Chris Mould's War of the Worlds

The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells was one of the books that helped to turn me into a dedicated reader. I was probably on the cusp of my teenage years when I encountered it, and was gripped by the first great tale of alien invasion, one that had the underpinning of Wells’s deep interest in science, and was designed to show late-nineteenth century British readers what it might be like to be conquered by merciless invaders with superior military technology – something the British Empire had been getting away with for years. Now Chris Mould has produced a retelling of the story, and introduced a new central character in Wells’s dystopia. Leon and his scientist wife experience the full impact of the Martian invasion, and their best to find ways of defeating the aliens. Fans of Chris Mould who expect the same kind of rich, quirky illustrations that he produced for his version of Ted Hughes’s The Iron Man and Orwell’s Animal Farm will not be disappointed. This is a beautiful book, and a great introduction to a whole genre that is particularly suited to the graphic novel format – part of the appeal of Wells’s original is its powerfully cinematic quality, even though it was written just at the dawn of the moving picture. Chris Mould’s new version will certainly help to create more young readers.