The moon era

About the book

Stephen's wealthy uncle offers him an extraordinary reward for testing a machine that its builders consider too dangerous to try. The journey reaches beyond ordinary travel, placing him on the Moon in an age unlike the lifeless world familiar to observers on Earth. There he encounters the Mother, an intelligent being whose appearance challenges human expectations but whose assistance creates the possibility of trust. Her own peril involves the Eternal Ones, linking his effort to survive with a conflict that existed before his arrival. Williamson combines speculative time travel with an emotionally important encounter across species. The story's imagined lunar history belongs to its fantastic premise, while its most immediate question is how two endangered beings can understand and help one another.

• Alien companionship
• Time and transformation
• Trust under threat

Why read it

The relationship with the Mother gives the strange environment an emotional center beyond the mechanics of exploration.

English story from Wonder Stories, February 1932