This book comes highly recommended by avid science fiction readers who have fond memories of it from their youth and who vividly remember the Tripods (though they forget the title and the author's name). It's the first in a trilogy, which includes The City of Gold and Lead and the Pool of Fire.

The first book is the first half of a hero's journey. A young boy sets out and encounters allies and enemies on a quest to escape from the ordinary world where at puberty humans consent to be "capped" by the alien "tripods" who master their minds.

Writers read this for: theme — on his journey, seeking out the free men who resist domination by the tripods to retain their invention and ingenuity, the young protagonist Will asks questions about the world he lives in and comes to conclusions about it. These elements leave a lasting impression and give the book its status as an enduring classic.

Quotes:
"What value did courage have without a free and challenging mind to direct it?"
"Was I to abandon my hope of freedom, surrender the mastery of my mind, for the sake of wearing jeweled leather and having other men touch their caps to me?"
"More and more I had come to see the Capped as lacking what seemed to me the essence of humanity, the vital spark of defiance against the rulers of the world."
"That nothing mattered, nothing was of value, without a mind that challenged and inquired."
"For it is not quite true to say that we have no luxuries. We have two: freedom, and hope."
"...free men will enjoy the goodness of the earth."

Writers, also of note: in the preface to the anniversary edition, "What is a Tripod?" the author talks about his process of writing the book and how the help of an editor and his willingness to do many drafts transformed the book from a work that was merely publishable into a much loved, enduring classic

If I had encountered this book around the time I was reading The Chronicles of Narnia, I would certainly have devoured the series. At this point in my reading life, however, I am not inspired to read on.