A Psalm for the Wild-Built

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Becky Chambers: A Psalm for the Wild-Built (EBook, 2021, Tom Doherty Associates)

eBook, 160 pages

English language

Published July 2, 2021 by Tom Doherty Associates.

ISBN:
978-1-250-23622-7
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5 stars (10 reviews)

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.

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. The robot cannot go back until the question of “what do people need?” is answered.

But the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how.

They're going to need to ask it a lot.

Becky Chambers’s new series asks: in a world where people have what they want, does having more matter?

5 editions

Review of 'A Psalm for the Wild-Built' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Temunken Dex møter roboten Moscapp, om kommer ut av jungelen for å sjekke hvordan det går med menneskene på den lille månen Panga. En gang i tiden forlot robotene som var produsert for å hjelpe menneskene sivilisasjonen, og for menneskene ble de etterhvert en myte. Når de møtes oppstår den nydeligste dialogen på den vandringen de gir seg ut på. Mer enn det skjer ikke.

For en nydelig liten bok. Jeg skulle gjerne gitt den full pott, men den første forvirrende delen tar for mye for gitt, og jeg leser i et famlende blinde. Men når menneske og AI møtes, oppstår altså dialogisk magi. Det er nesten som å lese Den lille prinsen, den naivistiske uskylden som vi må finne tilbake til hvis vi skal overleve. Anbefalt.

A wonderful cozy read!

4 stars

I read this book in one sitting from start to finish on Christmas day with hot tea and a blanket. It is precisely what I needed for some relaxation and escape. The book is about breaking patterns, dealing with boredom, trying new things, failing and grappling with what it means to be human - all told through the story between sibling dex, a tea monk and a funny robot named mosscap.

A hopeful vision of the future

5 stars

It's easy to find dystopian science fiction. It's harder to find science fiction that provides a positive image of the future. It's not a blueprint, but you get the sense of a robust society that has overcome its most self-destructive tendencies. Very on-brand (in a good way!) for the author; if you've enjoyed her other books you will enjoy this one as well.

solarpunk road trip?

5 stars

Becky Chamber's works are rare among science fiction stories because instead of action-adventure plots they're about people talking about what it means to be alive.

The first couple of chapters felt like the plot was jumping around a hell of a lot, because they're really just backstory/preamble for the actual story

It's good that there will be a sequel because I do want to know what both Mosscap and Dex will do next