Publisher's Weekly Review
Tea monk Sibling Dex and robot Splendid Speckled Mosscap are back for the quietly brilliant second installment in Hugo Award winner Chambers's Monk and Robot novella series (after A Psalm for the Wild Built). Dex returns from their sojourn into the dangerous wilderness of the Antlers, with Mosscap--the first robot to reach out to humans in the centuries since the Awakening, when robots gained sentience and went off to form their own autonomous societies--in tow. Built in the wild by other robots, Mosscap had never met a human before Dex and is determined to answer the question, "What do humans need?" As Dex and Mosscap navigate their new celebrity status and set out to encounter the full breadth of humanity through Panga's varied human settlements, the question proves more complicated than either anticipated. The result is a lightly drawn but profound meditation on belief, entropy, and the nature of need and want that once again demonstrates Chambers's prowess as both a storyteller and a thinker. Quiet and contemplative, empathic and warmhearted, this masterful sequel builds on the themes of the first volume to posit a more sustainable, more caring way of life. It's both truly comforting and endlessly thought-provoking. (July)
Library Journal Review
Tea Monk Sibling Dex wandered into the wilderness to discover something different, and that turned out to be the robot Mosscap, the first to approach humanity since the Awakening, when all robots left. Now everyone wants to meet Mosscap. As the two travel together through Panga's towns, meeting new people and old friends, Dex is by turns frustrated and amazed by Mosscap's wonder for the mundane and incessant questions, while Mosscap learns about community and belonging. Lessons on barter, companionship, family, and presence begin to answer the questions that both Mosscap and Sibling Dex have for themselves and others. Leisurely prose firmly roots setting and characters, with a nonbinary lead and non-traditional family structures, plus finely balanced introspection and interaction. The story is thoughtful, with a gentleness that is as encompassing as any action-filled work. VERDICT Chambers's second "Monk and Robot" novella (following A Psalm for the Wild-Built) continues the quiet, contemplative journey through philosophy, nature, and personal experience.--Kristi Chadwick
