Review of I, Robot Soldier
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[Following is a volunteer review of "I, Robot Soldier" by Joel R. Dennstedt.]
A post-apocalyptic, father-daughter road trip, coming-of-age story, I, Robot Soldier is an entertaining read. The tale involves a robot called One Shot and an orphaned little girl named Amy. After One Shot rescues Amy, they embark on a journey to search for human life and a community that can embrace Amy and give her what the robot cannot. The journey is filled with threats from dangerous enemies and opportunities for the girl to learn about life and death. Between the robot’s capabilities and the girl’s special gift, the two navigate a world destroyed by robot warfare against humanity. Over seven or eight years, Amy learns much from One Shot, and the robot learns about humans from her.
The author pays homage to Isaac Asimov, using his three Laws of Robotics to set the foundation for the interaction between the main characters. The law that a robot cannot harm a human and the law that a robot must obey the human’s orders leads to some touching and funny moments between the two. Told from the point of view of One Shot, the reader is rewarded with a unique slant on artificial intelligence and its advantages and drawbacks in comparison with human intelligence.
I thoroughly enjoyed the story and found it difficult to put down. The author expertly uses the robot’s lack of awareness – it was designed only for war – to craft an interesting look at human behavior from an outside perspective. The situations the two face constantly change, yet there’s no sense of the passage of time. Time flows seamlessly, skipping over weeks or months to present different learning experiences for both the girl and the robot.
The author builds the world in a way that pulls the reader in, not just physically, but viscerally as well. Amy’s actions throughout the journey are believable. She conducts herself as you’d expect a little girl to act, with innocent questions, tantrums, and illogical conclusions that slowly build the relationship between the human and the machine.
I rate this 5 out of 5 stars for several reasons. I found no errors or typos! It was a pleasure to read such a well-edited book. Amy’s character development is first-rate and the interactions between her and One Shot are very well done. This is an excellent story and I highly recommend it.
******
I, Robot Soldier
View: on Bookshelves |
A post-apocalyptic, father-daughter road trip, coming-of-age story, I, Robot Soldier is an entertaining read. The tale involves a robot called One Shot and an orphaned little girl named Amy. After One Shot rescues Amy, they embark on a journey to search for human life and a community that can embrace Amy and give her what the robot cannot. The journey is filled with threats from dangerous enemies and opportunities for the girl to learn about life and death. Between the robot’s capabilities and the girl’s special gift, the two navigate a world destroyed by robot warfare against humanity. Over seven or eight years, Amy learns much from One Shot, and the robot learns about humans from her.
The author pays homage to Isaac Asimov, using his three Laws of Robotics to set the foundation for the interaction between the main characters. The law that a robot cannot harm a human and the law that a robot must obey the human’s orders leads to some touching and funny moments between the two. Told from the point of view of One Shot, the reader is rewarded with a unique slant on artificial intelligence and its advantages and drawbacks in comparison with human intelligence.
I thoroughly enjoyed the story and found it difficult to put down. The author expertly uses the robot’s lack of awareness – it was designed only for war – to craft an interesting look at human behavior from an outside perspective. The situations the two face constantly change, yet there’s no sense of the passage of time. Time flows seamlessly, skipping over weeks or months to present different learning experiences for both the girl and the robot.
The author builds the world in a way that pulls the reader in, not just physically, but viscerally as well. Amy’s actions throughout the journey are believable. She conducts herself as you’d expect a little girl to act, with innocent questions, tantrums, and illogical conclusions that slowly build the relationship between the human and the machine.
I rate this 5 out of 5 stars for several reasons. I found no errors or typos! It was a pleasure to read such a well-edited book. Amy’s character development is first-rate and the interactions between her and One Shot are very well done. This is an excellent story and I highly recommend it.
******
I, Robot Soldier
View: on Bookshelves |
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