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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
fast-paced
La Guerre des Mondes m'a légèrement sorti de ma zone de confort. On est sur un récit qui se concentre plutôt sur son histoire que sur ses personnages. Habituellement, ce qui m'intéresse dans un livre c'est la caractérisation et le développement des personnages et que le récit arrive à me surprendre dans sa structure ou avec une créativité que je n'ai pas vu ailleurs.
Ma dans le cas présent, c'est plutôt son contexte qui m'a surpris. Je connaissais le livre de réputation et comme je savais qu'il s'agissait d'un classique de littérature de science-fiction, je croyais naivement qu'il avait été écrit dans les années 1960. Quelle n'a pas été ma surprise quand j'ai appris qu'il était sorti en 1898. Et cela change tout. A l'époque, ils utilisaient encore le télégraphe et l'arme la plus évoluée que l'on rencontre dans le récit est un canon. Ce qui m'a fait m'interroger sur la façon dont les citoyens recevaient l'information et sans spoiler, je trouve que l'auteur a fait un majoritairement l'impasse sur ce point, ce qui m'a fait hausser les sourcils à plusieurs moments.
Dans la traduction que j'ai lu, le temps utilisé était un peu inhabituel et le style un peu trop "à l'ancienne" à mon goût, mais ça ne m'a pas trop sorti de mon immersion.
Sinon, l'enchaînement des actions n'était pas vraiment prenant, mais malgré tout, je reconnais qu'un tel livre sorti à l'aube du 20e siècle a pu être une révolution pour l'époque, mais d'un point de vue uniquement d'un lecteur consumériste du 21e, c'est une lecture qui fait un peu datée.
Ma dans le cas présent, c'est plutôt son contexte qui m'a surpris. Je connaissais le livre de réputation et comme je savais qu'il s'agissait d'un classique de littérature de science-fiction, je croyais naivement qu'il avait été écrit dans les années 1960. Quelle n'a pas été ma surprise quand j'ai appris qu'il était sorti en 1898. Et cela change tout. A l'époque, ils utilisaient encore le télégraphe et l'arme la plus évoluée que l'on rencontre dans le récit est un canon. Ce qui m'a fait m'interroger sur la façon dont les citoyens recevaient l'information et sans spoiler, je trouve que l'auteur a fait un majoritairement l'impasse sur ce point, ce qui m'a fait hausser les sourcils à plusieurs moments.
Dans la traduction que j'ai lu, le temps utilisé était un peu inhabituel et le style un peu trop "à l'ancienne" à mon goût, mais ça ne m'a pas trop sorti de mon immersion.
Sinon, l'enchaînement des actions n'était pas vraiment prenant, mais malgré tout, je reconnais qu'un tel livre sorti à l'aube du 20e siècle a pu être une révolution pour l'époque, mais d'un point de vue uniquement d'un lecteur consumériste du 21e, c'est une lecture qui fait un peu datée.
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
A somewhat interesting plot, and definitely deserving of it's place as a classic of the sci-fi genre, but oh my GOD it was such a slog to read 😫 It took me over a month and I had a long period of reading like 5 pages at a time because it kept sending me to sleep. The writing is just Bad, and means I won't be trying to read any of HG Wells's other books.
It's filled with paragraphs of seemingly endless list of places (which unless you know London and the home counties extremely well will be absolutely meaningless to you), both in the narrator's story and that of his brother, as well as endless unnecessary descriptions of tiny little things. The entire middle of the book is just unnecessary and very boring, only the initial arrival of the Martians, and the last ~50 pages where the narrator is trapped and then the small amount of his journey after that are actually interesting. There's very little plot, and the whole book takes place over about 3 weeks so basically nothing happens after the moment where the Martians land. There was also no character development, and we don't get to know any of the characters at all really, so you have no reason to root for them against the Martians.
I will stick to the Jeff Wayne musical adaptation (a staple of my childhood), and not recommend reading the book to anyone.
It's filled with paragraphs of seemingly endless list of places (which unless you know London and the home counties extremely well will be absolutely meaningless to you), both in the narrator's story and that of his brother, as well as endless unnecessary descriptions of tiny little things. The entire middle of the book is just unnecessary and very boring, only the initial arrival of the Martians, and the last ~50 pages where the narrator is trapped and then the small amount of his journey after that are actually interesting. There's very little plot, and the whole book takes place over about 3 weeks so basically nothing happens after the moment where the Martians land. There was also no character development, and we don't get to know any of the characters at all really, so you have no reason to root for them against the Martians.
I will stick to the Jeff Wayne musical adaptation (a staple of my childhood), and not recommend reading the book to anyone.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This is definitely not the ideal time to read The War of the Worlds, as covid-19 is ramping up in the United States. It's interesting to see the similarities between the Martian invasion and the current pandemic. Both started off small, with only a small group experiencing the events for themselves. For everyone else, they are just hearsay, something they've heard is happening in another area. Shortly, the threat becomes real. And all of a sudden, you're in the middle of the crisis. Whether it's Martians or a virus, the threat transforms from a rumor to a reality with a huge impact on your daily life and a threat to your survival.
The War of the Worlds is definitely a page turner and I was eager to read about how the invasion was progressing and who was going to emerge the victor. However, I'm not sure that I would recommend reading this novel while we are being told to self-quarantine in our homes due to the invasion of a virus. The similarities are just too stressful.
The War of the Worlds is definitely a page turner and I was eager to read about how the invasion was progressing and who was going to emerge the victor. However, I'm not sure that I would recommend reading this novel while we are being told to self-quarantine in our homes due to the invasion of a virus. The similarities are just too stressful.
i really like the fact that humans do not defeat the martians rather bacteria and diseases do
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Well this took me back to my childhood road trips listening to the radio show recordings. This was a good version of that adaptation, though I was disappointed that the lyrics to the songs weren't included so it was all instrumental. The music is just so good though! The cast do a brilliant job of making you feel the tension. I've read the original book and I think this is great at bringing the story to life. Those opening bars give me goosebumps. Love it.
Could not for the life of me follow along the places he was going as I don’t know London or the surrounding areas well enough but the martians made it fun