"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
In Gain, Powers puts our modernity through the wringer once again. This time, though, he points the finger at one villain in particular: rampant, American-style capitalism, as exemplified by a conglomerate called Clare International. His novel, it should be said, is no piece of agitprop, but an intricate lamination of two separate stories. On one hand, Powers describes the rise (and fall and rise) of the Clare empire, beginning in its mercantile infancy: "That family flocked to commerce like finches to morning. They clung to the watery edge of existence: ports, always ports. They thrived in tidal pools, half salt, half sweet." The author's Clare-eyed narrative amounts to a pocket history of corporate America, and a marvelously entertaining one. Lest we get too enamored of this success story, though, Powers introduces a second, countervailing tale, in which a 42-year-old resident of Lacewood, Illinois, is stricken with ovarian cancer. Lacewood happens to be the headquarters of Clare's North American Agricultural Products Division, and lo and behold, it seems that chemical wastes from the plant may be the source of Laura Bodey's illness. The analogy between corporate and cancerous proliferation is pointed--too pointed, perhaps. But no other recent novelist has written so knowingly, and with such splendid indignation, about capitalism and its discontents.
"Powers is a writer of blistering intellect; he has only to think about a subject and the paint curls off. He is a novelist of ideas and a novelist of witness, and in both respects he has few American peers." --Richard Eder, Los Angeles Times Book Review
"Richard Powers' powerful and peculiar novel, Gain, is the largest compliment any author has paid to the American reading public in decades." --Thomas M. Disch, Washington Post Book World
"Gain consists equally of horizon-busting breadth of knowledge and excruciating depth of vulnerability...Powers hovers impossibly between extremes with a tightrope walker's perfect balance. He may be at once the smartest and the most warm-hearted novelist in America today." --Melvin Jules Bukiet, The Chicago Tribune
"Richard Powers has proven himself a visionary writer...Throughout Gain there are dreamy, uncannily accurate little paragraphs on the Promethean messianism of corporate America." --Greil Marcus, The San Francisco Examiner & Chronicle
"Subtle, provocative, and powerful...Richard Powers' deceptively simple and terrifyingly effective novel Gain says it better than anyone has in a long time: buyer beware." --Rick Moody, Voice Literary Supplement
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR001137832
Book Description Condition: Good. Ships from the UK. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # GRP96122092
Book Description Befriedigend/Good: Durchschnittlich erhaltenes Buch bzw. Schutzumschlag mit Gebrauchsspuren, aber vollständigen Seiten. / Describes the average WORN book or dust jacket that has all the pages present. Seller Inventory # M00099284464-G
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Used; Good. **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! Greener Books. Seller Inventory # mon0001615005
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Used; Good. ***Simply Brit*** Welcome to our online used book store, where affordability meets great quality. Dive into a world of captivating reads without breaking the bank. We take pride in offering a wide selection of used books, from classics to hidden gems, ensuring there is something for every literary palate. All orders are shipped within 24 hours and our lightning fast-delivery within 48 hours coupled with our prompt customer service ensures a smooth journey from ordering to delivery. Discover the joy of reading with us, your trusted source for affordable books that do not compromise on quality. Seller Inventory # 996805
Book Description Condition: Very Good. A novel that tells the story of an American company, which starts as a small family soap and candle-making firm in the early 1800s, and of a contemporary woman, living in the company town, who diagnosed and then finally dies of cancer, a cancer that is almost certainly caused by exposure to chemical wastes from the company's factories. Num Pages: 368 pages. BIC Classification: FA. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 198 x 128 x 24. Weight in Grams: 264. Good clean copy with some minor shelf wear. 2001. Paperback. . . . . Seller Inventory # KKD0002082
Book Description Condition: Very Good. A novel that tells the story of an American company, which starts as a small family soap and candle-making firm in the early 1800s, and of a contemporary woman, living in the company town, who diagnosed and then finally dies of cancer, a cancer that is almost certainly caused by exposure to chemical wastes from the company's factories. Num Pages: 368 pages. BIC Classification: FA. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 198 x 128 x 24. Weight in Grams: 264. Good clean copy with some minor shelf wear. 2001. Paperback. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland. Seller Inventory # KKD0002082
Book Description Taschenbuch. Condition: Gut. 368 Seiten ex Library Book / aus einer wissenschaftlichen Bibliothek Sprache: Englisch Gewicht in Gramm: 264. Seller Inventory # 285594