Edgar Rice Burroughs’ “John Carter of Mars Book One: A Princess of Mars”

This week I got my hands on a collection of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars, a series I have wanted to read for years. We’ll start at the beginning, with a review of book one: A Princess of Mars. The story follows the titular John Carter, a Civil War soldier looking to make his fortune in the Gold Rush after the defeat of the Confederacy. After a hairy run-in with some Apache, Carter finds himself trapped in a cave, paralyzed by an unknown ailment. Following a series of surreal events, Carter finds himself on Mars, the desolate desert planet of war and strife. Discovering that his human physiology gives him unique abilities on Mars, Carter is roped into a civil war for the fate of Mars.

I always enjoy reviewing classics, as they are books we, as readers, are often preconditioned to thinking are excellent, despite any apparent flaws. Occasionally, though, I have the pleasure of reading a classic that is truly a book that deserves to be read by readers of all genres. A Princess of Mars is one such book. Written as a memoir by Carter, the world of Burroughs’ Mars is beautifully detailed and meticulously explained. This can be a boon or burden for the book, depending on reader. Since the novel was written in 1917, and follows a Civil War soldier, the vernacular within is, fittingly, archaic. While the prose reads exquisitely, there are plenty of people who would prefer a more straightforward approach to writing. To those individuals, there is plenty of humor throughout that pokes fun at just how detailed the novel is. For what it’s worth, I was so focused on absorbing as much information Burroughs presents as possible that I never felt the prose became overly cumbersome. Mars is a uniquely familiar, yet alien, setting. Many features of the landscape and culture are reminiscent of Rome, allowing readers easy yet intricate imagery to draw upon in comparison to the Martian culture. Within the first five or six chapters it becomes clear how this novel influenced many sci-fi greats like Ray Bradbury.

In terms of genre, the book is difficult to define. On the one hand, the book is definitely a romantic. On the other hand, there is more than enough action to set A Princess of Mars aside as a high point in the sword-fighting subgenre, or even a Western. While the novel certainly isn’t perfect, as there are some issues with pacing while Carter describes things mid-action sequence, and Carter is sometimes gratingly perfect as a hero (a complaint that becomes less severe as the story progresses and character development deepens), the sheer detail and imagination used to create Mars establishes A Princess of Mars as a literary classic, regardless of genre. If you like the romantic tales of knights or heroes, action-packed exploration novels, or books that work your suspension of disbelief, then A Princess of Mars deserves a place on your library shelf. While some of the science can seem strange looking back from a 21^st century perspective, the technologies present in this novel are still wonderfully crafted. This upcoming week I’ll be reviewing a book from a local author, so be on the lookout for my next entry!