War of the Worlds

One of the most influential science-fiction novels ever written, H.G. Wells's 'The War of the Worlds' is brought to cinematic life in a modernized adaptation of a story of human survival that will resonate with today's readers, just as the original galvanized its audience over a century ago. Mature.

Grade 6 Up–Teens who pick up this book and think that they are getting Wells's original classic will be sorely mistaken. While this adaptation gives nods to both that novel and the panic-inducing radio drama, it is clearly set in the present with references to the face on Mars (photographed in 1976), the Hubble Telescope, and 9/11. For readers who are coming in with no preconceived notions, it could be an enjoyable story. A science reporter is covering the story of the Martian invasion while his pregnant wife and his brother try to escape imminent danger. Some characters are introduced so quickly that readers won't feel connected enough to care about what happens to them. Others are introduced mysteriously, including a group of people who have been living underground for more than a decade, and then dropped. Some of the dialogue is clunky and awkward, especially when characters are providing exposition. The black-and-white illustrations vary from good to innovative (the backgrounds derived from photographs are often striking). Anyone who goes to the movies, of course, can accept the idea of a modern retelling. More disappointing, however, is the watering down of the original story to the extent that it loses its power and its ability to entrance its readers.–Andrea Lipinski, New York Public Library
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Just in time for the release of Spielberg's movie adaptation, this graphic novel updates H.G. Wells's familiar story of alien invasion and sets it in modern-day New York, adding such details as the face-like formation on Mars photographed by the Viking Orbiter. Hero Geoff Wills is a reporter with a pregnant wife who goes into labor at just the wrong moment. He and a ragged group of civilians face the deadly invading Martian tripods, fighting to survive as the military fails to protect them. This adaptation retains the most identifiable elements of the original, but loses all the power of the classic story. Stern and Starr's version tries to convey the horror of a war on humanity, but moments of human interest continually lose out to simplistic action. Stern is aware of the repercussions of setting an apocalyptic story in today's New York, but a throwaway line about the 9/11 attacks comes across as flippant. The attempt at vivid Saturday morning action is often undermined by the sometimes clumsy b&w art. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.