Rating: 
Summary: TWO CARTER NOVELLAS OF VARYING QUALITY
Review: "John Carter of Mars" is the 11th and final volume in Edgar Rice Burroughs' classic John Carter series, and is comprised of two novellas of varying quality. The first, "John Carter and the Giant of Mars," first appeared in "Amazing Stories Magazine" in January 1941; the second, "Skeleton Men of Jupiter," first appeared in that same publication in February 1943. (For full details on the complicated publishing histories of these tales, I refer all interested parties to the ERB List, one of the best Burroughs Websites on the Net.) As most people seem to know by now, the first of these tales was NOT written by ERB himself, but rather by his son, John Coleman Burroughs, who illustrated 13 of his father's books and drew the John Carter comic strip from 1941-43. In this tale, Carter is captured by Pew Mogel, a synthetic man who is bent on conquering Barsoom with his intelligent apemen and flying malagors. The tale is an important one in the Carter saga, in that his city of Helium is almost sacked and captured at the end of a tremendous battle. Sad to say, however, Burroughs Jr.'s writing style is not up to the task of depicting such colossal doings. So this pastiche of a tale comes off like the work of a talented amateur, even though Burroughs Sr. supposedly did assist in the writing. Burroughs Jr. makes many mistakes in his writing; internal inconsistencies and inconsistencies with previous Carter books abound. For example, the characters refer to Barsoom as "Mars" in this book, and the two moons, Thuria and Cluros, are for the first time given their Earth names of Deimos and Phobos. These moons are said to travel quickly across the sky, whereas in every other Carter book, it has been said that Cluros is a very slow mover. Pew Mogel slaps Tars Tarkas, Carter's Tharkian buddy, in one scene, yet in previous books, it has been established that Tarkas is around 15 feet tall! One of the intelligent apemen falls out of a high window to his death in a courtyard in one scene, even though the characters are in an underground laboratory! The Martian rats that play such a central role in this story are made to appear similar in size to the Earth variety, whereas in previous volumes, they were said to be as big as Airedale terriers! For the first time in the entire series, the men of Barsoom are shown using radios, TV sets and visiscreens; a rather surprising advent, given all that has come before. I could go on, but you get the point. Anyone who has read the previous 10 Carter books will immediately notice the difference in style and content, and that difference is very jarring. Still, the story moves along very briskly, and the action IS relentless.
The "Skeleton Men..." tale is much better. This novella was written by ERB himself, and is a real return to form. In this one, Carter and his mate are kidnapped by the Morgors of the planet Jupiter, who intend to study them preparatory to their invasion of the Red Planet. This is the first Carter tale to take place on a planet other than Earth or Mars, and so Burroughs is given free rein to let his imagination fly. This story features some good scientific speculation on what that giant world might be like, and for once Burroughs makes no slips as far as inconsistencies are concerned. However, the story ends right in the middle of Carter's adventure; apparently, Burroughs intended this to be a multipart saga, but never did get around to finishing it. Talk about leaving the reader wanting more! But at least the story of John Carter ends on a high note here, bringing to a conclusion one of the best swashbuckling fantasy series of all time.
Perhaps this is as good a place as any to note that the 11 Carter books that I have just read were the Ballantine/DelRey paperbacks of the late '70s to early '80s. These are the ones that feature beautifully imaginative yet faithful-to-the-story cover art by Michael Whelan. Sad to say, these paperbacks are quite a mess. I have never seen books with more typographical errors in my life. It is painfully obvious that these books were never proofread. This is surprising, given the sterling job that Ballantine/DelRey did with their "Best of" series of 21 great sci-fi authors around that same time. Still, the power of Edgar Rice Burroughs' vision shines through, so that even in these poorly put-together editions, the saga of John Carter on the planet Barsoom manages to captivate the reader, even after all these years.
Rating: 
Summary: Thirty years ago this book opened a new world to me.
Review: "A Princess of Mars" began for me a journey which will last a lifetime. I lost myself as a youth and young adult, in first, the Martian series, then enumerable other Edgar Rice Borrough's tales. I have now begun the journey again with my 9 and 11 year old sons. The stories endure the test of time, impart lessons in life, and entertain in an unparalled fashion. Oh yes, Borrough's unique usage of descriptive vocabulary prompted my early fascination with the English language. Borrough's novels, and in particular the Martian series, has had a profound inpact on my life, and that of many of my family members. It is more entertainment than I had a right to expect, and I am thankful for the experience. Please read my favorite series chronicling the adventures of John Carter of Barsoom. You will not regret it.
Rating:
Summary: The truth
Review: Alot of reviews are saying the Edgar Rice Burroughs did not actually write "John Carter and the Giant of Mars". The truth is that he did. This is what happened and what causes confusion: a childrens publisher wanted a short version of a Edgar Rice Burroughs' novel. Mr. Burroughs was concerned that he could not keep it short enough for the publisher so he asked his son to help craft a shorter story. At the same time, Amazing Stories asked Edgar Rice Burroughs for another Mars novel. A full lenght one to serialize. Edgar took the short story and stretched it to a full novel. This is confirmed by several sources and by Edgar Rice Burroughs estate. It explains why some of the novel strays from the rest of the series. So, yes his son was involved, but it is wrong to say that Edgar Rice Burroughs did not write it. He did. Especially the novel version.
Anyway, all of the Mars books are exciting and I recomend all the books in the series.
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Summary: An exciting and innovative adventure.
Review: Burrough's first Mars story is one of the best of his best series. John Carter "imagines" himself up to Mars, but from there on the story is spectacular, as Burroughs creates a world of air ships and different races attempting to live on a dying planet.
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Summary: Dissapointing end to a mindblowing saga
Review: I have read every martian tale that Edgar Rice Burroughs has written. When I came to this segment of the saga I was greatly dissapointed. As it was, Edgar Rice Burroughs did not actually write the last book, as it can be obvious be reviewing the writing style. Because Edgar Rice Burroughs did not write the story there is something left missing while reading it. But this book should be read if if one wishes to completely finish the entire martian saga.
Rating:
Summary: Dissapointing end to a mindblowing saga
Review: I have read every martian tale that Edgar Rice Burroughs has written. When I came to this segment of the saga I was greatly dissapointed. As it was, Edgar Rice Burroughs did not actually write the last book, as it can be obvious be reviewing the writing style. Because Edgar Rice Burroughs did not write the story there is something left missing while reading it. But this book should be read if if one wishes to completely finish the entire martian saga.
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Summary: Awesome! Action Packed!
Review: It is a great book like all of it's prequels
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Summary: John Carter Is God.... and Dejah Thoris his Queen....
Review: John Carter, a gentleman from Virginia, late of the War between the States, finds himself adrift with no war to fight and goldpanning in the West. Beset by Indians, he turns to Mars, the god of War, the red planet and cries out for help. He awakes on the red planet, and his adventures there with the green men, Woola, and Dejah Thoris are that of which mere mortals may only dream. Burroughs concocts a Saturday morning movie serial that still has real heart - John Carter is noble without being foppish and Dejah Thoris is regal and beautiful and worthy of his love. These are not books for people who have forgotten the lure of reading under the sheets after "lights out" have been called, nor are they books for the serious self-help addict. But for those of us that still enjoy curling up with a bona-fide page turner, John Carter of Mars is it....
Rating:
Summary: A sad farewell to a great adventure series
Review: Other reviews appear to be speaking of the first book in the series, A Princess of Mars. John Carter of Mars is the 11th and last book of the Barsoomian adventure stories. In fact, this book is a combination of two stories: "The Giant of Mars", actually written by John Coleman Burroughs, and "The Skeleton Men of Jupiter", the first of a four-part series that was never finished."Giant of Mars" has long confused ERB fans, many of whom have wondered whether he actually wrote this story. The truth has been circulated for years but somehow doubt and literary legend seem to overwhelm it. John Coleman Burroughs did indeed write this story, and he admitted as much publicly. "The Skeleton Men of Jupiter" is pure ERB space opera and it restores Barsoom's chapion to his former glory. This tale had the potential to become one of the all-time greatest ERB adventures, but he never wrote more than the first of four installments. Our hero resolves a major conflict and the reader is not left wondering if John Carter and Dejah Thoris survive, but their adventure is nonetheless incomplete. Fans eager to read more about Carter's adventures need to get this book, but let the reader beware, it can only be unsatisfying. One is left with a sense of wonder, for Burroughs is said to have been burned out near the end of his life, but there is much about this story which is fresh and engrossing.
Rating:
Summary: A sad farewell to a great adventure series
Review: Other reviews appear to be speaking of the first book in the series, A Princess of Mars. John Carter of Mars is the 11th and last book of the Barsoomian adventure stories. In fact, this book is a combination of two stories: "The Giant of Mars", actually written by John Coleman Burroughs, and "The Skeleton Men of Jupiter", the first of a four-part series that was never finished. "Giant of Mars" has long confused ERB fans, many of whom have wondered whether he actually wrote this story. The truth has been circulated for years but somehow doubt and literary legend seem to overwhelm it. John Coleman Burroughs did indeed write this story, and he admitted as much publicly. "The Skeleton Men of Jupiter" is pure ERB space opera and it restores Barsoom's chapion to his former glory. This tale had the potential to become one of the all-time greatest ERB adventures, but he never wrote more than the first of four installments. Our hero resolves a major conflict and the reader is not left wondering if John Carter and Dejah Thoris survive, but their adventure is nonetheless incomplete. Fans eager to read more about Carter's adventures need to get this book, but let the reader beware, it can only be unsatisfying. One is left with a sense of wonder, for Burroughs is said to have been burned out near the end of his life, but there is much about this story which is fresh and engrossing.
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