The Food of the Gods

Rating:
Summary: Prescient
Review: >Of course people have gotten bigger in the 20th century, due primarily to better nutrition, health care, excercise, etc., but we are hardly the 40 foot giants Wells' talks about.

Look up "nutrition" in a dictionary: It means "food". In particular people have gotten RADICALLY taller in the last fifteen years of the twentieth-century--a remarkably short span of time--due to what's being put INTO food (chemicals--I'm not talking about vitamins here): not "bigger", TALLER. Taller, thinner, less muscular, more stretched out, in a word, misshapen, disfigured.

This book can be taken as a parable or an adventure story, and so on, but to a remarkable extent it happens to be a DEAD-ON prophecy.

Rating:
Summary: A classic story of man vs science
Review: Ever the visionary, H.G. Wells here presents the reader with a study of the classic conflict between Science and Man. I could never really figure out where Wells stands on this issue in these pages, and perhaps he sits on the fence, providing convincing arguments on both sides of the struggle. Interestingly, the book begins with a number of biting, satirical remarks about science and scientists; they are called men of "obvious littlenesses" who cannot see outside the bounds of the narrow world they live in; their "greatness" only inspires dislike among their peers and translates not at all to the masses. I was in fact rather shocked to see Wells characterize men of science in such a forcible way. In terms of the story, two scientists discover the recipe for a growth agent which they see as a great benefit for the future life of man on earth--food sources can be grown in exceedingly abundant numbers, thus providing for the welfare of all men. They set out to experiment by purchasing a small farm and feeding the new food, spontaneously dubbed Food of the Gods, to a number of hens. Unfortunately, the pair hired to see after the farm are quite inefficient, and the food finds it way to a number of unfortunate locations. Huge wasps appear to terrify the local community; the hens eventually escape and run amuck, gigantic creeping plants begin to take over various areas of land, and then gigantic rats torment the local population. The farm and its creations are forcibly cleaned up, but the story by no means ends there.

The two scientists continue work on the food with the intent of controlling its use, but a neighboring doctor forces his way into their lives and launches a public campaign for their product. This, plus the fact that the food continues to find its way to different places (with the resulting consequences of huge new pests and pestilences) contributes to a growing public reaction against the food, a movement that will eventually place a "giant-killer" in political control of the country. Meanwhile, for reasons I never really understood, the sons of the scientists (as well as a few more children) are given the food and eventually grow in excess of forty feet tall. The story actually becomes quite powerful when describing the lives of these young giants. While some are totally isolated and, for a time, "controlled," others actually attempt to do things for the "pygmies," such as building houses, creating reservoirs, generating electrical power. In every case they are chastised by the people, who complain about property rights, zoning laws, and other things that the giants simply don't understand. The giants look at the population and see homelessness, perpetual drunkenness, poverty, and other social ills, and they want to help; sadly, every attempt to serve is met with more consternation and increased restraints on their movements. Eventually, the anti-giants league takes power and sets out to rid their world of the giants through either exile or war. Their first victim is a poor young giant who tired of the perpetual work he was compelled to perform and set out to see the life he had been hidden from. He cannot understand humanity at all, and his questions about normal life are ignored; his end is tragic and frankly a sad indictment on mankind. The novel does not end very satisfactorily--the lines have been drawn, but the ultimate outcome of the struggle is left unanswered. To have continued the story would have required Wells to take a stand on the issue, and I don't think he was confident enough in his own opinions to do so.

The novel begins in an almost humorous tone but ends quite seriously and tragically. Both sides of the scientific argument are given a full say in matters, and the great tragedy is that no one wins in this story. The most innocent victims are the giants themselves; they alone seem to recognize society's ills and make an effort to improve the lives of their fellow men despite the harsh treatment they receive for their efforts.

Rating:
Summary: 3 and 1/2 Stars
Review: Everyone knows that H.G. Wells has written some great books that are classics not only of speculative fiction, but of literature itself. However, as anyone who has delved deeper into his canon knows, he also wrote many books of far lesser quality. This book starts out quite slowly and awkwardly, and, at first, I thought it was going to be one of those books; but, as I got deeper into the book, it became more interesting and fascinating. Wells's prose style, merely fuctionary at the best of times, is particularly awkward and trying at the start of this book. It does, however, improve much as the story goes on. Even if you find this book slow going at first, my advice to you is to stick with it: the last 50 pages or so are classic Wells, and find him at his most poetic and striking. This book finds Wells in the mode of social commentary that he tended to feature in his novels after the turn of the century; and, if his position on the issue presented in this book is not as abundantly clear as that in some of his other works, it nonetheless makes for fine reading. Not a first-class Wells novel by any means, and, though you should read a good handful of his books before beginning on this one, you will eventually want to pick this up if you are a fan of Wells.

Rating:
Summary: Throught provoking
Review: The novel is one of the lesser known ones by Wells. It is about the discovery of a food that makes living creatures grow to a size that's many times larger than normal. The "food" is spread from its laboratory context and escapes into the countryside. After a number of years, this gigantism is a part of life in England with a number of people being on the food from birth.

The book does not focus on the scientific side of it at all, except in the first few chapters. Most of the rhetoric is about society and it's lack of acceptance of the giants. They just don't fit in with, say, the "proper" notion of life in an English village where ignorance and hypocricy rule. As a result, there is a much-provoked retaliation by the giants.

At its finest, the book describes the giants as symbolic of a new, grand mentality as opposed to the pettiness of the general populace. As such (especially as it uses the literal difference of size to symbolise more profound things) The Food of the Gods is in the tradition of satires such as Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels and Rabelais' Gargantua and Pantagruel. In fact, one of the giants is given the nickname Pantagruel as a child. The book highlights intolerance and hatred as the line of distinction between ordinary people and giants is drawn across communities and families.

The novel is entertaining and inspiring. Wells is known for his grandiose visions of society's potential and this book is a great example. He inspires a revolution - but not an economic or violent one - but something that's in the next step in the evolution of ideas. Read this book!

Rating:
Summary: Quite good
Review: When the scientists Bensington and Redwood create a new compound which turns growth in all living things from a series of bursts and intermission into a constant, they have no idea how it will affect the world. Indeed, when this new "Food of the Gods" gets loose, it begins to grow giant plants and animals...and giant people. But, is the world big enough to hold an aging race of pygmies and a young race of giants?

This now largely forgotten work was written by H.G. Wells (1866-1946) in 1904, during his brief sojourn with the Fabian Society. Mr. Wells did not write his science fiction to tell entertaining stories; instead, he used his stories as vehicles for social commentary. In this particular book, Wells introduces a new race of mankind, large and capable - born outsiders who can not possibly fit into the social constructs that surround them, much less understand them.

Now, unlike War of the Worlds and The Invisible Man, why did this book fade into obscurity? Overall, I would say that Wells critique of Edwardian society is not deep enough to allow this story to transcend that setting. Also, while the story is quite good, it is not great, unlike those other stories.

So, am I saying that you should skip this book? Definitely not! H.G. Wells was a tremendous storyteller, and this story is quite entertaining. If you are a fan of Edwardian literature, or just like a good story, then you will definitely like this book. I highly recommend it.