A Robot in the Garden

March 21, 2016
In Install’s charming first novel, Ben Chambers is a failed veterinary student who is also failing at his marriage. He seems content to drift through life until the day a robot shows up in his suburban London garden, lost, dented, and obviously in need of repair. When Ben exhibits more interest in the robot, called Tang, than he does in his wife, Amy, she walks out on him; Ben decides that he’s going to bring Tang back to his place of origin to be repaired, wherever that might be. It’s a journey that takes Ben and Tang from London to San Francisco, Houston, Tokyo, and, finally, Micronesia, where Tang is reunited with his owner, who turns out to be something of a mad cyberneticist. Returning with Tang to London, Ben finds that there have been big changes during his absence. For one thing, Amy is with another man, a blowhard surgeon named Roger. But thanks to Tang, Amy sees something in Ben that wasn’t there before and forces them to face up to the shortcomings in their marriage. As a novel, this story can’t quite make up its mind what it wants to be: a domestic drama, a globe-hopping picaresque, an odd couple comedy, or a fable about what it means to be human. Despite an overly busy narrative, the novel compensates with characters that, whether they are carbon based or cybernetic, never fail to engage the readers’ sympathy and win our hearts with their humanity. Agent: Robin Straus, Robin Straus Agency, Inc.

Starred review from March 15, 2016
The robot's name is Acrid Tang. He turns up one day in the garden of Ben's England home, and what follows is an inventive and utterly charming tale. After Ben failed at a career as a veterinary surgeon and then lost his parents, with a struggling marriage and nothing to fill his days, he finds a purpose in trying to fix the ailing robot and solve the mystery of Tang's owner. Their travels take Ben and Tang around the world at a time when androids are common fixtures and robots are seen as undesirable relics. While the glimpses of the interplay between humanity and machines in this future are interesting, it is Tang's personality that makes the novel a delight to read. He is irrepressible, stubborn, curious, and as lively as any human could be. The relationship between Tang and Ben is electric and authentic, and Ben's growing attachment to his robot friend makes him regret the possibility that his quest to reunite Tang with his owner will be successful. Luckily for Ben, Tang knows about fixing things, too. A heartwarming mix of fantasy and road novel.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)