Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

The War of the Worlds
The War of the Worlds
The War of the Worlds
Audiobook6 hours

The War of the Worlds

Written by H. G. Wells

Narrated by Bill Weideman

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

About this audiobook

“No one would have believed in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man’s and yet as mortal as his own.…”

So begins The War of the Worlds, the novel that made Wells famous and has enthralled and terrified readers and listeners for almost 100 years. Ten huge and tireless creatures land in England and, using their deadly rays and crushing strength, threaten the very existence of humankind. Wells' classic is not just groundbreaking science fiction, it is a shocking social parable about man’s inhumanity to man.

This novel is part of Brilliance Audio's extensive Classic Collection, bringing you timeless masterpieces that you and your family are sure to love.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateApr 28, 2015
ISBN9781491585955
Author

H. G. Wells

H.G. Wells is considered by many to be the father of science fiction. He was the author of numerous classics such as The Invisible Man, The Time Machine, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The War of the Worlds, and many more. 

More audiobooks from H. G. Wells

Related to The War of the Worlds

Related audiobooks

Classics For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for The War of the Worlds

Rating: 3.771253498187388 out of 5 stars
4/5

3,917 ratings122 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The classic tale that is now legendary for causing a panic as a radio play many years later. Wells was fascinated by the "canals" on Mars, and that shows in his story of Martians attacking the world. One place where this story has an edge on so many of the genre is the way Wells manages to use an obvious scientific fact as a resolution to the story. So often science fiction contains much more fiction than science.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Der ungekrönte König des Genres, das wohl berühmteste Hörspiel aller Zeiten. Unerreicht - unerreichbar - brilliant und folgenreich.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is the Daddy (Granddaddy?) of all alien invasion stories. I had to remind myself that while it seemed unoriginal in places, it is in fact the original that more recent books have copied. Martians land on earth just outside London and begin a program of domination. Eventually they succumb to bacterial infection so humanity is saved through no action of their own. Some of the alien technology is truly prophetic, e.g. the heat-ray (laser). And the examination of human reaction under such dire circumstances was fascinating. The language is rather dated, but for me that added to the charm.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The grand-daddy of Earth invasion stories has HG Wells typically marrying the mundane and parochial with the fantastic. How his characters struggle to throw off the shackles of their prejudices and preconceptions. Wells is acutely aware of the limitations of man - he seems to me to marvel at the precociousness and naivety of our human endeavours. The magnificence of the scientific crusade is exaggerated by the impossibility of us ever living up to it. We are at once incompetent and irrrepressible. It seems a wonderfully pragmatic and optimistic viewpoint. Hurray for HG Wells, even if he does invent the bain of so many sci-fi stories, the anti-climatic deus ex machina ending.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Loved this book. Bit slow and lengthy at times but a great plot and great theme to it. Hardcore sci fi right here. :)
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I really enjoyed this quick, classic novel. I knew the story already from the many adaptations in popular culture, but this book was interesting enough, and suspenseful enough, to keep me interested and turning pages. It is always fun to read the original story as well to compare it to the movies I have seen dealing with it. The Tom Cruise movie I enjoyed very much, and it did keep with the general themes and plots of the book. A good read I would recommend to any fans of science fiction.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I liked this one a lot more than The Time Machine by Mr. Wells. I'll always remember this one, rather unfortunately, for events having nothing to do with it. I finished 5 or 10 minutes before some explosions at the plant I work on and wound up locked in the building for about 6 hours. Kind of funny now in retrospect.But otherwise I enjoyed it. I liked the fast pace and the surprising ending. He had kind of alluded to it throughout the book but the sudden feeling was well done. I also really liked the ending with his family, I didn't expect that. For the length it was really good. Definitely recommend if you're going to be reading some SF classics.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Got it in a book sale one summer when I was quite young -- nine or so, I think -- and scared myself silly with it. Never quite got up the courage to revisit, since then. I remember liking it a lot, but I also remember the nightmares about alien invasions.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    1950's martians invade earth. I suppose for the 1950's this was a great sci-fi book. The writing is lovely and descriptive, even though the plot advances slowly. I feel that many of the sub-plots are never developed. I read the free Kindle-version from Amazon and at about the 70% mark pages were out of order, repeated, etc, for about 7-10 pages.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Spannende klassieker, zonder meer. Ondanks zijn mythische status zeker geen topper.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A brilliant science fiction novel that captures well the tension in Europe of the time. With our current scientific knowledge it is relatively easy to pick holes in the plot but provided you can suspend your disbelief you are in for an enjoyable read.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    1950's martians invade earth. I suppose for the 1950's this was a great sci-fi book. The writing is lovely and descriptive, even though the plot advances slowly. I feel that many of the sub-plots are never developed. I read the free Kindle-version from Amazon and at about the 70% mark pages were out of order, repeated, etc, for about 7-10 pages.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Great story!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I loved the book. It was so exciting. Couldn't put it down. 5 Stars
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Finally read this alien classic.  It's odd that SO many place names are mentioned constantly to be tedious (probably to seem more real, to ground it in England) while none of the characters even have names (probably to generalize it for the world.)  But this doesn't seem to make sense either, since it seems to want to do opposite things.  The chapter missing from the serial was my favorite - can't imagine the book without it.  I liked the book!  It seems very ahead of 1898 and I swear I had a so-vivid-it's-still-memorable dream that was just like the aliens with the Heat-Ray --but that is probably because this book is just one of those things that is so entrenched in the culture at this point.  Another Wells/Verne checked off so I can start reading all the steampunk.Book #124 I have read of the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The Martians being eradicated by bacteria is so incredibly plausible after the pandemic.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Better than his Invisible Man, but not as good as his Time Machine (which still rates as one of my top Sci Fi stories). Here the earth is invaded by Martians, and we hear the tale from the point of view of one survivor. I thought the end was good, and made sense from a scientific point of view (though a few other details were a little bit more difficult to accept). Tedious in some places, but overall worth reading, as it was such an influential contribution to the genre, and is quite good in places.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This was entertaining, though I wouldn't say brilliant, obviously ground breaking at the time. The narrator of the story wasn't as much a hero as an observer who was occasionally brave. Wells does a great job of instilling dread in the reader (definitely would have been even better if I didn't know how it ended) and I really like the philosophy of how the human race was to survive and eventually overcome the alien menace over time. I always remember it was "Chicken Pox" that did the aliens in, but I didn't hear that virus specifically mentioned in the book, so I guess that was just something they added to one of the movies.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Digital audiobook performed by Christopher HurtClassic science-fiction horror. Residents of a small community outside London are puzzled and curious about the “meteor” that has landed in a nearby field. But it’s clearly a manufactured rather than a natural object. And they notice that there is an effort – from the inside – to open the vessel. Thus begins the horror that becomes an invasion from Mars.I knew the basic premise going in. I knew about the Orson Welles’ radio broadcast that caused panic (despite an introduction advising that this was a dramatic reading of a work of fiction). But I’d never read the original. The first-person narrative lends a sense of urgency and immediacy to the narrative. The reader feels completely immersed in the story. Wells includes significant tension; while there are a few moments of respite, I found it a very anxiety-producing read. I like that he leaves much to the reader’s imagination, which heightens the suspense. Christopher Hurt did a fine job narrating the audio book. There’s something about that clipped British accent that just draws me in.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I know, I know - a classic that I'm just now reading. Prior to this I had only ever seen the Tom Cruise film adaptation! Better late than never. The fact that this was written when it was - before electronics and technology as we know it was incredible. It set the tone for science fiction as we know it. The parts I didn't love were the constant name dropping of towns (If I saw the word Woking one more damn time...) and the slow build - sometimes on the point of boring drudgery. Overall though it's a fantastic piece of literature - even if my lazy ass brain had to struggle through parts of it. It definitely made me want to watch more film versions if nothing else.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    H.G. Wells' science fiction classic "The War of the Worlds" actually holds up fairly well, despite all of the years that have passed since he wrote it. (Mostly in the fiction department -- the science not as much, but it's still all tolerable.)Our narrator is on the front lines when the Martian invasion of Earth begins and gives a first-hand account of humanity's struggle. It's an enjoyable and quick read.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is my classic read pick for May 2020. It bears little resemblance to the 1950s movie version I so loved as a kid--pretty much only the heat ray and the twist ending. I was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed the book. It's an intense read. Wells nailed the human psychological aspect in how people responded in different ways to the alien attack. I also enjoyed how steeped the book is in the Victorian era in which it was written. It adds a lot to the drama when you must rely on bicycles, horses, trains, ships, and telegraph wires. A classic still well worth reading over a century after it was written.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Well written but for more pessimistic then I expected. There is a general feeling of hopelessness and death in Wells' stories. Not the optimistic possibilities of Jules Verne stories. A sad Victorian fate seems to run through this entire tale. "Life sucks and then you die", seems to be a running theme in Wells' novels.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    If you can forget about the films and take this in for what it is then it comes out pretty darn good. Wells was possessed of an incredible imagination. This is nothing short of brilliance.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    What an imaginaton! Love all his books.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    “the Martians are coming!”And they have Heat-Rays and Black Smoke to kick some English tushies! And they do!But as exciting as this all sounds, this book is rather boring. It's mostly about running and hiding and being frightened out of one's mind. No "war" to speak of. But lots of histrionics. Lots. I really wish I could have smacked the narrator's face. Lots. Also, the localities are very casually mentioned, and as I'm not familiar with those places, it made no impact on me whatsoever. In fact, the listing of places became a big part of my boredom. Where is he running? Then where? Ah, who gives a damn. In fact, I rooted for the Martians! Dang.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Published in 1898, three years after his famed debut The Time Machine, Wells presents a first-person account of a Martian invasion. By today's standards, the narrative feels detached. But the characterisation and concept shine. You meet a brave woman, an overwhelmed curate, a weak soldier. These very human interactions are just as welcome as descriptions of aliens and a London falling to pieces. A strong and thoughtful ending. Recommended.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    There isn't much use for the Humilation game in my regard, there are always blind spots and blank areas. I read this one today over three hours, pausing to admire its technique. It is a prescient novel, much as critical opinion concurs, one I find so haunting in its reach.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I liked this quite a bit. Familiar with the story, of course, thanks to various other dramatizations, so it was nice to finally read this. The second half is quite eerie.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Arresting cover design, illustration 'a scene from George Pal's Paramount Technicolor production War of the Worlds, designed by Al Nozaki'...Green Martian invaders on garish yellow and red background.