stories are so nice to read. As usual, every time I finish one of her books I'm looking forward to the next one.

Con questo libro l'autrice torna agli antichi splendori assieme ad Anna. Lei e Gilberth attraversano la vita (che non é mai sempre meravigliosa) con una leggerezza ed un trasporto tali da rendere il libro indimenticabile. Come al solito infatti, non faccio in tempo a finirne uno che voglio subito il prossimo!

The mad scientist has been with us since the early 1800s. And while H.G. Wells didn't create the mad scientist stereotype, he certainly gave it a boost in his harrowing novella "The Island of Dr. Moreau" -- beast-men forced to live like humans, a crazy scientist carrying out mad plans, and a bland Englishman stuck in the middle of it.

After he is shipwrecked, the English gentleman Edward Prendick is rescued by a passing boat. The man who saved him, Montgomery, is taking a number of wild animals to a remote deserted island, where the creepy Dr. Moreau does some kind of research on the animals that are brought there. Naturally, Prendick is suspicious of Moreau's activities.

It doesn't take long for him to stumble across the products of Moreau's work -- grotesque hybrids of animal and human, who are surgically turned into humanoids and ordered not to act in animalistic ways. And with the laws of nature being horribly perverted, it's only a matter of time before Dr. Moreau's experiments lash out.

It's pretty obvious from this book that H.G. Wells was nervous about the ramifications of meddling in nature -- be it vivisection, evolutionary degeneration, or even just the idea that scientific progress could be used for horribly evil things. As a result, "The Island of Dr. Moreau" is perhaps his darkest, most horrific book. Not his best book, but his darkest.

The first couple chapters are rather stuffy in the 18th-century style, with Prendrick fussily noting everything that's happened to him. But the creepiness begins to enter once he arrives on the island, and explodes into weird, almost dreamlike scenes once he encounters the Beast Folk. It's like a strange nightmare that you might have after watching the Chronicles of Narnia. And all this ultimately culminates in the slow decay of everything on the island.

Prendrick is also perhaps the weakest link in the book... which is not a good thing, considering he is the main character. When the only other humans on the island are.... well, a mad scientist and his sidekick, you need a protagonist who really grips your imagination. But he's honestly kind of bland, to the point where any number of the beastly folk have far more presence and power than he does. And they certainly elicit more sympathy.

"The Island of Dr. Moreau" is a dark, eerie cautionary tale about science run amuck, and only its bland protagonist keeps it from fully engaging. Not Wells' best, but an intriguing horror/SF story on its own.

Anne and Gilbert married and in their little home. A home to much happiness, but also to sorrow.
In this the 5th book in the Anne stories we meet a whole new cast of characters. Anne meets more "kindred spirits" in the form of Miss Cornelia, Captain Jim, and Leslie. She gives birth to two babies but heart wrenchingly the first baby, Joyce lives only a day. The second, a son, James Matthew is happy and healthy.
In the end Anne and Gilbert are moving to a larger home with their son, and live-in help Susan.

Published in 1896, H.G. Wells’ “Dr. Moreau” is certainly a macabre and unsettling piece of science fiction...eerie...but at the same time a thought-provoking and confrontational story line.

On a remote Pacific island, Moreau experiments with vivisection (operating on live animals) and eventually transforms animals into grotesque human creatures...when his creations go astray and they ultimately revert to their original forms, they turn on Moreau.

Wells’ point being that if Moreau is creator (“God”) and his beast-people are humanity, can civilizations function without a divine or spiritual authority.

Skillfully written, suspenseful and thrilling but not for the squeamish.

Edward Prendick is a man stranded on an island. Things are odd from the get go. However, Prendick seems to be quite naive. He has trouble trying to figure out the truth. That being said, the truth left him with some debatable principles and philosophies; Of which he passed on to us.

The book is a great topic to debate on. It leaves you with unanswered inferances and speculations that open up a whole new world of thinking and learning.

The primary question in this novel is "What relation do animals and humans have?" This question is debatable and brings up new questions! Great for socratic seminars and stuff like that.

This is arguably the greatest of H. G. Wells' novels that have all been carved from stone. There is not a soul in this universe that should not read this book. Even if you already read it!

Peace,
Roberto Wick
12 years old

Edward Prendick , sole survivor of the 'Lady Vain' wreck is rescued by a ship delivering a cargo of wild beasts to a remote island. Landing there with Montgomery, who works alongside the mysterious Moreau, he finds himself in a world of beast creatures; wild animals made humanoid......
Wells' dark fable of a dark alternative genesis created by man as well as a social comment on mans regression to savagery and animal instinct over the higher qualities that make us men.
This also works as a straight forward science fiction /horror novel . Wells often defended the scientific principles that made a Moreau creation possible, something that mankind is probably more able to achieve today-via cloning/genetics/stem cells-than even Wells could ever have imagined.
A disturbing tale that will never leave you.

This is the third H.G. Wells book I've read recently. The Time Machine is one of my all time favorite while The First Men in the Moon pretty much fell completely flat for me. My only knowledge of the Island of Dr. Moreau was from snippits of the 1977 and 1996 films and an appearance in volume 2 of Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Neither film is highly regarded with the more recent receiving six Razzie nominations and winning two. It's a real shame because I absolutely loved the book.

The stories protagonist, Edward Prendick, is lost at sea and eventually finds himself at the titular island of Dr. Moreau. The island is occupied by Moreau, his assistant Montgomery and scores of heavily clothed men and women whose unnatural body shapes and movements seem to reflect something not quite human. Moreau and Montgomery are quite pleasant gentlemen and have no issue with putting Prendick up for an extended stay. It's when Prendick spots a pointed and furry ear peaking out of the clothing of one of Moreau's assistance that he really starts to get an inkling of the true situation.

This is the classic story of the scientist who loses touch with humanity in his quest for knowledge. There is no apparent malice in Moreau's motivation even as he performs some of the most appalling experiments imaginable. What Moreau does is sickening and yet he's the most pleasant host and is really never unkind to Prendick. The scientist performing monstrous experiments has been done to death but Wells wrote his book before it became a cliché and Wells' scientist isn't a cackling pontificating fiend which makes his actions all the more horrifying. Moreau takes no pleasure or sadness in the torturing of animals even as he runs his `House of Pain'. It's the casualness of Moreau's disregard that makes him so frightening and the truth is that Wells never really hammers down on Moreau. Sure, he gets his in the end but it feels like Moreau gets off very light given his actions.

What really killed `The First Men in the Moon' for me was Wells near total disregard for science. The Time Machine was extremely thoughtful and The Island of Dr. Moreau is likewise well conceived and executed. Wells' somewhat formal style of writing bored me in `The First Men in the Moon' but here it's a great contrast to the horrific nature of Dr. Moreau's experiments and his `House of Pain'. It somewhat reminds me of Lovecraft who also wrote in a very elevated manner even as he described the most surreal and grotesque events. I enjoyed this book much more than anticipated and would highly recommend it. Like most of Wells books it can be read through fairly quickly but will likely stick in your mind for a long time.

In all of the nightmarish darkness, Wells shows the reader a glimpse behind the curtain of the possibilities of science. What would man made in the image of man look like? The work draws the reader into the self-serving and reckless attempts of men to play God. There are a number of different angles to look at this work from. I'll offer three main thoughts. Note that this review contains spoilers.

First, Wells sets up something of a parallel to the Judeo-Christian creation account in the Book of Genesis. Just as God uses dust to make a man, so Moreau uses animals to make a man. Just as Moreau makes something non-man at one point that slithers, so God makes Satan who takes a form of a serpent. Moreau gives the creatures a Law and God does the same with Adam and Eve. Wells shows how when the creatures break the Law, they don't gain something, they really lose something. So the Bible indicates that a broken Law only broke humanity. There are a few differences in the two storylines that should be noted. (1) The Bible teaches that men retain the image of God marred at the Fall, while Wells portrays the total de-evolution of the creatures into mere creatures. (2) The Creation account depicts a Perfect Being creating a lower being with similar characteristics as Himself, while Wells' account portrays the attempt of a very imperfect person to make something just like himself. The two missing elements in Wells' story then are (a) the perfection of the creator, and (b) the intentionally lower nature of the creation. (3) The end of the story is one where the creatures eliminate the creator in Wells' work, but in the Bible, the Creator sacrifices Himself in order to restore His creatures. This element of self-sacrifice and hope is significantly missing from Wells' story. In the end, Wells offers the reader a look at the dark side of the Bible. It is an account of a dark creation, a creation of man in the image of man rather than man in the image of God. And perhaps it is this notion that is one of the scariest to me.

Second, this work provides us with a glimpse into a world where science alone trumps questions of ethics and morals and souls. The metaphysical is bent to the will of the physical. The "I can" answer drowns out the "I should." It is a sober reminder of where our world of scientific progress often proceeds without checks and balances. This line of thinking is spelled out in a more modern manner in A Brave New World. As the potentials of science are opened before us, the more we should be questioning the danger we are putting ourselves and others into with our experimentation. Hitler's experimentation alone should have taught us this.

Finally, this work probes the fascinating question of what makes man so different from animals. Throughout the story, the animals look away from men and submit to humans. For all of Moreau's experimentation, there is something wholly other about the animals. Moreau actually succeeds at times to come close to physical human representations, but yet there are significant areas of difference. This topic alone is worth considering in closer detail as one reads.

In summary, this is a book for the thinker. One who wants to dive deep into questions of humanity and science and God will find this book stimulating. If you're looking for a good story, you will find a decent one as well. Oh, and if you're young and imaginative and you don't like nightmares, you probably don't want to read this book until you're like 20...or older...or never.

A sinister book that is absolutely true still today. At the end of the 19th century surgical attempts and experiments permitted some animals to be transformed into evolved forms of their species close to human beings. He is an animalistic Frankenstein, this Doctor Moreau.

These evolved animals could speak which is impossible since they could not have the phonatory, articulatory and brain capabilities necessary for language. But the idea enables the first level of the fable. And it is a fable at the time that could become a nightmare. Moreau's attempts were only surgical before anesthetics and antibiotics. It means it was highly improbable.

The next stage is that Dr Moreau, through some kind of hypnosis impresses into their minds a "religion" of sorts in two directions: first fear, the fear to go back to the house of pains, that is to say Moreau's own laboratory, to suffer some more in the hands of Moreau who is seen as the master, the only authority, a god of sorts in other words. The second trend is the learning by heart and the ceaselessly repeating of a catechism that implies they respect some rules because they are human. In fact it is the reverse of what they say in this catechism: by repeating these rules they can pretend they are human.

But strangely enough the ruin of this world will come from the very assistant of Dr Moreau. He will bring from his last voyage to Africa some rabbits he will free in the jungle and a man that had been picked up in the middle of the ocean more than half dead. The rabbits will multiply for sure but some of the monstrosities created by Moreau from carnivores will get a taste of that blood and that is one of the rules in the catechism that is thus broken. Once this rule is broken, why not the others, and once this rule is broken by one creature why not by other creatures. This creates a rebellion among the more or less controlled "society" of these monstrosities and against the humans who dominate them with whips, guns and fear.

This will be amplified by the escape of the latest animal, a leopard, from the laboratory before the transformation is complete. The hunt for that imperfect animal leads to the death of Dr Moreau and then the complete crumbling of the island.

The assistant becomes crazy and spreads alcohol among the beasts, burns the two boats that could provide an escape and some of the carnivores can attack and kill the assistant.

Pendrick, the rescued guest saved from a shipwreck, has only one solution: to escape after killing the carnivore that is most menacing. But to escape he needs a boat of some kind. His building a raft is not that successful but a current brings a small boat with two dead people aboard. He is able to recuperate the boat and escape. Within three days he is picked up by a ship.

But back with humans he finds he has developed a taste for solitude, mistrust for humans and that no one wants to believe him, not even the slightest allusions about this island.

But this book is still valid for us because with our surgical science and technology, with our anesthetics and our genetic engineering we can do exactly what Dr Moreau tried to do, but without the pain and without the drawbacks. We easily can clone for instance or graft one animal element onto the genes of a human being, or vice versa and develop animals with human physiological and physical characteristics, and vice versa, humans with animal characteristics.

In fact we can wonder at times if our neighbors are not genetically modified organisms when we see how animal-like their behavior may be when they bark or ululate or go for a taste of blood on an accident scene or on a crime scene.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

A man is taken to a remote island after being rescues from a shipwreck. The island is populated by two men, a Mr. Montgomery and a Dr. Moreau, along with some other beings that the narrator (the rescued) finds hard to identify. Eventually he discovers that these are creatures that Dr. Moreau has created through experiments in his lab. Moreau feels that he can eventually create human like creatures from beasts which he pieces together from other creatures, a swine with a dog, for example. The beasts, under the oversight of Moreau, have begun to develop an almost human culture that includes pseudo-religious chanting and worshiping of Moreau. However, over time they tend to return to their original animal nature and they struggle against edicts to eat flesh or walk on all fours. Some have become subservient while others hint at rebelliousness. It is this placing of human vs. animal nature within the story that echoes similar struggles within the human species and alludes to some of the timeless debates about the nature and origin of humanity. When Pendrick (the one rescued) returns to civilization, he finds it hard to distinguish his human neighbors from the sub- and semi-human beasts form the island. In this confusion, the blurring between human and animal nature is expressed and reminds the reader of times when one can act more like other, in both directions. The book is a captivating and disturbing success.

Anne's House of Dreams is the fifth book in L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables series. The book begins with Anne and Gilbert's wedding at Green Gables, and chronicles the first few years of their lives together through happiness and hardship.

Despite the fact that Anne and Gilbert finally seem to get their happy ending in Anne's House of Dreams, some of the magic of the earlier books is lost in this novel. I can't really put my finger on any one thing and say, "that's it - that's where it went wrong," but something is definitely missing.

Anne, of course, is still Anne - a young woman with a enviable zest for life, who seems to touch the lives of everyone around her - but one thing has changed: she's forsaken her creative dreams for a set of different dreams. It was a switch from the Anne I've come to know and love, and I didn't really care for it. Montgomery has also created another fabulously eccentric cast of characters, but they don't seem as well-drawn as past characters.

Thankfully Montgomery's writing is still beautiful. She was a master of descriptive and lyrical fiction:
"The garret was a shadowy, suggestive, delightful place, as all garrets should be. Through the open window, by which Anne sat, blew the sweet, scented, sun-warm air of the August afternoon; outside, poplar boughs rustled and tossed in the wind; beyond them were the woods, where Lover's Lane wound it's enchanted path, and the old apple orchard, which still bore it's rosy harvests munificently." Can't you just picture it? The one thing that remains wonderful about this series is Montgomery's wonderful style of writing.

Although it is not my favorite, Anne's House of Dreams is still worth reading. This novel has lost a little of the "feel" of the earlier books, but still makes a good addition to Anne's story.

The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells is narrated by a man called Edward Prendick. In the start of the story he goes on a dinghy because the ship he is on called "Lady Vain", which is sailing from Callao, sinks into the ocean after running into another ship. He is picked up by another ship and dropped off at an island along with a cargo of animals. The island is inhabited by a Dr. Moreau, his assistant Montgomery, and some other servants who look strangely animal like. He is led to a room to stay in and told that the island isn't visited often. He eventually finds out that Doctor Moreau is performing surgeries on animals. Edward Prendick has heard of Doctor Moreau and remembers that he got in trouble a while back for his grotesque experiments with animals.

This book is interesting because Doctor Moreau's goal which is to make animals as intelligent as humans, is something which may be accomplishable in the future through genetic engineering. Currently scientists are doing Moreau-like experiments where they genetically engineer animals for new traits. I'm totally against genetically engineering humans to be animal-like, which is what the narrator at one point in the novel fears Doctor Moreau is doing, but I have nothing against experiments to give animals the mental capacity of human beings. It would be interesting if humans were not the only intelligent and speaking animal using tools.

Most of the new characters are very entertaining and have great stories, the memorable 'Captain Jim' could have his own novel! The stories of the new characters take up a lot of the book, but the worst part is that Anne is changed. She is a good housewife--but a housewife only; it seems her aspirations are gone. She refuses to write a book for a friend because "she can only write fairy stories". What were the years at Redmond for? Her childhood/adolescent dreams? The joy she felt after having a story published during college? She also comes close to groveling at Gilbert's feet. For example, in one chapter, Anne strongly disagrees with a subject that could make her new friend's life dark and difficult. She shows her firey temper and opinion then--but when all works out as Gilbert said it would, she apologizes profusely. Not for her temper; but for disagreeing and saying that he was wrong. I really miss the peppy Anne of the first three books. Thus, read the book to get the whole Anne story--but get it from the library.

These days, the premise of genetic manipulation and moral complexities on an island may sound intriguing if not derivative. Think "Jurassic Park" and "Lord of the Flies." In this case, though, the author predates those novels by decades, creating a scientific thriller that became a building block for generations to come.

Prendick becomes a castaway of sorts on an uncharted island, and soon discovers man-beasts that show uncommon intelligence if not disturbing signs of experimentation. Soon, he meets Dr. Moreau and Montgomery, men intent on exploring the possibilities of vivisection, blending mankind with animals. Horrified, he worries that he will be next on the doctor's table in the House of Pain. Instead, the Beast People begin reverting to their bestial states and turning on their human lords, slowly rejecting the Law that the cold-hearted doctor has instilled, through hypnotism, into their brains. Moreau, Montgomery, and Prendick become the endangered species.

Told as a first-person account, "The Island of Dr. Moreau" is my first venture into the writing of HG Wells. I'm surprised by the readability, considering its date and British origins. Their is little of the pretentious dialect we see and hear in British entertainment.

While Wells seems to wrestle here with a reconciliation of a religious society in the late 1800s and the emergence of evolutionary theory, he keeps the story fast-paced and entertaining. He seems to push against the ideas of an angry, distant God, as well as the ramifications of mankind in the throes of Darwinism. In his own words, he called the story a "youthful blasphemy," though it seems to be more an honest questioning of how and/or if science and faith could work hand in hand.

Dated as some of the scientific aspects may be, this is a clear stepping stone to many of the novels of the last few years. Crichton and company owe Wells a huge debt, and as for me, I'll be picking up more of his books.

I wanted to read this story after we found a used DVD of the movie version with Val Kilmer and Marlon Brando. I often like to read the original material to see how it compares to movie interpretations. What surprised me, was how much I enjoyed the book, given that the movie is hardly Oscar material.

HG Wells was ahead of his time. This book is not long, but it is still timely, thought provoking and very, if not MORE relevant than ever, even though it was written in 1898. It is simply the story of a man stranded on a remote Pacific island where a scientist has been mutilating animals in an effort to artificially create human-like creatures. Though the details of the technology have changed, the morality has not. Though I haven't seen it, I heard the Science Channel had a special called "Humanzee" and on the commercial for the program a scientist said, "its only a matter of time before somebody fuses a human with a chimpanzee". I immediately thought of this book.

Why anyone would WANT to fuse different species together is beyond me. In this book, Wells explores the horrors and twisted mentality that lurked behind those horrors. To me, this book was more about the moral issues of this question, than the technology of it. Is it ok to be a god and manipulate life itself? The creatures on this island are Frankenstiens and Moreau is equivelant to Dr. Frankenstien. Just because you CAN do something technologically speaking, does it mean you should?

For anyone interested, here are some basic observations about the movie vs. book:

For one thing, Dr. Moreau is not the kindly, fat, cuddly, almost lovable and forgivable character we see int he movie. He doesn't love these creatures he's made. This is a major difference in my mind because it makes the story so much darker. Val Kilmer played Montgomery's character more or less as I pictured him in the book, (though in the book he's an alcoholic, not a drug addict). Montgomery in the book misses London and seems to feel "stuck" or "trapped" on the island, where as in the movie, he doesn't seem to mind being away from his homeland. That alters him slightly, but not as much as Moreau is different in each version.

The Beast People are also different between book and movie and some of it has to do with the difference in technology between then and now and some of it has to do with Moreau being different in his attitude between the book and movie. Overall, we don't get to know the Beast People as individuals too well, though in both cases, the hyiena is a bad guy.

All in all I really love this story, and though the make up is goofy in the movie and Brandon is way too kindly, I enjoy both versions of the story.

I knew the high level concept of this book from allusions in other stories and movies, but I'd never read the original novel. It was a bit different from what I expected.

The writing style is very accessible and fluid while also being jam-packed with very vivid and detailed descriptions as well as some in-depth scientific and moralistic discussions. The first few pages were a little slow, but the rest of the book, except for a paragraph here and there, flew by and kept me very hooked.

The story is presented as a written report from the point of view of a narrator who finds himself stranded on the island for a time after some disasters at sea. The narrator has some scientific background which lends to very analytical and in-depth commentary.

Without adding any real spoilers, the summary is this: Doctor Moreau, after being chased out of London for his practices, is living on an island in the pacific conducting outrageous experiments. Our narrator, Pendrick, finds the island populated with creatures that are neither completely human nor completely bestial...they are aberrations....creatures partially human and partially beasts....the face of a man with almost snout-like nose and lips, pointed hairy ears, elongated torso and shorter than normal legs, etc., etc., etc. The horrors and grotesque nature of the experiments are explored in depth and naturally progress to some rather disturbing conclusions.

I rather enjoyed the story and found myself immersed in the plot and the concepts. My only real complaint by the end of the book was that it all ended too quickly. I would have loved another 50 or 100 pages. Still, it is a tightly woven tale with a lot of meet in it to leave you thinking.

Wells presents a thoughtful narrative addressing some of the social concerns of his day through this science-fiction story. At that point in history (late 1800s), this was all seen as fiction but based on the fears people had of experiments in the medical community. It's even more potent now, since some 30-50 years after the book, the Nazis engaged in similar "scientific" experimentation during the Holocaust (not with the same results, but with a similar type of horror upon society).

I really liked the way the book finished up. In the last few pages, we find our narrator trying to sort through everything he's witnessed and come to terms with it. I really enjoyed the way Wells shows him trying to recognize "humanity" in people and distinguish between the "human" and the "animal."

A great read.

*****
4.5 stars (out of 5)

The genius of British writer H.G. Wells was able to see the future. He as a true humanist, warned mankind from tragic mistakes, constantly talking about it in his novels. And of course the piece "The Island of Dr Moreau" is a warning to all of us. What is it? In the novel Dr. Moreau presented as a brilliant scientist who could turn the animal in people. But here's the thing! It's not able to destroy them in animal instincts. Against nature is impossible to go. And the price at which Moreau had paid for his ideas, was very high. He was the victim of those creatures, which he created with his own hands. This novel immortal masterpiece for all times!

Like most people I have seen this as movie years ago but it didn't haunt me half as deeply as the small novel itself. In size it's a sliver of a book but its depth goes beyond the short amount of pages. The beginning was little tough to get into but transformed into a magnificent story that kept me up for two nights in a row. Even though this was written over a hundred years ago the tale is still fresh and shocking, waking up immense pity and outrage at what people are capable of. Like the story says, the difference between man and beast is that man can lie...but both are capable of monstrosities but not for the same reason. H.G Wells was known to paint a rather melancholic and pessimistic picture of man's footprint on nature and animals and even ourselves; strangely I have always bonded with that dark side of reality. It's true, we can destroy more than create, or perhaps create while destroying precious creatures and resources.

I love all sorts of island stories, where someone is literally stranded with no means of escape and at the mercy of whatever lurks in the deep jungles and caves. In this story, a small unnamed island is populated by strangely misshapen men, resembling animals more than humans. Ran by two scientists, Moreau and Montgomery, it's an insane place where new law rules and where animals are turned into people. Or so they think, when Edward Prendick, a victim of a nasty ship wreck gets rescued and taken to the island he uncovers horror that almost claim his sanity. He sees that there is no way out, he's trapped in a place where normal doesn't exist, a new world populated with half man and half beasts, with volatile emotions and restrictions. I enjoyed discovering the islands secrets with Edward, and many emotions shook me as I read. Page 98 was perhaps the most disturbing, the memory stuck in my head, especially since I have pets at home, I can tell when one is happy and when it's distressed and this book is full of distress

After reading this I am hungry for more of H.G. Wells and his probing mind, the ideas are still great today, after all, a good writer is priceless no matter what century he or she lives in.

- Kasia S.

One cannot go wrong with HG Wells and Dr. Monreau!! I am embarrassed that I had not read the book up until now, but was pleasantly surprised by the flow.

I had seen a loose interpretation film and glad to see the contrast that is cast from the original version.

HG Wells left the story wide open for me to use my imagination. The word picture of the characters were clear enough to give me an idea of the hybrid man-animals that were created by Dr. Monreau and Mr. Montgomery, but still let me fill in the gaps to my liking.

You will feel yourself take to the man-animal creations and struggle with the idea of what is it to be human and how, or if that can be harnessed, taught or evolved artificially. Maybe we will never know, but for me I believe it is unique to be human and it is something that we will not see in other species no matter how far along we move forward with science.

This story provides one with the question of what is it to be human and lets your run with and make your own conclusion as the story comes to a close.

Finally, like other reviewers, I urge you not to see the film first because it will pigeon-tail your imagination.

"Anne's House of Dreams" is my second least favorite of L. M. Montgomery's novels in the Anne of Green Gables series, which does not mean it is not a first-rate novel. For me, I guess it was a bit anticlimactic for Anne and Gilbert to finally get married. But then I read the books in the order they are numbered and not the order in which Montgomery wrote them, in which case I would have skipped "Anne of Windy Poplars" and would therefore not have been bothered by all that time between the engagement and the wedding as Anne waits three years for Gilbert to complete his medical degree.

The newlyweds move into their House of Dreams at Four Winds Harbour and start their life together. For the first time Anne is more of an observer than a participant, as the two main characters of the book turn out to be the storytelling Captain Jim the local lighhouse keeper and the tragic but romantic figure of Leslie Moore. Comic relief is provided by the audacious Miss Cornelia, who is most decidedly in the Rachely Lynde mode. The most fascinating part of the novel for me is that the only way you can tell Anne is about to have a baby is that she stops going outside and Marilla shows up for a visit (and I have to admit I was shocked, shocked I tell you, that her son's first name is James rather than Matthew!). Perhaps no other aspect of Montgomery's work gives us as good an indication that she is writing about another time. Forutnately, once you know the code you can be quicker to pick up the hints in the future.

There is a sense in which "Anne's House of Dreams" is the last real L.M. Montgomery story about Anne Shirley. Obviously that is true just because her name is now Anne Blythe, but after this novel the emphasis will be more on Anne's children and their young friends than our beloved red-haired orphan. Consequently, "Anne's House of Dreams" is very much a transitional book in the series. It is nice to say that if this is the "low" point in the series, other writers should be so lucky with their high points. Given Montgomery's own marriage, which turned out to have more than its share of problems, having her write a story of a happily married couple has an additional level of poignancy.

I had been meaning to read this for years, having liked the old movie adaption "Island of Lost Souls." For a book that is over 100 years old, it reads surprisingly easily for those (like myself) unaccustomed to classic literature. Every now and then there is a word or phrase that seems odd and/or unfamiliar but it doesn't distract from what is ultimately a 'can't put it down' page-turning adventure. This short first-person narrative can easily be read in a sitting or two, and this is coming from someone who doesn't read quickly.

In addition to being exciting, this story is haunting and disturbing. As many have pointed out, even more than a century later it remains relevant in ways that H.G. Wells might not've imagined. Not only does it explore the theme of animal cruelty, it also focuses on humankind's capacity to attempt to control nature in potentially dangerous ways. The narrator, Prendick, is very relatable throughout because the way he tells his story, we are exposed to the horrors of the island the way he experienced them. But the really tragic figures are the animal/human hybrids who are profoundly confused by their human attributes. Wells manages to make Dr. Moreau himself less an evil villian than a brilliant scientist who has lost sight of any conventional ethical boundaries. The passage where Moreau explains his motives is chilling for just how sane this demented character comes across.

Highly recommended - especially for those, like myself, wanting to sample some classic science-fiction oriented writing but aren't sure where to start. You can't go wrong with this one.

From School Library Journal
Grade 6 Up-L. M. Montgomery fans will be delighted by Barbara Caruso's narration of the fifth volume in the series (Indy, 2001). It follows the red-headed heroine and her new husband, Dr. Gilbert Blythe, to the snug little cottage that is their first home at Four Winds Harbor on Prince Edward Island. There's laughter, heartache, and unexpected turnabouts with new friends such as lighthouse keeper Captain Jim, and neighbors, Cornelia and Leslie. There's sorrow after the death of the couple's first child, and happiness after their healthy son is born. The story is liberally peppered with sketches of other memorable islanders and views of family life around the turn of the 20th century. Caruso's spirited and versatile narration brings to life diverse character traits such as Anne's zest for life, Cornelia's crusty opinions, and Leslie's soft, sometimes fearful breathlessness. This story will be appreciated by anyone who likes their happy-ending stories wrapped in old fashioned values. A great choice for all school and public libraries.-Barbara Wysocki, Cora J. Belden Library, Rocky Hill, CT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal
This 1917 volume is the latest of the publisher's inexpensive hardcover editions of Montgomery's adventures of Anne Shirley, which began with Anne of Green Gables.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Probably my least favorite of the series thus far, but it was sad, yet happy, and interesting. Anne and Gilbert get married and move to the home they dreamed up. Gilbert is a Doctor and Anne wants to make a family. They befriend a few people where they live and some are quite unique and depressing characters. Very sad tales in this. As a woman who married her high school sweetheart and had children with him, I felt in many ways I could relate and in others I felt "that's so tragic". It was definitely no children's book (in fact I'd be so very confused if I had read this as a child as I had wanted to in the past). More like 2.5 stars for me, but I rounded the rating up. Captain Jim was awesome.

More of a horror than science fiction, THE ISLAND OF DR MOREAU is a disturbing and unforgettable book. Wells had a knack for making his stories come to life through the voice of the narrator, whom, as Pendrick in this book, seems like he's telling the story of something that really did happen. You can almost feel the emotion behind the words as Pendrick tells his tale. The almost-human creations of Moreau are nothing less than freaky. Both scarily mysterious and horribly familiar, these creatures evoke conflicting emotion in the reader. Should they just be put out of their misery? or encouraged to live? You can't help feeling both horror and pity for these very disturbing characters.

While it is a short book, it feels complete, without any unnecessary inclusions, while still telling the story in its entirety. Wells knew the lessons he wanted to teach and the buttons he wanted to press, and accomplished his goals. The implications of man playing God, the reason of our religion, and the definitions of humanity are powerful messages that you can't help but absorb when reading this book. One thing, I wouldn't call this book an argument against science, but against tearing down the boundaries around the definition of humanity.

Take a couple of days and read this one for fun. A great example of Wells' work and an enjoyable novel.

The Island of Dr. Moreau was originally published in 1896. I had not previously read it, nor had I seen any of the several film versions, although I was familiar with the basic story. It has inspired untold variations on the "mad doctor tampers with the laws of nature" theme.

Wells does not really address the hard science of the story, but that really isn't a problem. Going back in time through literature, the "science" in science fiction operated in increasingly broad strokes.

The novel was not as engaging a read as I'd anticipated. One doesn't really feel much if any suspense, although that might have been a different story a hundred years ago.

However, the novel does stick in the mind, almost hauntingly, and causes one to think about some of its themes (beyond the obvious themes of eugenics, genetic engineering, and the ethics of medical research), particularly human nature and what it means to be human. The main character's reactions when he returns to human society are quite interesting.

On an interesting historical note, the publication of this novel coincided with a massive movement to abolish vivisection in Great Britain.

Ultimately, The Island of Dr. Moreau is an engaging read and one of the cornerstones of science fiction.

RECOMMENDED

After reading The War of the Worlds a couple years back, I was very turned off to H.G. Wells. I mean, what an awful ending to that story. I remember feeling like all of the events and various moving parts in the story were building to a big, beautiful, explosive climax, and then the next minute it was over and I'm left standing there confused and angry.

Thankfully, Island of Dr. Moreau has restored my faith in Wells.

The novel hooked me right in with this structure of a story within a story, and the style of a true and scientific account kept me intrigued throughout. Plus, it was violent and animalistic. It did a lot of interesting exploring into the human psyche and condition, not just about our inner animal, but about our scientific curiosities, our behaviors in various situations, etc.

That's not even mentioning all of the fascinating topics Wells broached that are so timeless to have spawned many copycat stories. Sometimes in reading classics after having read and been exposed to so many stories that seem to descend directly from said classic, it can be difficult for the original story to really grab my attention. That was not at all the case here; Wells original seems to withstand the test of time and even survive a critique from myself of the ADD and video game generation.

Bravo, H.G.

This book is one of a relatively small number of stories that could all be considered prototypes of the "mad scientist" subgenre of the science fiction genre. (Some of the others are "Frankenstein", by Mary Shelley, "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea", by Jules Verne, and "Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde", by Robert Louis Stevenson.) As such, there are many elements of the story that to a modern reader may seem trite and overused; what is necessary for the reader to understand is that these concepts were NOT trite and overused at the time; this is one of the writers who CREATED these concepts, which are so powerful that they've been copied by later writers until they seem downright hackneyed. If a modern writer had written this story, I'd rate it two or three stars for a fairly competent style, by no higher because it adds nothing new to the genre. But as it is, it's one of the originals, and is worth reading if for no other purpose than to be able to see the references back to it in later novels, such as "Jurassic Park", by Michael Crichton.
If you're bored with the "mad scientist" subgenre, you probably needn't read this book. But if you're at all curious to see one of the books that originated the concept, this is an excellent early example of the idea. And if you are a fan of the genre, this book is definitely a must-read.

There are two things I associated with H.G. Wells. One is The Time Machine, which of course was the primary inspiration for my all-time favourite TV show, Doctor Who. The other is The Island Of Dr. Moreau, which like the Time Machine, I saw as a pioneer literary work in science fiction.
After being picked up from the dinghy of the Lady Vain by a trader ship, Edward Prendick goes to a small unchartered island in the Pacific, where he finds some very strange looking natives, including a serving man with furred pointed ears. The island is run by Dr. Moreau. Could this be the same Dr. Moreau who had to leave England in a hurry because of a scandal involving experimentation on dogs?
The contrast between man and animal is one theme here, as seen in the natives' laws: "Not to go on all Fours; that is the Law. Are we not men?" or "Not to claw Bark of Trees; that is the Law. Are we not men?" No we are Devo. Sorry, wrong reference. Prendick is also called a "five man," as in five fingers. What makes men different from animals? Reasoning, language, being bipedal, trimmed nails, and sophisticated in manner, although that last point is certainly debatable.
However, most people are so keen to see this as a pioneering sci-fi literary miss the intellectual background. After Darwin's theory of evolution started to crack the foundations of Victorian and religious thinking. It seemed that we were closer to apes than to God. However, humanism also reared its head again, and Moreau becomes another Dr. Frankenstein in playing God. Small wonder why Wells later called this a "an exercise in youthful blasphemy," though it's interesting that he initially became a disciple of pro-evolution scientist Thomas Huxley--in the novel, Prendick himself claims to be a student of Huxley.
So far, this book has been remade into at least four movies, none of which have faithfully adapted it. There was even a Dr. Who story, Timelash, which borrowed heavily from it, and the theme of man usurping God's place at his own peril comes through.
This book has some relevancy today, as stated in the afterword by Brian Aldiss: �The spirit of Dr. Moreau is alive and well and living in these United States. These days, he would be state-funded.�

I had been meaning to read this for years, having liked the old movie adaption "Island of Lost Souls." For a book that is over 100 years old, it reads surprisingly easily for those (like myself) unaccustomed to classic literature. Every now and then there is a word or phrase that seems odd and/or unfamiliar but it doesn't distract from what is ultimately a 'can't put it down' page-turning adventure. This short first-person narrative can easily be read in a sitting or two, and this is coming from someone who doesn't read quickly.

In addition to being exciting, this story is haunting and disturbing. As many have pointed out, even more than a century later it remains relevant in ways that H.G. Wells might not've imagined. Not only does it explore the theme of animal cruelty, it also focuses on humankind's capacity to attempt to control nature in potentially dangerous ways. The narrator, Prendick, is very relatable throughout because the way he tells his story, we are exposed to the horrors of the island the way he experienced them. But the really tragic figures are the animal/human hybrids who are profoundly confused by their human attributes. Wells manages to make Dr. Moreau himself less an evil villian than a brilliant scientist who has lost sight of any conventional ethical boundaries. The passage where Moreau explains his motives is chilling for just how sane this demented character comes across.

Highly recommended - especially for those, like myself, wanting to sample some classic science-fiction oriented writing but aren't sure where to start. You can't go wrong with this one.

From School Library Journal
Grade 6 Up-L. M. Montgomery fans will be delighted by Barbara Caruso's narration of the fifth volume in the series (Indy, 2001). It follows the red-headed heroine and her new husband, Dr. Gilbert Blythe, to the snug little cottage that is their first home at Four Winds Harbor on Prince Edward Island. There's laughter, heartache, and unexpected turnabouts with new friends such as lighthouse keeper Captain Jim, and neighbors, Cornelia and Leslie. There's sorrow after the death of the couple's first child, and happiness after their healthy son is born. The story is liberally peppered with sketches of other memorable islanders and views of family life around the turn of the 20th century. Caruso's spirited and versatile narration brings to life diverse character traits such as Anne's zest for life, Cornelia's crusty opinions, and Leslie's soft, sometimes fearful breathlessness. This story will be appreciated by anyone who likes their happy-ending stories wrapped in old fashioned values. A great choice for all school and public libraries.-Barbara Wysocki, Cora J. Belden Library, Rocky Hill, CT
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal
This 1917 volume is the latest of the publisher's inexpensive hardcover editions of Montgomery's adventures of Anne Shirley, which began with Anne of Green Gables.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Probably my least favorite of the series thus far, but it was sad, yet happy, and interesting. Anne and Gilbert get married and move to the home they dreamed up. Gilbert is a Doctor and Anne wants to make a family. They befriend a few people where they live and some are quite unique and depressing characters. Very sad tales in this. As a woman who married her high school sweetheart and had children with him, I felt in many ways I could relate and in others I felt "that's so tragic". It was definitely no children's book (in fact I'd be so very confused if I had read this as a child as I had wanted to in the past). More like 2.5 stars for me, but I rounded the rating up. Captain Jim was awesome.

More of a horror than science fiction, THE ISLAND OF DR MOREAU is a disturbing and unforgettable book. Wells had a knack for making his stories come to life through the voice of the narrator, whom, as Pendrick in this book, seems like he's telling the story of something that really did happen. You can almost feel the emotion behind the words as Pendrick tells his tale. The almost-human creations of Moreau are nothing less than freaky. Both scarily mysterious and horribly familiar, these creatures evoke conflicting emotion in the reader. Should they just be put out of their misery? or encouraged to live? You can't help feeling both horror and pity for these very disturbing characters.

While it is a short book, it feels complete, without any unnecessary inclusions, while still telling the story in its entirety. Wells knew the lessons he wanted to teach and the buttons he wanted to press, and accomplished his goals. The implications of man playing God, the reason of our religion, and the definitions of humanity are powerful messages that you can't help but absorb when reading this book. One thing, I wouldn't call this book an argument against science, but against tearing down the boundaries around the definition of humanity.

Take a couple of days and read this one for fun. A great example of Wells' work and an enjoyable novel.

The Island of Dr. Moreau was originally published in 1896. I had not previously read it, nor had I seen any of the several film versions, although I was familiar with the basic story. It has inspired untold variations on the "mad doctor tampers with the laws of nature" theme.

Wells does not really address the hard science of the story, but that really isn't a problem. Going back in time through literature, the "science" in science fiction operated in increasingly broad strokes.

The novel was not as engaging a read as I'd anticipated. One doesn't really feel much if any suspense, although that might have been a different story a hundred years ago.

However, the novel does stick in the mind, almost hauntingly, and causes one to think about some of its themes (beyond the obvious themes of eugenics, genetic engineering, and the ethics of medical research), particularly human nature and what it means to be human. The main character's reactions when he returns to human society are quite interesting.

On an interesting historical note, the publication of this novel coincided with a massive movement to abolish vivisection in Great Britain.

Ultimately, The Island of Dr. Moreau is an engaging read and one of the cornerstones of science fiction.

RECOMMENDED

After reading The War of the Worlds a couple years back, I was very turned off to H.G. Wells. I mean, what an awful ending to that story. I remember feeling like all of the events and various moving parts in the story were building to a big, beautiful, explosive climax, and then the next minute it was over and I'm left standing there confused and angry.

Thankfully, Island of Dr. Moreau has restored my faith in Wells.

The novel hooked me right in with this structure of a story within a story, and the style of a true and scientific account kept me intrigued throughout. Plus, it was violent and animalistic. It did a lot of interesting exploring into the human psyche and condition, not just about our inner animal, but about our scientific curiosities, our behaviors in various situations, etc.

That's not even mentioning all of the fascinating topics Wells broached that are so timeless to have spawned many copycat stories. Sometimes in reading classics after having read and been exposed to so many stories that seem to descend directly from said classic, it can be difficult for the original story to really grab my attention. That was not at all the case here; Wells original seems to withstand the test of time and even survive a critique from myself of the ADD and video game generation.

Bravo, H.G.

This book is one of a relatively small number of stories that could all be considered prototypes of the "mad scientist" subgenre of the science fiction genre. (Some of the others are "Frankenstein", by Mary Shelley, "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea", by Jules Verne, and "Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde", by Robert Louis Stevenson.) As such, there are many elements of the story that to a modern reader may seem trite and overused; what is necessary for the reader to understand is that these concepts were NOT trite and overused at the time; this is one of the writers who CREATED these concepts, which are so powerful that they've been copied by later writers until they seem downright hackneyed. If a modern writer had written this story, I'd rate it two or three stars for a fairly competent style, by no higher because it adds nothing new to the genre. But as it is, it's one of the originals, and is worth reading if for no other purpose than to be able to see the references back to it in later novels, such as "Jurassic Park", by Michael Crichton.
If you're bored with the "mad scientist" subgenre, you probably needn't read this book. But if you're at all curious to see one of the books that originated the concept, this is an excellent early example of the idea. And if you are a fan of the genre, this book is definitely a must-read.

There are two things I associated with H.G. Wells. One is The Time Machine, which of course was the primary inspiration for my all-time favourite TV show, Doctor Who. The other is The Island Of Dr. Moreau, which like the Time Machine, I saw as a pioneer literary work in science fiction.
After being picked up from the dinghy of the Lady Vain by a trader ship, Edward Prendick goes to a small unchartered island in the Pacific, where he finds some very strange looking natives, including a serving man with furred pointed ears. The island is run by Dr. Moreau. Could this be the same Dr. Moreau who had to leave England in a hurry because of a scandal involving experimentation on dogs?
The contrast between man and animal is one theme here, as seen in the natives' laws: "Not to go on all Fours; that is the Law. Are we not men?" or "Not to claw Bark of Trees; that is the Law. Are we not men?" No we are Devo. Sorry, wrong reference. Prendick is also called a "five man," as in five fingers. What makes men different from animals? Reasoning, language, being bipedal, trimmed nails, and sophisticated in manner, although that last point is certainly debatable.
However, most people are so keen to see this as a pioneering sci-fi literary miss the intellectual background. After Darwin's theory of evolution started to crack the foundations of Victorian and religious thinking. It seemed that we were closer to apes than to God. However, humanism also reared its head again, and Moreau becomes another Dr. Frankenstein in playing God. Small wonder why Wells later called this a "an exercise in youthful blasphemy," though it's interesting that he initially became a disciple of pro-evolution scientist Thomas Huxley--in the novel, Prendick himself claims to be a student of Huxley.
So far, this book has been remade into at least four movies, none of which have faithfully adapted it. There was even a Dr. Who story, Timelash, which borrowed heavily from it, and the theme of man usurping God's place at his own peril comes through.
This book has some relevancy today, as stated in the afterword by Brian Aldiss: �The spirit of Dr. Moreau is alive and well and living in these United States. These days, he would be state-funded.�

How could anyone possibly give an H.G. Wells book, anything less than 5 stars? This may sound silly but I often wondered if Mister Wells had a time machine! His stories were/are years ahead of the time he wrote them. Some of his stories make one wonder if he indeed had a peek into the future! Doctor Moreau! A strange man, alienated from British society because of his illegal experiments. (More like weird experiments!) This rather small book, tells the tale of our mad (?) Doctor, inhabiting a secret island where he can continue with his experiments. He has found a way to breed man/animal creatures creating some of the weirdest species ever! Eventually, a stranger finds himself on Doctor Moreau's tropical island with no way off! As the story unfolds, the man finds out about the Doctors experimentation with animals and is horrified tremendously! He thinks the Doctor is a nutter to put it bluntly and is extremely scared of the unknown. The Doctors work is undoubtedly flawed though because his 'creatures' are a tad unhappy and therefore need to be controlled by the good doctor. The `happy conclusion' tells us, don't fool with mother-nature sir, or else! I recommend ALL books written by Mister Wells. He was an extraordinary man, way before his time!

"Anne's House of Dreams" is my least favorite of L. M. Montgomery's novels in the Anne of Green Gables series, which does not mean it is not a first-rate novel. For me, I guess it was a bit anticlimactic for Anne and Gilbert to finally get married, especially after it took three novels for the Anne girl to admit what everybody else knew from the start, that Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe were made for each other. But then I read the books in the order they are numbered and not the order in which Montgomery wrote them, in which case I would have skipped "Anne of Windy Poplars" and would therefore not have been bothered by all that time between the engagement and the wedding.
In this fifth Anne of Green Gables novel the newlyweds move into their House of Dreams and start their life together. For the first time Anne is more of an observer than a participant, as the two main characters of the book turn out to be the storytelling Captain Jim and the tragic but romantic figure of Leslie Moore. The most fascinating part of the novel is that the only way you can tell Anne is about to have a baby is that she stops going outside and Marilla shows up (and I have to admit I was shocked, shocked I tell you, that her son's first name is James rather than Matthew). Perhaps no other aspect of Montgomery's work gives us as good an indication that she is writing about another time.
After this volume the emphasis will be more on Anne's children and their friends than our beloved red-haired orphan, so "Anne's House of Dreams" is very much a transitional book in the series. As she becomes an adult and starts living a grown up life, Anne Shirley becomes less interesting to Montgomery than the children (and in "Rainbow Valley" the interesting ones are even the Blythe kids). It is nice to say that if this is the "low" point in the series, then other writers should be so lucky with their high points.

Wells' imagination is almost scary. Despite being written over one hundred years ago, Wells presents a tale chilling and relevant to this day. A great story in it's own right, it delves deeper into human technological and biology conflicts that have only intensified in recent years. With the onset of cloning, gene therapy, and genetic modifications, the issues spark debate to this day.
It starts off with Pendrick, shipwrecked, eventually arriving on the Island of Dr. Mareau and discovering strange beasts. These strange beasts were not natural though, but instead modified animals made up to look and act like humans. Without giving away the plot, the book then moves into action, while moving into such themes as insanity, animals versus humans, and the existence and treatment of god.
This book works as a simple fun filled novel with intrigue, suspense and action. It's strange to have a book of such magnitude provide so much simple enjoyment. Even without the deep literary and social meanings, this book stands out by itself. The only flaw is the somewhat antiquated language.
Of course, as a sort of added bonus, the insights and issues brought up provide a great addition. Such a book could easily be debated in literary and scientific circles. If such a book was used in my English classes, as opposed to such crud and Faulkner and Jane Austin, I might have actually enjoyed class.
The Island of Dr. Maruea is the best mixture of plot and intellectual enjoyment I read since Animal Farm.

Years ago I avidly read the thrilling fiction of Edgar Allan Poe, Jules Verne, and H. G. Wells. All three authors created highly imaginative, sometimes frightening stories. H. G. Wells was the more modern author and with some revisions to reflect modern biology and medicine, The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896) could easily be a contemporary horror story.
In this tale Wells employed the narrative style characteristic of nineteenth century fiction. The story is told by the only survivor of three men drifting aimlessly at sea with little water and food. The rescued Edward Prendick finds himself on a ship with a most unusual cargo - a menagerie of animals - all destined for a remote island. Unexpectedly, as a fellow traveler disembarks along with the caged animals, Prendick is forcefully cast ashore on this strange island, the island of Dr. Moreau.
Wells allows Prendick (and the reader) to gradually unveil the horrifying mystery of Dr. Moreau's isolated laboratory. This exciting blend of science fiction, horror, and mystery is surprisingly suspenseful.
H. G. Wells is best known for The War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man, The Time Machine, and The Island of Dr. Moreau. These four superb science fiction novels share the common theme of man overwhelmed by the potential of science for harm and evil. His entertaining stories are surprisingly provocative.
In his later years H. G. Wells became increasingly pessimistic about man's future. He refused to leave his home in Regent's Park during the German bombing of London. He died in 1946.
Hint: When searching for editions by title, check under Dr. Moreau and Dr Moreau and Doctor Moreau. These different spellings can yield different results.

This is certainly an interesting work, though not nearly as exciting or gripping as The Time Machine or War of the Worlds. For some reason, I had the notion in mind that this short novel was a "most dangerous game" type of story where the protagonist is hunted, but this is of course not true. Dr. Moreau is a scientist--a quite mad one, actually--whose life's work involves vivisection; in essence, he takes a plethora of animals and, through surgery and mental indoctrination of some sort, attempts--with varying success---to endow them with humanity. The result is a twisted menagerie of beasts who share both human and animal traits of myriad sorts. They can understand human speech, in fact, which has allowed the doctor to indoctrinate them into a worldview wherein he is the god whose laws must be obeyed. While the story of the protagonist, Prendrick, is interesting, from his initial shipwreck to his "rescue" and eventual escape, his main purpose in the story is to describe the inhabitants of this macabre island. As one may imagine, this isolated, fragile society eventually breaks down and the beasts regress more and more into their animal instincts, to the great detriment of the "god" Moreau and his rather pitiful assistant Montgomery.
Metaphors and broad, deep-reaching themes abound in this tale. While one can certainly make out an obvious theme concerning man's desire to play God and the negative consequences of such efforts by science, there are deeper and more mysterious conclusions one can draw about Wells' view of humanity itself. While this is certainly not a racist novel, one can conceivably see it as a warning against racial mixing, particularly in terms of the notion that the lower and more "bestial" traits will eventually win out over any "higher" traits imbued into a mixed creation, a common idea at that time. However, I tend to see the strange human-animal creations of Dr. Moreau as a microcosm of mankind itself. There is evil (or bestiality) present in all men which has the danger of erupting to the surface at any time; no set of external factors can make a truly good man. Society will always have a minority who are bestial in nature and who cannot be redeemed despite the best efforts of that society's members to form a perfect world. The tale is a rather unusual one for Wells, it would seem, particularly in terms of this seemingly negative interpretation of society itself. There are no good guys in this tale; every character is a victim; the experimentation (social as well as physiological) of Dr. Moreau is an unadulterated failure. Perhaps the conclusions I have drawn from reading this story are my own alone. The Island of Dr. Moreau, however, clearly shows the depths of Wells' thinking and his deep interest in society and its ills, and it challenges the reader to think about the negative consequences of genetic and social engineering. As always, H.G. Wells shows himself to be a far-reaching thinker and a man truly before his own time.

Although I loved and still love all the Anne books - I discovered them as a teen-ager and am still re-reading them every now and then - I especially love to re-read Anne's House of Dreams.

There are so many elements to make a good story! There is the romantic aspect of Anne and Gilbert setting up house together, then there are some of my very favorite characters - Captain Jim and Miss Cornelia. They certainly don't make them that way anymore! Between the four of them (five including Leslie) there are so many thought provoking discussions, and we get a fascinating view of life "on the harbor" for those times.

But what really sends this book way over the five star category is definitely Miss Cornelia! This is a character that not only is living and breathing throughout the book, you wish she would pop up in your living room! Wouldn't I love to meet her! If you like strong, independent women, and you thought that they were only a character of fiction (surely a hundred years ago women were meek and timid?), well, this book was written quite some time ago, and Miss Cornelia could almost put Gloria Steinhem to shame! Miss Cornelia is the strong, independant woman that you thought did not exist in those days - she owns her own house and fields, she manages very, very well, thank you very much, will not get married because she doesn't want a man telling her what to do, and certainly does not need a man to help her self-esteem! She also thinks that men were only put on this earth to enslave women, and the world would be much better off without them "believe me!") I love her favorite phrase "isn't that just like a man", it became part of my mental thinking process.

Certainly better than anything written today!

This is a book about a sailor named Edward Prendick who was traveling aboard a ship that was lost by a collision. There was only three men, but one went crazy and fell off the dinghy taking another man with him. Only Prendick remained, and he was saved by a passing boat and the man who saved him was Montgomery. The boat was headed for Hawaii but for some unfortunate reason Prendick and Montagomery had to get off on a small island occupied by Dr. Moreau. Dr. Moreau is a scientist, who has been forced out of England for his strange experiments. His experiments consist of taking animals and giving them human like intelligence and form. So now Prendick is stuck on the island with half human half aniaml creatures and that's when the adventure starts.
I had a good time reading this book because it is filled with exciting adventures and action. This book is a great book for anyone to read. My favorite part of the book is when all the creatures turn against Dr. Moreau. I liked this book a lot and I have nothing bad to say about it. I would recomend this book to anybody who likes science fiction books.

I was not planning on writing a review of this book, as I should have thought that a book this popular would have been reviewed well here by this point. As I looked through the fifty or so reviews, however, I realized that none of the reviewers had realized what the main idea of this book was, or if they had, they failed to mention it, and failing to mention the main point of a book in a review of the book is a rather poor practice, is it not?

The main point of this book was that Wells wanted us to wrestle with one assumption that science in his day was making, and still is today, namely that whatever we can do we should do. Just because scientific advancement has given us the ability to do things, does that mean we should? In Wells' day the hot topic was vivisection, so that is the practice discussed in this book, wrapped in the garb of a novel, and a very good novel at that. The same discussion is raging today with issues like stem cell research and cloning. Just because we can clone a human, does that mean science should do it? If not, why not? Because it violates humanity? If we are products of evolution what basis do we have for holding humanity as something that should not be violated?

These issues are the ones that Wells brings to bear in this book by having Moreau use vivisection to create (near) humans from animals. The horror of the new creations is that they are distorted humanity. They are the violated humanity, but why should we find that horrific? Dr. Moreau, the figure of rationality with no regard for emotion, conscience, or morality, has no problem with the creatures. He does not see why they are horrific to Prendick, the narrator of the story. It seems that Wells is saying that scientific rationalism has no basis for saying that we should not violate humanity in the interest of science. For those who hold to this scientific rationalism, the question of should does not even arise. In such a position, can is equal to should.

Of course, there are secondory points as well, such as man's ever persistent derire to shape the world around him to fit his will. Wells' point seems to be that our attempts to do this are doomed to failure, as nature simply refuses to be bent, just as Moreau's "humans" refused to stay human and kept reverting to their original animal state.

As for the literary quality of the book, it is of the same excellent quality of the rest of Wells fictional works. The sense of realness is still there. The best way I can think to describe it is that is writing seems have the exact opposite feel that of fairy tales. Fairy tales always seem magical, happy, and imaginative. Wells is extremely realistic, usually unhappy, and seems as if they were writings of someone who had really been through the things the narrator claims to have been through.

Overall grade: A

For those who love Anne of Green Gables, this book is one to cherish. It is the fifth book in the series. In the books between Green Gables and House of Dreams, Anne grows up, quarrels with Gilbert, goes to school, teaches, makes up with Gilbert, and gets engaged. In House of Dreams, Anne and Gilbert finally get married and settle down with a small medical practice in a cove on Prince Edward Island. They meet an interesting old lighthouse keeper with many stories to tell, Anne makes friends with Gilbert's patients and the townspeople, and gets pregnant. This is a marvelous love story, and one of the best of the series. I have been reading and re-reading these books since I was a child. I own the whole set, some in first editions, some in reading copies for friends. If you have read Anne of Green Gables, you will definitely love this book.

If you like science fiction, then this a book you have to read. H.G. Wells is regarded as the father science fiction. Some of his other works include The War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man, The First Men in the Moon. In The Island of Doctor Moreau we find Prendick, the main character, shipwrecked in the middle of the ocean, and is luckily found by a passing boat, which takes him to a mysterious island. In the island he encounters the full on mad scientist, Dr Moreau, who is conducting experiments with animals, turning them into what they call "the best people".

In the book, Wells demonstrates how morals aren't considered in scientific progress, at least in the book their not. He raises the question, of how far humans are willing to go for scientific advancement. In the book, Moreau is careless in his creations, and turns out to be a god like being to the monsters he created. He creates a society that views the laws he placed on them as a religion. The beast people know that if they don't follow the laws of Moreau, then they will be punished.

Each character in the book has his own personality and is quite different from the others, which offers a contrast between ideas regarding morality. Prendick goes against Monreau's ideas for example Monreau says: "To this day I have never troubled about the ethics of the matter. The study of Nature makes a man at last as remorseless as Nature." and Prendick says "You cannot imagine the strange colorless delight of these intellectual desires. The thing before you is no longer an animal, a fellow-creature, but a problem." Wells presents two opposing sides and lets the reader decide for themselves who is right and wrong. I like how wells does that because it always keeps at the tip of your toes.

Overall I really enjoyed this book because it raises a lot of questions and themes that we deal with in real life, like: class and government, scientific progress, law and more. I like the mysterious and dark feel of it. Things ultimately get resolved at the end, but with a few twists.
Definitely check t his book out.

Thanks to H.G. Wells for this and all the other amazing stories. Because I am now a writer myself, I have to thank H.G. Wells for writing
so many wonderful tales that took me to a special place and made me want to tell my own stories. Everyone person should have a mulittude
of this author's books handy to read and reread and then share with their children and grandchildren.

Finally got around to reading this. Especially after seeing the incredibly bad movie version with Marlon Brando.

It's a classic for a reason. So is the line, "Are we not men?".

This is the granddaddy of terrible experiments gone horribly wrong books. It's also a quick read. So read it already.

Like Mary Shelley's Dr. Frankenstein, another mad scientist (oh, all right--obsessed biological researcher) tries to create his own humanoid menagerie remote from society. Fired with Evolutionary fervor a youthful HGW presents smug civilization with a shocking portrayal of genius gone amuck--a direct warning of the dangers of pseudo-scientific zeal. Edward Prendick is the sympathetic but passive protagonist who barely survives a series of horrors: shipwreck and ordeal by lifeboat, only to be spit up on a hostile island, uninvited and suspiciously, barely tolerated.
Idealistic Prendick gradually discovers many bizarre secrets on this tropical island, for the man called Dr. Moreau (note that HGW has chosen a Frenchman to represent deranged mentality) acts both as God and father figures for his beast people. Even his failed physician, Montgomery, struggles to resist the natural urge to mingle and evolve downwards, which means reverting to lower life forms, which combine the worst of two species. Only late in this gripping novel does Prendick emerge as a proactive hero--passionate for humanity and ultiamtely self-preservation. HGW raises serious social issues in this book: the deliberate infliction of pain, morality re man's relationship with lower orders, vivsection, animal rights, alcohol abuse, and of course his psychological mania: obsession with pure knowledge at all cost.
Does Science (the white man's burden?) have the right or duty to play God and attempt to improve or rearrange Creation? Will all three men eventually revert to a lower type of anthropomorphic existence, casting aside the shackles of humanity, sinking into an inevitable moral morass on a par with Moreau's surgical freaks? Some uneven pacing aside, this book is one suspenseful and chilling package of moral challenges for the last (and this) century, served up for the true sci fi cultist's dining pleasure!

Náufrago, Edward Prendick, um cientista britânico, é resgatado por um barco que ia em direção à Ilha do Dr. Moreau.
Depois de uma luta com o capitão do barco, Prendick é forçado a penetrar na ilha, onde a curiosidade o compele a procurar a verdade sobre os estranhos experimentos do Dr. Moreau e de seu assistente Montgomery, na tentativa de transformar animais em seres humanos.
Essa estória aterrorizante de ficção científica de H. G. Well explora temas como crueldade, moralidade e o abuso da natureza pelo Homem, pois A ilha do Dr. Moreau nos leva ao abismo da natureza humana.
O que nos faz seres humanos?
O que, exatamente, separa o Homem do animal?
O leitor deverá se identificar mais com as feras do que com Moreau e Montgomery, pois não possuem consciência. Além disso, ficará indeciso se as feras são mais humanas do que os personagens "humanos".
As estórias de H. G. Wells refletem seus pensamentos e teorias sobre a humanidade e suas preocupações sobre a teoria da seleção natural; e seus impactos no conceito de Deus.
Enquanto Wells inclui elementos de horror e selvageria em sua estória, A ilha do Dr. Moreau é muito mais perturbadora. Não é um livro para se colocar de lado após sua leitura - ele alimenta os pensamentos do leitor.
Um trabalho que décadas a frente de seu tempo - atualíssimo com todas as discussões sobre pesquisas genéticas e direitos animais.

Until I read this book, I didn't know that a serious novel about human like animals existed. Certainly H.G. Wells is not most well known as one of the fathers of sci-fi for this novel. It was one of his first, published in 1896, and the book lovers of the time must have really found this work disturbing and shocking. Maybe that's why The Island of Dr. Moreau has been playing catch up to The Time Machine and War of the Worlds ever since. I admit that I myself found the basic idea in this book very cruel, but I realized that the book covered other issues as well. Besides being the novel about an insane scientist who tries the hand at playing God, this book evokes thoughts of social responsibilty and freedom of all living things. Also, it shows that sometimes who we think of as being authority really have no right to be, and deals with anarchy and revolution. But it is the basic plot that has the most effect. Why does Moreau torture animals so that can make them in the image of man? Dr. Moreau beats Victor Frankenstein on who is a more of a nutcase. Frankenstein intended for something good to come out of his work. Moreau did his experiments just for curiosity. He didn't expect for his creations to have any real purpose. He didn't care for them. And yet he brainwashes his creations to fear and respect him, to treat him like a god, and follow his laws. And another thought occurs. What really seperates man from beast? What causes humans to sometime commit violent and brutal acts? What does that account for? When I read this novel, the reality of what genetic cloning may become years from now passed through my mind. If genetics had been an established science in the 1890's, Wells could of utilized it in this book, but he would probably have created a controversy beyond any proportion. But certainly the ignorance of genes back then was not his fault, and he came up with probably the best substition: vivisection. Being the substitute of what was unknown and likely more plausible, vivisection was more than enough to shock Well's audience of reading about the blasphemous idea of creating "Beast-People". I am certain that people in 1896 weren't ready for it. Neither are we. That's what I think is the main reason that The Island of Dr. Moreau isn't as popular as H.G. Wells other novels. I found, however, that this was a worthwhile read because its suspense and creepiness intrigued me, and it made me think of some social issues. If you're a person who can bear reading a grotesque story of cruelty and suffering, I highly recommend this book.

The classic science fiction novel "The Island of Dr. Moreau" by H.G. Wells, is an eerie story set on an island inhabited by rejected experiments. The main character and narrator, Edward Prendick, is a British man who is left shipwrecked. He is rescued by Montgomery, a doctor who happenes to be sailing by, who takes him to the island where he lives. Once there, Prendick notices these strange beings that don't look entirely human. He meets Dr. Moreau, a very off scientist, and sees that there is something peculiar about what happens on the island. The Island of Dr. Moreau will keep you on your toes as you find out what creepy things happen on this island off the coast of Africa. Filled with graphic details, this novel will make any reader squirm when Dr.Moreau describes the process of vivisection. Will prendick ever make it off the island? I highlight recommend this book as H.G Wells does a spectacular job making you feel like your actually on the island witnessing the secrets. From the author of other classic novels such as "The Time Machine" "The invisible Man" and "War of the Worlds", The Island of Dr. Moreau
Is another must read a Sci-Fi novel that will withstand the test of time. 5 out of 5 stars.

this version mispelled the protagonist's name on the back cover. it was really weird and low-budget, like those free books they give away at churches in the city. like some dude with a laminating machine woke up one day and was like "you know what i'm gonna do? i'm gonna print 5000 copies of The Island of Doctor Moreau and sell them on the store, because the copyright has expired and i won't get sued because H. G. Wells is probably dead."
yeah, that's probably what happened.

Some of the wit and magic is missing from Anne's life in the beginning of this book. She's grown up, and there seems to be no real hurdles to cross, or conflict. It makes for a slow read for the first third of the book, while you wait for something to actually happen, instead of a completely idyllic life. Thankfully, things pick up by the 2nd third, and the reader is rewarded by the Anne we all know and care for- responding with love and romance to life's situations and participating in the redemption of those around her. Certainly the ending is a O'Henry twist you wouldn't ever expect. Here again is Anne that you have to sigh over in delight, and kick your feet in the air and laugh in the exhilaration of love found again.

This novella is interesting as a piece of science fiction, the genre of which H.G. Wells is sometimes called the father. It was written a few decades after Darwin presented his theory of evolution. The concept of evolution produced a lot of anxiety among intellectuals of the time, including Wells, who looks at the implications of the theory here. He puts the narrator, Prendick, on a secret island populated by Moreau's man-beast creations. The events which follow continually blur the line between man and animal, just as evolution forces man to see itself in the context of other species. Oh yeah, the novella, like any good sci-fi book, is suspenseful, and a little scary. And it's not very long, so you'll have plenty of time to read all your other books too.

I first read the "Anne" series when I was a child and have read them several times since and thoroughly enjoyed them every time, reading them most recently at the age of 41, a couple of months back. They always make me laugh and cry as much as they did the first time I read them, possibly even more so now, because I can now relate to a lot of the experiences she has as she grows up into a woman and mother.

Many readers are aware of the 6 original Anne books by Lucy Maud Montgomery - Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island, Anne of Windy Willows, Anne's House of Dreams and Anne of Ingleside (all beautifully written and thoroughly enjoyable books), but there are two further books by Lucy Maud, which may or may not be in print now, called Rainbow Valley and Rilla of Inglside. These final two books in the series tell more of Anne's story through the exploits of her 6 children and are well worth a read - both made me laugh and cry in equal measure.

All of these books leave you wanting more from Anne and I believe that is the mark of a truly fabulous book! :)

Wells commented that this book was in a way an exercise of youthful balsphemy. Perhaps. Wells, like every other intelligent human being of Victorian England, could not escape Darwin's theory of evolution with all of its implications. But the ideas go deeper. What is the meaning of human existence? Is the world just a place of aimless suffering and a mere survival through a series of trials and errors?
The book has now become more timely than ever, with the completion of the Human Genome Project which, along with possibility of improving our lives with better drugs, opens the possiblity of engineering mutant beings based on human genes. In a somewhat related development, human organs are already grown on/in the bodies of other animals. Cloning, genetic engineering, and harvesting of organs is a warning that our entire world may become an island of Dr. Moreau. Scary stuff.

I have recently become a fan of Wells' writing for the unique voice with which he tells a story in addition to his unique tales. References to "The Island of Dr. Moreau" seem to surface frequently in pop culture, so I felt compelled to read this book. Some might go so far as to argue that this is Wells' best book. I may not disagree.

While the book was written before the advent of genetic engineering as we know in the 21st Century, it could be applied. Wells seems to have intended the book as a commentary on the theories of Darwin and evolution. When Edward Prendick finds himself on a remote island, he recalls rumors of Dr. Moreau. But only when he sees his handy work does the horror begin. Using manipulative techniques that include primitive grafting, Moreau made the animals more human. Yet the ultimate question of the book is whether Moreau could make the animals into human, removing any trace of animal from them.

This is certainly a case of the book being better than the movie as the book makes Wells true intent evident. Like many of Wells' works, it is also a powerful social commentary that makes great reading.

Thoroughly enjoyed this read. An intriguing look into a "mad" scientist situation fraught with mood swings. Although the mood is tense and uneasy throughout I found myself with an understanding of the good doctor's ambition. I also felt Wells' found a creative analogy for the state of mankind not so much in the sense of beasts taking a human role more so humans being capable of reverting to beasts

H. G. Wells predates Sci-fiction. Most of his books in the field were written before the term was coined in the 1930s. Along with Mary Shelley, Jules Verne, and Robert Louis Stevenson, his work laid the foundation for almost every major form of Science Fiction. Just as many other books written since Wells share elements with THE INVISIBLE MAN or THE TIME MACHINE or THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, so numerous novels, short stories, movies, and television episodes have been influenced by THE ISLAND OF DOCTOR MOREAU. It also has been made into three films, an absolutely god-awful one with Marlon Brando in the title role, another bad one (but not as bad) with Burt Lancaster in the lead role, and a 1932 version starring Charles Laughton and retitled ISLAND OF LOST SOULS. While not a perfect film, it is easily the most intriguing of the three films, not least because of Bela Lugosi's unforgettable portrayal as The Sayer of the Law. In fact, both of the later films are more in the way of remakes of the first film rather than versions of the novel.

Nonetheless, like with Wells's other novels, reading THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU will feel familiar to modern readers. So many elements have been appropriated that we've all seen this time and again. That is also the problem with his books: so many elements have been appropriated that we've all seen this time and again. There are a few interesting scenes, but the truth is that a sense of familiarity runs throughout the book. This is not really a criticism of the book. It is more an acknowledgment of how successful it has been.

Still, the fact that the book can no longer feel unfamiliar and given the otherwise relatively minor literary qualities of the book (Wells is not an especially skilled prose stylist and his characters are rather cardboardish), this book is a somewhat tedious read. Its virtues at this point are primarily historical. This is a book that we read to find out how the mad scientist portion of the Sci-fi genre developed as it did. I personally find it less interesting than many of Wells's other Sci-fi works.

I love this book! H.G. Wells is a first class master of writing fiction. When I read this book it seemed like I was actually watching a movie. His writing is so good it makes you see in your head what he is writing about. The book is about a scientist who tries to make animals into human beings and the vengence these animals take on the mad doctor. The plot,characterization, theme, descriptions and everything in the book is first rate. Wells is without question in the top ten list of the best writers of all time. Only Shakespeare and Poe are better. I have read a lot of fictional books and some of them are totally boring, but Wells has the ability to hook you into his stories. I really enjoyed this book and all of Wells books. HE IS GREAT!

This book is less known than Wells' other works like The War of the Worlds and The Time Machine, but in many ways it exceeds these other, more popular works. This novel is a story essentially about the nature of humanity. What is it that makes us people? What, exactly, separates man from the beasts? Wells' insidious Dr. Moreau is the perfect character to explore these questions as he has no conscience. As you read this book you find yourself identifying more with the "beasts" than with the Dr. or his assistant; and you find yourself wondering whether or not the noble beasts are in fact more human than the human characters. This work is decades before its' time; as today genetic research and animal rights are garnering more attention and headlines. I believe Wells was somehow able to see these issues decades ago when he wrote this story; and it remains one of the most salient writings on the topic to date. I heartily endorse this book for any fan of science fiction. Enjoy!

The strange story of Edward Prendick, who is picked up in the beginning of the story as the lone survivor of an accident at sea. The crew of the ship that saves him, however, is unhappy with the other passengers: a Mr. Montgomery and his strange helper, and a cargo of wild animals. Prendick is forced off the ship when Montgomery and the animals disboard at a small island. Although unwelcome, he is taken into the care of the master of the island, the strange and reclusive Dr. Moreau. Prendick soon learns of the horrific research being performed there by the doctor.

Interesting as an old horror novel, and the story is compelling enough. As seems to be typical of many similar novels from the time (late 1800's) the idea for the story is drawn from scientific ideas then prevalent, and interestingly enough, has a modern-day parallel in some of the current stem-cell research. Readers who enjoy Jules Verne would probably also like this book, although it's generally darker and more pessimistic than Verne. (I was most surprised to realize this book was the inspiration for a bizzare 80's song entitled "No Spill Blood" by Oingo Boingo.)

In this allegorical novel, a shipwrecked biologist named Edward Prendick finds himself on a remote island where a physiologist named Moreau is conducting bizarre experiments in the vivisection of animals to generate new species (for no other purpose than just to do it). The way I view this novel, Moreau is doing this work simply for his own intellectual enjoyment. He sees a problem or a concept and is attempting to answer or address it. I don't think he even cares about publishing what findings he may have so that others might possibly use his results to improve the state of man. He simply doesn't care. Morality and ethics do not form a foundation for his "scientific" enquiries. And, that is the "evil" in his work.

This is a haunting book about the effects of science and human attempts to alter nature. As with most horror stories, the narrator survives which everything around him crumbles, but the meat of this novel is riveting. There is great action, the main characters are interesting (though not fully developed) and the story moves quickly without a lot of pause. The message of this book becomes more pertinent every day and while the science underlying Dr. Moreau's experiment is iffy at best, that does not detract at all from the effect of the novel. I would recommend this book to all science, science fiction, or horror fans.

I have no idea how I've missed this little gem of a novel all my life, but I'm glad I finally ended up reading it. One of the reasons I love these editions is because I can easily catch up on classics and stories I have missed.

This story was both horrible and wonderful at the same time. Some of the descriptions within - of the gore, the vivisections, the three main characters' reactions - seem so, well, modern. It is definitely a novel before its time. Some of the images stayed with me for a while, especially those from the lab.

In short, I would recommend this book, especially to fans of horror/science fiction.

The Anne novels never cease to amaze me. With all the trashy romance novels out there today, it would be hard for someone to call this book "romantic" in its simple, pure ways, but it is. The setting of the story is described so well that I could nearly feel the ocean air on my face. There was also a vivid cast of characters that was very much alive. The plot itself is far more complicated than other Anne books, but that does not reduce the quality of the author's work, nor does the book lose its poetical sense. Anne's House of Dreams is like reading a very long poem that is difficult to forget.

A shipwreck survivor finds himself trapped on an island where a mad scientist is conducting horrible experiments to transform animals into men. This slim volume is both compulsively readable and dense with thought-provoking elements. I did not expect the visceral, brutal quality of the more nightmarish sequences to be rendered so graphically and effectively in a 19th century novel. Small wonder that it caused controversy when it was published. But the novel offers more than just brilliant horror. Wells's story is also a parable on what it is to be human and the role of religion in a society. Excellent.

This was a good book with a delightful set of characters. My own personal favorite was captain Jim, with his stories about the sea, and of his lost love, "Lost Margaret." It's not just a happy book that bores us because Gilbert and Anne do lose a child, and they do quarell. However, I think my biggest dissapointment is the lack of Gilbret throughout the entire Anne series. Really, in Montgomeries books we see much more of the male friends of her heroines than their lovers. Gilbert as a character isn't built up at all, I don't really know anything about his personality. He's just a puppet. I'm so eager to know more about him, but it's like he's just a foil for Anne's character. If they were friends perhaps we would know more about his personality. I wish Anne had married someone like David in "Mistress Pat", Barney in "The Blue Castle" or Dean in "Emily's Quest" , or even Jingle in "Pat of Silver Bush."
The relationship between Pat and Jingle is especially moving. But because Gilbert and Anne did not grow up as friends the way Teddy and Emily, and Pat and Jingle did, it's hard to fully understand their feelings for one another...or appreciate the developement of their relationship. I was also dissapointed that Anne gave up her ambitions with marriage, although I understand that Montgomery must have been catering to what society wanted of her during that time period.

I read all of H.G. Wells' most famous works, "The Time Machine," "The War of the Worlds," "Invisible Man," and "The Island of Dr. Moreau" in a row. Of these, I would say that "Moreau" is the worst.

The book, like many of Wells' other works, is very innovative. Wells was probably the first to conceive of the possibility of surgically creating human-animal hybrids. As another reviewer said, there is also some of Wells' trademark social commentary. The mutants are very creepy, and the description of their society and gradual degradation back into animals is fascinating.

"The Island," however, lacks the compelling vision of "War of the Worlds" and "The Time Machine." Unlike those books, which presented human society in interesting conditions, I felt that "The Island" was more of an adventure story. The characters didn't really interest me, not even bitter, rejected Dr. Moreau.

"The Island of Dr. Moreau" is worth reading, but doesn't represent Wells at the top of his game.

There is one scene: Prendrick has fled the compound and has entered the village of the beast people. He sits in on a bizarre ceremony where a leader recites the laws of the beast people. The reader, with a heavy ominous sense, can feel that these laws are ultimately meant to be broken . . .
Though the story is crowded at the beginning with the plot logistics of stranding the narrator on the island with Moreau and his creations, and the ending is sort of rushed, Wells has created a horror novel of startling implications and fantastic imagination. You'll never look at your genetically engineered tomatoes the same way again.

I purchased the Kindle Edition of this book from the store.co.uk after a discussion on Twitter. I found it exciting and very readable. HG Wells' writing style has not dated.

Some of the plot elements which would have been plausible in 1896 are no longer plausible based on new scientific knowledge (e.g. what's possible or not possible by way of transplanting body parts from one animal to another, and creating humans from animal parts) but it's still an enjoyable read.

If I only had one word to describe this book it would be - CREEPY! It's hard to believe this book was written well over 100 years ago. It's as relevant today as ever. It's discussion of scientific ethics and the human condition are thought provoking but not preachy. A true classic.

This book is one of my favorite Wells books.It is about this guy who gets 'trapped' on this island. and this island is inhabited by an infamous scientist/doctor who was 'exiled' from England. Anyway, the doctor is Moreau. And this Moreau guy gets animals and tries to make them more human. What really bothered me about this is that he really had no reason for doing this. It might be a different case if he was actually benifitting the world by doing this. But no, he was just doing this for his own personal curiosity. This also immedietly made me think of our own conflicting opinions and moral dillemas we have with genetic engineering.

The Anne books are classics. Tbey transport the reader to a different era...one in which life seems much simpler. However, human nature remains the same - love, bullies, snobs, worries, sorrows, happiness. Lovely, charming read.

This is a gripping tale that many of us know from viewing the film versions. I have seen most of them, including the one starring Marlon Brando that is quite bizarre. Compared to the films, the novel focusses on its characters' psychological dynamics thus adding nuance and complexity.

The Island of Doctor Moreau has the misfortune of having a couple of really bad movie adaptations smearing its legacy. Since I was intrigued by Wells' War of the Worlds I thought I would give this book a bash. What a let down, it's almost as chaotic and incomprehensible as the movies it spawned.

The story is told by Edward Prendick, a man of science with a background in biology. He is shipwrecked somewhere in the Pacific and rescued by a man called Montgomery who has a half-man, half-cat for a best pal. They arrive on some remote island and meet a delusional mad doctor who has been conducting brutal, evil experiments on animals in an attempt to make then near-human.

The fact that Wells managed to involve pre-DNA science quite extensively in this story is commendable. But it's so meandering and unfocused that I got quite bored. But since it's not too long I stuck with it and by the end I felt like it was kinda worth it.

The characters are dull and never really come to life and it lacks any definitive action or horror scene. But I couldn't help but think that it might, one day, make for a very good video-game.

This particular version also has, pretty much, the worst cover art for a book that I have ever seen.

I read first The War of the Worlds and The Time Machine by G. Wells and liked them very much. And when I decided to read The Island of Dr. Moreau. I was deeply affected and terrified by the experiments of Dr. Moreau which he made on his island. I still have a question: is it possible to cross the human and animal or fish? How long will live such a monster and whether it can multiply?

I'll always have a special place for the earlier books, especially 'Anne of the Island', but nothing is unmatched to 'Anne's House of Dreams'.

I always have a certain problem when reading Anne books. Although I enjoy the plot and characters, I resent the melancholy, wistful feel to it everytime Anne goes into a new chapter of her life. There was the last chapter of the first book; 'A Bend in The Road', where the simple description and mood of the scene was so heart-wrenching that I almost cried. 'Anne of Avonlea' was just as sentimental as the previous book, with Anne realizing she cannot turn back time to when she was eleven. We, as readers feel the impact too. We have come to love each and every one character in Avonlea and we cannot stand to watch the years go by and be forced accept that the people are changing. 'Anne of the Island' cured that depressing tone slightly by bringing in cheerful college life but still retained the usual Avonlea village scenes into it. A romance brewing between Gilbert and Anne also helped distract readers from getting too upset about Anne growing up and leaving her childhood days forever. But nevertheless the proposal scene at the last chapter brought up those suppressed feelings out once again and left us smiling a bittersweet smile at the closing descriptions of the book.

But in 'Anne's House of Dreams', we are introduced to a whole new atmosphere. No longer is Anne running dreamily into magical forests and delighting in fairy brooks, listening to the whispers of the trees or playacting as a Fair Maiden with her childhood friends. The fairy-tale, static forests of Avonlea are replaced with a vast sea, salty breezes and spicy scents of seagrass in the air. Whereas the previous books were stuffy and melancholic, this book is wonderfully refreshing and light. Instead of feeling that everything is going to end (growing older, beloved characters dying, leaving Green Gables and Avonlea), we find ourself anticipating Anne's new life as a married woman.

And the plot construction! I've never read an Anne series with a plot so tight and focused. The twist at the end concerning Leslie's husband was the cream of the crop, and I've also enjoyed the beautiful life-story of Captain Jim. Even Anne and Gilbert are involved into this snug plot, they are mostly the benefactors of the events: Gilbert's idea to cure Leslie's husband and Anne's idea to have Captain Jim's life-story written down.

On the other hand, I would complain that there weren't many scenes of the old characters; save Gilbert (duh) and Marilla. It's as if Anne is losing contact with her old life, which makes me a bit sad. I was dying to know more about Davy, Diana, Paul Irving, the Pyes, and even Charlie Sloane. I would love the series more if Anne remained in Avonlea and raised her family in the midst of the atmosphere that we have come to recognize and cherish. What's the use of getting us attached to the 'Lake of Shining Waters' and 'The White Way of Delight' and 'Lover's Lane' and 'Hester Gray's garden' and 'Dryad's Bubble' if Anne was going to move away and leave all those memories behind? Blame it on Gilbert. (kidding)

I finished reading this book with a heart-warmed feeling in my heart for the first time, it seemed more appropriate as a beautiful closure to the series. It should have ended here instead of dragging along until she fades away to become a secondary character in the next three upcoming books.

This book is like a rich tapestry. It has the added bloom of maturity that does not invade any other Anne books except perhaps Rilla of Ingleside. In this book we see Anne dealing with the first tragedy that happened since the start of her charmed life at Green Gables. Also there is Anne's enigmatic friend Leslie Moore, whose dark past makes this friendship more complicated than any other Anne has had to deal with.
A gorgoeus book, but I miss Marilla and all the "Avonlea folk".

Vivisection is the practice of performing medical experiments on live animals. In The Island of Doctor Moreau, H.G. Wells tells the story of a mad doctor who does just that but also does something more. He tries to make them into people!
Robert Prendick ship is wrecked and he is rescued by a man named by Montgomery, who turns out to be a assistant to the infamous Dr. Moreau. Little does Prendick know of the horrors that await him on the island that he is being taken to. on the island he meets the Beast Men: the results of Moreau's grotesque and terrifying experiments. Eventually, the Beast Men rebel against Moreau and Montgomery, killing them and leaving Prendick alone on the isle. One day, he manages to escape and is rescued once again and is brought back to society. People think he is insane and he is permanently scarred from his experience on the Island.
From action packed chases through a tropical jungle, to Prendick contemplating his situation on the island, this book is an extremely good read. It really makes your think how far man should be allowed to meddle with the course of nature. Some other good books by this author would be War of the Worlds and The Time Machine. They are both science fiction novels, like this one.
Ages 12 and up

dougless edwards A traveler on a sunken boat is saved by an acholic dr named mongometry. Mongometry takes him to an island he called the island of doctor moreau. Late one night edwards sneaks out to moreaus labs were he see's a half women half cow being sliced. As he runs out mongometry spots him and sends some of the beast folk after him. when caught moreau explains. after a while the beast folk taste blood and become carnage creating creatures. This is most defintly wells most scary boo

Considering this novel was first published in 1896, it is a testament to Wells' visionary imagination. His description of horrific vivisection experiments is a century ahead of its time. Dr. Moreau is portrayed as the ultimate villain, disregarding ethics for his own desire to play God in the name of scientific advancement. This is a great work of early science fiction that challenges the moral implications of science even today.

I thought this was an exellant book! I always loved science fiction type books and started to really get into classics in about 7th grade. But I never got into H. G. Wells because I had seen the movie of the time machine and the versions of the invisible man, and i really didnt like them. With this story I read the book first and loved it even though it was pretty creepy. But I was sooooo disappointed when i finally saw the movie, it was nothing like the book except for the idea of half animal half human creatures, the main characters name wasnt even the same! I definately recommend the book but do not recommend the movie if you are looking up for a good follow up to the book. READ THE BOOK!

I've been collecting this HG Wells editions. Wells uses such powerful language and thrilling plots to discuss themes that are even more important today than when he first wrote about them.
I don't want to give away much plot info, but this is a great book, and this particular edition is very nice.

I'll always have a special place for the earlier books, especially 'Anne of the Island', but nothing is unmatched to 'Anne's House of Dreams'.

I always have a certain problem when reading Anne books. Although I enjoy the plot and characters, I resent the melancholy, wistful feel to it everytime Anne goes into a new chapter of her life. There was the last chapter of the first book; 'A Bend in The Road', where the simple description and mood of the scene was so heart-wrenching that I almost cried. 'Anne of Avonlea' was just as sentimental as the previous book, with Anne realizing she cannot turn back time to when she was eleven. We, as readers feel the impact too. We have come to love each and every one character in Avonlea and we cannot stand to watch the years go by and be forced accept that the people are changing. 'Anne of the Island' cured that depressing tone slightly by bringing in cheerful college life but still retained the usual Avonlea village scenes into it. A romance brewing between Gilbert and Anne also helped distract readers from getting too upset about Anne growing up and leaving her childhood days forever. But nevertheless the proposal scene at the last chapter brought up those suppressed feelings out once again and left us smiling a bittersweet smile at the closing descriptions of the book.

But in 'Anne's House of Dreams', we are introduced to a whole new atmosphere. No longer is Anne running dreamily into magical forests and delighting in fairy brooks, listening to the whispers of the trees or playacting as a Fair Maiden with her childhood friends. The fairy-tale, static forests of Avonlea are replaced with a vast sea, salty breezes and spicy scents of seagrass in the air. Whereas the previous books were stuffy and melancholic, this book is wonderfully refreshing and light. Instead of feeling that everything is going to end (growing older, beloved characters dying, leaving Green Gables and Avonlea), we find ourself anticipating Anne's new life as a married woman.

And the plot construction! I've never read an Anne series with a plot so tight and focused. The twist at the end concerning Leslie's husband was the cream of the crop, and I've also enjoyed the beautiful life-story of Captain Jim. Even Anne and Gilbert are involved into this snug plot, they are mostly the benefactors of the events: Gilbert's idea to cure Leslie's husband and Anne's idea to have Captain Jim's life-story written down.

On the other hand, I would complain that there weren't many scenes of the old characters; save Gilbert (duh) and Marilla. It's as if Anne is losing contact with her old life, which makes me a bit sad. I was dying to know more about Davy, Diana, Paul Irving, the Pyes, and even Charlie Sloane. I would love the series more if Anne remained in Avonlea and raised her family in the midst of the atmosphere that we have come to recognize and cherish. What's the use of getting us attached to the 'Lake of Shining Waters' and 'The White Way of Delight' and 'Lover's Lane' and 'Hester Gray's garden' and 'Dryad's Bubble' if Anne was going to move away and leave all those memories behind? Blame it on Gilbert. (kidding)

I finished reading this book with a heart-warmed feeling in my heart for the first time, it seemed more appropriate as a beautiful closure to the series. It should have ended here instead of dragging along until she fades away to become a secondary character in the next three upcoming books.

This book is like a rich tapestry. It has the added bloom of maturity that does not invade any other Anne books except perhaps Rilla of Ingleside. In this book we see Anne dealing with the first tragedy that happened since the start of her charmed life at Green Gables. Also there is Anne's enigmatic friend Leslie Moore, whose dark past makes this friendship more complicated than any other Anne has had to deal with.
A gorgoeus book, but I miss Marilla and all the "Avonlea folk".

Vivisection is the practice of performing medical experiments on live animals. In The Island of Doctor Moreau, H.G. Wells tells the story of a mad doctor who does just that but also does something more. He tries to make them into people!
Robert Prendick ship is wrecked and he is rescued by a man named by Montgomery, who turns out to be a assistant to the infamous Dr. Moreau. Little does Prendick know of the horrors that await him on the island that he is being taken to. on the island he meets the Beast Men: the results of Moreau's grotesque and terrifying experiments. Eventually, the Beast Men rebel against Moreau and Montgomery, killing them and leaving Prendick alone on the isle. One day, he manages to escape and is rescued once again and is brought back to society. People think he is insane and he is permanently scarred from his experience on the Island.
From action packed chases through a tropical jungle, to Prendick contemplating his situation on the island, this book is an extremely good read. It really makes your think how far man should be allowed to meddle with the course of nature. Some other good books by this author would be War of the Worlds and The Time Machine. They are both science fiction novels, like this one.
Ages 12 and up

dougless edwards A traveler on a sunken boat is saved by an acholic dr named mongometry. Mongometry takes him to an island he called the island of doctor moreau. Late one night edwards sneaks out to moreaus labs were he see's a half women half cow being sliced. As he runs out mongometry spots him and sends some of the beast folk after him. when caught moreau explains. after a while the beast folk taste blood and become carnage creating creatures. This is most defintly wells most scary boo

Considering this novel was first published in 1896, it is a testament to Wells' visionary imagination. His description of horrific vivisection experiments is a century ahead of its time. Dr. Moreau is portrayed as the ultimate villain, disregarding ethics for his own desire to play God in the name of scientific advancement. This is a great work of early science fiction that challenges the moral implications of science even today.

I thought this was an exellant book! I always loved science fiction type books and started to really get into classics in about 7th grade. But I never got into H. G. Wells because I had seen the movie of the time machine and the versions of the invisible man, and i really didnt like them. With this story I read the book first and loved it even though it was pretty creepy. But I was sooooo disappointed when i finally saw the movie, it was nothing like the book except for the idea of half animal half human creatures, the main characters name wasnt even the same! I definately recommend the book but do not recommend the movie if you are looking up for a good follow up to the book. READ THE BOOK!

I've been collecting this HG Wells editions. Wells uses such powerful language and thrilling plots to discuss themes that are even more important today than when he first wrote about them.
I don't want to give away much plot info, but this is a great book, and this particular edition is very nice.

This book is about finally finding your true love and creating a home for him. Anne's House of Dreams is fairly anticlimatic, and does not have quite the same romantic suspense as Anne of the Island. But the reader cannot help but be taken in by the turn of the century seaside setting and the dreamy quality of the narrative. Anne finds happiness with longtime friend and beau Gilbert Blythe. We see the mature Anne as a young married woman who still has adventures. She meets a host of other characters, neighbors who enrich the story. There are stories within stories, spooky nights, misty harbours, and safe shores. I was rooting for Anne as she danced along the seashore, singing to herself, taking up her skirts by the waves. And she makes friends and acquaintances along the way. A pleasant book altogether. It takes you to a place you want to go back.

This book is wonderfully written, an exciting story that intertwines some really profound thoughts about the human\animal specia. I would recommend this book a thousand times over. Older books such as this have such a rich abundance of story, characters and language that is sadly absent from more moderrn literature. READ H.G. WELLS' BOOKS!! You will never regret having done so.

The lone survivor of an oceanliner is thrown into a series of events beyond his control. He finds himself saved by a resident of a strange island and has no other choice but to live on the island until another ship sails near, unfortunatly ships don't come by often. Upon his arrival he discovers that Dr. Moreau, an unorthodox scientist, is conducting "experiments" on live animals, experiments which change them into pseudo-humans. Upon this horrible discovery Prendick is thrown into a fight for his life against the beasts of the island and Dr. Moreau...

-The Island of Doctor Moreau- is one of the most fantastic science fiction novels I have ever read. If applied in a real context, the probabilty of the events of this novel seem unreal, yet the portrayal of Edward Prendick's inner thoughts as he sees Dr. Moreau's attempt to take nature and transform it to his image is a powerful social criticism of the tainted human desire to shape our world in our own image.

H.G. Wells is not a horror writer but he sends a chilling message about the darkness of the human heart, and clearly shows what truly seperates men from animals.

Just like every Anne book, this book captivated, thrilled, and absorbed me. The main thing that attracts me to this book is the utter realisticness of the characters. From the beautiful, tragic Leslie to the happy Captain Jim with more in his past than you expect, every character is as realistic as your best friend. And come to think of it, by the end of the book they ARE your best friends! Highly reccommended.

Anne and Gilbert are finally married, after four novels of teasing the readers! This book tells the story of their first year as a married couple, with the feel of a Bronte sisters novel: a strange neighbor and her silent husband haunt the neighborhood. After the disappointment of Anne of Windy Poplars, this book will have you addicted to the series again.

You can download this ebook right now for nothing, but the story isn't worth 'nothing.' Its excellent. And after all of these years it still holds up. Some older books are hard to read, or at least hard to get into, but not this one. Wells was ahead of his time when it came to writing. He puts his sentences together in a clean and simple way that makes his stories relevant as time marches on. I suggest downloading it now and reading it today!

Despite being an old book, the story still holds up. Wells was always cagey enough with the science so that it never sounds outdated. That was his real genius, he didn't try to predict what things would actually be, he just kept it simple. It's the story that matters, not the science.

This book contains views about inhumanity which is very relative to todays technological advances. H.G Wells has written a extraordinary book which will never get outdated and will always be looked upon as a classic. The tale which is told brings up many different perspectives of the inhuman creations of Dr Moreau and many can either be argued or agreed to by the reader which makes this a very moving, realistic and interactive book. A book which must be read!!

Long before modern science mapped the human DNA structure, created clones, and basically turned Mother Nature upside down, there was this tale by the prophetic sci-fi writer, H.G. Wells.
I say prophetic becuase that's exactly what his tales have been: prophecies. Not prophecies of humanity's distant (and not so distant) future, but rather warning of what could happen if we fail to heed the warnings of the Earth, and it's silent cries of suffering.
Is it any wonder that the man had "Damn you all, I told you so" engraved upon his tombstone?
"The Island of Dr. Moreau" is another such tale in that it shows the dangers of tampering with the forces of nature which we have yet to understand, and the consequences which can follow in it's wake.
Kepp your mind open when reading this story as hopefully you'll be able to see the warning before it's too late.

First of all, I must confess I'm not a huge Anne fan. I don't read this book so much for Anne and Gilbert as for Leslie and Owen. Their story is so romantic, so dramatic, fairy tale like, and sort of sappy. It's not the sort of book you are always in the mood for, but when you are it definitely 'hits the spot' as they say.
Picture a beautiful, love starved, miserable girl suffering silently on a gorgeous harbor in a gloomy house. Watch as she is transformed and comes to live happily ever after. Definitely all- girl and definitely fun.
The way Lucy Maud Montgomery describes the scenery, the ocean and all at Anne's new home is beautiful. Leslie's story is beautiful. If you want something sweet, fanciful while not fantasy, and just. . . lovely read this book.
Only thing I don't like is Captain Jim. He is boring and sort of drives me crazy, but he is in the book a ton. I often just skim the parts he's in.
Miss Cornelia is another new character, and she is sometimes annoying but on the whole is amusing.
I guess that's it. I also like all the Biblical references in the conversations. A lot of them are somewhat obscure, so they're probably some I'm not even picking up on, but they're good.

I went through this book pretty quickly, and read it the way you'd read a Dan Brown book. As a result, when I finished it I thought of it as a freaky adventure story with a few comments on evolution.

However, after reading the afterword by Brian Aldiss, I realized how deep the rabbit hole really goes with this thing. H.G. Wells has not only talked about evolution and weird science, but tied in religion, the human capacity for reason, the abuse of knowledge, and enough other deep thoughts to make your head spin. I might have to give it a second read sometime.

If you can pace yourself while reading it to let the ideas sink, then I recommend the read.

The best of the later Anne books, this installment of Anne's life has a definite taste of the first three books. Anne's wonder for life is shown beautifully, and the tales of her friends at Four Winds are magnificent. I admit that I was skeptical at first of having Anne move away from Avonlea, but L.M. Montgomery has once again proven that her skills as a novelist are not to be trifled with. I disliked Anne of Ingleside because it didn't show the love of life that this book did. This book is truly Montgomery at her finest.

It is, in my opinion, the second best Anne book! Its Anne's wedding! The whole thing is soaked in romance! Leslie's story is so amazing and sweet that you have to love her. Captain Jim is so sweet and perfect, you can nearly see him. Miss Cornelia is funny and Susan is great. Anne has to deal with tragedy and joy that makes the books so wonderful. The only thing I don't like, is that i wish Marrilla and all the Avonlea people would be in it a little more. In my opinion, this should be where the series ends.

1,000 words can't describe how much I love this book. This book is where after agonizing along with Anne she finally gets married to Gilbert. They settle into a place called Four Winds. Through the story of there first years of marriage they experience their joy over Jem their first born and the pain of losing a child. They make life long friends that are as pleasant as Diana Barry and Rachel Lynde. L.M. Montgomery makes the charecters come alive. They go through things that we can relate to today. Her excellant writing makes this easy to read whether you are 10 or 100. I highly recommend that if you enjoy this book you need to read the first four books. Then there is three more books. If that isn't enough there are two movies. I hope that you enjoy this series as much as I have.

The passionate, sexy couple in this novel aren't Gilbert and Anne, even though they are newlyweds. It's handsome Owen Ford and the beautiful Leslie Moore who are passionately in love. They are one hot, gorgeous couple--in fact, they make Anne and Gilbert seem dull, bland and boring by comparison!

Both Leslie and Owen are renegades--non-conformists who follow their own rules and live by their wits. They've both been hurt and disillusioned by the world around them. But they're also idealists who secretly desire love--and when they first met, the sexual attraction is so intense you can almost feel it through the pages of the book! This attraction grows stronger and Owen eventually decides his love for the married Leslie is wrong--so he tragically leaves town, assuming he will never see her again. By an odd twist of fate, Leslie eventually becomes a "free woman" and they reunite. The passion and desire felt between them is beautifully written--and it's extremely sensual for a book first published in 1917.

By comparison, Anne and Gilbert are the boring married couple who are settled in their ways. We are even treated to their "first fight." Lucy Maud Montgomery admired men who were creative free-thinkers and non-conformists---both Owen Ford and another favorite--Barney Snaith of "The Blue Castle"--fit this description perfectly. Unfortunately Gilbert doesn't even come close. As the tiny town's physician, he has become self-righteous and uptight. Lucy Maud stopped making Gilbert interesting after her second "Anne" book and he's basically a non-entity from there on. But you won't say that about Owen!

Bad science, but who can't love a mad scientist playing God on an obscure island? Atmosphere great, though there's not really a plot. I wonder how I missed the old movie version: "Island of the Lost Souls"? 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. Will eBay.

Like The Time Machine, this is a story about the descent of Man. Dr. Moreau turns animals into "men" on his island. There's only one problem - given the choice, they'd prefer to stay animals. As predicted, order gives way to chaos and the "men" quickly devolve back into animals.

If you like Anne of Green Gables in any way, you have to read the other books in order to see her grow up. She stills continue to get in trouble, romance with Gilbert continues, just about anything that can happen, happens. These books fulfill everything that you could ever want out of a book.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THIS BOOK! This is my favorite Anne book, hands and hooves down. I liked hearing about Anne's full transition into womanhood and the fact that she never really let her full spirit be crushed. Gilbert was a little too soppy in this story, but it is okay. And I really, really enjoyed the wedding scene. And the whole Leslie Moore story is so exciting, but sad...until she meets the sexy (by 1900's terms :-p )Owen Ford! And Captain Jim is something else...he is such an enjoyable, lovable character and the story of lost Margaret is slightly cliched (perfect love swept away, man vows never to love anyone else), but WONDERFUL.

Anne's own true love, Gilbert Blythe, is finally a doctor, and in the sunshine of the old orchard, among their dearest friends,they are about to speak their vows. Soon the happy couple will be bound for a new life togther and their own dream house on the misty purple shores of Four Winds Harbour. A new life means new problems to solve new surprises. Anne and Gilbert will make new friends and neighbors;Captain Jim, the lighthouse attendant,with his sad stories of the sea;Miss Cornelia Bryant, the lady who speaks from the heart and speaks her mind; and the tragically beautiful Leslie Moore, into whose dark life Anne shines a brilliant light. Find out more by reading this wonderful book Anne's House of Dream's!

I thought the book was more about what happens to Society when the thought of a central God is removed. We have moved into a world where Christianity is a million miles away from how it mattered to people in 1896, and there is confusion and hostility with those to whom religion matters a great deal. The Society of the Beasts surely mirrors what Wells thought we were all heading for in 1896? He was, in part, quite right. A book which has many interpretations, and amazingly gains more as the decades pass.

Not bad. This is my first HG Wells book. The opening scene on the ship is very interesting. Actually, the whole set-up was interesting--this would be the first 1/3 of the book. After that, however, when Wells' gets into the long descriptions of the manimal creatures, for me, it really tires the story. Overall, though, the plot flows freely and is mostly interesting. In addition, the characters are distinguishable and appealing. I really liked Wells' writing style--it's refreshing and unique. I'll definitely give another of his novels a read.

I would have given it five stars if it wern't so short.The Island of Dr. Moreau is about a man named Prendick who , after his ship was distroyed, ended up one way or other on a small island. On this island is an exiled scientist from London, who does strange and cruel experements on animals. The strange animals here live in a peaceful civilization. In this civilization there are laws, and if these laws are ever broken 'none escape' the 'Master'(Dr. Moreau) and are sent to the 'house of pain'. One of the laws is not to eat flesh or fish, and when this law is broken by one of the Beast-Folk all hell brakes loose and Dr. Moreau's world, and Prendick's, falls crashing all around them.

An Englishman is rescued twice, once from a shipwreck, and once from being abandoned by the captain of the ship who rescued him.

Dr. Moreau takes him into his home, and slowly it dawns on the
horrified individual that Moreau is basically insane, and has been
experimenting with enhancing animal intelligence. The relationship
between the creations and Moreau is very warped, and a large part of
the horror.

Forget the cheesy film adaptations (Island of Lost Souls a notable exception) and stick with this classic novel that will curl the hairs on the back of your neck. A brilliant piece of specualtive fiction that is just as relevant today as it was over one hundred years ago.

H.G. Wells' chilling cautionary tale of man as is truly powerful literature. It kept me up nights, questioning the ethics of technology and genetic engineering, powerful subjects for a book to grapple with. A symbolic nightmare, this literary work has the flavour of gothic horror, science fiction, a classic... This is a book that has it all. If you are ready to have your thoughts provoked, this gory but meaningful tale is a top-notch choice.

The doctor's God-complex thinly parables Victorian England's colonizing and civilizing of "savages." Moreau creates men out of animals only to treat them worse than animals; and is obsessed with cruelly "correcting" their instincts.

The farther I read in this book, the more disgusted I was with myself for wasting time with it. It is hyper-fanciful, and in my opinion is not worth the effort. You know how it ends before starting the body of the story, and I finally left it at that. The main character survived, forever marked by his strange encounters on the island. I think my 1 star rating is an exaggeration!

Although it is less often read than such Wells novels as THE WAR OF THE WORLDS, the basic story of THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU is very well known through several extremely loose film adaptations. Pendrick, a British scientist, is shipwrecked--and by chance finds himself on an isolated island where Dr. Moreau and his assistant Montgomery are engaged in a series of experiments. They are attempting to transform animals into manlike beings.

Wells, a social reformer, was a very didactic writer, and his novels reflect his thoughts and theories about humanity. Much of Wells writing concerns (either directly or covertly) social class, but while this exists in MOREAU it is less the basic theme than an undercurrent. At core, the novel concerns the then-newly advanced theory of natural selection--and then works to relate how that theory impacts man's concept of God. Wells often touched upon this, and in several novels he broaches the thought that if mankind evolved "up" it might just as easily evolve "down," but nowhere in his work is this line of thought more clearly and specifically seen than here.

At times Wells' determination to teach his reader can overwhelm; at times it can become so subtle that it is nothing short of absolutely obscure. But in THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU, Wells achieves a perfect balance of the two extremes, even going so far as to balance the characters in such a way that not even the narrator emerges as entirely sympathetic. It is a remarkable achievement, and in this sense I consider MOREAU possibly the best of Wells work: the novel is as interesting for the story it tells as it is for still very relevant themes it considers.

It is also something of an oddity among Wells work, for while Wells often included elements of horror and savagery in his novels, MOREAU is not so much horrific as it is disturbingly gruesome and occasionally deliberately distasteful. This is not really a book than you can read and then put away: it lingers in your mind in a most unsettling way. Strongly recommended.

GFT, the store Reviewer

This book was a wonderful example of how terrible animal experimnetation is. On the other hand if you have any type of attention disorder that can sometimes give you fits this is not the book for you. Every five minutes i had to put my kindle down and just try to think, I had to literlay go through and reread some parts over and over again. It was one of those plainly hard reads for me that put a barrier in front of me. I am not a poor reader at all; in fact I love to read complex books and I have never had trouble with reading anyting before I downloaded this one. I felt pure frustration in a way I have never felt before. It is not a difficult book to understand on an intelilgence level, but for someone with an attention disorder coupled with mild dyslexia, this was a painful book to get through. :) I can see some smart alik reading this going dang, this one idiot, if they have so many problems with attention how the living heck could they type this long freaking reveiw? The answer is that I have overcome most if not all those problems presetned, and that is why the fact that the mere attention to detial through me off my game so bad that it crippled me for a few days; i alos wrote it 5 minutes at a time:).

This book was very quick to read, and was a lot of fun. Normally I am pensive when I'm looking at reading 19th or early 20th century authors, but this is just a great book. The book presents difficult questions about animal testing, genetic testing, and other questions of ethics facing today's scientists and citizens. For sci-fi fans this is a must read.

The Island of Doctor Moreau by H. G. Wells

The Island of Dr. Maruea is a great mixture of plot and intellectual enjoyment. Anyone will like this classic science fiction thriller.

The Island of Dr. Moreau is a scifi classic by H.G. Wells. My review is based on the Dover Thrift Edition. Don't get it! It omits the introductory "frame" chapter written by Edward Prendick's nephew, which establishes the potential unreliability of the narrator (Edward Prendick, himself). I discovered this when teaching the book. How Dover could allow this oversight is beyond me.

Having never read this or seen a film adaptation I still knew a little of what to expect having not lived under a rock all these years. Still, this was a difficult story for me to like. It's engaging, hard to put down, and everything else one wants in a story. But whoa, this is dark.

this is just about a specific edition which sells for three times (!?) what it should. stick with the better editions- like The Island Of Doctor Moreau which are a third of the cost

The Island of Doctor Moreau was an excellent book. It had a good plot, and the author had a very creative story line. It was filled with interesting and imaginative characters, from Dr. Moreau himself, to the creatures known as the Beast Folk. This book was a real page turner. It kept you in suspense and wanting to know what happened next.

This is the 4th Anne book by L.M Montgomery (5th if you count Before Green Gables by Budge Wilson(which you also really must read)) and Anne is as quirky as ever. I've followed Anne right from the start and I'm not going to stop now!

this isn't about the book but about Aladdin who is publishing these! What in gods name are you doing? You published, I believed all of them BUT Windy Poplars??? Unbelievable. I wanted to collect the whole series, but it looks like you don't plan to. I will never buy another one of your books.