The Young H.G. Wells

A most intelligent and sympathetic biographer... she writes well and wittily * Daily Telegraph *
One of the best biographers of her generation * Guardian *
Tomalin knows how to tell a cracking story * Daily Mail *
Sprightly, generous... Claire Tomalin's restrained biography of the prolific writer and philanderer's early years lets readers reach their own verdict on his life and deeds * Guardian Book of the Day *
Richly informative... Tomalin admits that, although she set out to write about the young Wells, she has followed him into his forties because she found him 'too interesting to leave'. The same can be said of her book * Sunday Times *
A new biography by Claire Tomalin is always an event...the style is as well-researched and engaging as ever, her treatment of the complicated personal life of Wells as sensitively and carefully handled as in the Dickens...this is a wonderfully readable and fascinating account of the life of HG wells, and deserves a wide readership * Irish Times *
In this brilliantly engaging story of the first 40 years of Well's life, Claire Tomalin cannot hide her admiration for a man who never forgot what it felt like to be hungry * Mail on Sunday *
Claire Tomalin is my favourite biographer and I'm desperate to get my hands on her latest, The Young H. G. Wells. I'd be thrilled to find this under the tree on Christmas Day -- Elizabeth Day
This is a fine and very enjoyable biography of an extraordinary man and his times. Wells is still relevant, still matters. It's good that Tomalin reminds us of how remarkable he was * Scotsman *
A deft and informative account which brings its subject vividly to life * TLS *
Focusing on the first four decades of Wells' life, Tomalin lays bare both his work ethic (he'd turn out 7,000 words a day) and relentless philandering in peerless prose * Financial Times, Best Books of 2021 *
The life of HG Wells, from childhood to the height of his literary success, is told by one of our leading biographers - a tale of prodigious energy in the study, and the bedroom * The Times, Best Books of 2021 *
For a compact overview of this endlessly fascinating man and writer, Tomalin's 'The Young H.G. Wells' is hard to beat, being friendly, astute and a pleasure to read * Washington Post *
With a flair for colour, pace and plot that matches her subject's, Tomalin does not bury Wells under a monumental tombstone. Instead, her dynamic sketch invites readers to discover - or rediscover - why that volcano still spits fire to light up a changing world -- Boyd Tonkin * Arts Desk *