High 3.

Difficult to rate something like this... It is the complete works of H.G. Wells and he was rather prolific. With more than 80 stories in this collection and even a few novellas, one can hardly expect each and every one to be amazing.
There are some fairly average stories, and a few that haven't aged particularly well or hold little for a reader of today, but the good stories are really good (some trumping any of his novels, in my opinion) and most of the collection is worth reading purely in terms of the ideas and how they have influenced film and literature.

Somewhere down the line (I've been working my way through this since December 2013) I started listing highlights. Below is a general list of what I consider to be the best of the collection, with what I consider to be the best of the best in bold:

The Remarkable Case of Davidson's Eyes - 4
The Story of The Late Mr Elvesham - 4
The Moth - 3.5
The Apple - 3.5
Under The Knife - 3
Pollock and the Porroh man - 3.5
The Red Room - 4.5
The Sad Story of a Dramatic Critic - 4
The Star - 3.5
A Story Of Days To Come - 3.5
The Man Who Could Work Miracles - 4
The Truth About Pyecraft - 3
Mr Skemersdale In Fairy Land - 4
The Door In The Wall - 3.5
Empire Of The Ants - 3.5
The Pearl Of Love - 5
The Country Of The Blind - 4.5
The Story Of The Last Trump - 4
The Devotee Of Art - 4
Wayde's Essence - 3.5
The Wild Asses Of The Devil - 3.5
The Presence By The Fire - 4
An Answer To Prayer - 4
The Queer Story of Brownlow's Newspaper - 3

I started making this list about half way through the collection, and it's quite possible that a few more would be added following a 2nd read. Therefore I have listed (as my memory vaguely serves me) some Honorable Mentions:

The Stolen Bacillus - Didn't stand out for me but I remember it being an amusing read.

The Flowering Of The Strange Orchid - Possibly influenced Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers.

The Triumphs of A Taxidermist/A Deal In Ostriches - An amusing read from what I recall.

Through A Window - Think Hitchcock's Rear Window.

The Temptation of Harringay - An early draft of The Devotee of Art. Decent enough but I preferred the revised version.

The Diamond Maker - I can't remember this one very well but I remember enjoying it.

A Slip Under The Microscope - I personally didn't think much of this story, but it is considered one of Wells finest, purely due to the questions it raises on certain moral issues.

The Man With The Nose - Short, amusing story about a man's dissatisfaction with his nose.

Our Little Neighbor - Tragic, mildly horrific little story. Reminded me of that episode of The Twilight Zone with the gremlin.


As I have already said, most of the stories are worth reading, if not for the purpose of entertainment then for the ideas they contain or for their uncanny prophetic nature (as Wells is often noted for).
The Land Ironclads, for example; I didn't particularly like it as a story, but it does predict what are essentially tanks, and in chilling detail. There are also plenty of stories concerning airplanes or similar contraptions which were written before such things had even been produced.

Other things of note:

The story "The Star" reads like an early version of In The Days of The Comet. Those who have read and enjoyed the novel may find that an interesting read.

Both The Last Trump and An Answer To Prayer contain similar themes to The Soul of A Bishop and were possibly early precursors to the writing of the novel.

A Story of The Days To Come is set in the same future society as The Sleeper Awakes.

This collection (2011 Gollancz edition) contains both the original and revised versions of The Country Of The Blind. I personally prefer the original and would recommend reading that first, but the revised is also worth a read.

All in all, a very worthwhile collection. If you are a fan like me, then you'll find the majority of this collections material a very worthwhile read. If you are merely interested in dipping in for a few gems, then I believe most of Well's most popular/famous stories should be either in my list of favorites or the honorable mentions. ( )