The War of the Worlds

by H.G. Wells

Book Overview

When four Martian spaceships land in England, masses of people flee the cities, driven by an overwhelming fear of the alien creatures with their devastating weapons of death and destruction.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0486405524
• ISBN13: 9780486405520
• Release Date: December 1998
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Length: 80 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.2" x 5.3" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 8 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 9

Customer Reviews

"Then came the night of the first falling star..."

When I first read this novel back in 1998 (A hundred years after the novel had been written), I was expecting a good horror novel. What I got was a powerful novel of faith and hope within the story of a Martian invasion. Mankind is powerless against these invaders, their weapons useless. But in the end, Mankind wins anyway, thanks to the Master of Heaven and Earth. H.G. Wells' novel is a masterpiece that deserves a place in everyone's collection of great science fiction! Grade: A+

War of the Words

When I last read the book, I was about twelve-years-old -- far too young to appreciate its various subtleties. It seemed just another science fiction novel, albeit one that was a little difficult for me to read at that tender age. Revisiting this as an adult is an eye-opening experience. Not only did I find more to enjoy in the story and the prose, but I caught a lot more of the metaphors and real-life parallels that H. G. Wells invoked. One of the really noticeable aspects of the novel (especially when compared to more modern science fiction writings) is how human it seems. Wells was apparently fascinated by the thought of how people and societies would react to an alien invasion. He shows us both the micro- and the macro-level. We see the panic on the collective mind of the general populous. We're shown the unreasoning hysteria present in a frightened mob. But Wells also makes the fear individual. Not only are we viewing the situation from the eyes of the narrator, but we're encountering particular people each reacting to the situation in different (yet entirely reasonable) ways. The false bravado, the total inability of the human mind of cope -- they're all presented here. Another thing that immediately struck me was the rich use of language. I've read so many books written in an overly simplistic "he said, she said" fashion that I really appreciated this. Some readers may find it tedious, but I found it very absorbing. In short, I really enjoyed reading this. It's not a particularly long novel, and I managed to put it to bed in a single afternoon sitting. THE WAR OF THE WORLDS had a profound message at its core, one that would be diminished through the following years by the many science fiction movies that ripped out the events without fully understanding the meaning. H. G. Wells was showing his 19th Century audience the dangers of British Imperialism. He wanted to show the effect that so-called liberations and enlightenments had on the indigenous populations. The lessons for the 21st Century are obvious. And for this reason, WAR is so much more than just the first sci-fi alien invasion story. While we still inhabit a world of war and conquerors, the message of WAR OF THE WORLDS will, unfortunately, be necessary.

Still a classic imposible to put down

Basically, it is a good, fast moving story. It keeps you glued to your chair both by its plot, but also by its writing. This is not fast food writing. This is not the kind of writing that you consume like french fries, enjoy and forget instantly. The prose is beautiful, every word seemingly chosen with care to build up a scene or create a mood. The quote that began this review is one example. Here is another to describe the collapse of the government and the end of law and order, "All organizations were losing coherency, losing shape and efficiency, guttering, softening, running at last in that swift liquefaction of the social body." Right from the start, the reader is given a growing sense of danger, dread and horror. The narrator (who seems to be Wells, himself) describes the ancient, doomed civilization of Mars. It is doomed because Mars itself is a dying planet and the Martians must look elsewhere if they are to survive. They look to the earth and they have a technology so advanced and a moral sense so non-existent, that people do not exist for them except as a nuisance to be gotten rid of. Having given the reader that background information, Wells describes the landing of a mysterious object near the small English town where he is living happily with his wife. The object is regarded at first as a meteorite, then as a curiosity and then as an enigma as it slowly opens. No one sees it as dangerous until it lashes out with a deadly heat ray, killing people. (Clearly Wells anticipated the invention of the laser!) When these first deaths occur, the narrator hastily sends his wife to stay with relatives a few miles away, not anticipating any real danger, but just being sensibly cautious. He himself quite matter of factly returns home and is suddenly plunged into the midst of chaos and danger. The Martians are on the move. More and more of the strange objects are landing. The Martians ignore all efforts to communicate and contemptuously destroy all human efforts at attack or defense. The Martians begin a sweep of the countryside, slaughtering everyone in their path. So everyone expects that the moment the British army goes into action against the Martians, the Martians will be doomed. Instead, the Martians simply annihilate the British army. The highest technology known to man is slapped aside like the stinging of mosquitoes. That is all man is to the invader, a pesky insect. Or, as a soldier who is the sole survivor of his unit tells the narrator, their best efforts were: "It's bows and arrows against the lightning." I doubt that we, reading it today, can fully grasp how shocking that must have sounded to the average Victorian reader. That was Well's intention -- to shock the reader. It's no accident that he used the simile of bows and arrows against the lightning. Great Britain (along with the other Western powers) had been able to conquer "savages" around the world because the British had the lightning (guns) and the "savages" had only

Gripping

Unknown to the inhabitants of Earth, the planet Mars is aging and nearing its exhaustion. The Martians, not even perceiving humans to be anything other than animals, decide that it is time to seize this lush, young planet. Landing in several locations in southeastern England they begin their conquest of the planet. Can man, with his most advanced technology hope to stop the Martians with their much more advanced technology?You've seen the 1953 movie, War of the Worlds, and want to read it in book form? Well, then don't look here. Herbert George Wells wrote this book in 1898, a mere one year after The Invisible Man, and two years after The Island of Doctor Moreau. The moviemakers of the 1950s made a wonderful movie, but one that, alas, bears very little resemblance to the original!This book is one of the crowning examples of nineteenth century fantastic fiction. It is a gripping story that masterfully combines horror and suspense, keeping you at the edge of your seat until the final page.I am lucky enough to possess the 2001, Books of Wonder edition that contains fourteen wonderful, full-color, full-page illustrations plus the two-page illustrations on the front and back, all done by the masterful Tom Kidd. It is very well made, and would make an excellent addition to any library.