Just Finished Reading: War of the Worlds – Global Dispatches edited by Kevin J Anderson (FP: 2013) [406pp] 

We all know the story of the Martian invasion of England in the late 19th century thanks in main to the sterling work of Mr. Herbert George Wells, esq. But have you ever wondered what exactly happened in the rest of the world outside that sceptered isle? Here is your chance to find out. 

In 18 stories we are given access to the experiences during that harrowing time of characters great and small (historically) ranging from Teddy Roosevelt in Cuba, Percival Lowell in Egypt, the Dowager Empress in China, Pablo Picasso in Paris, Winston Churchill in South Africa, Rudyard Kipling in India, Joseph Pulitzer in St Louis, Leo Tolstoy in Imperial Russia and Mark Twain in New Orleans amongst others.  

As with all collects of short stories the quality was rather variable. Probably the worst one (for me anyway) concerned Emily Dickinson who fought the Martians with her poetry – despite being dead at the time! Close on its heels was the tale of Jules Verne in Paris who devised a devious scheme to strike back at the invader by using their apparent fascination with (if not actually sexual attraction to) the Eiffel Tower!  

Among my favourites was a tale of a sheriff and his deputies (ably assisted by the local townsfolk) in a small Texas town, “Night of the Cooters” by Howard Waldrop, where good old-fashioned grit and ingenuity defeated the men from Mars (plus the odd hail of lead from some trusty six-shooters) and taught them to think again before they’d mess with Texas. Already mentioned was the experience of Kipling, “Soldier of the Queen” by Barbara Hambley, which concentrated on the implications for colonial rule after the decimation of European Imperial forces across the world. Mark Twain’s experience, “Roughing it During the Martian Invasion” by Daniel Keys Moran and Jodi Moran, was another strong story with the great man himself, as witty as always, helping with the human resistance in New Orleans. Lastly, I also really liked the Joseph Conrad tale, “To See the World End” by M Shayne Bell, which (again) pointed to the decline of Western influence in Africa post-Martian invasion especially as many Europeans had been rescued by local Africans and hidden in the jungle that had proved impenetrable to the lumbering walking machines.  

Overall, this was a pretty good collection of stories about what was going on in the rest of the world – outside England – during the Martian invasion. What I would’ve liked in more combat SF in there (such as maybe the Prussian army facing off against some of the walkers – just think what Von Clausewitz trained troops would think/do!) and I think a follow up with the implications for global geopolitics and the Imperial dream would be pretty fascinating. Recommended to all ‘War of the Worlds’ fans.