Cog

August 12, 2019
This creatively layered novel by the author of Voyage of the Dogs centers on a robot named Cog (short for “cognitive development”), built to resemble a 12-year-old boy. Created by uniMIND, a greedy company whose technology aims to control the actions of robotic and living creatures, Cog is programmed to learn and to share his knowledge, often in comically literal robot-speak (“I live in a room with a bed where I lie down. It is called a bedroom”). Under the tutelage of kind uniMIND scientist Gina, Cog learns to learn from his mistakes; on his first visit to a grocery store, he fills two carts with a humorous overabundance of goods and, when directed to return most items to the shelves, discovers that “unshopping takes longer than shopping.” After an attempt to “learn by making mistakes” lands him in the hands of villainous uniMIND staffers, and Gina is reassigned elsewhere, Cog and four robot accomplices (his long-lost sister, a dog, a car, and a waste-consuming “Trashbot”) use their varied technological skills to find Gina and rebel against the despotic corporation. Beneath the entertaining, madcap shenanigans, van Eekhout’s story raises intriguing questions about free will, fulfilling one’s life purpose, and hard-won judgment. Agent: Holly Root, Root Literary. Ages 8–12.

August 15, 2019
Pinocchio and Wall-E meet Escape From Witch Mountain in this heartwarming sci-fi novel. Cog (short for cognitive development) is a 7-month-old android who looks 12 and is eager to learn more about the world. Designed by Gina, a scientist for uniMIND with whom he lives, Cog spends his days slowly learning all about what it means to be human, from grocery shopping to learning wisdom through making mistakes. After an accident results in Cog's being taken from Gina and locked in the main uniMIND headquarters, he becomes painfully aware of the sinister side of the organization. Refusing to spend any more time as an experiment, Cog escapes along with ADA, his sister android, and several others and attempts to find Gina. In his latest novel, van Eekhout (Voyage of the Dogs, 2018, etc.) brings considerable heart and wisdom to this coming-of-age tale. The central relationships between Cog and Gina and between him and his sister--all of whom are brown-skinned--feel heartbreakingly human and provide a timely example of the difficulties of being an outsider. The author nicely inverts gender roles, making Cog introspective and shy while his sister--a weapon android--is brasher and braver; watching the pair grow together as they explore humanity provides pathos and humor. A thought-provoking tale for younger readers about hubris and what it means to be human. (Science fiction. 8-12)

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October 25, 2019

Gr 3-7-Cog is a robot who looks like a young boy, designed to learn about the world around him. Under the patient guidance of Gina, an offbeat engineer, Cog feels safe and supported. When Cog decides to leave the house without Gina's permission, a terrible accident lands him in a lab run by scientists with methods far more clinical than Gina's. While Gina treats Cog like a member of the family, these scientists see him and other robots as specimens to be examined and tested. When Cog decides to break out and find his real home, enlisting the help of other robots in the facility, he learns that friendship, family, and community aren't just for humans. This book does not shy away from dark themes; from the people who do not help Cog after his accident to the scientists who treat robots poorly, the book has many examples of the problems that can occur when people lack empathy for those around them. However, Cog is an amusing narrator and the story deftly balances the significant questions of consciousness and mortality with humor and action. Though the races of the human characters go undisclosed, Cog and other robots are described as having dark skin. VERDICT A sensitive and thought-provoking early exercise in empathy and belonging for fans of Peter Brown's The Wild Robot.-Madison Bishop, Plymouth Public Library, Plymouth, MA

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