BY THE AUTHOR OF THE BOOKER PRIZE-SHORTLISTED BEWILDERMENT AND THE OVERSTORY
_____________________

Rosenthal Award from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters
Special Citation, PEN Hemingway Award
_____________________

In the spring of 1914, renowned German photographer August Sander takes a photograph of three young men on their way to a country dance. This haunting image, capturing the last moments of innocence on the brink of World War I, provides the central focus of Richard Powers' brilliant and compelling first novel. As the fate of the three farmers is chronicled, two contemporary stories unfold. In one, a chance museum-goer becomes obsessed with the photo; and in the other, a young technical writer in Boston discovers he has a personal connection to it. The three stories connect in an entirely surprising way, describing nothing less than the history of a century of brutality and progress.

'Nothing less than brilliant' John Updike

The backlist of Richard Powers, one of America's most important novelists, moves to Atlantic Books. On the eve of World War One, three young men are captured by photographer August Sander. Looking at the camera, dressed in suits against a background of an empty field, they become an iconic image. But what happens to these men after the shutter falls and how is the story of an enduring image influenced by forgotten histories? A novel of obsession in the age of technology.

About the Author
Richard Powers is the author of thirteen novels, including Orfeo (which was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize), The Overstory (which was shortlisted for the 2018 Man Booker Prize and won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize) and Bewilderment, shortlisted for the 2021 Booker Prize. He is the recipient of a MacArthur grant and the National Book Award, and has been a four-time NBCC finalist. He lives in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains.

Reviews
An outstanding novel * Observer *
A first novel of intricate merit... A rich imagination glitters throughout * Mail on Sunday *
Unexpected and richly imaginative... Full of intellectual descriptions and stylistic diversions * London Review of Books *
If Powers were an American writer of the nineteenth century he'd probably be the Herman Melville of Moby-Dick. His picture is that big. -- Margaret Atwood
A writer of blistering intellect... [Powers is] a novelist of ideas and a novelist of witness, and in both respects, he has few American peers * Los Angeles Times *



Book Information
ISBN 9781848871403
Author Richard Powers
Format Paperback
Page Count 368
Imprint Atlantic Books
Publisher Atlantic Books
Weight(grams) 248g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 22mm