War of the Worlds (Real Reads)

No one would have believed that planet Earth was being watched by creatures more intelligent than humankind. But planet Earth was not only being watched – soon it would be invaded by monstrous creatures from Mars who strode about the land in great mechanical tripods, bringing death and destruction with them. What can possibly stop an invading army equipped with heat-rays and poisonous black gas, intent on wiping out the human race? This is one man’s story of that incredible invasion, from the time the first Martians land near his home town, to the destruction of London. Is this the end of human life on Earth?

Real Reads are accessible texts designed to support the literacy development of primary and lower secondary age children while introducing them to the riches of our international literary heritage. Each book is a retelling of a work of great literature from one of the world’s greatest cultures, fitted into a 64-page book, making classic stories, dramas and histories available to intelligent young readers as a bridge to the full texts, to language students wanting access to other cultures, and to adult readers who are unlikely ever to read the original versions.

Herbert George Wells (1866 – 1946) was an English author now best known for his science-fiction novels, which include "The Time Machine", "The First Men in the Moon" and "The Invisible Man".

FELIX BENNETT grew up in Bradford in northern England, and cut short a math and astronomy degree at University College, London, in order to spend more time as an illustrator. He trained at Bradford, then at the Camberwell School of Art. He now lives and works in London.

ERIC BROWN was born in Haworth, Yorkshire, in May 1960, and began writing in 1975. In the 1980s he travelled extensively throughout Greece and Asia (some of his novels are set in India). His first publication was in 1982, when his play for children, Noel’s Ark, appeared. His career took off in the late eighties with a succession of short stories in Interzone and other publications. His story “The Time-Lapsed Man” won the Interzone readers' poll for the most admired story of 1988, and an Eastercon short text award in 1995. He was voted the Best New European SF writer of the Year in the early nineties and has subsequently won the British Science Fiction Award twice (for the short stories “Hunting the Slarque” in 1999 and “Children of Winter” in 2001).