Day Zero by C. Robert Cargill

 

Where would you at the end of the world and who would you go with?

 I like the tagline to this book, “It was a day like any other.  Except it was our last.”  Day Zero starts as the story of a nanny robot, Pounce, feeling angst as he has discovered his box in the attic.  He talks with his owner Sylvia who confirms that at some point, his boy, Ezra, will outgrow him and he’ll be put in a box.  As Pounce grapples with this news and thoughts of his future, a robot revolution occurs.   Will Pounce choose to join the robot rebellion, or will he save Ezra?

 I LOVED this book.  It was another five-star book for me.  Once I started reading it, I couldn’t stop reading it. I even read parts of it out loud to my family while we were on vacation, and they enjoyed it.  The action was nonstop and exciting.  I also loved the moral dilemma.  Most of all, I love the character of Pounce and his love for his boy.  I also enjoyed that the book referenced Asimov and his rules for robots frequently as part of this world.  This book had it all, a great plot, great characters, and great world building.  It felt so real to me to be living your life where things are steadily getting worse until the day the world ends.  I hope that there is a sequel to this book.

 Favorite Quotes:

“The first day of the end of the world started entirely without incident.”

 “Though I may have been constructed, so too were you.  Me in a factory; you in a womb.  None of us asked for this, but we were given it.  Self-awareness is a gift.  And it is a gift no thinking thing has any right to deny another.”

 “I can’t change what is happening to the world, but I can change how it affects one human being.  And to me, that’s all that matters.”

 Overall, Day Zero is an excellent young adult sci fi novel with great plot, characters, and world building.  I highly recommend it!

 Book Source:  Review Copy from William Morrow.  Thank-you!