★★★★★ 4
Very creative and engaging
Format: Hardcover
Kinda blown away that this is a first novel! In a not-so-distant future, the protagonist Lee is a recent grad of an elite Program where she has dedicated her life to achievement. She's disappointed to be sent to a no-name company and assigned to a mysterious project. Learning she must gather data to help AI become more human, it's sadly funny as the only way she knows to gather data is by going online.
I really loved the book's portrayal of the future, in which NYC is a dead city and the Midwest is where all the action is. The future portrayed here is just a tad more digitized than our current time. Instead of cooking people order food and it is delivered instantly (not just meals, but like if you want a cookie it's delivered instantly), purchase clothing by tapping the glass display windows at empty stores, and eat at restaurants by tapping on screens and having food shot out at them by machines. When Lee discovers a "primitive" restaurant that is actually staffed by humans and has menus, she is drawn to the place over and over again and starts to discover the magic of real life interaction.
Lee, who is socially awkward to the point of agony, gradually becomes comfortable interacting with humans IRL. It's touching and funny as she navigates things like friendship, getting drinks or coffee and even dating. But the book takes a dark turn as Lee's drive for perfection and her assignment to "experience life" for the AI spin out of control.
This book started off reminding me of "The Factory" by Hiroko Amayada and turned into shades of "The Rosie Project". Touching and truly original, well worth reading!
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Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2024
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