I have been intrigued by the H.G. Wells iconic science fiction novel  War of the Worlds since I first read the book as a 10 year-old. The terrifying tale was first serialized in nine issues of Pearson’s Magazine (1897/98) with illustrations by Warwick Goble. These got reprinted in the first American edition of the book in 1898, but the original British book length edition published in 1898 was issued without any illustrations. However,the first Dutch translation from 1899 was published with 10 original drawings. The artwork was created by Jacobus Hendrik Speenhoff who was better known as a cabaret performer than an artist. De Strijd der Werelden was published in Amsterdam by Cohen Zonen and remains a highly sought after version by collectors on both sides of the Atlantic.