Welcome to Literature.com!

Literature.com is a huge collection of classic books from famous and not-so-famous authors from around the world — collaboratively published by amateur book authors and contributing editors.

Navigate through our books database alphabetically or simply search by keywords. Books can be rated, discussed through community features and even translated to many common and not-so-common languages.

The War of the Worlds is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells first serialised in 1897 by Pearson's Magazine in the UK and by Cosmopolitan magazine in the US.

Year:
1898
75,810 Views

    								
BOOK ONE THE COMING OF THE MARTIANS CHAPTER ONE THE EVE OF THE WAR 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; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinised and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinise the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water. With infinite complacency men went to and fro over this globe about their little affairs, serene in their assurance of their empire over matter. It is possible that the infusoria under the microscope do the same. No one gave a thought to the older worlds of space as sources of human danger, or thought of them only to dismiss the idea of life upon them as impossible or improbable. It is curious to recall some of the mental habits of those departed days. At most terrestrial men fancied there might be other men upon Mars, perhaps inferior to themselves and ready to welcome a missionary enterprise. Yet across the gulf of space, minds that are to our minds as ours are to those of the beasts that perish, intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic, regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly and surely drew their plans against us. And early in the twentieth century came the great disillusionment.
Rate this book:3.4 / 8 votes

H. G. Wells

Herbert George Wells was an English writer. He was prolific in many genres, writing dozens of novels, short stories, and works of social commentary, satire, biography, and autobiography, and even including two books on recreational war games. more…

All H. G. Wells books

5 fans

Discuss everything about Literature.com with the community:

5 Comments
  • leveshka_t
    You need to add short stories especially of 19th and early 20th centuries by giants like Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, A. Kuprin, Maupassant, Jack London, W. W. Jacobs, Dickens, Bret Harte, H. H. Munro (Saki), Robert Barr, Bram Stoker, Joseph Sheridan le Fanu (The great Irish Horror Stories pioneer), Lucy Mod Montgomery, Sarah Anne Jewett, Rex Ellingwood Beach, Saadat Hassan Manto, R. Tagore and numerous other great short story writers of that golden era. 
    LikeReply 21 month ago
  • imagin
    I can't find Francis Bacon here. There are related books but not the author in person. I wish I could read his essay ''Of Studies''. I think Francis bacon is as famous as Shakespeare, but unluckily there is not a work of his. 
    LikeReply3 months ago
  • courtneye
    As an avid reader and literature enthusiast, Literature.com has significantly enriched my literary journey. The platform's diverse collection of literary works spans across genres and time periods, offering exceptional content for both classic literature connoisseurs and those interested in contemporary gems. 
    LikeReply 311 months ago
  • hasmukh.amathalal
    I am proud to be a member
    LikeReply 72 years ago
  • davidb
    Very nice website!
    LikeReply 164 years ago
    • acronimous
      Thanks David! Appreciated...
      LikeReply 84 years ago

Translation

Translate and read this book in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Citation

Use the citation below to add this book to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"Literature.com ." Literature.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 23 Nov. 2024. <https://www.literature.com>.

We need you!

Help us build the largest authors community and books collection on the web!

Autumn 2024

Writing Contest

Join our short stories contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
0
months
7
days
11
hours

Our favorite collection of

Famous Authors

»

Quiz

Are you a literary expert?

»
Who is the tragic hero of "Oedipus Rex"?
A Tiresias
B Oedipus
C Creon
D Antigone