One of the founders of innovative science fiction novels, H.G. Wells was as taken up with the real world as his imaginary realm. Dissatisfied with the quality of history books at the end of World War I, the writer began penning his own history of the world. First published in 1922, A Short History of the World presents a groundbreaking study of the civilisation from the origins of the Earth-spanning the Neolithic Era, the rise of Judaism, the Golden Age of Athens, Christ’s life, the great discovery of America-to the consequences of World War I. Inspired by Wells’s The Outline of History (1919)-a work in three volumes, beginning with Prehistory and following the world’s significant events through World War I-this condensed work chronicles the physical, intellectual and spiritual evolution of the human race. Wells adopts a Darwinian approach and avoids presenting history within a politicised framework. Passionately told, A Short History of the World remains an evergreen classic.