My experience with Conrad Richter, as with a lot of folks, began with Richter's Awakening Land series. I absolutely fell in love with [b: The Trees|13760|The Trees|Conrad Richter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386925127l/13760._SY75_.jpg|15888]. I enjoyed and was similarly impressed with the other two books in the series, [b: The Fields|18747290|In the Fields|Willow Aster|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1383361735l/18747290._SY75_.jpg|25807224] and [b: The Town|6442769|Paper Towns|John Green|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1349013610l/6442769._SX50_.jpg|3364505]. [b: The Waters of Kronos|930392|The Waters of Kronos|Conrad Richter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347724257l/930392._SX50_.jpg|915385], my latest Richter novel, was a completely different experience. The one similarity was a mystical feel in both [b: The Trees|13760|The Trees|Conrad Richter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386925127l/13760._SY75_.jpg|15888] and [b: The Waters of Kronos|930392|The Waters of Kronos|Conrad Richter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347724257l/930392._SX50_.jpg|915385], but that mystical quality was a minor aspect of [b: The Trees|13760|The Trees|Conrad Richter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386925127l/13760._SY75_.jpg|15888] while it was central to [b: The Waters of Kronos|930392|The Waters of Kronos|Conrad Richter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347724257l/930392._SX50_.jpg|915385]. I almost struggled to recognize these works as written by the same author.

Although I did not enjoy [b: The Waters of Kronos|930392|The Waters of Kronos|Conrad Richter|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347724257l/930392._SX50_.jpg|915385] nearly as much as I did the Awakening Land series, and that is standard #1 when I read, I did admire what Richter was trying to do, or at least what I think he was trying to do. This novel left more questions unanswered than answered. It would be great for a discussion group where there would be the opportunity to explore all of the alternative theories. ( )

This 1960 novel isn't a bad book, but it bears a definite resemblance to the Twilight Zone episode Walking Distance (Wikipedia) that aired October 30, 1959 (according to both Wikipedia and IMDb). I've never seen that particular Twilight Zone episode, but I read the story in Stories from the Twilight Zone (Kindle edition) and the similarity is a little too great for my personal comfort.

Well, after reconsidering and getting some input from Meredy, I'm switching over to a 3***. ( )

3198. The Waters of Kronos, by Conrad Richter (read May 19, 1999) This won the 1961 National Book Award. I read Richter's trilogy (The Trees, The Fields, and The Town) in November of 1958 with remembered enjoyment, but have not read anything else by him till now. I found this book an eerily moving book, which really caught me up. The fact that some might call it fantasy did not detract from the power of the story, tho I have a loathing for books in that genre usually. Other than the excursion itself there is nothing fantastic about the protagonist's journey. I was most favorably impressed by the great simple story. ( )