Wandl the Invader

Ray CummingsProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.6

Word count: 268K words
Chapters: 27

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Wandl the Invader by Ray CummingsAuthor: Cummings, Ray, 1887-1957,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Mar 20, 2007

Editor's review

Ray Cummings was one of the representative writers of the early American science fiction magazine era, and Wandl the Invader is a work in his space adventure style, built around alien invaders and human resistance. The plot moves forward directly, the imagination is bold, and it bears the distinct mark of popular science fiction from the first half of the twentieth century. The book has a brisk pace and vivid imagery, making it a good introductory read for understanding the pulp science fiction tradition. For readers studying the evolution of early science fiction as a genre, this book offers a sample of how the alien invasion motif was handled. It is worth reading in the context of the science fiction magazines of the time, to appreciate both the pleasures of popular storytelling and its period limitations. As a public-domain ebook, it is easy to obtain and suitable for reading in fragments of time.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy early pulp science fiction and space adventure stories
Fans and scholars interested in the history of science fiction as a genre
Readers who want to enjoy science fiction in English in an easy original edition
Science fiction fans interested in the Martian invasion motif

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking rigorous hard science fiction settings and scientific detail
Readers who prefer the deep character development and literary quality of contemporary science fiction
Readers sensitive to the period limitations found in early popular literature

Reading tips

Read it as a period sample and pay attention to how early science fiction handled the alien invasion motif.
Read it alongside other alien invasion works to observe how genre conventions evolved.
Read it chapter by chapter during commuting or other fragments of time to keep the pace of the adventure narrative.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What kind of science fiction is this book?

It is an alien invasion adventure story in the style of early twentieth-century American popular science fiction magazines, with a direct plot and brisk pace and the typical features of pulp science fiction, rather than hard science fiction focused on scientific rigor.

Can I read this book directly if I have never read early science fiction?

Yes. The story is driven by adventure and confrontation, and the setting is not complex, so readers can get into it without prior knowledge of science fiction history. A little background on the era of pulp science fiction will make it easier to appreciate both its pleasures and its limitations.

Is the electronic edition free?

Yes. The book is published by Project Gutenberg as a free public-domain ebook. You can search for it by title or author on its website and download it, usually in plain text and ebook reading formats.

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About the author

Ray Cummings Author · American · 1887–1957

Ray Cummings (real name Raymond King Cummings, 1887–1957) was an American science fiction writer born in New York and regarded as one of the founders of early science fiction. He once served as Thomas Edison's personal assistant and technical writer before turning to writing full time. His representative work The Girl in the Golden Atom blends a microscopic world with romantic adventure, and space operas such as Brigands of the Moon are also widely known. Eight of his works are included here, among them The White Invaders, Tarrano the Conqueror, Beyond the Vanishing Point, The Fire People, The World Beyond and Wandl the Invader. Their themes mostly involve space exploration, microcosmic worlds and alien invasions, with bold imagination and tight plotting characteristic of early science fiction adventure. He is said to have written about 750 works, exerting a lasting influence on later science fiction; public information on the details of his life is limited.