First Humans on the Moon

During a stay in the countryside, the unsuccessful businessman and playwright Bedford meets the eccentric scientist Cavor. Cavor invents a new material unaffected by gravity, naming it Cavorit. Bedford and Cavor, the novel's narrator, construct a large hollow sphere in Cavor's house to travel to the moon. Upon arrival, they find a snowy, nighttime lunar surface. Observing from inside the sphere, they witness the sunrise, melting the snow and causing shrubs and giant mushrooms to sprout. Upon exiting, they get lost and encounter a herd of moon cows guarded by ant-like moon people, whom Cavor and Bedford dub 'Selenites' after the Greek moon goddess. Hungry, they consume hallucinogenic mushrooms. Under their influence, they encounter six Selenites who capture and imprison them within the moon. Bedford awakes in a small chamber with Cavor. The Selenites guide them through caverns containing peculiar machines, lit by glowing blue streams. At a dark chasm, the Selenites attempt to force them onto a bridge leading into the darkness. Bedford and Cavor refuse and fight back, with Bedford killing three Selenites. They escape through a hole in the ceiling, entering a cavern filled with luminescent mushrooms. Cavor tosses mushrooms through the hole, alerting the Selenites to their location. Climbing through a shaft, Cavor and Bedford enter another cavern...