A Princess of Mars (1917) is a science fantasy novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the first of his Barsoom series. Full of swordplay and daring feats, the novel is considered a classic example of 20th century pulp fiction. It is also a seminal instance of the planetary romance, a sub-genre of science fantasy that became highly popular in the decades following its publication. Its early chapters also contain elements of the Western. The story is set on Mars, imagined as a dying planet with a harsh desert environment. This vision of Mars was based on the work of the astronomer Percival Lowell, whose ideas were widely popularized in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The Barsoom series inspired a number of well-known 20th century science fiction writers, including Jack Vance, Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Robert A. Heinlein, and John Norman, and was also inspirational for many scientists in the fields of space exploration and the search for extraterrestrial life, including Carl Sagan, who read A Princess of Mars when he was a child.

Princess of Mars is a 2009 direct-to-DVD science fiction film made by American independent studio The Asylum, based on the 1917 novel A Princess of Mars by author Edgar Rice Burroughs. The film's promotional art makes mention of how the original story inspired some elements of James Cameron's Avatar. It is not to be confused with the higher-budget 2012 film John Carter, which is also an adaptation of the novel.

John Carter (Antonio Sabato, Jr.) is a modern day U.S. Army sniper serving in Afghanistan. Wounded in the line of duty, Carter is used in a teleportation experiment by the government. He is sent to an alien world called Mars (not the one in this solar system) by the military but which the natives call Barsoom and Mars.

On this world, Carter exhibits the ability to leap amazing distances. Initially stripped and kept on a chain and collar as a captive of a group of green humanoids (known as Tharks), he earns his place among them and also helps save a rival group's princess, the human-looking Dejah Thoris (Traci Lords), from death.

Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic Mars adventurer John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.

Burroughs was born on September 1, 1875, in Chicago, Illinois (he later lived for many years in the suburb of Oak Park), the fourth son of businessman and Civil War veteran Major George Tyler Burroughs (1833–1913) and his wife Mary Evaline (Zieger) Burroughs (1840–1920). His middle name is from his paternal grandmother, Mary Rice Burroughs (1802-ca. 1870).

Burroughs was educated at a number of local schools, and during the Chicago influenza epidemic in 1891, he spent a half year at his brother's ranch on the Raft River in Idaho. He then attended the Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, and then the Michigan Military Academy. Graduating in 1895, and failing the entrance exam for the United States Military Academy (West Point), he ended up as an enlisted soldier with the 7th U.S. Cavalry in Fort Grant, Arizona Territory. After being diagnosed with a heart problem and thus found ineligible to serve, he was discharged in 1897.