A Crystal Age

by William Henry Hudson

Literary Thoughts edition presents A Crystal Age by W. H. Hudson

"A Crystal Age" is a Utopian novel written in 1887 by author, naturalist, and ornithologist William Henry Hudson (1841–1922, writing under his pseudonym W. H. Hudson).

All books of the Literary Thoughts edition have been transcribed from original prints and edited for better reading experience.

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Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Classics, Utopia, Fantasy, Dystopia, Ebooks

152 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1887

About the author

William Henry Hudson was an Anglo-Argentine author, naturalist and ornithologist. His works include Green Mansions (1904).

Argentines consider him to belong to their national literature as Guillermo Enrique Hudson, the Spanish version of his name. He spent his youth studying the local flora and fauna and observing natural and human dramas on then a lawless frontier, publishing his ornithological work in Proceedings of the Royal Zoological Society, initially in an English mingled with Spanish idioms. He settled in England during 1874. He produced a series of ornithological studies, including Argentine Ornithology (1888-1899) and British Birds (1895), and later achieved fame with his books on the English countryside, including Hampshire Days (1903), Afoot in England (1909) and A Shepherd's Life (1910). People best know his nonfiction in Far Away and Long Ago (1918). His other works include: The Purple Land (That England Lost) (1885), A Crystal Age (1887), The Naturalist in La Plata (1892), A Little Boy Lost (1905), Birds in Town and Village (1919), Dead Man's Plack and an Old Thorn (1920), and A Traveller in Little Things (1921).

Reviews

[Warren Fournier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many utopian novels I've read tend to be a bit pedantic, but not "A Crystal Age." Rather than endless descriptions of a mysterious civilization told to us by a local guide or by the narrator himself, here the nature of Hudson's vision unfolds organically through the narrative itself. This book actually has a plot rather than being a purely fantastic travelogue. And the plot takes us to some unexpected places, not the least of which was the ending which completely surprised me.

An English naturalist who we only know as "Smith" is exploring a region alone. We don't now where he is supposed to be, though I suspect the author intended it to be Argentina. He accidentally falls from a cliff and loses consciousness. He awakens to find that Rip Van Winkle has nothing on him, as he has evidently slept for unknown millennia, awakening in a different world. Though the contents are rather typical of utopian fiction, with altered gender roles, a psychologically serine and passive population, abolition of payment via currency, vegetarianism, and weird local customs, the book is really a satire of Victorian manners, as he plays forward the restrictive and neurotic attitude regarding love and sex of Victorian society to it's extremes. Humanity has evolved into a long-lived but rather sexless race and the population is dwindling.

I found some of the book, especially when regarding the subjects of motherhood and grief, to be very touching and poignant. I also found it interesting to study the psychology of Smith's slow assimilation into the culture. Smith himself is also a more fleshed out character than many of the other wooden mouthpieces that narrate events in utopian literature.

Overall, a remarkable achievement of early scientific romances and a strong recommendation.

[Wreade1872 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A man is knocked unconscious and wakes up to find everything has changed. Utopian fiction, the civilization might be compared with the Eloi from the Time Machine but i think this story is better written and has a more haunting atmosphere.
There are hints that the civilization might not be as perfect as it appears but then the story ends before you can get any answers. I don't even know whether my ideas about the dark elements of the civilization were actually implied or merely inferred. A frustrating but interesting read.

[Shel]

While A Crystal Age (1887) follows the classic structure of a nineteenth century utopia (a visitor arrives in an idyllic society), its focus on the protagonist's (Smith's) culture shock makes it a darker, less polemic version. Smith's failure to adapt to the strict mores of the pleasant, but alien, society he lands in, and his unrequited passion for one of the utopians, turns this into a utopian tragedy.

The utopian vision centers on harmonious appreciation of nature (animals works beside humans in telepathic connection and there's a ritualistic observance of the annual blooming of the rainbow lilies). The society also takes great care over their clothes, music, and large communal houses. They work a short day, eat vegetarian food, and express platonic love for an extended family. Brief periods of isolation are the punishment for disobedience. Lying, overworking, damaging property, and being unappreciative of natural beauty are the worst crimes.

Smith takes great pleasure in the environment he finds and the culture's beauty and refinement entices him. He falls in love at first sight with one of the utopian women and tries to gain acceptance into society, in part, to win her hand. However, instead of being shown about the utopia, lectured, and introduced to its differences and expectations — a utopian trope — Smith is adrift. The utopians are slow to recognize him as an outsider and he is shunned and shamed when he ignorantly offends their culture. To get along, he finds he must keep his past and questions to himself. No one will take pains to explain the mores of society to him and he must learn to read their language before he can educate himself.

By the time he understands the price the utopians have paid for their peaceful life — a purely platonic existence for all but the Mother and Father of a household — it is too late. He passionately loves a woman who cannot reciprocate his feelings, in a society that does not recognize them. He remains torn between the desirability of the utopia and his roots. While there is some hint that, had he waited to learn more, things may have worked out differently, ultimately the character's misunderstanding of his environment leads to his demise.

Pairs well with Charlotte Perkins Gilman's (1915), John Carey's The Faber Book of Utopias

[D'face · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can add very little to Shel Graves' excellent review except to say that I was completely taken with the author's description of the utopian world he has fallen into. The gentle lifestyle of working with hands, no money, vegetarian diet, holidays based around nature, music and literature was captivating. It was difficult to tell if Smith moved forward or back in time, I kept expecting him to stumble across some relic of previous civilisations. A very interesting read and a tragic if abrupt end.

[Pperkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this book from Librivox (the reader is very good) and enjoyed the slow pace and the rich descriptions of the strange land the protagonist suddenly finds himself in. But this early utopian (dystopian?) tale may require some patience for modern readers to wade through. The ending was a bit strange... it wrapped up too quickly and too much was left unsaid, after all the previous lengthy ruminations.

[David V. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Received this Kindle edition for my Nook tablet for free. Started reading 6-7-21. Finished 6-11-21. I'm sure all SF fans have read a book similar to this; this one was published in 1887, and was probably the first of its type. A man (usually) gets injured in an accident(in this case a landslide) and wakes up knowing who he is, where he was, but not where he is, and in this book he doesn't even consider when he is. He has to confront a society so much different from the one he lived in. The quirk in this story is that he falls in love with a young girl whom he believes to be about 14 (he's in his twenties); later he learns she's in her 30's. He gets indoctrinated into the group, spends a year or so, and then there's a totally dissatisfying ending without even, "And then I woke up." Every character makes long-winded speeches with an enormous number of commas!!!! But from an historical position, it's a good quick read that provides the beginnings of this type of story.

[Judy Scheibach · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I pretend that this 21-year-old man hadn't fallen in love at first sight and spent the book lusting over a girl he thought was 14, then this is a pretty interesting book.

[Isen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Smith was walking in the woods one day, when he fell off a precipice and lost consciousness, only to awake in a world where all the animals seemed to hate him. After blundering around for a while he came across a group of people who weren't too keen on him either, but among them he spotted a tantalising looking fourteen year old. It's a sign of the times that in today's world such an attraction would require a very specific book to justify it, but in the good old days the author could take it for granted that no one would find it weird that Smith wanted to bang her.

The people Smith meets speak English but seem to be unaware that they are in England or even that such a country exists. They find Smith's clothing and manner repulsive, and given the strange things Smith talks about they conclude that he must have hit his head rather hard during his fall. The author does not believe in delayed disclosure, and when they come back to their homestead the Father of the House just happens to read a passage from a book that describes how humanity perished in some sort of self-inflicted cataclysm thousands of years ago, and only a few people from the country (presumably South East England, given that their accent is never commented upon by Smith) repopulate the entire world, whilst using pre-steam technology and never settling in settlements larger than a homestead. Maybe they read that every evening.

Things are pretty weird, but none of this bothers Smith overmuch. The prospect of never seeing England again is shunted aside as he has his eyes on the sweet, sweet fourteen year old prize. Luckily for him, he is a veritable Casanova with such bulletproof pick up lines like "Your sight must be as good as your eyes are pretty", and "It is only right you have a pretty name because, well, if I may tell you, you are so very beautiful".

It doesn't seem to work. But Smith can take consolation in that it was not his smooth talking that is at fault, but that for unexplained reasons everyone but the breeding couple of the Father and Mother are sterile in this world. How new breeders are created is never fully specified. The story ends abruptly and, put simply, stupidly.

It's not clear whether this was meant to be a tale of utopia, dystopia, or a false utopia. Putting aside the incredulity of the world presented, it's not very pleasant either. We've seen that there's no romance, but neither do there seem to be any games, sports, or past times other than singing (but only in one specific genre, to the point that the inhabitants are physically hurt when Smith tries to sing a song they're unfamiliar with), reading (given that they don't seem to write or even repair books, presumably the selection isn't great), and going for walks. Eventually they go on pilgrimages to other homesteads, but the Father assures that the customs and practices there are exactly the same as here so not much point in that either. Some part of the world initially promise to be interesting -- for example, unlike most utopian settings the people here initially seem to be ideologically opposed to the concept of a gift, and demand a fair market exchange for everything. But then once they admit Smith into their fold they proclaim that now their belongings are all shared, so it's not clear what that was all about. Smith doesn't explore the issue, because he has more important things in mind.

The writing style is fine enough when detailing simple events, but becomes excruciating when the author engages in lyrical prose or extended conversation. There's not much to be had from this book.

[charles hudson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Downer. To me, I could see a slight double to the Time Machine. The book was a good read though. Am still a little fuzzy about his movement through time. It was obvious that he had went far forward in time. But, as a current day person, it is also interesting as to what the writers of the 1800s forsaw.

6/29/17. Not the expected ending. His other books although follow a similar ending. Green Mansions for one. As a writer, he sort of has a dark side to him.

[Carly · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got this as a free book from google reads. It isn't my usual type of book but it kept my attention for most of it. I found it was mainly about a man trying to find a way to make a woman love him who was incapable of doing so. This plot got boring and repetitive towards the end of the book. I found it ended rather quickly. The ending took it from 3 stars to 1 star for me.

[Clivemichael · Rating 2 out of 5]

dated, slow moving narrative. His descriptions of nature are splendid, the mental machinations of the hero illustrative of the time. An interesting discourse on philosophy/religion. I was disappointed by the ending.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really loved this! So full of wonder & a surprise ending for anyone who hasn`t read this classic yet!

[The Usual · Rating 3 out of 5]

If it is a mark of good writing that you look through it, rather than at it, then this is a well-written novel. It really is. There's some really nice descriptive writing, and as you might expect from a naturalist, he's a lot more willing than Wells to hang about describing the flora and fauna, and is actually interested in people. I like that: I find Wells a bit dry, and think perhaps comparing this with The Time Machine a touch misleading.

In fact, it feel like this particular book covers ground most science-fiction novelists avoid - most science-fiction novelists being, like me, male, emotionally stunted science-geeks: it's a book about love.

Now, there's nothing unusual in romantic love cropping up in a piece of science-fiction - if that's what this is. There is something a little odd in the protagonist going full-on Werther quite so early on in the narrative, even leaving aside the Juliet moment (and let's, please, leave that well alone), but that's not quite what I mean either. No, what I mean is... there are Greek terms for this stuff, because the Greeks were relentless hair-splitters, but I don't remember them... that the plot relies on the distinction between romantic love, brotherly/sisterly love, and motherly love. Regardless of what doctor Freud may have thought, they are not the same thing, and really shouldn't be.

Then there's the religious imagery. I could come a fearful cropper if I tried rabbiting on about the religious imagery, but it's definitely there, and I don't think it got there by mistake.

And there's his concern for conservation. Again, he's a naturalist. You get lines like... let me just look up the quote, because it's rather good and terribly angry:

"... yet it was not strange that birds were so abundant, considering that there were no longer any savages upon the earth, with nothing to amuse their vacant minds except killing the feathered creatures with their bows and arrows, and no innumerable company of squaws clamorous for trophies - unchristian women of the woods with painted faces, insolence in their eyes, and for ornaments the feathered skins torn from slain birds on their heads."

That's a fine line, isn't it? Perhaps you think it's casual racism? It isn't. It's the same trick Waugh pulled at the start of The Loved One. He's talking about gentlemen going out hunting, and society ladies with their make-up and feathered hats.

But you probably spotted that.

All that stuff makes this really quite interesting in a way that just showing someone round a utopia - if that's what this is - wouldn't be. It also means that if you haven't read sufficiently widely, you'll probably miss out on some of the subtext.

What else?

Ah yes, there's something deeply strange going on that feels like dream-logic. Not only can Smith - the protagonist's name is Smith - not remember all manner of important things, he doesn't seem terribly worried about them. He's just so accepting of everything.

Oh, and there's the thing that no-one has mentioned. I can't believe I'm the only one to spot it, so I assume it's a bit spoilerish.

It looks remarkably like humanity has adopted a mode of living analogous to social insects, with a king, a queen, and a group of sexless workers all living together in a single hive/nest/house.

In fact it's so obvious I can't believe Smith doesn't spot it, though of course that would have shortened the book.

The ending's satisfying to me, and suitably dark, but might frustrate some people.

A few relatively trivial points aside, this is pretty much the opposite of People of the Ruins, and a rather better book.

Done. Not entirely happy with this, but done.

[Joel Wall · Rating 2 out of 5]

a young man awakes in an utopia where the people live harmoniously in nature, but he only cares about trying to marry a woman (who he believes is 15)

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extraordinarily modern utopian vision. Poor Smith finds himself in an alternate world of vegetarian nature lovers who are incredibly irritating but whom he grows to love and admire. His downfall is his passion for Yoletta, a young and beautiful daughter of the house. The ending made me exclaim/gasp out loud!!

[Janne Wass · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the many utopian novels written in the stormy end of the 19th century, W.H. Hudson's story is, like Samuel Butler's "Erewhon", published a year earlier, one which abhors the industry and machinery of the modern age. A pastoral romance set in a utopian forest landscape, it describes a world where nations and institutions have evaporated, industry and technology have been wiped out and the only social structure is that of the communal house. The narrator wakes up entangled in roots and covered by rocks, without first realising he has been preserved and is now in the future. He happens upon a group of people who take him in as one of them, and falls in love with a young woman. However, he has trouble adapting to the new way of life, in which sexual desire and personal emotions are suppressed, and where everyone lives by a decree of "lagom". Surprised at the lack of children, he soon finds out that only a mysterious, bed-ridden "Mother" is allowed to bear child, with a pre-ordained "Father" of the house, and that sexual relations and any form of intimate personal connections are prohibited. Tormented by his love for a woman he cannot have, he secretly sneaks into a forbidden room, where he reads a forbidden book, which tells him of a potion that will relieve him of all the pain and suffering of life. He drinks it, and as he slowly grows stiff, he realises it is poison. As his life drains away, he realises that the "Mother" has secretly been grooming him and "his" woman to become the new breeders of the house.

An interesting, if somewhat stale, pastoral utopia, "A Crystal Age" reflects Argentinian British naturalist and author Hudson's love for nature and abhorrence of the modern world. His utopia is not a paradise, but presents as an alternative to his world of suffering and hungry millions one where personal ambition and emotion have been replaced by a still tranquillity and equality. As with most futuristic books of the time, "A Crystal Age" is also very interested in changing gender roles.

[CATHERINE · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is definitely an unusual read. The main character may have woken up in a different world or time and finds himself in a utopian society. He blunders through a series of social errors that he finds immensely embarrassing. He ventures into this society at what appears to be a funeral, but his main focus is a beautiful young girl, who varies in age from his perception between 14-16, which does come across from a modern viewpoint as creepy since he is 21. I found it amusing that he ignores all the amazing things that he comes across, he never questions how he got there, why he is there but instead is simply obsessed with this one girl and fitting in in order to be accepted and "win" her. The section where he expresses his love and then proceeds to kiss her hands and then when she offers no objections starts to kiss her mouth realizing that she doesn't understand his passion. This juxtaposition of his worldly passion and their gentle innocence is the recurring theme of the book. His attempts and frustration at trying to convey his feelings reach a head and the ending of the book turns it into a tragedy as the very aspect that could save a society determines its end. There are a lot of layers in this story that make it interesting but ultimately I wouldn't want to read it again.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always impressed with Hudson's eloquent, emotionally inspired, and colorful descriptions, of which this book has many. His language is vivid, but not verbose or superfluous. The story's premise is somewhat unique, wherein, upon awaking after a fall from great heights, a young Englishman named Smith finds himself adrift in a new world. For the first time, he experiences the reality of otherness. Smith perceives his surroundings as a Utopia, or at least we as readers do. He continually thwarts his social progress by acting like himself. Even the farm animals seem to look down on him. Smith learns that the Utopian concepts of romantic love, freedom, and recreation, if they exist at all, are as alien to him as his native ways are to his new family. There is a redemptive irony watching the 'first world' English protagonist play what is viewed by others in the book as an uncouth aberration. Ultimately, while nosing through books of law and without guidance, Smith learns truths that explain his confusion and just when he begins to feel as if he may understand his role in the new world, he drinks of a potion that presumably kills him. I say he was dead the whole time, an idea supported not only by the wholly alien surroundings, but also by the fact that Smith himself never challenges where he is or wonders how he got there, and does not try to return to home.

[Alison M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Initially I was intrigued, for I thought the story would ask deep questions, in the way of 'Out of the Silent Planet' or 'A Voyage to Arcturus'. But I really did not discover much. It's possible I missed things, but the only life lessons I picked up on were: that there is a difference between romantic passion and genuine love; that romantic passion is actually a form of obsession; that a person can be very angry with you while also loving you unconditionally. These are all things that I hope most people over the age of 30 understand rather well.

Then there is the fact that our hero is just 21 - little more than a boy, really. His passionate longings are adolescent but jarringly, his thoughts and sensibilities are those of a much older man (very likely the author). The story contains several extremely long, verbose reflections that most definitely did not emerge from the mind of a callow youth. These word dumps served only to make me fear I would fall asleep before the author had emptied his brain. Finally, I found the ending deeply unsatisfying, for it neither clarifies nor resolves anything. The story just clicks to a halt and you are left to make of it what you will.

[Guilherme Gontijo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first reading by WH Hudson, and I confess I didn't see the ending coming. It astonished me so much that I had to read more about the author and couldn't suppress my happiness to discover he was a Latino like me. A Crystal age is a pastoral Utopia (born from a previous apocalypse) very different from other speculative fiction I've read before. It's a good novel and I've listened to it's LibriVox recordings. There's one thing that can annoy readers tho: the main character has one of those 1st generation romantic cheesy personalities. He goes to the last consequences to conquer the heart of his loved one and that sounded a little irrational to me. Anyways, I've enjoyed the reading/listening and don't repent it.

[Benjamin Chandler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hudson's prose and world-building are the real stars of this book, a sci-fi utopia/dystopia novel where a young man hibernates into a future where immediate families are everything, homes are permanent temples, mothers are worshipped, and love is only the philia kind. There is no place for eros in this future.

The narrator is something of a nitwit, but the lovely and stylish writing and philosophies presented betray that characterization.

I would have given this book 4 stars, but the ending just ruined the whole thing for me. Almost as souring as the ending to Crichton's "Sphere." Ugh.

[Paul stamper · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gentle cult of harmonious love.

A tragic, romantic take on human cultural evolution in the best Rip Van Winkle tradition. Our protagonist tumbles headlong into a ravine during a woodland hike and awakens in a bucolic future both strange and pastoral. Discovered by the long lived denizens of a familial commune, he struggles to learn their peaceful ways even though perceived by the gentle inmates as a semi deranged barbarian from environs unknown. As he pursues the love of Yoletta, a young (?) resident of the tiny community, he discovers a secret that devastatingly alters his burning relentless desire.

[Lucy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'll never get those hours of my life back....First person narratives where the narrator dies (presumably, the end is woefully unclear ) only work if there is a framing device, say an account he wrote and then an eyewitness bit, this just doesn't hang together. And the premise of this particular utopia is even more unlikely than other contemporary attempts like those of Wells or Morris. It's really not worth wasting your time on.

[Nicole West Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this classic tale of a man transported to a completely different world with a utopian way of life that very greatly differs from that of our own. It became very obvious that a world without pain and anguish is no world at all. There has to be a balance. I was expecting in the end that he would find his way home again. I was not expecting him to accidentally drink poison but it proved the theory that someone who was suffering in the world of utopia would be taken care of through death

[Maggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was just getting interested when it finished! I spent the first two thirds of the book intensely disliking the protagonist due to his infatuation with a child, then it turns out all is not as it seems. This being cleared up, the rest of the book discribes the society he has found himself in..in absolutely NO clearer detail. How annoying. I persisted to the end but I still didn't enjoy this book.

[Elizabeth Evans · Rating 2 out of 5]

I honestly did not like this book. Though some descriptions of the world around the main character Smith were good enough that I could envision the view, the rest of the book was slow and not entertaining. I kept trying to get into the story, but was unable to do so as I was intensely bored with Smith’s pursuit of Yoletta and could not wait for the end but wanted to complete it in full.

[jospeh jack · Rating 2 out of 5]

I FOUND THIS BOOK TO BE QUITE A BLOW OF HOT SMOKE!

I FOUND THAT THE BOOK "WAR AND PEACE" MANY YEARS AGO , WAS A VERY WELL WRITTEN STORY!😍 😢SADLY THIS BOOK " A CRYSTAL AGE" IS !MOSTLY "FLOUR" AND VERY LITTLE "GRAVY!" I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS BOOK!

[Nadyne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not was the dystopian book I thought it would be. It was in a recognizable future, but for me this was merely a love story.

[Jason Pym · Rating 2 out of 5]

19th century utopia which feels strangely like an early Star Trek episode - but really too dated to be entertaining.

[Cindy DeLong · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weird