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A review by horrorbutch
Mechanize My Hands to War by Erin K. Wagner
5.0
Disclaimer: I received an e-ARC from netgalley in exchange for a review.
This story is set in a future America mostly in the Appalachia region, where through technological inventions some jobs are getting replaced by android labor. In resistance to the androids a violent uprising has started, led by Eli Whitaker, who fills the ranks of his militia with child soldiers. As the story progresses, we follow a variety of characters, former members of Eli’s militia, who now work in law enforcement to stop him, a couple living on a farm, who after a miscarriage and cancer and poisoned fields have to rely on android labor, a young girl, whose father died fighting in the militia, Eli and finally also four of the androids.
This is not an easy story to read, often switching between time and with different viewpoints in each chapter, but when things start to come together that is when it becomes really interesting. Through the variety of viewpoints, we sometimes see the same event from different angles, and I found that incredibly interesting. It also helps to understand all the characters, even if not all their actions can be condoned.
My favorite parts of the story were definitely the chapters set in the androids’ minds, especially when technological advancement meant people reacted differently to them. One of the androids, Ora, is for example treated horrible by the humans, who are supposed to work alongside them, as they have limited speech abilities, and everybody refuses to learn their sign language. Nobody really cares for their interior lives and it was incredibly heartbreaking, but also very interesting to read.
Lastly, I also really enjoyed that this story very well showed where the real problem lies. Because it is not android labor that causes rural communities to suffer from poverty. It is not androids that are somehow especially violent and ready to harm others. Instead, the real danger that goes unchallenged (but not un-thought off) in the fight between the militia and the government are the big corporations and insurance agencies, that refuse to work for the people and instead crush them under their boot. While this is not a story about overcoming capitalism, the criticism of that system and the many reasons why it cannot work are apparent in this story and make it all the more tragic, that people are so eager to blame the Other, the Inhuman.
All in all, this is a very well written novel and one I can just recommend to anybody interested in sci-fi that explores artificial life, human reaction to it, the dangers of capitalism and the Appalachia region.
Tw: child abuse, child soldiers, child mistreatment, murder, poisoning, cancer, miscarriage, hospital visit, ableism
This story is set in a future America mostly in the Appalachia region, where through technological inventions some jobs are getting replaced by android labor. In resistance to the androids a violent uprising has started, led by Eli Whitaker, who fills the ranks of his militia with child soldiers. As the story progresses, we follow a variety of characters, former members of Eli’s militia, who now work in law enforcement to stop him, a couple living on a farm, who after a miscarriage and cancer and poisoned fields have to rely on android labor, a young girl, whose father died fighting in the militia, Eli and finally also four of the androids.
This is not an easy story to read, often switching between time and with different viewpoints in each chapter, but when things start to come together that is when it becomes really interesting. Through the variety of viewpoints, we sometimes see the same event from different angles, and I found that incredibly interesting. It also helps to understand all the characters, even if not all their actions can be condoned.
My favorite parts of the story were definitely the chapters set in the androids’ minds, especially when technological advancement meant people reacted differently to them. One of the androids, Ora, is for example treated horrible by the humans, who are supposed to work alongside them, as they have limited speech abilities, and everybody refuses to learn their sign language. Nobody really cares for their interior lives and it was incredibly heartbreaking, but also very interesting to read.
Lastly, I also really enjoyed that this story very well showed where the real problem lies. Because it is not android labor that causes rural communities to suffer from poverty. It is not androids that are somehow especially violent and ready to harm others. Instead, the real danger that goes unchallenged (but not un-thought off) in the fight between the militia and the government are the big corporations and insurance agencies, that refuse to work for the people and instead crush them under their boot. While this is not a story about overcoming capitalism, the criticism of that system and the many reasons why it cannot work are apparent in this story and make it all the more tragic, that people are so eager to blame the Other, the Inhuman.
All in all, this is a very well written novel and one I can just recommend to anybody interested in sci-fi that explores artificial life, human reaction to it, the dangers of capitalism and the Appalachia region.
Tw: child abuse, child soldiers, child mistreatment, murder, poisoning, cancer, miscarriage, hospital visit, ableism