By H. G. Wells
H.G. Wells mania continues in my book review of The War of the Worlds!!!
THE SHORT
When Martians invade Earth, an unnamed journalist is trapped in the clutches of these terrifying, death-dealing machines! As a science-fiction novel on its own, Wells succeeds in this novel, delivering a fantastic concoction of adventure, fantasy, all grounded in reality. The fast-pacedness of the novel is also a delight, as Wells picks things up and wonderfully maintains the momentum of the novel. However, the ending is a bit of a letdown, while successfully concluding the novel and tying up Wells's theme, it arrives much too sudden and there is actually no build-up to it. The journalist in this scenario seems extremely lucky, perhaps too much so, and one can sense the hand of Wells stirring up the novel so as to prevent the narrator's death. This novel is also without many supporting characters and while Wells creates another subplot, that is short-lived. Excepting the Curate and the artilleryman, there is no one else to listen to but the narrator. However the consistent journalistic style of the novel is to be applauded. Wells has created a most marvelous and delightful read in The War of the Worlds.
THE REVIEW
Instead of focusing on characterization like I normally do with other stories, here I will instead study the style and pacing of the novel. In this novel, none of the principal characters, bar Ogilvy, are actually named, as characterization in this novel is unimportant. This may be put down to the fact that this whole novel is written like a newspaper report, one to be published in, say, the Times.
The style of the novel, as I have said, is that of a journalistic one. In fact, Wells remains in character for the entirety of the novel. The facts are stated in a clear-cut way, no beating around the bush and no dramatization common in sci-fi novels. It is to be admired that Wells is consistent throughout the whole novel, and never once deviates from the chosen style.
The pacing, however, often leaves something to be desired. Starting off slowly with the landing of cylindrical Martian container, Wells speeds things up with the escape of the narrator, while also throwing in another story about his brother. However, the fast-paced story about escaping from the Martians gradually slows down when the first part ends, eventually slowing down so much as to include the two slow weeks spent with the Curate. A last spike with the capture of the Curate, and then the plot slows down all the way to the narrator's sudden realization that the Martians are dead. One indeed feels that Wells could have displayed the same consistency as he had with the style of the novel.
The primary antagonists here are, of course, the Martians. Wells succeeds in painting them as uncaring villains, however one feels a bit of dissonance, perhaps introduced by Wells's sympathetic comparison of them to us wiping out the dodos. One downfall of the studious style of this novel is the fact that we never get to truly know any of the characters, and thus are unable to relate to them, understand them, and let them leave an indelible impression on us.
The main theme in this novel is, perhaps, the way humans have no control on what happens on Earth. This is mainly explored through the fact that it is the bacteria that finally kill the Martians, not the humans themselves. In the end, it is not the complicated machines man invented that bring them down, it is the simplest of all things, the things that have survived from the very first life on Earth, the bacteria, that defeats the Martians. The utter simplicity of this rings true to the theme, and brings it out wonderfully.
Wells also explored the butchery of the animals, and reversed it. When the humans are suddenly the ones being killed and used as food, suddenly it becomes awfully clear what the animals feel when humans kill them. Perhaps this is even more applicable in the modern day, when more and more animals are being killed, that we have to be reminded of the pain that the animals experience. This theme injects a sort of meaning into this novel. It is even more unusual in Wells's journalistic style, as themes are usually not explored in journalistic writings, but Wells fits in smoothly with the story.
The plot in this novel is, perhaps, the archetypal plot for all other invasion literature novels. Extraterrestrial beings invade Earth -> Deal out death -> Just when it seems impossible for the humans to win, some sort of intervention or new technology defeats the beings, ensuring the victory and survival of the humans. Wells perfectly captures the awe and amazement of the humans at the discovery of new life, and also manages to craft a compelling plot, one full of suspense, adventure, and horror all smoothly mixed together to create an amazing cocktail of a novel. Indeed, Wells also managed to squeeze in his themes of butchery and humanity's complete loss of control.
However, there are some problems with the plot, the biggest one of them being the narrator's lucky escapes, time and time again, avoiding the Heat Ray, the poisonous Black Smoke. One can almost sense the Hand of Wells ensuring that the narrator survives, spoiling the realistic background in which this novel is grounded. Also, scientific problems such as how the Martians were able to survive the much hotter temperatures of the Earth, and how they were able to regulate their internal body pressure when the Earth's external air pressure is so much different, and how they were able to adapt to the atmosphere AND how they managed to go through the Earth's protective layer of atmosphere WITHOUT burning to pieces are completely glossed over. However, this may be for the better, as the novel would have been too bogged down with details had Wells included the explanations for these in his novel.
All in all, The War of the Worlds is a most entertaining read, a classic science-fiction novel, well and truly deserving of its reputation which had held up over all these years. The plot and style of this novel are solid, and one cannot ask for a better science-fiction story.
Rating: 9.4/10
Advice: Read the whole thing. The WHOLE thing. Nothing of this masterpiece is to be skipped.
I truly, truly enjoyed this novel. Such an amazing thing, contained within just the pages of a book.
Next up: Some critics have called it the Alice's Adventures in Wonderland of the modern day. Whatever it is, watch as I review Coraline, the best selling book which was turned into a movie! When Coraline Jones finds a door leading to another world, she quickly realises that not all is as it seems, as an evil other mother tries to imprison her in the other world by sewing buttons onto her eyes! Can Coraline escape? Find out in my review if Coraline is an innovative and fun book to read, that spirits you away to new worlds, or if it is merely a failed stand-alone book! Coming up next week!
The pacing, however, often leaves something to be desired. Starting off slowly with the landing of cylindrical Martian container, Wells speeds things up with the escape of the narrator, while also throwing in another story about his brother. However, the fast-paced story about escaping from the Martians gradually slows down when the first part ends, eventually slowing down so much as to include the two slow weeks spent with the Curate. A last spike with the capture of the Curate, and then the plot slows down all the way to the narrator's sudden realization that the Martians are dead. One indeed feels that Wells could have displayed the same consistency as he had with the style of the novel.
The primary antagonists here are, of course, the Martians. Wells succeeds in painting them as uncaring villains, however one feels a bit of dissonance, perhaps introduced by Wells's sympathetic comparison of them to us wiping out the dodos. One downfall of the studious style of this novel is the fact that we never get to truly know any of the characters, and thus are unable to relate to them, understand them, and let them leave an indelible impression on us.
The main theme in this novel is, perhaps, the way humans have no control on what happens on Earth. This is mainly explored through the fact that it is the bacteria that finally kill the Martians, not the humans themselves. In the end, it is not the complicated machines man invented that bring them down, it is the simplest of all things, the things that have survived from the very first life on Earth, the bacteria, that defeats the Martians. The utter simplicity of this rings true to the theme, and brings it out wonderfully.
Wells also explored the butchery of the animals, and reversed it. When the humans are suddenly the ones being killed and used as food, suddenly it becomes awfully clear what the animals feel when humans kill them. Perhaps this is even more applicable in the modern day, when more and more animals are being killed, that we have to be reminded of the pain that the animals experience. This theme injects a sort of meaning into this novel. It is even more unusual in Wells's journalistic style, as themes are usually not explored in journalistic writings, but Wells fits in smoothly with the story.
The plot in this novel is, perhaps, the archetypal plot for all other invasion literature novels. Extraterrestrial beings invade Earth -> Deal out death -> Just when it seems impossible for the humans to win, some sort of intervention or new technology defeats the beings, ensuring the victory and survival of the humans. Wells perfectly captures the awe and amazement of the humans at the discovery of new life, and also manages to craft a compelling plot, one full of suspense, adventure, and horror all smoothly mixed together to create an amazing cocktail of a novel. Indeed, Wells also managed to squeeze in his themes of butchery and humanity's complete loss of control.
However, there are some problems with the plot, the biggest one of them being the narrator's lucky escapes, time and time again, avoiding the Heat Ray, the poisonous Black Smoke. One can almost sense the Hand of Wells ensuring that the narrator survives, spoiling the realistic background in which this novel is grounded. Also, scientific problems such as how the Martians were able to survive the much hotter temperatures of the Earth, and how they were able to regulate their internal body pressure when the Earth's external air pressure is so much different, and how they were able to adapt to the atmosphere AND how they managed to go through the Earth's protective layer of atmosphere WITHOUT burning to pieces are completely glossed over. However, this may be for the better, as the novel would have been too bogged down with details had Wells included the explanations for these in his novel.
All in all, The War of the Worlds is a most entertaining read, a classic science-fiction novel, well and truly deserving of its reputation which had held up over all these years. The plot and style of this novel are solid, and one cannot ask for a better science-fiction story.
Rating: 9.4/10
Advice: Read the whole thing. The WHOLE thing. Nothing of this masterpiece is to be skipped.
I truly, truly enjoyed this novel. Such an amazing thing, contained within just the pages of a book.
Next up: Some critics have called it the Alice's Adventures in Wonderland of the modern day. Whatever it is, watch as I review Coraline, the best selling book which was turned into a movie! When Coraline Jones finds a door leading to another world, she quickly realises that not all is as it seems, as an evil other mother tries to imprison her in the other world by sewing buttons onto her eyes! Can Coraline escape? Find out in my review if Coraline is an innovative and fun book to read, that spirits you away to new worlds, or if it is merely a failed stand-alone book! Coming up next week!
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