Reading ‘they’ as a singular pronoun is strange at first but not jarring. Perhaps that’s the publishing industry and it is not fair of me to avoid books because of it.

I just wish they wouldn’t shout so loudly about their woke-ness. All genders and peoples are powerful and deserve to see themselves demonstrate that power in books. I sigh a little every time I see another book that’s a feminist retelling or a queer manifesto. It has a single question and Dex cannot answer it: what do people need? Now Dex is the first human in generations to meet a robot. So defying law and custom, Dex takes off into the wild.Īfter centuries observing the untouched wilderness, the robots have begun to wonder what became of humans. The only thing that inspires them is the sound of cicadas and the idea that far beyond the human settlements the insects still sing. Now the emptiness has returned and life feels without purpose.

Learning how to provide comfort to people with a cup of tea and a willing ear. Retraining a travelling tea monk was difficult at first. When the life of a gardener monk that had once fulfilled them had become empty of meaning they changed careers. Leaving humanity behind, the robots went out into the wild and haven’t been heard from since. Machines that assembled vehicles, filled water bottles and a thousand other tasks for humans became aware and decided they didn’t like what they were doing.Īll they had known was the human world they had helped build. Hopeful SFF, and the perfect remedy for the stresses of today.Centuries ago, the robots of the world gained sentience. They hope to find the answers they seek, while making new friends, learning new concepts, and experiencing the entropic nature of the universe. The robot cannot go back until the question of 'what do people need?' is answered.īut the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how.īecky Chambers's new series asks: in a world where people have what they want, does having more matter?Īfter touring the rural areas of Panga, Sibling Dex (a Tea Monk of some renown) and Mosscap (a robot sent on a quest to determine what humanity really needs) turn their attention to the villages and cities of the little moon they call home. One day, the life of a tea monk is upended by the arrival of a robot, there to honor the old promise of checking in. It's been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the wilderness, never to be seen again centuries since they faded into myth and urban legend.

Hugo Award-winner Becky Chambers's delightful new series gives us hope for the future. Just when the world needs it comes a story of kindness and hope from one of the masters of Hopepunk.

A monk and robot book