Clearly written as a serial, the protagonist joins his uncle, who is a known swindler, in popularizing a quack cure all. The funds from which are used to fund both a series of Ponzi schemes and bust outs. Strangely, the protagonist and the author never explore whether these crimes are good or bad and not a word is mentioned in regret for the people who have been fleeced. A forerunner of Prince Harry, instead the protagonist only sees each situation and person as owing something to him. When the scheme breaks down, the country is treating him quite poorly. When his uncle is on the lam, people are treating his uncle quite poorly. In short, it's an amoral book in which the author believes the protagonist is, indeed, a moral person. Very strange.

The protagonist does use his ill-gotten gains to develop his scientific and engineering skills. As a sort of revenge against English society, the book closes with these skills being sold to the highest bidder, even if such bidder be an enemy of England. Very strange.

One is sure that portions of the book are autobiographical, but which?

Good narrator.

What a bore.

H.G. Wells' bit of a satirical look at the effects of wealth, power and enterprise on ordinary lives...
The tale follows the experiences of George Ponderevo who is 'encouraged' by his uncle to work with him on marketing a new product, a sort of 'miracle cure' thing, it also greatly expounds on George's experiences from childhood, to university, to the heart of London, then wealth, fame, his inventions and intentions, the uncle's eventual bankruptcy, and oh yes his various 'loves', etc, etc...

3.5 ⭐️
Es un buen libro, tiene capítulos y partes que se vuelven lentas y un poco aburridas, sin embargo es una gran historia del valor que puede llegar a tener un hombre, y hasta donde va su ambición por tener todo lo esperado.
Buena historia.

Amusing account of a nephew and uncle pushing get-rich schemes — snake oil fashioned as a health tonic. Witty portrayal of the nephew’s tortured attempts at love. To me this is a also a test of the writer’s prowess with language, his ability to push the upper limits of English. Artful, sophisticated storytelling.

Despite being initially intrigued by the premise of this book, I found that I had to force myself to read it from the start. The first two chapters were remarkably slow and I ran out of steam by the end of the two. However, because I was the host of a book club for the book, I found myself picking it up and finishing it for a final push. To my surprise, chapter three began the page-turning part of the book. If only I had read one more chapter at the start!

Tono-Bungay is a miraculous elixir that, well, isn't. It also doesn't take up much of the book, despite the title. Instead, the story focuses on the society behind the snakeoil. Young George starts out his adulthood with an idealized perspective on life and love. Yet the two bang heads when the woman he loves (or thinks he loves) refuses his proposal because, well, she wants to be 'practical'. In desperation, he takes his uncle's offered job to woo his wife-to-be. Not surprisingly, the marriage doesn't work out.

George then decides to pursue science and leave the business side in the hands of his uncle, a man who has proven himself to be not-so-good with finances. Time passes while George works on his 'flying machine', and eventually he finds himself in love yet again. Once again, in the name of wooing, he embarks on a crazy plan.

Most of the overviews of this novel focus on the English society and the focus on commercialism, which make great themes in the book. But I think that economics aren't the only things that are oversold. Wells highlights that love is also over-advertised. At one point, the narrator notes that he had grown up on an idealized image of love via the poet Shelly that didn't stand him in good stead when he encountered a real woman.

Of course there is also the glaring economic issues that resound through the novel, how a love of money is, in truth, the root of all evil. George flirts with being a socialist, though he again finds himself let down by reality. He also speaks of the abundance that allows people to grow indolent and fat, something that resounds well with America today, I think. For money, his uncle threw away what was a good life to ruin his, and his wife and nephew's besides. The women he interacts with chose money over love because, well, it's hard to be poor.

Overall, I enjoyed the book as much as I originally hoped and more than I initially did. A good read, and one I recommend.

A real curate's egg of a novel. I was never quite sure which direction it was heading in. If you have only read Wells' Sci-Fi, it's hard not to expect the technological future as imagined in 1909 appearing. When the novel gets going and gets into the story of the narrator's crackpot scheming uncle and his liquid panacea Tono-Bungay that makes his fortune, I felt either some miraculous placebo effect was going to occur or the tale would double back into an hilarious expose of the hucksters, shysters and advertising confidence tricksters of the time. In the end it does neither, but mildly exposes the limitations of the crude capitalist and equally crude class-driven society. When a hobby in aeronautics and a heart-of-darkness style excursion to steal some radioactive African guano are thrown into the mix, the result is interesting, but uneven.

I think some of the reviews didn’t connect with the main character George. I did and that made the novel that much better. The social naïveté that George has towards the beginning of the book is relatable. The disgust with society at different stages is too. And finally the hopelessness, depression, but seeking out real truth in the world.
I appreciate the social commentary as Wells does it better here than in other works of his that I have read already. This novel being more grounded in realism helps.
Another reviewer mentioned that it was written in a Dickens manner/tone. I do agree. It hits the same chords as David Copperfield.
It took me awhile to get through but it attached to me more because of that.

This was my least favorite time period for a book. I also did not connect with the characters. Just was not for me.

I'd first heard of TONO-BUNGAY when recently reading a biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Apparently, this book by H.G. Wells was one of his favorite books. (H.G. Wells ... you mean THE WAR OF THE WORLDS and THE TIME MACHINE H.G. Wells? Yes, that's the one.) While I enjoy much of Wells' writing, I had a difficult time conceiving his creating a tale that would be one of Fitzgerald's favorites.

Well, TONO-BUNGAY is very different from what I would imagine from the pen of the distinguished English author ... and it had a great many elements that would have appealed to Fitzgerald. It has distant, attractive women who are difficult for men to fathom, a world in which money opens doors as long as it flows, and the glamor of adventure for anyone willing to pursue it.

The central story revolves around the creation of a "quack" revitalizing medicine that takes the country by storm and keeps growing as sideline projects are intermixed. The main character repeatedly questions the ethics of making and selling something that can't deliver what was advertized, but is consoled that if people are buying it, it must be doing something good.

Although there are many satirical moments, I had the sense that the writer was steeped in this literary realm he created. For instance, the class-system is skewered, but it is no longer eternally closed to anyone not born with a golden spoon. Indeed, when anyone acquires enough money, they can roam in virtually any class circle. Yes, England was changing.

There were three general themes that greatly influenced the actions of the various characters. First, men (by their very nature) need an audience. Their accomplishments, their dreams, and their failed attempts are all done with the expectation that someone important to them will notice.

Women are uncertain about their emotions versus what is proper to do. However, they also have the wisdom that men lack. When allowed, they can be the guides that add substance to the wild flights of fancy from men.

Finally, over all of Life is a very real sense of Fatalism. People may strive and endeavor all they wish, Whether or not they will be successful has already been determined. If actions head in a different direction from what is meant to be, the perpetrator will run into a blockade.

These themes, while ably presented, were not a strong draw for me. TONO-BUNGAY (the name of the revitalizing medicine) is a long book with many rewards scattered throughout. There are also times that the story will dwell extensively on details. As I'd mentioned, some of this had to be very personal for the writer.

My biggest complaint was the tendency to tell the Reader what was going to happen and what the result would be BEFORE entering into the narrative. There would be statements similar to, "I then entered into this enterprise which would eventually result in my failure" ... and then the story of that particular enterprise is told in great detail. All the while, the Reader knows the final result, but not specifically what happened to cause the failure. That happens multiple times in the course of the book.

I cannot give it a strong recommendation. There are many worthwhile elements and concepts. However, I cannot see myself reading this one again.

Humorous tale of a snake oil salesman.

Fui com alguma expectativa, que saiu defraudada, tendo sido uma leitura custosa e bem mais lenta. Considero importantes alguns apontamentos de crítica social, dos contínuos exageros e da grandeza humana, mas fora isso a história arrasta-se.