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This is a story of wealth, manners, society, etiquette, class and social mobility, money, inequality and aspiration�

Whilst initially not seeming light years away from Alfred Polly, the character and story of Arthur Kipps turns out to be something quite, quite different.

Again there are echoes of Dickens here (see Great Expectations in particular) to an extent his style, narrative and in attempting to address and examine socio-economic issues � but what we have here is something that (the very prolific) H G Wells has created which is very much his own. As with ‘The History of Mr Polly� again it must be stressed that although there are similarities with the Dickensian tradition, it should be stressed that this is neither ‘Dickens-lite�, nor some sort of pale imitation or pseudo Dickens work � far from it. It has also been said that because Wells was writing in a time which was less remote from our own when compared with that of Dickens, that this may make his works easier for the reader to connect with? Whilst there may be some truth in that for some readers, to my mind, the best Dickens novels are very much timeless � hence one element of his greatness.

What we have here then is an examination and juxtaposition of wealth and the absence wealth, of ‘society� and those outside of it, of the ‘haves� and the ‘have-nots�. This is a great story (a very English story) about the life of our main protagonist, whilst at the same time shining the spotlight on society, on the socio-economic, cultural and political divides. By way of the turn of events, Arthur Kipps undergoes an internal psychological, moral and political struggle and Wells looks here at least to some extent at inequality in society and the barriers (perceived and actual) to social mobility.

I do not share the view of some reviewers that Kipps is merely the subject of ridicule by the author and merely a figure of fun. (Admittedly Kipps is however the subject of ridicule at the hands of other characters). Moreover, the story is narrated by and perceived from the point of view of Arthur Kipps. Here Kipps does become very much the veritable ‘fish out of water� � but to me Wells is ultimately exposing the pretensions, the confines and the vacuous and shallow bedrock which form the meaningless foundations of what may be considered ‘society, manners and etiquette�. The expectations of wealth, society and position; the constraints (both self-inflicted and those imposed by society) of having or not having wealth, influence and power.

The story as told from Kipps perspective is either sympathetic or at the very least ambivalent to his situation, the challenges he faces and his subsequent actions � regardless of whether these challenges arise out of his own doing or not. Neither do I think that the message here is - 'be happy and content with your lot and station in life' - this novel has far more to it than that.

This is a compelling, engaging and thought provoking novel, which whilst not having quite the same strengths as ‘The History of Mr Polly� (which is a more complete, homogeneous and well-rounded novel) � nevertheless this is a very strong story and well worth reading.