I liked this more than a 3 but not enough to make it a 4. Another reviewer has called this "comfort SF" and I wish I'd thought of it. The book is a very cozy story of self-discovery, and lays out the author's philosophical roots as an existentialist. At least the robot is an existentialist. I am very happy that main character Dex is provided the space and resources to go find himself--in fact that very provision is a grounding for the book. Many of us would love to live in that world, which sounds a lot like what Martin Luther King's (or maybe Josiah Royce's) idea of the Beloved Community would look like. We do not live in that world, nor will we. Chambers alludes to hard sacrifices made by previous generations to release the sentient robots from their servitude, clean up their planet, and clean up their relationships with each other. That work is ours to do, and knowing that we work to create that future will have to be enough to comfort us.
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