The Time Machine and Other Stories

I got this book due to the author. It is written by H.G. Wells, of War of the Worlds fame. The format was not what I had expected. It has a good sized story - The Time Machine. Then there are a lot of other short stories. I will only comment on The Time Machine.

There is some professor like dude. He invents a time machine. He returns to the present in bad shape. After he gets ahold of himself, he tells his story. He traveled far into the future. Initially he met these aimless little creatures. They slept at night and feared the dark. His time machine gets stolen.

He saves one of these little creates from drowning. She then follows him around. At night, the professor discovers that some monkey like beings come out from the depths underground. He figures these are the beings of industry. As the aimless creatures do not seem to do any work.

The professor goes down into a shaft. The monkey creatures attack him. They are susceptible to light. And he has some matches. He is able to climb back up to the surface. At night, they pursue him out into a forest. He eventually is able to survive a battle with them. He cracks open some statues and finds where the monkeys hide his time machine.

People in the present are not sure whether to believe him or not.