The Frog Blog

  Hello everyone, and welcome back to the Frog Blog. My name is Philip Chen, and today we’re gonna look at Richard Powers’ novel Bewilderment , published in 2021. Powers has written many critically acclaimed novels in the past as well, such as The Overstory in 2018 and The Echo Maker in 2006, most of which focus on the effects of modern technology. The novel focuses on Theo Bryne, an astrobiologist interested in finding life on other planets. His wife Alyssa passed away two years ago from the start of the book. Luckily, Robin, his nine year old son, has inherited his mother’s love for animals and his father’s love for astronomy. Unfortunately, Robin has been diagnosed with behavior issues like Asberger’s and ADHD, which have gotten worse after the death of his mother. An incident occurs at school one day, where Robin throws his metal thermos at his best friend Jaden out of anger when he told Robin that Alyssa trying to hurt herself caused her car accident. At home, Theo tells Rob...