Orfeo – A Novel - Softcover

Powers, Richard

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0393349845 ISBN 13: 9780393349849

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company, 2014

Synopsis

This book builds on the strengths of the previous volumes by the same author to provide the most detailed and nuanced account of the man, his politics and his profound influence on Russian politics, foreign policy and society. However, this is not a new edition of the earlier books but is an entirely new work. The focus now is on the dilemmas of power since 2008. There is a brief biographical sketch of Vladimir Putin and much analysis of his ideas and policies, but the book now focuses on the systemic contradictions that have created a blockage on modernisation and a stalemate in politics, Putin's role as Prime Minister since 2008 and his political successes and failures, analysis of the implications of Putin's third term as President and the 2011-12 electoral cycle and the ensuing crisis which led to thousands protesting on the streets This work assesses the achievements and failing of Putin's rule, but above all tries to make sense of contemporary developments. This is the definitive account of Putin and is essential reading for all scholars and students of Russian politics.

About this title

Review:

Magnificent and moving.--David Ulin

Biology and music, past and present, come together in a clever, explosive resolution.--Adam Kirsch

For sheer bravado in constructing sentences, few authors of contemporary fiction can surpass Powers...One of his finest yet.--Ted Gioia

Part of the fun of reading [Powers] is to see how he wriggles out of his own snares. But a greater thrill is to join with him in untangling the most urgent and confounding puzzles of our age.--Nathaniel Rich

Extraordinary...his evocations of music, let alone lost love, simply soar off the page...Once again, Richard Powers proves himself to be one of our finest novelists.--Dan Cryer

Of novelists in Powers's generation with whom he is often compared--Franzen, Vollmann, Wallace--none equals Powers's combination of consistent production, intellectual range, formal ingenuity, and emotional effect.--Tom LeClair

Powers' writing is complex and heady without being headachy, and his synesthetic descriptions of finding melodies in the mundane are full of their own kind of music.

One long express-train ride to the gorgeous. And the scenery is as sublime as ever.--Laura Miller

Orfeo is that rare novel truly deserving of the label 'lyrical.'...Powers offers a profound story whose delights are many and lasting.--Harvey Freedenberg

Orfeo is a first-class American road novel.--Scott Korb

From the Author:

Richard Powers has been a recipient of a Lannan Literary Award and a MacArthur Fellowship, as well as a winner of the US National Book Award and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. He is the author of eight novels, including The Time of our Singing, Plowing the Dark, and Gain. He lives in Los Angeles.

About this edition

• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0393349845
• ISBN 13: 9780393349849
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 400