Bewilderment by Richard Powers
Photo credits go to Nancy Moyers
Bewilderment by Richard Powers
I have not cried at the end of a book in a long time. Bewilderment, by Richard Powers, did just that for me. I was broken down and Bewilderment made mash potatoes with my emotions, it was a refreshing and humbling experience. I read a lot for my entertainment and nothing is better than finding a book that tears out your heart. Richard fully deserves the Pulitzer Prize that the novel was awarded.
Bewilderment is the heart-warming and heart-wrenching story of a father and his son as they pass through trials and tribulations in modern society. Struggling with the sudden death of his wife Astrobiologist Theo and his young son Robin develop a relationship of each seeking salvation and love in one another. Their tenacity and drive to remain a family is uplifting and frustrating. Naturally, a parent giving their all in order to keep custody of their child is heartwarming and presents a lot of love for the reader to digest, but I was surprised by how angry I found myself at certain parts of the novel. Here is a father who has given up nearly everything in his life to make sure his kid is raised in a loving and supportive household, so when child services and the school give them a hard time I got mad, especially because of how they wanted to put Robin on medications due to his outbursts at school.
As someone in recovery, I have met a lot of people whose addictions get a kickstart with a doctor's prescription. My addiction started this way, and in today's society, there is a pill for every ailment which is not necessarily a good thing. While I do not disagree or pass judgment on people taking medications I still believe it is worthwhile to explore alternatives. Robin is prone to aggressive and sudden outbursts, and the school and child services first solution is medications to sedate him, therapy was hardly mentioned. Theo, against getting his son on mind-numbing medications, attempts to find other solutions to help Robin deal with his outbursts. Through their search for alternatives to medication, they join an experiment in which Robin finds great success in getting his life on track. Just as things are looking up for the father-son pair their lives come crashing down fast. It felt like I had just gotten blindsided with a baseball bat straight to my cranium. The way the book was going I was expecting a happy ending but just like life, Richard Powers decided to throw me for a loop, and while I wish with all my heart that their story ended on the bright side it is this abrupt change that makes this novel so compelling to read over and over again.
While this blog post sings my praises for Bewilderment it does not come close to doing justice to how good this novel is. Richard Powers has such fine attention to detail and incorporates so many aspects of today's biggest trending topics that you would believe Theo and Robin are your next-door neighbors. If the cover did not explicitly state that it was a novel it could easily pass for a memoir. This realism is where the magic happens as everything becomes much more personal for the reader. This is why the highs and lows for Theo and Robin can get so emotional.
If your looking for a book that will thaw out your heart look no further, Bewilderment is the book for you.
Bewilderment by Richard Powers
