★ 04/04/2022
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)
Praise for A Prayer for the Crown-Shy
A USA Today and Indie Bestseller!
Winner of the Locus Award!
A Goodreads Most Anticipated Summer Read!
A Top Ten LibraryReads Selection!
A Washington Post Best Novel of 2022
“[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. ” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Thoughtful, with a gentleness that is as encompassing as any action-filled work.” —Library Journal, starred review
“[A] hopeful glimpse at what our future might look like.” —Booklist
“As charming and heartwarming as the first.” —Buzzfeed
Praise for Book 1: A Psalm for the Wild-Built
A USA Today Bestseller!
“A Psalm for the Wild-Built begins a series that looks optimistic and hopeful, pursuing stories that arise from abundance instead of scarcity, kindness instead of cruelty, and I look forward to seeing where it goes from here.” —NPR
“The gentle touch with which Chambers handles her material makes the book's loftiest philosophical aims feel grounded. With a pervading sense of optimism and warmth, A Psalm for the Wild-Built inaugurates an exciting series from one of science fiction's brightest stars.” —Shelf Awareness, starred review
“Hugo Award–winning author Becky Chambers begins a new series with this delightful and quietly philosophical novella that presents a hopeful glimpse into a future where humanity actually does the right thing.” —BuzzFeed
“Chambers’ writing is always tender and healing, but this book has something else braided into it — something more... This is a book that, for one night, made me stop asking ‘what am I even for?’ I’m prescribing a preorder to anyone who has ever felt lost. Stunning, kind, necessary.” —Sarah Gailey
“This was an optimistic vision of a lush, beautiful world that came back from the brink of disaster. Exploring it with the two main characters was a fun and fascinating experience.” —Martha Wells
“I'm the world's biggest fan of odd couple buddy road trips in science fiction, and this odd couple buddy road trip is a delight: funny, thoughtful, touching, sweet, and one of the most humane books I've read in a long time. We could all use a read like this right now.” —Sarah Pinsker
“I read this book in one sitting when I was having a really wretched day, and it helped. It felt like a warm cup of tea made by someone who loves me. It's a soft hug of a book, and it says 'It's okay if you're not okay right now.' It made me cry the good sort of tears—the sort when someone is unexpectedly kind to you at the moment you need it most.” —Alexandra Rowland
“A joyful experience and, as with all of Chambers’s books, I was left with a warm, fuzzy feeling inside.” —New Scientist
“The first book in Chambers’ new series feels like a moment to breathe, a novel that exists to give readers a place to rest and think… Recommended for fans of Chambers’ Wayfarers series and The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune.” —Booklist, starred review
“Written with all of Chambers’ characteristic nuance and careful thought, this is a cozy, wholesome meditation on the nature of consciousness and its place in the natural world. Fans of gentle, smart, and hopeful science fiction will delight in this promising series starter.” —Publishers Weekly
“I’m so pleased that this is the first of a series, and that there will be more of this world, because, wow, do I want more of it. This book is the type of reading experience I’d recommend to anyone having a hard time, which might be a lot of people at this point... it’s a comforting story about comfort and care, as soothing to read as it is to think about, and so full of hope and wonder and potential discovery. I hope you’ll try it.” —Smart Bitches, Trashy Books
★ 06/01/2022
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
Em Grosland narrates with the perfect tone for this delightful and introspective sequel to A PSALM FOR THE WILD-BUILT. Tea monk Sibling Dex and their robot companion, Mosscap, are leaving the woods and heading out to the villages of their moon, Panga. Mosscap’s bright, higher-pitched voice suits the inquisitive and charming robot, who is anxious to meet more humans and ask them its question: What do humans need? Centuries ago, robots gained sentience and left for quiet lives in the woods, and now Mosscap is the first emissary to journey back into human communities. In addition, Grosland captures Dex’s exasperated yet kind tone while also emphasizing their weariness and uncertainty about their future. This hopeful listen, full of humor, illuminates a world listeners will yearn to return to. E.E.C. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
Em Grosland narrates with the perfect tone for this delightful and introspective sequel to A PSALM FOR THE WILD-BUILT. Tea monk Sibling Dex and their robot companion, Mosscap, are leaving the woods and heading out to the villages of their moon, Panga. Mosscap’s bright, higher-pitched voice suits the inquisitive and charming robot, who is anxious to meet more humans and ask them its question: What do humans need? Centuries ago, robots gained sentience and left for quiet lives in the woods, and now Mosscap is the first emissary to journey back into human communities. In addition, Grosland captures Dex’s exasperated yet kind tone while also emphasizing their weariness and uncertainty about their future. This hopeful listen, full of humor, illuminates a world listeners will yearn to return to. E.E.C. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine
