The History of Mr. Polly

H. G. Wells (1866 - 1946)

A funny and touching account of the imaginative Mr. Polly who, bored and trapped in his conventional life, makes a U-turn –- and changes everything.

H.G. Wells’ early life as the son of a semi-insolvent shopkeeper and as a draper’s apprentice fueled his novels of the lower middle class: The Wheels of Chance (1896), Kipps (1905), and The History of Mr. Polly (1910). These works evoke the desperation of apprentices, clerks, and small traders in their monotonous toil behind shop counters. And, like Mr. Polly, his protagonists make a break from their mundane lives with more or less success.

H. G. Wells (1866-1946) was a prolific writer in history, general and science fiction, and politics. He was a lifelong socialist. (Summary by Adrian Praetzellis)

Genre(s): Published 1900 onward

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 Chapter 1 Section 1 Adrian Praetzellis
00:27:04
Play 02 Chapter 1 Section 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:26:54
Play 03 Chapter 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:25:29
Play 04 Chapter 3 Adrian Praetzellis
00:27:19
Play 05 Chapter 4 Section 1 Adrian Praetzellis
00:20:01
Play 06 Chapter 4 Section 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:34:03
Play 07 Chapter 5 Section 1 Adrian Praetzellis
00:20:57
Play 08 Chapter 5 Section 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:16:18
Play 09 Chapter 5 Section 3 Adrian Praetzellis
00:13:31
Play 10 Chapter 6 Section 1 Adrian Praetzellis
00:23:25
Play 11 Chapter 6 Section 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:28:26
Play 12 Chapter 6 Section 3 Adrian Praetzellis
00:19:19
Play 13 Chapter 6 Section 4 Adrian Praetzellis
00:09:16
Play 14 Chapter 7 Section 1 Adrian Praetzellis
00:18:52
Play 15 Chapter 7 Section 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:18:49
Play 16 Chapter 7 Section 3 Adrian Praetzellis
00:28:52
Play 17 Chapter 8 Section 1 Adrian Praetzellis
00:28:32
Play 18 Chapter 8 Section 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:24:16
Play 19 Chapter 9 Section 1 Adrian Praetzellis
00:28:55
Play 20 Chapter 9 Section 2 Adrian Praetzellis
00:24:25
Play 21 Chapter 9 Section 3 Adrian Praetzellis
00:25:10
Play 22 Chapter 9 Section 4 Adrian Praetzellis
00:28:51
Play 23 Chapter 10 Adrian Praetzellis
00:29:55