Virtual Event: Richard Powers

Harvard Book Store, Politics and Prose, and Books & Books welcome RICHARD POWERS—the bestselling, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Overstory—for a discussion of his latest, highly anticipated novel, Bewilderment. He will be joined in conversation by acclaimed writer ELIZABETH KOLBERT, author of The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History and Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future.

Ticketing

There are two ticket options available for this event.

Admission Ticket- $33.00: Includes one admission link, one copy of Bewilderment, and one bookplate signed by the author. U.S. shipping also included. Books will be shipped to ticket-holders following the event. Please note: we are unable to ship internationally.

Admission Ticket - $5.00: Includes one admission link and a $5 coupon toward the purchase of Bewilderment on harvard.com, emailed to you following the event.

About Bewilderment

The astrobiologist Theo Byrne searches for life throughout the cosmos while single-handedly raising his unusual nine-year-old, Robin, following the death of his wife. Robin is a warm, kind boy who spends hours painting elaborate pictures of endangered animals. He’s also about to be expelled from third grade for smashing his friend in the face. As his son grows more troubled, Theo hopes to keep him off psychoactive drugs. He learns of an experimental neurofeedback treatment to bolster Robin’s emotional control, one that involves training the boy on the recorded patterns of his mother’s brain . . .

With its soaring descriptions of the natural world, its tantalizing vision of life beyond, and its account of a father and son’s ferocious love, Bewilderment marks Richard Powers’s most intimate and moving novel. At its heart lies the question: How can we tell our children the truth about this beautiful, imperiled planet?

Praise for Bewilderment

"[A] taut ecological parable . . . A touching novel that offers a vital message with uncommon sympathy and intelligence." —Kirkus, starred review

"Soaring descriptions and forthright observations about our planet . . . Offers rich commentary on the complex, often mystifying intersections between science, popular culture, and politics . . . As the bestselling The Overstory continues to reverberate, readers will be excited to turn to another deeply involving Powers novel." —Booklist, starred review

"Marvelous . . . Powers transforms the wrenching story into something sublime . . . The work of a master." —Publishers Weekly