A Psalm for the Wild-Built

I've only read one book by Becky Chambers before - To be Taught, if Fortunate - which was interesting and contemplative, so I decided to pick this new story be her, also because I have really come to appreciate the novella format. And this was just.... something !!!!

I won't by any means call this a perfect book, but it was utterly perfect for me. Just like her previous book, the writing in this is also very calm, quiet, soothing, requiring a bit of introspection from the reader and also thought provoking. It may not be everyone's speed but this slice of life story is just right if you are in the mood for it. Bex is a character whom I related to so much, because of the way they felt about their life and their struggles felt so familiar. The way they try to be a good listener to everyone and help others feel a bit better through their words, but is ultimately unable to feel better themselves - it just hit me too hard and I couldn't stop reading because I badly wanted to know how they would ultimately come to terms with their feelings. And then entered Mosscap, a robot, and I can't tell you how fascinating it is to listen to a human created object essentially give a philosophical sermon about life to a monk. But these life lessons about the meaning of purpose, and if it is really essential for a human being to have purpose to feel fulfilled and lead a meaningful life - is a question that is explored thoughtfully and I really appreciated that, because it is something I'm always thinking about. There may not be complete answers to these questions, but there's enough thoughts to ponder about.

In the end, I don't know whom to recommend this book to because it feels too personal to me. But I guess like what the author says in the dedication, pick this book up if you need a break from life. And in these times full of anxieties, not just about the pandemic but so many other issues, this short novella might just provide you some respite.

Well, this one didn't work for me so much, but that's OK. I still adore Chambers. Maybe I just wasn't in the right head space, or maybe I'm not the target audience: this one felt aimed toward young teens, or at least someone who doesn't mind a slathering of Very Special Moral Lessons. If you've read Chambers you know her work is sweet; in this one she takes a giant leap into syrupy. Everyone—Monks, Robot, Villagers—is eye-rollingly nicey-nice and always striving to be nicey-nicer. This crotchety old man found it hard to relate.

It wasn't just the people and relationships: all of it required suspension of disbelief. The politics, economics, even physics (favorite yeah-right moment, referring to finding deadfall on an abandoned road: “Dex [...] shoved [...] swore [...] rolled the damn tree out of the way, and continued”). Dex manages to not only switch careers on a moment's notice, but also become world-class Best Listener in just two years. The robot construction and maintenance explanations border on nonsensical. The religion aspects are pretty clearly shoehorned in as a gimmick. In fact, writing this now, it feels more like the book was written by, not for, a young teen. It's handwaving wish-fulfillment porn. And that's okay, but Chambers can do better. Finally, the pronouns annoyed me. Dex is nonbinary, fine, but goes by “they,” and in third-person narration with two protagonists there are way, way too many doubletake moments: “they remained that way for a few minutes,” later followed by an indication that it was Dex-singular-they, followed by me having to reread the entire paragraph. Come on. You're a talented writer. Use xe. Make one up. Or, my favorite, use the Ann Leckie tactic where everyone is she and the reader never knows nor gives a damn about who has innie parts and who has outies.

I'm going to read the next book anyway though.