Bewilderment Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, Youth Environmental Activism and our BookBrowse Review of Bewilderment.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. Bewilderment opens with Robin's question about life on other planets—But we might never find them? (p. 1). How does this question apply to the novel's concerns, extraterrestrial and otherwise? In what ways does it establish the scope of the novel's interests?
2. "Multiply every grain of sand on Earth by the number of trees. One hundred octillion" (p. 8). This is how Theo describes the number of stars in the universe to Robin, and it's one of many ways Richard Powers illustrates the enormity of the natural world. What are some other examples that stood out to you? Why did they have an impact?
3. When Theo and Robin encounter a bear traffic jam in the Smokies, Theo thinks, "Our species had grown so desperate for alien contact that traffic could back up for miles at the fleeting glimpse of anything smart and wild" (p. 36). How is this idea played out elsewhere in the novel? Have you ever seen a similar encounter in real life?

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of W.W. Norton & Company. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.