Mitchell Ricard’s Reviews > A Psalm for the Wild-Built > Status Update

The fact that robots could live forever if they wanted to shows their understanding of nature and the real reason to live. The robots choose to follow nature and all its other organisms by going through a life cycle. To cherish the time they have and enjoy your surroundings even if you are missing a purpose. This is what Dex and many people in today's world are going through right now.

Dex refusing to let Mosscap fill the water tank shows how they are guilty of the past. This guilt comes from the history of humans using robots as tools in their society. Dex doesn't want to treat Mosscap like a servant, even though the robot just wants to help. Dex's guilt over the past makes them treat Mosscap like a victim instead of a friend. This shows how old history can create awkward hurdles in the present.

I find it interesting how Dex thinks the robot is all knowing. Right and left Dex is throwing questions at Mosscap without any consideration if they will know the answer. Even though robots have a superior memory to humans they cannot remember everything. This is another way that the author shows that the humans and robots are much closer than many people may think.

I see Dex’s journey not only as a quest to find crickets but as a journey to find oneself. Even as a successful Tea Monk Dex feels an emptiness that their current life cannot fill. By page 48, they have left their cycle of the villages for the unknown wilds. Dex didn’t head into the woods just to find the sounds of crickets. They wanted to find themselves a life that made them happy.

I found it very interesting how much growth Dex had during the time skip in the book. It is fun to see their growth even though we did not see it. It really shows during their first time serving people after the skip. They were very thorough and knew exactly what tea to give the person based on their problem. The trouble they had with their first customer really impacted them. Making them strive to do their best.