The War of the Worlds

The War of the Worlds (1898) is a seminal science-fiction novel that tells the story of a Martian invasion of Earth, narrated by an unnamed protagonist living in southern England. The Martians arrive in massive cylinders and reveal highly advanced technology, including heat rays and chemical weapons, which quickly overpower humanity. As society collapses, the narrator flees London with his brother, witnessing widespread panic, destruction, and the fragility of human civilization in the face of superior extraterrestrial power. Ordinary humans struggle to survive, while the Martians ruthlessly dominate the landscape, seemingly unstoppable.

The novel explores themes of imperialism, human hubris, survival, the limits of science, and the randomness of fate.