You may not expect a book from the 1800s to be the most riveting “beach read” during my vacation to the Caribbean over the holiday break. Neither did I.

What I discovered while reading The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells, a short sci-fi novel from 1897, is how science-fiction writers tell stories that question how we perceive our world now and how it might look in the future.

Can we learn about science from fiction? What do you notice by comparing science fiction written today with 19th century “scientific romances?”

Even back in the 1800s society was already questioning and pushing back science: does technology support and improve society, or does it hurt us? What do you think?

Exploring this topic on my Substack newsletter, out now: robynmetcalfe.substack.com/subscribe