Dex and Mosscap’s trek to the hermitage shows that you don’t need a purpose to validate your existence. If you’re seeking a story about enjoying the simple things in life, this is it. Dex, later on, realizes that they’ve spent most of their life as a tea monk giving their time and energy to other people. Mosscap challenges this further through conversations with Dex. But even the stability of everyday life isn’t enough to satisfy Dex.

Instead, the humans here still communicate with each other via tablet computers. It’s a post-apocalyptic world, with brief descriptions of the remnants from the time before, but the story doesn’t focus on the hostility and danger. Mosscap explains to Dex that the robots had left the factories of the pre-transition world on a parting promise that they would return to humans one day to answer this question: What do humans need?īecky Chambers has created a gorgeous and introspective future here.

Before, sightings or reports of robots have been rare. Just halfway through their journey in a world renewed from a long-ago event called the Transition, Dex encounters a robot named Mosscap. After feeling like they need time to themself, Dex decides to head to the hermitage. A Psalm for the Wild Built continues to question life’s existence and purpose, but also brings one of the most endearing friendships between a human and a robot to Chambers’ table.ĭex, a tea monk, spends their days providing solace and comfort to the towns they travel through. Chambers’ stories are human and philosophical, leaving her audience with thoughts about existence and what it means to live every day, whether you’re human or not. Becky Chambers, one of the authors to pull this off spectacularly, explores AI interacting with each other as well (like in her novel A Closed and Common Orbit). Stories featuring interactions between humans and artificial intelligence fascinate me. I was provided with a free ARC of A Psalm for the Wild Built. This solarpunk novella, the first in a series titled Monk & Robot, will be available on July 13th from Macmillan and Tor.com A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers (Cover) A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers celebrates mundane moments and living life for yourself.

A psalm for wild built