The Sea Lady (Barnes & Noble Digital Library)

By H. G. Wells

It’s a normal day at the beach until the woman who is rescued from drowning turns out to be a mermaid who is very determined to make her own human catch.  This charming work, published in 1902, is one of H. G. Wells’s fanciful satires about utopian ideas and the limits of the human condition.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Barnes & Noble
• Release date: Dec 12, 2011
• ISBN: 9781411464735

H. G. Wells

H. G. Wells (1866-1946) is best remembered for his science fiction novels, which are considered classics of the genre, including The Time Machine (1895), The Island of Doctor Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897), and The War of the Worlds (1898). He was born in Bromley, Kent, and worked as a teacher, before studying biology under Thomas Huxley in London.

Reviews for The Sea Lady (Barnes & Noble Digital Library)

[baswood · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"There are better dreams" says the Sea Lady to Melville the writer's cousin as she tells him of her desire to lure the young up-and-coming politcian; Chatteris into the sea. H G Wells' Sea Lady is one of his lesser known novels; it was published in 1902 when he was still at the height of his creative powers as a fantasy author and it proves to be a story rich in satire and comedy. A bathing party of men on the beach at Folkestone on the South coast of England in 1899 (no mixed bathing) are surprised to see a woman swimming towards them from further out. They assume she needs assistance and with the help of a nearby ladder for her to cling to they land her on shore. They are more than a little surprised to see that she has a tail and so carry her to the house whose garden runs down to the sea. Mrs Bunting takes charge of the situation wrapping up the mermaid in some towelling. The mermaid named Doris Waters becomes a house guest with the Buntings who do their best to disguise the fact that she has a tail. She is taken out in a sort of invalid chair and settles down to a life on shore. It eventually transpires that the Sea Lady has come ashore for a reason, she is an immortal in search of a soul and she has chosen Chatteris who visits the Buntings to spend time with his fiancé Adeline Glendower another house guest. Adeline is a dedicated political worker intent on helping Chatteris make his mark on the political scene.After a dull start Wells gets into his stride when the Sea Lady reveals her intentions and then the novel focuses on Chatteris' dilemma. Should he follow the mermaids call or should he settle down with the safe Adeline and his political ambitions. Wells uses this rather slight fantasy story to lampoon the polite manners of the upper middle classes and turns to satire when describing political life and the press. There is comedy here too for example when one of Chatteris' many aunts surmises how Chatteris and the mermaid could live together, she wonders if she could buy him a diving bell. It is not too difficult to see some of Wells in Chatteris, because Wells had settled down in a convenient marriage, which allowed him to stray after other women; he describes Chatteris as:a dreamer, with an impossible extravagant discontent. What does he dream of.......Three parts he is dreamer and the fourth part is spoilt child..... and he says about himself It's just that even balance that I cannot continue. I cannot sit down to the oatmeal of this daily life and wash it down with temperate draught of beauty and waterand the mermaid:Out of some other world she comes whispering that this life is a phantom life, unreal, flimsy, limited, casting on everything a spell of disillusionment. And so the climax to the story is Chatteris' decision, will he follow the Sea lady into the sea and certain death or will he stay on shore with the careful Adeline? Wells tells his story through the point of view of his cousin Melville who witnesses most of the action and conversations between the participants and becomes instrumental in trying to sort out the tryst between Chatteris and Adeline. This allows Wells to pull back from the narrative and to add a little mystery, because Melville is not a party to everything that goes on: Wells can also directly address his readers to add a little humour on occasions.This is a delightful little story, a good afternoons read, with some sparkling dialogue and enough depth to satisfy the attentive reader. A 3.5 star read.

[lisahistory · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Quite wonderful tale of a mermaid who wheedles her way into an earthly household and causes a respectable fianceed gentleman to fall for her, all told by the gentleman's friend's cousin. Very funny in demonstrating social mores impacted by an absurd situation.

[danielstj · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was surprised at the depth and storytelling of this particular tale by H.G Wells. It was highly impressive for a story of its kind and quite novel in what it presented and detailed. The writing, too, at times was poetic and so appealing that you were able to appreciate the intensity of it. For all that want a different, but enjoyable, read (and want to delve into H.G. Wells) I recommend this book.3.5 stars