An Interview with a robot by Lee Bacon

Synopsis

Fugitive. Criminal. Robot.

A sci-fi adventure for young listeners, Interview with the Robot introduces a unique heroine who seeks the truth about herself.

Eve looks like an ordinary 12-year-old girl, but there’s nothing ordinary about her. She has no last name. No parents or guardian. She’s on the run from a dangerous and secretive organization that will stop at nothing to track her down.

And most astonishing of all: she’s a robot, a product of Eden Laboratories. When Eve discovers the truth, she realizes everything she thought she knew about herself is a lie. Eve manages to escape, fleeing the lab, the only home she’s ever known.

After being arrested for shoplifting, Eve is interviewed by Petra Amis from Child Welfare Services. Her incredible story unfolds during the interrogation, with flashbacks to her life inside Eden Laboratories, which has a dark secret. Listeners follow Eve from her first moment of consciousness to her evolution as a nearly-human companion to Emory, the son of the founder of Eden Laboratories.

Exploring a range of topics that drive our society and our lives—topics such as artificial intelligence and human nature - Interview with the Robot is a story told by a startlingly original protagonist, a story that explores the vast potential of technology and the deep complexities of humanity.

Review

This is a great short read/listen, the full cast performance makes this story that would otherwise be quite simple, quite interesting. EVE came to life so beautifully. It was so easy to believe that she was a character exploring a new life. This reminded me a lot of Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Read. ( I haven’t reviewed that yet but I will ).

I found that my minds eye was almost creating a movie for me to watch. Every aspect was delivered brilliantly. The switches between interview and memory were seamless, like scene changes in a movie. There‘s a level of truth in the subtext of this story. The struggle for self acceptance for EVE is realistic and relatable.

She has experiences that we’ve seen before several times in other movies, like Steven Speilberg’s A.I. A struggle to feel life and experience it as real as possible. The familial craving is a wonderful touch. I can’t help thinking that a child that has been through the adoption processes would relate to the subtext.

There is so much truth in the relationships. Emery has made a best friend in EVE. A young boy with no friends, no interaction with any children his own age. Suddenly there was this new creation needing him to help her subsequently navigate a seemingly complex world. The unexpected twist toward the end that he too was a robot created in the image of the dead son, making him EVE’s brother was definitely unexpected and cleverly disguised throughout the main bulk of the story. Petra the Interviewer is completely absorbed Into EVE’s story much like the listener. As she discovers more of the truths about EVE we do the same. The questions she asked were questions I didn’t know I was asking myself but it helped it all make more sense. This definitely a story I see myself revisiting in the future.

Rating ⭐⭐️⭐️⭐️

#interviewwitharobot #leebacon #audiobook #audible #exclusive #books #reading #reader #listening #review #reviewsofareadingaddict