Orfeo

I have had the distinct pleasure of recently reviewing two of the three finest English-language fiction writers of this millennium: Jim Harrison and Neil Gaiman. And now I get to No. 3, Richard Powers. The trio could not be more different from one another, which is great. Powers burst on the scene 30 years ago with a bang with Three Farmers on Their Way to a Dance. It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words, but he got a whole book out of one photo of three German boys. He’s written 11 novels with entirely different subjects but a common theme: genuineness and honesty. And Powers’ The Gold Bug Variations (1991) is one of the finest books I have ever read. In his latest, Orfeo, a contemporary radical composer, Peter Els, creates a pathogen in his home lab in an attempt to find music in science. This arouses the suspicions of government agents and forces Els on the run. Yet another tour de force from a true master. Read all of his novels and you will thank me.