The Invisible Man (A Graphic Novel Audio): Illustrated Classics

Written by H. G. Wells

Narrated by Saddleback Educational Publishing

What would you do if you could become invisible? When a brilliant scientist discovers an invisibility formula, he turns to a life of crime- stealing and terrorizing the public. Read the exciting story of the Invisible Man's destructive deeds and the manhunt to find him!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Saddleback Educational Publishing
• Release date: Jan 1, 2006
• ISBN: 9781612474458

H. G. Wells

H.G. Wells is considered by many to be the father of science fiction. He was the author of numerous classics such as The Invisible Man, The Time Machine, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The War of the Worlds, and many more. 

Reviews for The Invisible Man (A Graphic Novel Audio)

[ccookie_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

[The Invisible Man] by H. G. Wells First line:~ The stranger came early in February, one wintry day, through a biting wind and a driving snow, the last snowfall of the year, over the down, walking from Bramblehurst railway station, and carrying a little black portmanteau in his thickly gloved hand ~I did not enjoy this one as much as [The Island of Doctor Moreau] which I also just read. Once again, I am struck, by the dangers of indiscriminate ‘scientific’ experimentation. This story reminded me of Frankenstein although somewhat different. This time the scientist creates the ‘monster’ in himself and cannot deal with the consequences of his displacement from society. Frankenstein’s monster is the innocent victim in his story and the invisible man is a victim of his own creativity, no innocence there. The evolution of Frankenstein’s monster comes from his lack of acceptance right from the beginning and no experience at all with healthy relationships or an understanding of how to behave socially. Griffin’s situation is a devolution from years of experience relating to society and yet, when he runs into difficulty becomes a homicidal maniac. I cannot help but think that he had those tendencies to start with! (3.5 stars)

[legendaryneo · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is a quick easy read and well worth it. Not a tremendous amount happens in the story, but then again its only 110 pages. It is a classic science fiction story about a man who makes himself invisible. However life as an invisible man isn't exactly as he believed it would be.

[kronos999_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very forward driven H. G. Wells classic. Infinitely more interesting than 'The Island of Dr. Moreau'. The author had clearly thought out the disadvantages of permanent invisibility and their effects on the human subjected for them for too long.

[saravanants_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent read for any time for any generation. H G Wells has a masterpiece over here.

[wonderperson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Tragedy of the Invisible Man whose discovery should have gone into top ranking Research Institutions but all his genius is lost along the way.
The Invisible Man Griffin is an academic who discovers the secret of becoming invisible, this happens and he is able to use it, but alas still struggles with the same struggles he had when he was not invisible, like rejection, loneliness, isolation, this he turns into a Reign of Terror of The Invisible Man on the Village where he lives because DEATH is the only weapon left that has any effect. The Death Weapon turns back on him and in the closing moments the Invisible Man is himself felled and his invisible secrets remain in perpetuity only to be discovered upon the deaths of visible humans.

[jeffjardine · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't enjoy this one as much as Wells' two more famous books. I just couldn't get it out of my head that (spoiler alert?) for most of the book the Invisible Man had his Invisible Junk flopping around, making him far less menacing a villain than Wells intended.

[soylentgreen23 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Most of the Wells canon carries with it a double, or second, meaning. Here, the surface story of a scientist who succeeds in giving himself a negative refractive index, plays host to two other interpretations: one, the scientific urge, and the results of experimentation without moral or ethical umpires; and two, the sense that without societal restraints, man can become beastly.

[rajivc_18 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is another book that I loved. I remember watching the movie long, long ago. This is a classic tale of a brilliant scientist who makes a wonderful discovery, and then loses his mind.The book was long in the build up, and did meander a bit. I liked it when the Invisible Man decided that he wanted to create a reign of terror. I would, personally, have loved a little more exploration of the subject at this point. The evil genius, the evil joker, are all subjects that have fascinated me for years. HGW was such a great writer, he would have been brilliant had he delved deeper into the mind of the scientist.

[ashishg_50 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Haunting tale of man cursed by his own power: he attained invisibility but couldn't enjoy it. Narrative is thrilling, suspenseful and poignent simultaneously. It is difficult to solely hate or sympathize with protagonist. Writing style and word usage are enjoyable experience too.

[bobby3457 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is about a man that finds a way to turn invisible. At first he thinks that it could be fun, but then he finds that it is hard to live being invisible. He wants to find a way to reverse his own invention. Over time the people that are letting him stay at their house start to get suspicius about him being strange. They find out that he is invisible and gets the whole county chasing after him. This was a good book and I think that people that haven't read it should.

[justabookreader · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was looking for something short to read and came across an old beat-up copy of The Invisible Man on our shelves. It seemed like the perfect book --- a little science fiction, a compact story, something to read while sitting on the roof enjoying a sunny afternoon.Griffin, a scientist, invents a machine that uses optics to make things invisible to the naked eye. He tests his machine, and the procedure, on himself. He completes the process but he doesn’t have time to reverse it before he is kicked out of the inn where he’s conducting his experiments by the people of the town who don’t trust him. With no options, and no desire to explain himself or his work, he leaves the inn in his new invisible state. He steals to get what he needs then enlists a man to assist him in getting his notes back from the inn where he abandoned them. When he, and his invisible state, are reported to the authorities, Griffin flips and goes on a bit of a terror spree wanting to get back at the man who betrayed him.The science fiction aspect of the book is interesting and the explanation believable. Griffin wasn’t a likable character though --- he’s arrogant, mean, and capable of murder. I kept wondering what it was that made him that way because I didn’t believe it could have been the invisibility alone. He does tell his story but it doesn’t do anything to help his cause considering he openly talks of murder, setting fire to a place to hide his work, and robbing people. I’m fine with not liking the main character and here Griffin is really just being used as social commentary anyway so I understood the reasoning for it even if he didn’t appeal to me.Having not read much HG Wells since high school, I was slightly stunned to find I didn’t like this one as much as I thought I would. Don’t misinterpret that, I did like it, just not love it. I’m a person that likes to bond with the main character and here that wasn’t possible. The reader isn’t supposed to like Griffin but even knowing that didn’t help me. For me, he was the cruel scientist bent on revenge not caring about the people he was planning to hurt along the way to get what he wanted. As I’m writing this review I’m beginning to wonder if I’m experiencing an aversion to Wells’s writing and now I’m thinking of going back to re-read The Time Machine to see what I think of that. Interesting how that happens to me sometimes.

[weakley_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

If you like stories about mad scientists and descent into madness then this is the one for you. Although to tell you the truth I'm not sure Griffin's morality was screwed on that tightly to begin with.Scientist discovers way to make himself invisible. Scientist discovers being invisible is not the party he thought it would be. Scientist goes slightly more crazy that he was previously. Scientist finds old school chum whilst on the lamb. Old chumb turns him in. Scientist dies while being pursued. The end. Fairly basic premise for this genre. The best part of the book is the insight Wells gives us into the main characters lack of concern for his fellow man.At the end it was all right.

[jimmaclachlan · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of the neat things about Wells was his attention to detail. He was very careful to make the man an albino to facilitate his way of making the man invisible. Like the bit with the tea in "The First Men in the Moon", it's little things like this that make the story better than average. The character & situation are also well done.I consider this one of the 'must reads' for anyone interested in SF. So many other works built off of it. It's an excellent baseline to measure them against.

[kristelh_15 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Invisible Man is a tale of the antihero, Griffin, a scientist/student who found a way to make himself invisible which he saw as a means of power. “An invisible man is a man of power”. But there are disadvantages and everything he hoped to accomplish is halted by these difficulties, dogs that sense him, food which shows when ingested. Griffin can take his place beside Frankenstein and Faust as individuals who become more and more destructive as they pursue power. It is also a moral fable; invisibility places Griffen outside of society and alienates him. In the 1001 reference book; the reviewer states that the novel shows the author’s hostility to Nietzschean thought and particularly “superman”. The novel also reminds us that scientific discovery can be used to further evil rather than good. I enjoyed this tale and at first was thinking 3 stars but changed my mind and gave it four.

[sturlington_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Having read three of H. G. Wells‘s best-known novels now, I am not only impressed by the readability and modern appeal of his writing style, but also by his facility with adapting his style and tone to his subject matter. The Time Machine is poetic and melancholy; The War of the Worlds is dark, scary and suspenseful; and The Invisible Man is actually quite comical. At least, it is in the early chapters, as the title character first tries to conceal his invisibility, then tries to escape capture. The hijinks that ensue play like a slapstick movie.But the novel takes a darker turn as the Invisible Man narrates the events that led him to become invisible, and he becomes a more pathetic, and consequently more enraged creature. In trying to become less noticeable, he actually made himself more conspicuous. In trying to fade away, he now stands out and apart from all humanity. In trying to give himself power, he has only made his life more difficult. It is no surprise that insanity follows. The Invisible Man is a horror story — not because the power of invisibility is in itself so frightening, but because of what it wreaks on the man who obtains it.As a side note, in reading the Penguin Classics version of this novel, I was quite prepared to accept Wells’s explanation of invisibility for the purposes of the story. The footnotes ruined this for me by pointing out, in scientific terms, how this method of becoming invisible was physically impossible, making it much more difficult to suspend my disbelief. Sometimes, the footnotes are best avoided, at least until the novel is finished.

[blenny_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I didn't expect this book to be as good as it was. I expected it to be a bit turgid but found it was quite the opposite, funny even.There is a definite dark humour running throughout this novel and I surprised myself by bursting into laughter (rather embarrassingly) on the train at one point! I liked the way that Wells throws in some of the problems that could come with being invisible, such as feeling the cold, can still be heard and smelt, walked into by people, can't travel far as no clothes can be worn especially regarding the feet, can't eat much as food can be seen in the body etc. The aspirations of Griffin's character are similar to those of Victor Frankenstein's as both tirelessly and desperately work to further science and their own glory, only to create chaos, regret and sometimes death. Such is the legacy of man and human nature and H.G Wells, very much ahead of his time, knew it.

[bookmarque · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When asked what is the one superpower a person would like to have, the one that comes just after flying and just before mind reading is invisibility. The thoughts of the advantages one person would have over the rest of humanity are tantalizing. Being able to steal or to spy or to learn things otherwise off limits; these thoughts must have filled the head of Griffin, the Invisible Man. This novel surprised me in its level of violence and perspective. It does not show a man made insane by his condition. The condition unhinges him instead. To me, Griffin was a tightly wound man, hemmed in by social convention and his lowly position as a student. Once he has power, he quickly abuses it and that is his downfall. Friendships and trust are destroyed by the fact that he let his baser nature rule him.

[davidgnp · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have been re-discovering H G Wells in free Kindle downloads, though this is the first time I have read 'The Invisible Man'. The book is fascinating in its concept and of course it spawned almost an industry of adaptations and imitations including the TV series I remember from the 1960s featuring Peter Brady as the title character, though in an entirely different setting and conceit than the original.Here the title character is frustrated physicist Griffin who perfects a way of refracting light which, combined with some treatment of colour pigmentation (all very vaguely 'explained'), allows the character complete invisibility when naked, while retaining the solidity of the original human form. Griffin is initially delighted by his discovery which he imagines is going to give him the key to power and access in the world.He is soon disillusioned: the chapters devoted to Griffin naked on the streets of London trying to feed and clothe himself (having burned all his belongings) while trying to remain undetected are among the most powerful in the book. Griffin's reaction when he realises that his life as the Invisible Man is not going to be the idyll he imagined is a fury which leads to his determination to conduct a Reign of Terror against humanity.The Reign of Terror is shortlived. I won't give away the ending, though it's easier to spot than Griffin starkers. I was somewhat unsatisfied by it as I was by much of the book, though there are some gripping passages. The dialogue, especially in the 'crowd scenes',is clunky and false to the ear. The narrative is fast-paced but sometimes hobbled with clumsy prose. My main problem is with the character of Griffin himself who is portrayed as entirely amoral and thus never really engages the reader's sympathy even during his worst privations. I can understand why Wells chose this characterisation, as it sets up a sort of rationale for Griffin's deluded Reign of Terror, but I can't help feeling there is an opportunity missed by not developing a more rounded character, which could have given us a more mature reflection on the problems and moral dilemmas of Griffin's condition, and a more empathetic protagonist.I was going to end by saying that Griffin is two-dimensional, but I suppose it's more accurate to say he is no-dimensional - at least with his clothes off.

[1morechapter · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have never read anything by H.G. Wells before, and I found this book very intriguing. I really enjoyed the beginning of the book. He set up the mood and atmosphere perfectly; it was very suspenseful. The middle of the story bogged down a bit, but by the ending I was enjoying it again. It was interesting to note that in my edition they noted four alternative endings to the one I read. They were very minor changes, and my favorite ending was not the one published in this edition.One of my favorite authors is C.S. Lewis, and though Lewis admired Wells’ writing, he disagreed with him philosophically on many points. I just read that Lewis based one of the characters in That Hideous Strength on Wells himself. I’m planning on reading that book and the first two in the Space Trilogy by Lewis in 2008, so I’m really looking forward to seeing Lewis’ take on Wells’ character and ideology.

[ctpress_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Heard this as an audiobook. A very dark tale, but with a dry sense of humor - at least in the beginning of the novel. Then it descends into madness and terror. One would think that invisibility gives you the upper hand in many situations - however here we have a frightened, freezing and vulnerable man who cannot get shelter, food and sleep. And then he gets very angry!!I like the way Wells presents the novel from different points of view. We are drawn into the tale by guessing who this strange man is - and then The Invisible Man steps unto the scene and tell his own story. How he experience everything. Then you get more sympathy for the guy.

[ncgraham_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

When I was a young teen, I was assigned Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde for school reading, and surprised myself by enjoying the experience tremendously. I had always thought that they, like anything belonging to the body of work we now refer to as the horror genre, must be gruesome, sensational, and morally reprehensible. Instead, I discovered dark and probing examinations of the human condition, although the degree of their success obviously differs from individual to individual (I myself am far more fond of Dr Jekyll than Frankenstein). Since then I have read several more works in the same vein, including The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Phantom of the Opera, and last week I thought it would be a good idea to add The Invisible Man to the list, especially in view of the Halloween weekend coming up.In many ways it reminds me of Stevenson’s earlier masterpiece. Both combine horror and science fiction elements. Both feature the results of scientific experimentation gone awry and threatening to terrorize humankind (in this aspect it is similar to Frankenstein as well). And finally, both adopt a similar literary method of getting at their respective mysteries by starting with the peripheral accounts of side characters and leading up to the protagonist’s revelatory confession.Of course, finding such similarities caused me to make comparisons between other aspects of the two novels, which is always dangerous when one of the pieces examined is an old favorite. Certainly Wells’ prose is not in the same league as Stevenson’s; when I recently goaded my father into reading Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, one of the things that he raved to me about was the beauty of Stevenson’s writing. While reading The Invisible Man, very few descriptions or turns of phrase stuck out to me—and when they did, it was more often than not because of the very awkwardness of them. In passages of dialogue, the difficulty of the reading could be blamed on Wells’ use of local dialects, but obviously that does not prove a fitting excuse elsewhere. That said, I also suspect that my edition (1992, Dover Thrift) contained typos: there seemed to be verbs missing in odd places.The characters, too, are often less than sympathetic. While most of the rabble the Invisible Man encounters during his stay in the town of Iping (I - XII) seem to be good people, we don’t get to know them very well, and when they are hurt or terrorized, one doesn’t quite know how to react. The Man himself evokes some pity owing to the misery of his condition and the onset of insanity, but he is so cruel that one can feel no more emotion towards him than towards a rabid animal; moreover, he is not as complex as one could wish—there is no visible struggle between good and ill in his soul. Dr. Kemp is virtually the only character worth cheering for but is, again, rather flat as a whole.Finally, I do have to question Wells’ prerogative in titling the book The Invisible Man, given that the characters’ invisibility is supposed to remain a mystery up until Chapter VI! Ah well, it would make little difference nowadays.A few passages of the book were genuinely impressive, and its quality as a narrative improved in the latter half, changing my evaluation of it from dislike to indifferent respect. The Invisible Man’s unveiling was truly thrilling, and his great narrative (XIX - XXIII) actually quite interesting, although a little bogged down by the details of the pseudo-science. (Again, Stevenson really had the right idea in keeping the nitty-gritty of his scientist’s experimentations obscure.) I was also pleasantly surprised by the amount of humor present in the first half of the book, especially relating to the person of Mr. Thomas Marvel.Given the cultural impact of the idea (I still want to see the Claude Raines movie), I think it’s worth reading once, but I for one found it hard to love.

[elliepotten · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I always thought my first foray into H.G. Wells would be The War of the Worlds - but actually this made a fantastic starting point! A quick read, The Invisible Man is accessible, vivid and packs quite a punch along the way, and I really enjoyed it. It's about... well, an Invisible Man. Except when he first arrives in the little town of Iping, no one KNOWS he's an Invisible Man. Swathed in bandages, wearing gloves and heavy clothes, and with a hat and goggle-like glasses hiding his features, everyone assumes he's had a terrible accident. It's only when odd things begin to happen and the increasingly volatile gentleman is provoked into revealing his secret that all hell breaks loose. Is he a sympathetic victim or a murderous madman? Will he find someone to help him? How on earth did he reach this point in his life? How DOES a man render himself invisible anyway?What really surprised me, at least earlier on in the book, is how funny it is. The small-town characters are so amusing - Mr Marvel, the tramp, has some particularly good one-liners that made me chuckle - and some of their brilliantly observed little foibles are ones we all recognise even if we'd rather not admit to them! Nearer the end of the book the humour gives way largely to the Invisible Man's eloquently-told story and the melodramatic thrill of the chase, which was interesting but for me, not as enjoyable as the quick wit of the first half. Nevertheless, I'm very glad to have finally read this classic of science fiction writing - and I'm still looking forward to The War of the Worlds!

[theboylatham_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Six out of ten.

A mysterious stranger wrapped in bandages from head to toe arrives in town, and mysterious, terrible things begin happening. No one knows if he's responsible until he becomes invisible . . . right before their eyes.

[gmillar_8 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A bit more "pop" than the other of his stories I have: The First Men in the Moon. I enjoyed it (and the logic/science of it) but it was more predictable than I expected it to be after reading the other book.

[john257hopper · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Definitely my least favourite of the author's four main SF novels. The theme of the misguided scientist corrupted by his own discovery is handled much better in the Island of Dr Moreau. Much of this novel struck me as overly comedic, indeed rather slapstick. The other characters aside from the eponymous one are unmemorable ciphers. A disappointment.

[stacyinthecity · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this book, and I actually found the Invisable Man to be a sad sort of character. I felt sorry for him more than I felt like he was an awful person.

[omrythea_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This classic set the stage for lots of other great science fiction writing.

[andyray_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

H. G. Wells was a futuristic writer, a man before his time. As he wrote the first alien invasion story, the first time travel story, he also dealt with the idea that man can make himself invisible, whether psychologically or psychially. Ironically, a few years back there was a story on how mirrors can be used to refract light so the human being (or object) in the midst of the mirrors can be rendered "invisible."

[cathyvil · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Disturbing tale of a lunatic who made himself invisible. A quick and engrossing read.

[sean191 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another book that I'm way behind the curve in reading - I'm sure many read this in their early teens. Much more than just a regular sci-fi book though, I felt it offered a glimpse of the dark side of the human psyche.