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War of the Worlds Review

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While this book is a classic, I have to give it only three stars because as a teenager I found it very boring. The story line and plot were great, but I felt it dragged on too long in places and became extremely thick at times. The action was up and down, sometimes the book captivated me, sometimes it almost put me to sleep. However, I do believe this book captures what the human reaction would be if the events described in the book were to take place. I did not completely love this book, and i did not completely hate it. I think this book is just, simply o.k.

this book still packs a punch	Customer Rating:
The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells The War of the Worlds is one of the crowning examples of nineteenth century fantastic fiction. Wells's ability to capture a believable human response to an unbelievable occurence is what keeps the story grounded and genuinely frightening. H. G. Wells proves that science fiction can last despite the advances in science.

Great book but it ended too soon	Customer Rating:
This was a great book but it ended way to soon. it needed more explanation.

Remains A Powerful Social Commentary

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I have just "reread" H. G. Wells classic of science fiction (actually I listened to the audiobook version on my iPod on a long flight). And it is still as gripping to me as it was many years ago when I was a young teen. As the grandfather of all science fiction concerning invasions of alien beings from advanced interplanetary civilizations "The War of the Worlds" always will be considered a seminal work of science fiction. The book is a first person account, by a survivor, of a Martian attack on the south of England during the late 19th century. Human armies and weapons are totally inadequate to stop the invading alien army. The Martian technology that Wells describes would have been frightening to anyone living in the late 19th century. Rapidly moving fighting machines, heat rays, and poison gas attacks all at the command of a totally inhuman and merciless enemy whose attack was entirely unprovoked. However, we had only had to wait for 2 decades to experience tanks and poison gas on the battlefields of Europe. A few decades more and we had atomic bombs and lasers. Neither did Wells depict the Martians as invulnerable. After all, the torpedo ram "Thunderchild" took out two and possibly 3 of the Martian war machines before it was sunk. Of course today a squadron of modern F16s could wipe out the entire invading Martian army of 1898 in a few minutes. Followed by a thermonuclear attack on Mars iteslf, of course. We clearly have outstripped the technology that Wells imagined. However, futuristic technology is not the point of Wells' book. Wells knew that human machines were advancing at a rapid pace. He probably would not be surprised at today's technology. Wells book actually is a social commentary and a condemnation of the British colonial system and the cruel indifference with which Europe exploited less technologically advanced peoples. The Martians that he describes could well become us. Sluggish beings, entirely dependant on machines, living on the life blood of the less fortunate. This is in fact what half of humanity does become in Wells' equally important novel "The Time Machine." So the theme of "The War of the Worlds" is as important today as it was in 1898 in spite of the admittedly dated technology that it describes.

A must read even if you hate "Sci-Fi"

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I have been planning on reading this book for over 10 years. I remember watching the movie when I was little (and then the remake a few years ago). First of all, this was far better than either of the movies. Written in first person from the account of a survivor of the attack (who is never named) and then recounting the tale of his brother, this is a very immediate and unsettling tale. What I did not expect was the time frame the book was written in. I assumed (for some idiotic reason) that it would take place in the twentieth century. Instead, for those of you who like myself, forgot the timeframe that Wells lived in, this book takes place in the nineteenth century. The Martian attack occurs prior to the weapons of warfare that we are so used to thinking about; there are no tanks, no planes with bombs. Hussars and artillery are their greatest defense. People couldn't hop in their cars and drive from the invaders; they were instead in horse drawn carriages, communicating the disaster via telegraph and daily papers. This put a whole new twist on the tale from what I was expecting. Our narrator lives only a few miles from where the first "ship" lands and we follow the town's initial curiosity and complete lack of fear as they peek into the hole in the ground created by the wreak. Even after the first "heat rays" are fired and people are killed, there is still no sense of fear. When the action comes, it comes quickly. Separated from his wife and family our unnamed narrator survives mainly through luck and the fact that he never stops moving. The entire story takes place in less than a month, from initial landing to total devastation. There is a lot of science involved, discussing the physiology of the aliens, speculation on their planet, and how they evolved. For the casual reader it's not too bad and doesn't bog down the story. For the rabid science hound, please remember when this book was written before you blast the scientific inconstancies and flat out scientific errors. I highly recommend reading this book, to just about anyone. It is a fast read, which manages to keep your attention from beginning to end. The political and social commentary though written for another time still holds value today. The religious implication is not jammed down your throat. This is a fun yet chilling read, which you will find yourself pondering over long after you have put the book away.