Future perfect
American science fiction of the nineteenth century
Hawthorne and Poe: Hawthorne. Nathaniel Hawthorne and science fiction ; [The birthmark](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL455204W) ; The artist of the beautiful ; [Rappaccini's daughter](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL455378W) -- Poe. Edgar Allan Poe and science fiction ; A tale of the Ragged Mountains ; [Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL40987W) ; Mellonta Tauta -- Explorations: Automata. Herman Melville and science fiction ; The bell-tower ; Man as machine ; Dr. Materialismus -- Marvelous inventions. The atoms of Chladni -- Medicine men. Was he dead? -- Into the psyche. Thomas Wentworth Higginson and his dreamer ; The monarch of dreams ; Ambrose Bierce and science fiction ; A psychological shipwreck -- Edward Bellamy and science fiction ; To whom this may come -- Space travel. The blindman's world ; Fitz-James O'Brien and science fiction ; The diamond lens ; Dimensional speculation as science fiction ; Four-dimensional space ; Mysterious disappearances ; From "Four-dimensional space" -- Time travel. Beyond the past ; Christmas 200,000 B.C. ; Mark Twain and science fiction ; From the "London Times" of 1904 ; Perfect future ; In the year ten thousand ; The present perfect.
Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Science Fiction, Nonfiction, Fiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.
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What the reading experience may hold
A fuller profile for choosing with more confidence—not just another copy of the preview.
Science Fiction · Nonfiction · Fiction
Use these as starting points rather than limits; the most memorable books often stretch beyond their catalog labels.
Catalog signals suggest warfare and conflict. These notes may not be complete; consult a publisher or reader-supplied guide when detailed warnings matter.
These notes are inferred from available catalog information and may not be complete. Check a publisher or reader-supplied guide if you need comprehensive warnings.
Dark tone · Steady pace
A comfortable full-length choice for steady daily reading.
A good fit if…
Readers who want a thoughtful experience and enjoy noticing the connections beneath a book’s surface story.
This book's DNA
A visual estimate based on this edition's categories, description, and length. Select a star to explore the signals.
This signal is descriptive, not a rating. It helps compare the kind of reading experience this edition may offer.
Spoiler-Free Emotional Arc
A broad estimate of the book’s emotional rhythm, shown without story events or outcomes.
This visualization is an interpretive estimate based on catalog description, categories, tone, pace, and content signals. It does not describe specific scenes.
A quick reading snapshot
Edition facts and catalog signals to help you decide whether this book fits what you want to read next.
- ISBN-13
- 978-0-1950-2323-7
- Language
- English
- Edition record
- OL4552518M
A more thoughtful way into this book
This guide uses the edition details and category signals above to help you choose deliberately. It does not replace the author's work or a full review.
A comfortable full-length choice for steady daily reading.
Begin with its place in Science Fiction, then notice where the book resists that label.
Read for connection, not completion.
Mark one passage that sharpens the book's central concern and one that complicates it. That tension often reveals more than a quick summary.
Three questions to carry with you
- Which familiar part of life becomes easier to see through this imagined world?
- What rules shape the world, and who benefits from them?
- Where does wonder, fear, or possibility change a character’s choices?
Editorial framework by Wesley Bryan, BookenDeX Founder and Editor.
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Why it fits: shares Fiction and Science fiction, a similar publication era.
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Why it fits: shares Science fiction and Nonfiction, a similar reading length.
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Why it fits: shares Science fiction and Nonfiction, a similar reading length.
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Why it fits: shares Science fiction and Nonfiction, a similar reading length.