''The Hampdenshire Wonder'' is a 1911 science fiction novel by

J. D. Beresford John Davys Beresford (17 March 1873 – 2 February 1947) was an English writer, now remembered for his early science fiction and some short stories in the horror story and ghost story genres. Beresford was a great admirer of H.G. Wells, and w ...

. It is one of the first novels to involve a wunderkind. The child in it, Victor Stott, is the son of a famous cricket player. This origin is perhaps a reference to H.G. Wells's father Joseph Wells. The novel concerns his progress from infant to almost preternaturally brilliant child. Victor Stott is subtly deformed to allow for his powerful brain. One prominent, and unpleasant, character is the local minister. As Beresford's father was a minister, and Beresford was himself partially disabled, some see autobiographical aspects to the story. However this is unproven. What is more concrete is that the story of

Christian Heinrich Heineken Christian Heinrich Heineken or Heinecken (February 6, 1721 – June 27, 1725), also known as "the infant scholar of Lübeck", was a German child prodigy who lived only to the age of four. Life He was born in Lübeck, Germany, the son of Paul He ...

was an inspiration for the story. Whether the biography of that child prodigy was accurate or not, "the Lubeck prodigy" is mentioned in the work. In the original version, the progressionist ideas of

Henri Bergson Henri-Louis Bergson (; 18 October 1859 – 4 January 1941) was a French philosopherHenri Bergson. 2014. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 13 August 2014, from https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/61856/Henri-Bergson

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

were a significant influence.

References

Sources

* * George M. Johnson. ''J.D. Beresford''. New York: Twayne/Simon and Schuster, 1998. * George M. Johnson. "The Other Side of Edwardian Fiction: Two Forgotten Fantasy Novels of 1911" ''Wormwood: Literature of the fantastic, supernatural and decadent''. U.K., No. 16 (Spring 2011) 3–15. * George M. Johnson. "Evil is in the Eye of the Beholder: Threatening Children in Two Edwardian Speculative Satires". ''Science Fiction Studies''. Vol. 41, No.1 (March 2014): 26–44.

External links

*
SF Site review of "The Wonder"
1911 British novels British science fiction novels 1911 science fiction novels Novels by J. D. Beresford Sidgwick & Jackson books {{1910s-sf-novel-stub