Blup (1932)

Experiment in Autobiography: Discoveries and Conclusions of a Very Ordinary Brain (Since 1866) (1934)

Mind at the End of Its Tether (1945)

Other Editions of The War of the Worlds

The War of the Worlds: A Critical Text of the 1898 London First Edition, with an Introduction, Illustrations, and Appendices. Edited by Leon Stover. Jefferson, NC: MacFarland, 2001.

Wells, H. G. The Complete Science Fiction Treasury of H. G. Wells. With a preface by the author. Originally published as Seven Famous Novels, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1934. Reprint: New York: Avenel Books, 1978.

Biographies

Coren, Michael. The Invisible Man: The Life and Liberties of H. G. Wells. New York: Atheneum, 1993.

Dickson, Lovat. H. G. Wells: His Turbulent Life and Times. London: Macmillan, 1969.

Foot, Michael. The History of Mr. Wells. London: Doubleday, 1995.

Mackenzie, Norman, and Jeanne Mackenzie. H. G. Wells: A Biography. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1973.

West, Anthony. H. G. Wells: Aspects of a Life. New York: Random House, 1984.

Criticism

Borges, Jorge Luis. “The First Wells.” In Borges, a Reader: A Selection from the Writings of Jorge Luis Borges, edited by Emir Rodriguez Monegal and Alastair Reid. New York: Dutton, 1981.

Hillegas, Mark R. The Future as Nightmare: H. G. Wells and the Antiutopians. New York: Oxford University Press, 1967.

Scheick, William J., ed. The Critical Response to H. G. Wells. West-port, CT: Greenwood Press, 1995.

Suvin, Darko, and Robert M. Philmus, eds. H. G. Wells and Modern Science Fiction. Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell University Press, 1977.

a Groups of microscopic organisms.

b Probably a reference to Percival Lowell (1855-1916), an American astronomer who suggested that Mars was inhabited.

c Process continuing over ages.

d Small primates living chiefly in Madagascar.

e Aboriginal inhabitants of Tasmania—as island off the Australian coast discovered in 1642 by the Dutch navigator Abel Janszoon Tasman (1603?—1659?)—that became extinct after centuries of war against European colonists.

f Giovanni Schiaparelli (1835-1910), an Italian astronomer, discovered lines on the surface of Mars, the planet named for the mythical god of war.

g Alignment of Mars, Earth, and the sun.

h Astronomical observatory on Mount Hamilton, in California.

i Device able to translate light into an array of its component parts.

j Surrey towns near Woking, southeast of London.

k Directly above the observer.

l London suburb.

m Trains being switched to different tracks.

n City southwest of London.

o Wells mixes fictional characters (such as Albin) with real people: William Frederick Denning ( 1848-1931 ) was an English expert on meteorites.

p A common is public land; Horsell, a village, is the site of sand pits that Wells transforms into impact points.

q Level, barren land not used for farming.

r Flowering shrub.

s Surrey village between London and Woking.

t Serving man in a public house or saloon.

u Person hired for a specific task.

v Six years earlier, in 1900.

w Harbor buoy with a gas-fired light to mark channels.

x Coating that forms on metals heated to high temperatures.

y Place adjacent to Woking.

z Great Britain: England, Scotland, and Wales.

aa Flies and basketchaises are types of horse-drawn coaches; the town of Chobham is just north of Woking.

ab An invented name.

ac One who has inherited or acquired a landed estate; Lord Hilton is imaginary.

ad Fence.

ae Major London train station.

af In Greek mythology, a snake-haired monster whose gaze turns people to stone.

ag Spiny, flowering shrub.

ah Set of three.

ai Grating sound, here of carriage wheels in sand and gravel.

aj Village some 3 miles from Horsell Common.

ak Appearing.

al Residences named for the Oriental Institute in Woking.

am Long, hooded garment.

an Gas found in air.

ao Silverware, dishes, glasses.

ap False report.

aq Encroaching.

ar Cavalry troops.

as Machine gun named for its inventor, Sir Hiram Stevens Maxim (1840-1916).

at The regiment is named for the 7th earl of Cardigan, James Thomas Brudenell (1797—1868),a Crimean War hero; Aldershot, a small town southwest of Woking and London, is the site of a military base.

au Troops specialized in creating fortifications.

av In the Bible, Jesus Christ tells His disciples He will transform them from fishermen into fishers of men.

aw The Oriental Institute at Woking; it also includes a mosque.

ax Silverware and other silver items.

ay the rear.

az Moving swiftly.

ba Luck.

bb A Surrey village.

bc An invention, though at the time there was an asylum and a prison for women in Woking.

bd Jointed.

be Two poles that extend forward from the carriage and between which a horse is hitched.

bf Total.

bg Public house or saloon.

bh Misty clouds driven by wind.

bi District in Staffordshire, center of the china and earthenware industry in England.

bj Wooden ship sheathed in iron plate.

bk Part of the team, including wagons and horses, that hauls cannon and ammunition into position.

bl Prepared for action.

bm Those who remove the gun from its transport and prepare it for