In the Days of the Comet

H. G. Wells (1866 - 1946)

William ("Willie") is a student living in the British town of Clayton. As a Socialist, he tries to move power from the upper class to the working class. Interestingly, in a fictitious confrontation Britain declares war on Germany. Willie falls in love with Nettie, but when she elopes with an upper-class man, Willie resolves to kill them both. Throughout the novel there is present in the sky a large comet which gives off a green glow. As Willie prepares to shoot the lovers, two battleships appear and begin shelling the coast, causing Willie to nearly lose his targets. As the comet enters the atmosphere, it gives off a green gas which envelopes everyone including Willie, who falls asleep. Willie wakes up a changed man. He is able to reason so clearly that he realizes the foolishness of his plan for revenge. Other people have changed too. Our hero marvels at how humankind has risen to new levels of vision and understanding. (Summary from Wikipedia)

Genre(s): Science Fiction

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 00 00 -- Prologue Bigmouth
00:04:39
Play 01 01 -- Bk First, Ch First, Sec 1 Lewis
00:12:25
Play 02 02 -- Bk First, Ch First, Sec 2 Lewis
00:25:10
Play 03 03 -- Bk First, Ch First, Sec 3 Felicity C
00:18:19
Play 04 04 -- Bk First, Ch First, Sec 4-5 Felicity C
00:18:02
Play 05 05 -- Bk First, Ch Second, Sec 1-2 Felicity C
00:24:28
Play 06 06 -- Bk First, Ch Second, Sec 3-4 Lewis
00:11:41
Play 07 07 -- Bk First, Ch Second, Sec 5-7 Lewis
00:20:30
Play 08 08 -- Bk First, Ch Third, Sec 1-2 Lewis
00:18:19
Play 09 09 -- Bk First, Ch Third, Sec 3 Lewis
00:25:58
Play 10 10 -- Bk First, Ch Third, Sec 4 Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022)
00:20:43
Play 11 11 -- Bk First, Ch Third, Sec 5-6 Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022)
00:21:11
Play 12 12 -- Bk First, Ch Third, Sec 7 Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022)
00:16:07
Play 13 13 -- Bk First, Ch Fourth, Sec 1-3 Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022)
00:28:05
Play 14 14 -- Bk First, Ch Fourth, Sec 4-6 Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022)
00:20:43
Play 15 15 -- Bk First, Ch Fifth, Sec 1-2 Bear Schacht
00:21:55
Play 16 16 -- Bk First, Ch Fifth, Sec 3-5 Bear Schacht
00:19:08
Play 17 17 -- Bk First, Ch Fifth, Sec 6 Richard Kilmer (1942 - 2022)
00:13:34
Play 18 18 -- Bk Second, Ch First, Sec 1-2 Mike Pelton
00:16:12
Play 19 19 -- Bk Second, Ch First, Sec 3-4 Mike Pelton
00:16:33
Play 20 20 -- Bk Second, Ch First, Sec 5-6 Mike Pelton
00:17:24
Play 21 21 -- Bk Second, Ch Second, Sec 1-2 Mike Pelton
00:12:48
Play 22 22 -- Bk Second, Ch Second, Sec 3-4 Mike Pelton
00:16:05
Play 23 23 -- Bk Second, Ch Second, Sec 5-8 Mike Pelton
00:14:22
Play 24 24 -- Bk Second, Ch Third, Sec 1 Mike Pelton
00:21:19
Play 25 25 -- Bk Second, Ch Third, Sec 2-3 Mike Pelton
00:16:56
Play 26 26 -- Bk Third, Ch First, Sec 1 Mike Pelton
00:10:14
Play 27 27 -- Bk Third, Ch First, Sec 2-3 Mike Pelton
00:14:04
Play 28 28 -- Bk Third, Ch First, Sec 4 Mike Pelton
00:16:15
Play 29 29 -- Bk Third, Ch First, Sec 5-6 Mike Pelton
00:08:56
Play 30 30 -- Bk Third, Ch Second, Sec 1-3 Mike Pelton
00:20:04
Play 31 31 -- Bk Third, Ch Second, Sec 4 Mike Pelton
00:07:37
Play 32 32 -- Bk Third, Ch Third, Sec 1 Mike Pelton
00:13:44
Play 33 33 -- Bk Third, Ch Third, Sec 2-3 Mike Pelton
00:12:10
Play 34 34 -- Bk Third, Ch Third, Sec 4 Mike Pelton
00:08:33
Play 35 35 -- Epilogue Bigmouth
00:06:10