Reviews

First of all, I really enjoyed the introduction that was in this edition. It gave such an interesting background of HG Wells and the beginnings of Sci-Fi writing. I think it actually, truly, added to my experience reading these books.

The Time Machine. I really enjoyed the first part of this book. I loved the part about him building the time machine and telling his visitors about it. It got a little slower for me when he was actually time travelling. Overall, it was a good read but probably not as good as I wanted it to be.

The War of the Worlds. It's funny to me that this book caused people who heard it on the radio go into a panic. It was an entertaining read. The Martians came to earth and attacked the English for two weeks. Wells did an excellent job of describing the chaos that ensued when the people were trying to escape the martians. The reader got to follow around a man who was nearer to the Martians and see how the martians lived and worked. It was also a good comparison of how some people handle the stresses in live and others panic and lose their minds. In the end, of course, Earth was unable to save itself. The only salvation for Earth was the bacteria that we harbor. The Martians were killed by the bacteria of Earth since Mars has none. I actually kind of liked the fact that it wasn't some smart hero who came in and discovered a way to kill the Martians, like one would expect to see in a movie. The War of the Worlds was a simple, entertaining read.

bentohbox's review against another edition

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4.0

A classic piece, timeless in relevance and pretty well-executed

katarinarogers's review against another edition

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3.0

I wasn't the biggest fan of The Time Machine, I felt like there was only one bit that I enjoyed. The War of the Worlds is what saved this for me, I enjoyed it quite a bit more. I think it was the little bit of horror elements in The War of the Worlds that made me like that one.

lunaseassecondaccount's review against another edition

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3.0

I really enjoyed The Time Machine. In a way, it was a very simple story. Wells didn't batshit around with science, he just went in, said 'he built a time machine', and you dealt with it. Don't worry about how, it just happened. I wish this happened more with modern sci-fi writers, but unfortunately, most nerdy people (unlike myself) don't like that. They want to know how the time machine was built. To hell with gamma rays, they don't do zip!

The War of the Worlds was similar. The narrator admitted he didn't know what was going on the black smoke, or how the Martians flew, or what the deal with the Heat Ray was. And at the end, the scientists didn't really know, either. There was a bit more sci in the sci-fi, but it was still easy to read.

Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy The War of the Worlds as much as The Time Machine. It dragged in places and at points I just wasn't sure what Wells was going on about. But still an easy, fun read.