Three Farmers on Their Way to a Dance

By: Richard Powers

Narrated by: John Skelley

In the spring of 1914, renowned photographer August Sander took 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 Powers' brilliant and compelling novel. As the fate of the three farmers is chronicled, two contemporary stories unfold. The young narrator becomes obsessed with the photo, while Peter Mays, a computer writer in Boston, discovers he has a personal link with it. The three stories connect in a surprising way and provide the listener with a mystery that spans a century of brutality and progress.

©2001 Richard Powers (P)2020 Recorded Books

Great!!

Good read—how the century beganL. Powers at the beginninmg Showing off his genius and style

Brilliant

A deep dive into history, obsession and memory, language and perception. It’s dense, so not for everyone, but if you’re a fan of DFW’s Infinite Jest, you will enjoy this. The narration is excellent.

This used to be a favorite of mine

Richard Powers's ability to converge disparate narratives and timelines blows me away. His intellect and style have always challenged me. I first read Three Farmers in the 90s, and I loved it. I don't love the audiobook so much. Is that because my taste has changed, or is it because some authors and some works just don't translate well to this format? I'm not sure. Audiobooks can open up a new frontier in your life. You can clean house, go for walks, drive your car, etc., as opposed to being pinned to a chair with a book in hand. Having said that...In my opinion, certain books, certain authors, do not go over well in this medium. I don't think it's just that I don't like this narrator's style (I don't); I think Powers's books are better absorbed by actually reading them.

Photographs and time

The nature and possibilities of a photo affect a young man. What was or might have been evolves into possible lives

Don't Waste Your Time.

If you loved The Overstory, don't waste your time with Richard Powers' first book, Three Farmers on Their Way to a Dance, his first published novel. The author expects his readers to suffer through paper thin characters, seriously clunky dialogue, an over complicated plot, and page after page of dry encyclopedia extracts on a wide range of nonfiction topics and history. Powers heavily relies on the narrow focus of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder to negotiate his sprawling story, but, as with all gimmicks, a world peopled with OCD extremists gets old fast. His main characters all suffer from personality extremism. The ones drawn from history are handled well. Each is an admirable genius and way ahead of their time, but the rest are one-dimensional and single-minded, doomed to chase after a photograph, sex partners, the stock market, a missing ancestor, or a beautiful girl to the exclusion of any other pursuit in life. I found it was impossible to relate to Powers' characters, their obsessions or their journeys.