A review by gwendolyn_kensinger
Annie Bot by Sierra Greer

3.0

This is the story of a female robot and her human owner. Annie Bot is a book with layers upon layers. It’s about our own personal relationships with AI and what AI should or should not be. But underneath, it is a story about self-determination, power dynamics, bodily autonomy, and what it means to have a sense of self. I was never quite sure what point the author was trying to make other than Doug is a douchebag and Annie deserves better, but at the same time since the story is told with Annie as the main character I wonder if I was manipulated to root for Annie. Even though this story has a sci-fi lean we get very little science. It’s much more focused on the relationship and the dynamics of the relationship between Annie and Doug. There was a slightly sinister undercurrent in the first half that unfortunately fizzled out by the end. The book delves into domestic abuse including control, emotional and psychological abuse so if this is triggering to you, I would stay away from this one.

I loved this quote from Clare Beams…

"A brilliant and enraging exploration of ownership and love, and the way our creations have of growing far beyond us. Sierra Greer raises questions as current and pressing as our present-day anxieties about AI, and as ageless and enormous as the territory of Mary Shelley, about what constitutes humanity and what we owe to each other. Annie is a glorious creation-- and self-creation-- and I will never forget her, or this sharp and astonishing book." — Clare Beams, author of The Illness Lesson