The Island Of Doctor Moreau (1896) By H.G. Wells

"Not to go on all-Fours; that is the Law. Are we not Men?"

Although I was certainly aware of this classic H.G. Wells story, I stumbled into reading it almost by chance. However, I soon found that it captured my imagination amost immediately. It's a classic piece of science fiction literature, full of interesting themes and messages.

"I never yet heard of a useless thing that was not ground out of existence by evolution sooner or later. Did you? And pain gets needless."

I found the story to be imaginative, mysterious, and even a little creepy at times. Wells addresses a number of key themes that make this a fascinating read - namely those of morality and moral responsibility, identity, ethics of experimentation, evolution and trauma.

"It was not the first time that conscience has turned against the methods of research."

The isolated setting proved to be very appropriate and effective for allowing the development of the story and its themes. Furthermore, I was impressed - once again in the case of Wells - by the realism of the writing. He has a real skill for creating believable and intriguing characters.

"You cannot imagine the strange colour-less delight of these intellectual desires."

I was able to race through this novel, at least by my standards, with ease and enjoyment. I was familiar with Wells writing style from 'The War Of The Worlds', so I wasn't surprised that I enjoyed his dictation and flow in this novel too.

"And the great difference between man and monkey is in the larynx, he said, in the incapacity to frame delicately different sounding symbols by which thought could be sustained."

H.G. Wells explores and weaves together the worlds of nineteenth century darwinism and science fiction to create a fascinating dissection of ethics and morality in an, at the time, contemporary, but unique, world.

"A strange persuasion came upon me that, save for the grossness of the line, save for the grotesqueness of the forms, I had here before me the whole balance of human life in miniature, the whole interplay of instinct, reason, and fate in its simplest form."