Introduction by Arthur C. Clarke
Commentary by Jules Verne and an anonymous reviewer from The Critic
“No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man’s and yet as mortal as his own.” Thus begins one of the most terrifying and morally prescient science fiction novels ever penned. Beginning with a series of strange flashes in the distant night sky, the Martian attack initially causes little concern on Earth. Then the destruction erupts—ten massive aliens roam England and destroy with heat rays everything in their path. Very soon humankind finds itself on the brink of extinction. H. G. Wells raises questions of mortality, man’s place in nature, and the evil lurking in the technological future—questions that remain urgently relevant in the twenty-first century.
Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide
This was the fourth Wells novel I read, and definitely my least favorite. Everyone knows the story, whether from Orson Wells' radio broadcast or the multitudes of movie versions - Martians land on Earth to populate it, since Mars is becoming uninhabitable, and when all seems lost, are foiled due to Earth's bacteria. I fully expected it to be exciting, but it was dull and slow, and took me days to get through despite being a thin, tiny book.
The main problem was the main character - what a boring, pompous, smug know-it-all. He thought he was superior to everyone he came across, and it made me want to strangle him. And then there was the snooze-worthy exposition on the biological makeup of the aliens and conjecture on the possible paths mankind's evolution might take. And finally there was the sheer coincidences - the main character just HAPPENS to be in the spot where the aliens first land after launching themselves from Mars and just HAPPENS to be where another pod falls later on, trapping him in a house and enabling him to view their work. And how stupid is the aliens' choice for a landing zone? Yes, let's conquer a world by landing all of our troops on a frickin' island.
If you'd believe it, I was actually wishing for the appearance of Tom Cruise and Dakota Fanning.
Reading updates
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Started reading
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1 January, 2008:
Finished reading
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1 January, 2008:
Reviewed