'Bewilderment' by Richard Powers follow Theo and Robin Byrne as they negotiate the loss of Robin's mother Alyssa following a car crash. Professionals have tried to classify Robin as having various developmental disorders, and in the wake of his mothers death pressure increases on Theo to medicate him. Instead, Theo turns to an alternative therapy that trains Robin to think differently and to take on the emotional states of others through matching their brain waves.

This book sits very much in the uncanny valley between the world as we know it, and a world where things have moved on a few steps, which makes very uncomfortable reading. It is science fiction, but an all too credible one. By making Theo an astrobiologist and Alyssa a conservationist, Powers is able to show how amazing the earth is, and how destructive of it humans are. Through his neurodivergence Robin provides an alternative, almost alien perspective.

Recently, there has been a spate of books where a lead character is either diagnosed with Autism or demonstrates traits of this condition. At times I have felt this is a lazy device used by writers to provide a stranger perspective. However, in Power's case Robin's difference from other people around him is central to the novel.

I found this an enjoyable, but challenging read, which I have continued to think about since finishing reading it. My only regret is that whilst hints were made about Alyssa's death, and whether she deserves the saintly status forced upon her, more wasn't explored around this.

This is a book that I found quite complex, it has the astronomy, ecological and neuroscience elements and also the familial dynamics of a single father and his relationship with his son who has difficulties in some areas of his life.

I warmed to the pair and enjoyed their relationship but I found the scientific elements of the narrative a little tiresome at times.

The book is beautifully written.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting this arc in exchange for an honest review.

“God only knew what the eleven-year-old might confess to me about the things I was right now doing wrong. But he’d survived his mother’s death. I figured he’d survive my best intentions.”

Bewilderment is the story of Theo, an astrobiologist raising his 11 year old son, Robin (with a complex undiagnosed autism), as a new widow.

Robin’s moods and actions become more unpredictable after his mother‘s death. And Theo sees many similarities with his work and his parenting: “They share a lot, astronomy and childhood. Both are voyages across huge distances. Both search for facts beyond their grasp. Both theorise wildly and let possibilities multiply without limits. Both are humbled every few weeks. Both operate out of ignorance. Both are mystified by time. Both are forever starting out.”

When Theo wants to avoid medicating his frustrated and grieving son, he turns to his wife’s former friend to try out a drug-free scientific approach instead, training his son’s brain to soothe itself from anger and pain.

It is very interesting to read and really makes you think about how wonderful the mind can be. It’s quite a haunting book in that way. The story has fascinating insights into the human mind, grief, existence in general and into potential existence on other planets too.

Favourite quote:

‘Nobody’s perfect, she liked to say. But, man, we all fall short so beautifully.’

I’ve demoted a star because I didn’t enjoy it as much as The Overstory, it was a tough one for Powers to follow.

Bewilderment will be available from the 21st of September 2021, thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

A fascinating story about an astrobiologist whose work involves searching for exoplanets outside our solar system that could support life. He is also a widower looking after his intelligent but troubled son. In order to try to improve his son's condition he is enrolled on an experimental course of decoded neuro-feedback therapy as an alternative to drug treatment.
I found the book both riveting and thought provoking and a very enjoyable read.

Very beautiful book and equally sad. Although Powers has already accustomed us with The Overstory to the issues of environmental protection, in this latest novel he goes down very hard on the topic and it was very difficult to deal with some parts of the story. I find, however, that his description of Robin was definitely very accurate.

Libro molto bello e altrettanto triste. Per quanto Powers ci abbia giá abituato con The Overstory alle tematiche della salvaguardia dell'ambiente, in questo suo ultimo romanzo ci va decisamente giú durissimo ed é stato decisamente faticoso affrontare alcune parti della storia. Trovo che comunque la sua descrizione di Robin sia stata decisamente molto accurata.

I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

Beautifully written and thought provoking. Will recommend to everyone, some intriguing concepts and highlights the fragile nature of the world. Brilliant.

Bewilderment - Richard Powers
Thank you netgalley and penguin

‘Watching medicine fail my child, I developed a crackpot theory: Life is something we need to stop correcting. My boy was a pocket universe I could never hope to fathom. Every one of us is an experiment, and we don’t even know what the experiment is testing.’

Bringing alive the magic that are special children combined with a beautiful but fumbling relationship between a father and son who have lost the wife/mother, Richard Powers weaves a current and important tale of climate change, parenting, and asks the questions of who are the ones who need a diagnosis or medication. Is it theo’s son who is sensitive and sees it all, who worries about the real problem or is it the rest of us who ignore what is out there and what is coming and ridicule the ones who shove the truth in our face.

Marrying the issue of climate change through the eyes of a parent parenting a special child was just it for me. Only through the eyes of an extra sensitive child can we see the problems of the world with complete clarity and then laugh and cry with humanity.

But..
I didn’t love all of this book. I didn’t love the writing as much as the others after reading Cusk, Arudpragasam and Galgut - one of a kind, tight, out of the world writing - from the longlist, this wasn’t as comparable, but then it did have a compelling story. I also felt the story was going in too many different directions and covered a lot and while I loved the father-son parts and Powers did make some important points about climate change some of the technological bits went way above my head. It was a science fiction novel after all a genre I am not very familiar with I think.

But on the whole this one is a must read.

Bewilderment is an entirely appropriate title. When I was a quarter in I was almost on the point of giving up. The writing was absolutely beautiful. descriptive, evocative but there wasn't a story as far as I could tell. Just a lovely diary really. Then slowly a story emerged and I was drawn in. I got a grasp of certain threads and wondered where it would all end. One or two of those threads were just left dangling- which I found frustrating. Some coiled themselves into a knot. Some could be followed. I was left with the feeling the author had all sorts of ideas but ran out of steam so just put teasers here and there, then moved on. It's quite complicated here and there, technical stuff, scientific, astrobiological stuff that sometimes left me feeling as thick as a brick. I assume it's set in a near future, but after the successes in the main plot it's quite a bleak dystopian scenario. By turns beautiful, rambling, tragic, bewildering.

This is a different book from the overstory, not as epic, but more quiet and subtle. It tells the story of a father and his son working through the death of the mother. She loved nature, and so does Robin, the son. He is in the spectrum and he does not understand why people do not take the climate and ecosystem crisis seriously. In the meantime, the father is an astrobiologist, and shares a lot of his scientific wondering with his son.

This made me feel tender and warm, while still exposing the difficulties of climate change and the contradictions of Robin’s emotions and treatment. The writing was beautiful without getting in the way of the story or the emotions.

The only small negative I have is the part in which Robin has a novel treatment based on AI and his connection with his mum’s thoughts. That gets brief viral attention from the internet. The experimental treatment part was fine, but I felt that the internet part attention distracted from the main plot and relationship and did not add much. I understand why it was there, but it was not my favourite element. Also, I cannot speak for the portrait of neurological diversity, since I do not have that experience.

But overall, I found it touching and beautiful.

I was not nearly as enamoured by this super-hyped book as I thought I might be, and I think I can pin it down to three main reasons.

1) A novel-length Neruda poem is not really my thing.
Don't get me wrong, I've gotten tingles like everyone else when I see a quote like:

I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul.


I have no idea what that means but I like it.

The narrator mentions and quotes Neruda in the book, and I got the impression he inspired quite a bit of the style. There are a lot of sentences that straddle the line between poetic and cringy, and maybe it's my mood, but I found them falling more often into the latter category. It's a very introspective novel that gets way too dreamy and star-gazey (add it to the dictionary for me) for my liking.

2) I read Migrations last year and liked it a LOT more.
This is a personal thing that obviously won't apply to a lot of people. I picked this book up because the mysterious synopsis and the reviews made me think this could be on the same level as the other near-future ecological novel I read last year.

In fact, there are a number of similarities. Both are set in a future that may very well be just around the corner, both deal with grief and loss, and both are rooted in nature and wildlife. But where I found Migrations taut, compelling and moving, I found this one overwritten and a bit boring, honestly. I thought the obvious stand-ins for Trump (unnamed American president who denies election results and fuels bigotry) and Greta Thunberg (Inga Alder-- teen girl on the autism spectrum who stands up to world leaders about climate issues) were a bit silly, and the parroting of rudimentary philosophy from Robin was uninteresting.

Also, Migrations never felt preachy; this one did.

3) I really disliked the uncriticised anti-medicine, anti-diagnosis and, frankly, anti-science approach this book seems to take.
The narrator-- and, seemingly, the book itself --seems to push Big Pharma conspiracy theories. Theo repeatedly ignores the medical advice of doctors regarding his son, is horrified at the notion of "psychoactive drugs" which he sneers at in the same sanctimonious way that some parents gasp Give my child vaccines with mercury in them? (view spoiler), and makes the following statement:

"No doctor can diagnose my son better than I can."


Oh, boy. I don't have a sigh big enough.

Now, look. I know that a character saying or doing something is not necessarily the author condoning it, and I would love to be wrong about this, but I really felt the whole book was selling these ideas. And it's... well, a bit concerning.

And on the subject of diagnosis and drugs, I personally think the former is extremely important and the latter sometimes necessary. It's not an easy decision to start psychoactive drugs, especially when the recipient is a young child, but I know from experience that they can be the difference between getting up and sleeping your life away, the difference between being able to look after yourself and sitting in your own filth, and, sometimes, the difference between keeping going and giving up on life. It's not always the right answer, for sure, but sometimes it is, and the way the narrator sneers at drugs and doctors irritated me. And as someone who went a long time without a diagnosis, I know that getting one can be a wonderful key to understanding yourself and others.

If anyone thinks I interpreted this wrong, then I would genuinely like to hear from you in the comments. I feel quite blindsided that a book about science, space and nature would contain this narrative, so I'd be very happy to be wrong.

A thought provoking, touching novel about our place in the universe, how we treat the planet, and familial love. This timely book takes on so many issues, but never feels preachy, and will stay with me long after finishing the last page.

Thank you to Net Galley for this review copy, this novel has now being nominated for the 2021 Booker prize.

This book is a portrait of the relationship between Theo a greaving widower astrobiologist and his 9 year old special needs son Robin. The book has a nice dose of bird watching, veganism, environmentalism, astronomy, intelligent life, the Fermi Paradox, home schooling, the interference of the state in parenting matters, fascism, protest, corrupt governments, the fight for scientific funding and experimental psychology.

I hesitate to say this book has disability representation, because Robin's disabilities (if he even has any) are never discussed and there's never a mention of what he can't do, however it is clear that Robin functions very differently to the average child of similar age and it's other people's inability to treat him according to his needs which causes issues (isn't that the case with everybody?)

This book does pack a lot in and the trend of late has been to put more in and say less, but Powers is able to give each topic enough time so you really feel like he's saying something and either adding to the conversion of making valuable observations.

The cons? I didn't like what I considered inconsistent editing, sometimes characters speech was italicised and other times in was in inverted commas. I also think too much time was spent exploring other works and critically for an emotionally charged book, I didn't feel emotionally connected with the characters and it struggled to get me to invest.

Overall, I think this is a solid novel, and one of the better ones on the Booker Longlist.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House UK for the honor of reading Bewilderment before its commercial release. This is the hardest review I remember writing.

I really don't think everyone will love reading this, because I did not find it uplifting or touching as other reviewers have. However, I still think it will be shortlisted and stands a very good chance of winning the Booker Prize, because it is highly topical and relevant to the 'pandemic era' we are (hopefully) beginning to leave.

When I started Bewilderment I really thought I'd like it based on the blurb. I love stories with strong father figures (The Road, To Kill A Mockingbird). I love stories about boys who seem like they could be on the autistic spectrum (The Curious Incident of The Dog In The Night-Time, Independence Day). I love stories about grief (Nox, Bough Down). I think we need to write more frequently and deeply about these topics, and that the world needs more books about them.

I am a former neuroscience researcher, and I knew this would have science in it. Richard Powers has won the Pulitzer Prize for The Overstory, so I figured this book would be popular, too.

I like Bewilderment for what it does, but I dislike it for what it was as a reading experience. To read it was a cold, claustrophobic, paranoid reading experience. I'm sure Bewilderment will serve history in reminding the world the sociopolitical climate in America during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its themes outside of the father-son relationship reminds me a bit of First Reformed, except that film had more heart to it, which is what I think is the distinction to my disdain for this book.

I found it strange how there was no conflict was seen between people strongly in support of space exploration and environmental conservation. I wanted simpler explanations of space, not technical simulations loaded with jargon. I felt like space sequences were randomly interspersed literally as an escape from the story, but they didn't really add much? Nothing really happens in the plot, and I found little else to redeem that. There wasn't the description or empathy I felt that would compensate for an uneventful story, but instead, multiple scenarios of emotional discomfort. If anything, Bewilderment to me seems like a masterful exercise in how uncomfortable can you make a reader with an uneventful yet realistic plot. I felt like there was no real momentum to the story itself. I felt the story had a nihilistic dread to it that threatened anyone who cared about anything. I didn't feel like there was much development to the grief process.

It bothered me that there was never any reflection on whether space research funds could not be redirected into environmental activism? It felt like an obvious connection to me based on the conversations and motivations of the characters in the book. It felt almost necessary to deal with the emotional leap from speculating what species might exist on other planets, while also showing that you want to save the ones on earth?

The ending to me felt a bit predictable and abrupt. My reading experience was always a matter of 'what on earth is going to happen next', so when the story was over, it was not so memorable to me. I don't carry with me moments from this book, only missed expectations. It did not flow to me very well as a narrative. I did not cherish any sentence constructions, I found nothing memorable in the writing style. I felt closed off from the vulnerable emotions and thoughts of the characters by a pane of glass.

My ARC review is negative and in the minority, and I am sorry if this disappoints other readers (I feel bad about it, more so than normal). I am not representative here, I only write here how I truly felt. This may be partly because unlike other ARC reviewers I had not read and loved Richard Powers's last book (The Overstory). I went into this blind. It may also be specifically personal issues I had with the representation of the son's behaviour and the neuroscience scifi element. It is hard for me to realize why my perspective differs so much from the collective response now. It's not a 1* review because there's some fascination here, Richard Powers does write some natural conversations very well, and the book is unconventional.

It probably seems very conflicting for me to still hope this book wins the 2021 Booker Prize. Something in me still thinks that, what Bewilderment drags the reader through, makes it worthy of being promoted as a talking point for the current problems in the world. It's an eyesore and a warning, not a fun time looking up at the stars. I just don't think this book will be as popular in a decade, it seems too relevant and progress is surely ahead. I only hope more stories will write about these themes, but do so with quite a different perspective and writing style.

I was completely beguiled by this magical, beautifully-written book and I finished the whole thing in a couple of days whilst on holiday. The short chapters belie the complexity and density of the story being told and I absolutely loved the deep dive into both our own world and others.

An element of the book I found frustrating was that I don’t have an extreme amount of sympathy for the ideological position of both Alyssa and Robin but I found Theo really grounded the story for me. The near-future technology was fascinating and I couldn’t stop thinking about this novel in between reading sessions. Not my favourite thing I’ve read this year (that’s fellow Booker nominee Great Circle) but easily the one I’ll be thinking about the longest. Highly recommended and thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Honestly, this was just unenjoyable from the start. I think for the most part this was down to the actual content just not being something I'd be interested in reading about. This is the problem with reading the Booker prize list sometimes: not everything is going to work for everybody, and that's okay.

The father-young son-dead mother trope feels overdone: I'm barely over my disappointing experience with 'The Road' using the same trope. Perhaps as no part of this narrative resonates with me, I have a harder time connecting to content that is solely about that father-son relationship.

The lack of chapters was also a massive turn off and didn't help with the overall feeling of the reading experience dragging. There's a reason that for hundreds of years novels have used chapters, so use them Powers. One long 388 page chapter doesn't cut it (again a technique that was also used in 'The Road').

To add insult to injury, the writing didn't really do anything for me, impressing me neither in beauty nor style.

However, having said this, I'm not writing Powers off yet and will pick up The Overstory as I've heard great things.

An amazing and lyrical book. Beautifully-written, this book is a gem. Theo has two full-time jobs: He's an astrobiologist and widowed parent of troubled, loving and lively Robin. When his son is threatened with expulsion from school, Theo, takes him on an escape to the Smoky Mountains rain forest. He home-schools him, stimulating his enquiring mind by teaching him about far-off planets and encouraging him to paint for relaxation. Then there's an offer of another, more radical, therapy. Wonderful descriptions of scenery, the love Theo had for his late wife and the strong bond between father and son, set against a world struggling with climate change, make this a truly great read.

Theo is bringing up his middle school aged son Robin alone after the death of his wife Alyssa. Robin has undiagnosed emotional problems that are causing anxiety and anger. Alyssa was always better and calmer and so Theo has little confidence in helping Robin since her death.

Robin becomes interested and even obsessed with endangered species (his late mother was an environmental activist), which only adds to his anxiety because in this near future story the world is hurtling towards climate disaster. Theo is an astrobiologist, studying the likelihood of life on other planets, and a science fiction fan (he owns thousands of science fiction novels). To help keep Robin calm, he and Theo speculate about which animals and species from the sci fi novels may have ended up evolving on these planets.

I empathised throughout this novel with Theo and his struggle to help Robin. He doesn’t even seem to mourn Alyssa except in relation to how she could have helped Theo and been a better parent. The distress, frustration and fears that Theo feels are so keenly portrayed. In his desperation he seeks the help of a male friend of Alyssa’s even though he dislikes the man and suspects he may have been having an affair with his wife.

His wife’s friend, who is a fellow scientist, is running a trial for a new type of neurofeedback therapy. The results are impressive and in the excitement of the initial positive results, which seem to be waning, both men decide to use a scan of Alyssa’s brainwaves to help Robin. This makes Robin their top performing participant and in the end even makes Robin a celebrity. In this plotline Powers explores how in such bewildering times rather than see ourselves as part of a solution we have a tendency to icononise individuals (for example Greta Thunberg, more of which later).

Yet it all seems so futile Theo as the world lurches from one crisis after another which works against helping his precious boy ending with a ban on his son's treatment. It is heartbreaking because you know he will not succeed despite his desperate love for his son.

This is speculative fiction but not diverging that much from the non fictional world. There is a President who tweets vitriol and hates the press and immigrants. There is a Swiss born neurodiverse teenager who looks younger than her years and is the face of the campaign for action against climate change (and the President tweets she should be in school after she organises a walkout). There isn’t too much speculation here but actually that is the point. It reads like speculative fiction but actually when you break it down it was our world in 2018. The descriptions of the destruction of numerous species and their habitats, alongside details of floods and wildfires make it read like a dystopia but it is actually our present. That is the brilliance of this book, it depicts Theo’s bewilderment but I as a reader was left bewildered too.

It is heartbreakingly sad and pulls at your emotions and yet it is an incredibly cerebral book that gets you thinking about science, neurodiversity, the comfort of complacency amongst many topics. It is truly impressive the number of themes that are explored and yet it never overwhelms the emotional heart of the book. I absolutely loved this book and it is my favourite read of the year so far.

…the bewilderments of the eyes are of two kinds, and arise from two causes, either from coming out of the light or from going into the light…
—Plato’s Allegory of the Cave

"But where is everybody?"
—Enrico Fermi

Bewilderment fits into a very specific niche genre that just happens to be my catnip: smart literary fiction, with some crunchy yet accessible philosophy, lifted out of the every day by speculative or fabulist elements. Stories still tethered to reality but floating just high enough above it to alter the view. Even better if it’s both intellectually and emotionally engaging.

Theo is a recently widowed astrobiologist raising a young son, Robin. The boy has multiple diagnoses for behavioural issues for which Theo refuses to medicate him, opting instead for an experimental neurofeedback treatment, with unexpected results.

Interspersed throughout the novel are invented alien worlds that Theo describes to Robin, possible solutions to the Fermi Paradox—if the universe is really big and really old, surely intelligent life would have evolved more than once, so where is everybody? These worlds range from sweet and sunny to darkly disturbing. Robin, meanwhile, develops a deep empathic connection to the natural world, with a child’s curiosity and dismay at growing up in a time of climate change.

These twin concerns—the ‘where is everybody?’ puzzle over intelligent extra terrestrial life, and the small matter of our own species’ impending potential self-destruction—expose the ugly, hubristic anthropocentrism that holds us back from addressing them. But this novel doesn’t bend too far into cynicism; it is a moving, intimate, father-son drama (if anything, some readers might find it a bit too sentimental, but I thought the balance was mostly just right).

Powers tips his hat to many works of sci-fi here, like Flowers for Algernon which is the template for Robin’s story, and the little homages of the various alien worlds (I saw nods to Katherine MacLean, Ted Chiang, Liu Cixin, among others). He avoids the sententious tone that I found really off-putting in his previous novel, The Overstory, in favour of a simple, direct first-person voice that conveys filial love above all. A deeply satisfying read.

The Overstory, Richard Powers' previous novel, was my favourite novel of 2018. It is likely this new novel will be one of my favourites of 2021.

Like The Overstory, Bewilderment is concerned with the environment, ecology, and the advancements of science and how they impact upon our lives.

In this novel we meet astrobiologist Theo and his nine year old son Robin who are trying to survive following the death of Robin's mother Aly in a car crash. They retreat to the wilderness and imagine what life might be like on other planets. They watch the wildness of our world, in an near contemporary but somewhat different future in which a Trumpian president governs America and children are prescribed medication by Big Pharma who attempt to pigeonhole blossoming and unique minds of the young into simplified boxes. On their journey they meet a colleague of Aly's who brings Robin into a clinical trial to stabilise his emotional discordance.

This is heart-breaking and beautiful tale of a father and son that resonates deeply. Once again Richard Powers at the top of his game has written another masterpiece.

Widower Theo Byrne is young astrobiologist who searches for life on other planets dozens of light years away. He raises an unusual nine-year-old son Robin. Robin's thoughts and feelings are deep, he loves animals and nature. Unfortunately he also has some behavioral issues.
Theo tries to help his son, but the only solution he gets is to put Robin on psychoactive drugs and the other is to send him to another planet. And Robin just wishes to save this one.

The book is full of questions about our brutal destructive world, full of climate changes, illegal immigrant issues, pandemics and politics, all so overwhelming for sensitive people.

The Bewilderment is engaging, visionary and formidable novel. Narrative is almost poetic. Richard Powers captivated me with The Overstory, and with The Bewilderment is the same and it is to no one surprise that the book is longlisted for the 2021 Booker Prize. He is an outstanding and persuasive author.

Profound, yet provocative read for all nature lovers.