An absolutely beautiful story that moved and captivated me.

The story of our planet, our destruction of our home, our search for other life out in the cosmos.

But more than that, a story of a father's love for his son. A son bewildered by humans' callous disregard for other living creatures. A son who feels their pain so deeply he finds life difficult to cope with. A son who is an inspiration to his father. A son who has lost his mother and who science finds a way of reuniting him with her.

A book quite unlike anything I've read before, it is simply stunningly beautiful and heartbreaking.

I had picked up Bewilderment with the expectations that anyone would naturally have for a Booker shortlisted book but I have to say this book fell short by a wide margin.

I was having trouble figuring out what the point of this book was and 270ish pages later I was no wiser. I would like to say however that Richard Powers has talked about a number of issues ranging from mental health, grief and global warming and has handled them in a really sensitive manner. Maybe I would be comfortable labelling this as a thematic book rather than a plot driven or character driven one.

Richard Powers writes beautifully. The sentences kind of flows like thoughts of the main characters. Indeed Bewilderment is a powerful book. But the lack of character development kind of did not work for me. I was struggling to finish this book and considered DNFing at a point. I wished I did because the ending was rushed and did not do any justice to whatever little the plot had to offer.

All in all I am glad this book did not win. I am sure it is of immense literary value to have made its place in the shortlist. Its possible I wasn't in the space to appreciate what the book has to offer. I might come back to this book in the future when I have a little more time in hand. Hopefully.

A staggering work of heartbreaking genius...

Power's 'The Overstory' was fundamentally about humans trying to save an essentially passive nature. This novel, while not a direct sequel, runs the palimpsest of that. A boy who contains the whole of this world, and the possibilty of others and is, in turn, absorbed into it. Ultimately, in the blink of an eye we are gone and the planet will neither know nor care. We could do so much, but we do so little. Still, give it a couple of million years and it will be like we never were. minus point though for mentioning bloody ukeleles.

Thanks to Random House UK and NetGalley for this ARC

The book is heartwarming from the get-go. You find out first hand what might be the difficulties of raising a child with special needs alone, and trying your very best to do right by them. Theo struggles with the idea of getting him on psychotherapy but stumbles upon an old friend of his wife, who convinces him to volunteer Robin into an experimental Neurofeedback treatment which can help with his emotional control by using a pre-recorded pattern of his mother's brain.

Richard Powers' Bewilderment walks a very fine line between devastation and hope. It will convince you that Earth and humans are the most breathtaking accidents in the universe while simultaneously ensuring your certainty that our days our numbered. Vastly different from Powers' last outing, The Overstory, which spanned time and space in a way that was necessary to convey the breadth of life for a tree, this novel instead zeroes in on just a few characters, and stays almost entirely focused on the relationship between a man and his difficult, brilliant, bewildering son. Together they travel imaginatively to worlds beyond our galaxy and gaze in wonder at the civilizations that might exist there, then turn that same gaze to the smallest inhabitants of Earth with no less fascination. It is a book that will leave you feeling gratitude for all that we have on this planet, and also all we may lose.

An extraordinary powerful book that looks at the big issues that humanity face.
Theo is an astrobiologist searching for life on planets light years away; his wife has died so he is raising his nine year old son Robin who has behaviour issues. His school wants him to use psychiatric drugs but Theo looks at other options. Robin is an intelligent and intense boy concerned with the state of the world.
An excellent novel that is profoundly moving, thought provoking and yet manages to be readable and entertaining.

A beautifully written book about the relationship between father and son.

There are so many levels to this book, I loved the exploration of time and memory.

Please be aware that this is not a happy book, but one that provokes a lot of feelings and topics to stir up all sorts of emotions from the reader. This book is definitely about the experience and how it made you feel, rather than the plot, if that makes sense?

Theo Byrne is an astrobiologist who is raising his nine-year-old son, Robin, on his own after his wife’s death. Robin is a boy who has received multiple diagnoses, but his father does not want to medicate him. This results in Robin being part of an experimental neurofeedback treatment, which has promising results.

This is my first novel that I have read from Powers, even though I have had the Overstory on my shelf for years. I enjoyed this novel, it made me think about diagnoses and the treatment of the environment. I found it really interesting to see how Robin reacted and experienced all the horrors of human destruction on the environment. Theo always wants to be honest with Robin, and Robin wants the same but sometimes this causes so much more harm than good.

As someone who studies development and developmental disorders in my psychology degree, it was interesting to see the discussions of medication and experiments. Medicating children with psychoactive drugs seems like a drastic thing, but is sometimes necessary, so seeing the lengths Theo went to, to not medicate his son was something I hadn’t read before.

The thing that didn’t work as well for me was Powers’ inclusion of Trump like and Greta Thunberg like people. This made me cringe a little bit, and I could have done without it.

Overall, an interesting novel with hints of sci-fi. I will definitely try out more from Powers’ novels in the future.

I know already that our store has this book on order as the book buyer from the Company loved it.
This is just as well as although the book has been getting some outstanding reviews and is very much highly anticipated as well as being listed for the Booker Prize, I just didn’t get it. The bones of the story I followed but there was so much of it I found, like the title, bewildering.
Theo and Robin, father and son are mourning the loss of there wife and mother. Alys was an environmentalist and it seems her ideals and beliefs have had a huge impact on her young son, Robin. He obviously has some sort of disorder and is prone to huge meltdowns and antisocial behaviour. I am not quite sure what Theo’s job was, the book is set in the future and his job seemed to be to predict life on other discovered? Planets of which there were trillions. Was this really his job or was he just inventing life forms or eco systems to amuse his son. Robin shows signs of brilliance and his comprehension and understanding of life is so far ahead of his 9 years. When his dad is asked if Robin can be used in a study they are doing he reluctantly agrees. The bones of the study is synching your mind with others (my take on it) and as the study is doing well with Robin, they ask if they can use his mothers mind with Robin. It is then his behaviour and growth really excel and Theo can see how more of Alys is coming through in his son. Of course things don’t always end well and to me this was more a science fiction story than one that covered the planets rapid decline at our hands.

This story of parenthood in a troubled world isn't always an easy, joyful read but it is exquisitely executed.
Powers tells the simplest of stories, that of a man trying to care for his child, yet within it manages to cram so many issues both contemporary and universal into the intricate prose. I particularly enjoyed the scenes that looked back to when his wife, the child's mother was still alive and I also thought the means of her death was interestingly rendered.
I struggled a little with the volume of the 'alternate planet' stories that the father weaves for his son to soothe him- a clever detail that both rams the message home that there is no 'planet b' but also reflects his own work. However, for me, it was repeated so many times, with so many different permutations that I found myself wanting to get back to the 'real story' after the first twenty or so.
The parts in the woods I also loved, the description of the natural world and the child's engagement with it is very moving; right up to the devastating climax.
Thanks you to H&H and the author for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

"I wanted to tell the man that life itself is a spectrum disorder, where each of us vibrated at some unique frequency in the continuous rainbow."

At the time of me reading this, Bewilderment has already been nominated for a number of awards, even though its official release is weeks away still. I’m going to start this review off by saying that it’s the perfect candidate to win some of them, and follow up that statement with my own very unpopular opinion: I didn’t like this book… Buckle up: this is going to be a long one…

The Good
By all accounts, this book sounds like should be a homerun for me. It combines speculative eco-fiction, with themes of family, loss and grief, while interweaves the whole with motifs of astrobiology, light existentialism and nod to Flowers for Algernon (a classic I love), that unfortunately isn’t as subtle as Powers thinks it is.
Theo Byrne is an astrobiologist, spending his life in the theoretical search of life throughout the cosmos. He’s crudely brought back to Earth when he becomes a single father to his neurodivergent son, following the death of his climate activist wife. In a touching attempt to manage their shared grief via a language they both understand the best, Theo and Robbie spend their time fantasizing about alternate planets where life evolved in different ways.
Theo is supportive when Robbie picks up the trail of his mothers eco-activism, even when his behavioural problems and his emotional turmoil seem to increase, to the point where he’s advised by his physician to start Robbie on medication. Refusing, to medicate his son, Theo opts instead for a more extreme and experimental solution.

Whilst the setup is a recipe for success, the execution rubbed me the wrong way from a very early point. The best and shortest way for me to describe why, is by explaining to you why I think it’ll win those previously mentioned prices.
- It’s accessible with the pretence of being literary, therefore making for the perfect “book-club-book”, that can be thought off as deep, even when you’re already a few wines in…
- It centres around a current and lightly political topic; in this case climate change, but plays it só safe that it’s almost impossible to spark an actual uncomfortable debate or alienate part of the audience.
- It includes a precocious child, used as both as a vessel for the authors quotes, that really aren’t as deep as he thinks they are, and to act as a cheap tear-jerker later on. Child + drama is always a win for broad audiences, even if it borders on sentimental melodrama in this case.

This is the short, and more neutral part of my review. You can honestly take this either way: if it sounds like your cup of tea, please be sure to pick up this book and give it a read. The following is my personal opinion as to why I personally disliked it. If you disagree with my opinions, I kindly ask you to be respectful about the point I’m trying to make.


The Bad
The first and most fatal flaw in Bewilderment to me is its characters, which immediately becomes a problem in a deeply character-focussed novel . Our lead Theo is the only character that is sort of developed, in the sense that he has flaws and a personality that isn’t either “saintly-good-eco-warrior” or “evil-capitalist-corporate”. Robbie and mum firmly fall in the former category, and are basically idolized throughout the story. An argument could be made that this is intentional by the author: of course a good grieving husband remembers only the best sides of the wife he’s just lost, and of course he wants to see only the best in his son. It does however make for some very uninteresting and unrealistic characters.
Especially Robbie sufferers from this: he’s smart beyond his years, the Greta Thunberg of his age, and misunderstood by everybody around him, whilst still maintaining the childhood innocence to remain 100% pure of heart. He is less of a character, and more of a device within this story. He’s the tear-jerker for the audience to feel sorry for; the soft fuzzy and innocent mouse for us to get attached to and pity. He is also the vessel through which the author spouts his quasi-philosophical quotes, that don’t quite hold up to scrutiny. I always hate the literary trope of unbelievably precocious saintly kids, especially when used as the stand-in to voice our authors opinions: it’s a bit too close to a humble-brag, or one of those stories you might read on r/thathappened. “Becky, you won’t believe what Johnny just said. *insert Shakespearean quote* Isn’t he the smartest?!”
The second flaw is in the writing and structure of the novel. Apart from the overwritten in places, and trying a little too hard at being profound, the story soon begins to feel drawn out. One of the aspects I was looking forward to the most, the exploration of astrobiology and different planets, became extremely repetitive and on the nose and I felt myself tempted to start skipping sections all together. I got the message the first time… there was no need for the third, forth and fifth.
That same criticism goes for the messages about climate change. I love eco-fiction when it’s done subtly and manages to stay out of preachy-territories. Recent examples include Migrations, The Living Sea of Waking Dreams and The High House. Unfortunately I can’t add Bewilderment to that list.

The Ugly
Lastly, there are two personal reasons that made me deeply dislike Theo, and the fact that he’s portrayed as such a “loving and perfect father”. I view this book from the perspective of being a junior doctor myself, as well as having lost a mother at a young age, and I deeply disagree with the idea that this is an okay way to handle this situation. Loving your child does not absolve you of all your flaws as a parent, and I don’t like the way this book handled this discussion.
First of all: being a medical doctor, I hate the “trope” of mistrusting medical professionals, and painting them as “out for profit”, or “just wanting to drug children”. We didn’t spent 6 years in training to become a doctor, plus another 6 to become a paediatrician because we want to harm children. Mental illnesses are just real and can be just as debilitating as physical illnesses, and therefore sometimes require medication to control. It’s nothing to be ashamed or scared off, and I hate when novels perpetuate this misunderstanding. Having your characters utter statements like "No doctor can diagnose my son better than I can." promotes a dangerous anti-medicine mindset that needs calling out. Especially when said character proceeds to put their child in an experimental, unproven neuro-modulation program, rather than choosing to listen to the experts.
Secondly: grief will bring out the nihilistic cynic in all of us. Sharing that cynicism with your 9-year old child, and even mistaking their grief and nihilism for being “intelligence and wisdom beyond their years” is never the way. You may not be able to make the world a better place for your child, but you can teach them healthy coping mechanisms to help them navigate what comes on their path…


Many thanks to William Heinemann and Penguin Cornerstone for providing me with an early copy in exchange for an honest review.
Bewilderment is available from September 21st onwards, in physical, digital and audio- format.

Bewilderment - Richard Powers

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2021, film rights sold in a fierce bidding war - this novel has already attracted a lot of attention even before being published in September.

At its heart is the relationship between a bereaved father and his grieving son. Theo is an astrobiologist struggling to cope with the loss of his wife, and the care of his challenging son, Robin, who is also missing his mother. They are trying to lean on each other and find a way through together, which I think is part of the reason it’s such an affecting story.

Layered on that is the fact that in the not too distant future, the planet is falling apart because of us humans. A young Swedish activist inspires Robin to stand up for the planet, for his beloved animals and to try to make the adults around him see that they are dying - that we will die too. In this world, the US President pulls funding from ecological studies trying to find alternative power sources, and spends it on a space force. So far, so like echoes of real life.

Robin is getting increasingly upset and acts out at school, so Theo is provided an ultimatum - medicate him or don’t come back. He finds a middle ground via a friend of his wife’s, long suspected to have been a lover of hers, thoughts he tries to put aside while he gets help for Robin to cope with this world.
Pretty soon, he loses control on who and who doesn’t see his son, and events escalate.

While the message of the disaster of climate change can be taken as earnest or over-exaggerating, none of what’s in the novel is false or far from where we are now. Animals are being made extinct every day, wiped out by the changes in the planet that are attributed to the massive and harmful outputs from the human race. We can see that in the world around us now - bushfires, wildfires, flooding in Germany - heck, we had a week of 26 degrees in late September. None of that is normal, and we should be worried. It might be too late, and this explains the rise of anxiety in our children. We are reliant on them to fix it as, let's face it, the politicians in charge are not going to live long enough to see the effects. Our children will.

Personally, I can say that I enjoyed reading this, I’d like to read more of Richard Powers’ novels but I did have to look up the characters’ names before I wrote this review (more of a failure on my part than the story, to be honest). I also bought a copy of Flowers for Algernon, a thematic touchstone throughout the book.

Recommended for readers who like thoughtful novels exploring body and mind, our impact on the world and each other, and searching for a better solution.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for the DRC.

For lovers of The Overstory and those that are new to Powers’ writing comes this fabulous new novel.
The simple plot concentrated on the ever changing relationship between a father and son after the tragic loss of their wife and mother. The characters are beautifully written and the prose is succinct but not blunt. Autism is shown in all of its nuances through extreme intelligence and insight to anger and rigidity. Heavy subjects (love,loss,anger,coping) are all suffused with hope. Similar to The Overstory nature, science and environmental challenges are a focal point and a not so subtle reminder that humans often behave disgracefully and should focus more on our responsibilities to each other and the planet. A marvellous,thought provoking read.

Bewilderment by Richard Powers, published in South Africa by Penguin Random House, is currently up for a couple of awards, including the 2021 Booker Prize.

Although Powers is no stranger to the literary awards circuit - this is his second time on the Booker shortlist and he's already won the Pulitzer and a National Book Award - I've never read his work until now.

His writing is breathtaking. His prose often strikes a beautifully poetic note. (Apparently he's a fan of Pablo Neruda.) It's easy to understand why his writing is so lauded.

While this is a literary novel, Bewilderment also skirts the edges of sci-fi and dystopian fiction. The story is set in a United States sometime in the future - but his descriptions of the politically charged climate under an unnamed, tweeting president conjure up that country's recent past under Trump. Another character was clearly inspired by the teenaged activist Greta Thunberg.

In Bewilderment, America and the world are gripped by catastrophic natural disasters, riots, and species extinction due to climate change. Against this backdrop, Powers tells the story about an astrobiologist named Theo Byrne.

When he's not trying to figure out whether there's life on other planets, Theo, a widower, navigates life on earth as a single dad to a nine-year old boy named Robin. As if single parenthood isn't difficult enough, Robin is a challenging child. The parts in the book where Powers describe Robin's angry outbursts are so vivid, I had to actually put down the book and take a break from reading.

In an attempt to curb Robin's rage without resorting to the usual medical interventions, Theo signs him up for an experimental treatment.

Without disclosing more about the plot: the book also touches on grief and the lengths we'll resort to to try and retain those we've lost. So no, it's definitely not a barrel of laughs, but it had me gripped throughout.

And if you don't trust my judgement: Oprah Winfrey liked it too. It's one of her Oprah's Bookclub selections.

#penguinrandomhousesouthafrica #netgalley #richardpowers #bewilderment

As a massive fan of The Overstory, I requested a copy of Bewilderment as soon as I saw it was available. What I didn't expect was that I would love it so much more than The Overstory. On paper, The Overstory was written for me. I love trees, I love long books, and I like complex stories with lots of characters. And yet Bewilderment had a real emotional rawness that took me by surprise. For such a short book it really packs an emotional punch. It is complex and thought-provoking, and it grabbed me by the heart and squeezed right until the last page.

In short, Bewilderment is a book about grief. Grieving over the death of a wife, a parent, an imagined future, your relationship, the environment, the world. It's deep and emotional and I definitely wouldn't recommend it for everyone. And yet between the grief, there is joy, and love, and visions of a world worth living in.

I think the reason I connected with this book so strongly is, in part, because I love a sad story, but also because it speaks to the parts of me that are grieving over climate change, and struggling with the world we're living in.

The only criticism I have of the book is that, occasionally, it spoke a bit too close to home. In particular, there is mention of a character modelled after a real-life environmental activist that pulled me a little too far out of the story and into reality. But this was only minor and not enough for me to reduce my rating.

This book definitely isn't for everyone, and I definitely wouldn't recommend it to everyone. But boy did I love it.

Theo Byrne, an astrobiologist is the narrator. He’s searching for life in the cosmos while raising Robin, his sensitive 9-year-old son. Alyssa, Robin’s mother, died two years earlier in a car crash.. Robin is creating a problem at school and is being described as being on the spectrum. Theo does not want his son medicated to change his behaviour. A trip into the wilderness bonds father and son even more, and has a calming effect on Robin who becomes further focused on the environment and the need to urgently change our ways to save our planet. Beautifully written, descriptive, inspiring book

I have mixed feelings about this book. Loved parts of it but felt other parts dragged on too much.
The story is like a modern day, climate & environmental activist version of Flowers for Algernon. The trajectory from the beginning was very similar but took off at a completely different angle.
My heart ached for Robbie and his dad and I wanted to look after and protect them. Quite an emotional read overall.

I am extremely grateful to have received a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I'm one of the few people who did not like this. Sadly all this book managed to bring me was sadness and anger.

Bewildering in places.
Some of the contents were above me, the science and some abbreviations.
Nevertheless the novel was intriguing and very emotional.
Descriptions of Robin's feelings and reactions to situations were sometimes heartbreaking.
Theo a line father trying to do his best for his unusual child. Robin struggles with his feelings, his place in the world and global issues, he is involved in experimental work that improved his behaviour and happiness, what will happen when the treatment stops?
Theo gives Robin the experience of space travel and introduces him to different planets.
A novel for today's world

This was such a lovely book that was very well written. It’s about Theo and Robin, father and son who are coping without the wife/mother in their lives. This was quite an emotional read, thought provoking. Might not be everyone’s cup of tea but would recommend.