Books About Androids and Robots?

Marumae · Nov 8, 2011

I was browsing through some other topics on the forums and came across one on "Blade Runner" and "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" and as much as I liked both the novel and the movie, I remember thinking "Gee wouldn't it be awesome if we got the novel from the P.O.V of the replicants/androids themselves?" Going further from that, I can't seem to find too many novels feature exclusively robot/android protagonists or POV characters, or even exclusively ABOUT robots in general (yes I've read Robopocolypse)

So I wonder does anyone have any books they can recommend then where a robot, android (heck even a cyborg would be cool) is the main character or a major theme or story about the book features robotics/androids/cybernetic life forms?

I browsed the forum and couldn't find any topics about this so if I missed it I apologize!

MJNL · Nov 8, 2011

It's late, so apologies for answering with something you've probably read: Asimov's I, Robot.

Marumae · Nov 8, 2011

MJNL said:
It's late, so apologies for answering with something you've probably read: Asimov's I, Robot.

I actually haven't! Oh wow I don't know why I didn't think of Asimov, I actually liked the movie (I blame Alan Tyduk) thank you. :hi:

defcon6000 · Nov 8, 2011

The Alchemy of Stone by Ekaterina Sedia has a clockwork android as the main character.

ETA: I should also add The Skinner by Neal Asher since there are points in the novel when you're in an AI's PoV.

Satsya · Nov 9, 2011

It's not a novel, but a comic book: Pluto by Naoki Urasawa.

It's a murder mystery with a robot detective as the protagonist. It focuses on the tension of being an intelligent robot in human society.

Dave Hardy · Nov 9, 2011

Stanislaw Lem's short fiction frequently features robots, artificial intelligence, and cyborgs. "Terminus" in Tales of Prix the Pilot is a goo example. Mortal Engines, The Cyberiad, The Star Diaries, and The Futurological Congress all concern robots in some fashion.

And of course you might wish to read R.U.R. by Capek. That's the one that introduced the word "robot" in its modern meaning.

Ardent Kat · Nov 9, 2011

I ADORE android protagonists as well. I wish there were more!

Hands-down my favorite is "The Automatic Detective" by A. Lee Martinez. He really nails the POV character and gives him a distinctly nonhuman feel, while still allowing for character growth. Masterfully done.

I found I, Robot was really more about humans than robots as protagonists. You may be disappointed.

There's also a novel called "Crossover" with an android protagonist, but I couldn't get past the first few chapters because I found the plot dry and the protagonist unappealing.

I also second Satsya's recommendation for "Pluto" if you like comics/manga.

As one android fan to another: definitely get yourself a copy of The Automatic Detective. You'll be glad you did.

elflands2ndcousin · Nov 9, 2011

Here are a handful of very different examples in no particular order (that I haven't seen other folks mention yet):

1. The Automatic Detective by A. Lee Martinez. Quirky, pulpy, somewhat comedic story about a robot private investor.

2. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein. Serious investigation of libertarian/utopian concepts where one of the main characters is an AI.

3. Idoru by William Gibson. Cyberpunk classic that explores some of the implications of sentience, and the relations between humans and digital constructs.

4. The Clockwork Man by William Jablonsky. A quiet, emotional story about a 19th century clockwork automaton trying to get by in the 21st century.

5. The Player of Games by Ian M. Banks. A thought-provoking novel where AI's / post-singularity cybernetic entities play a major role, both as characters and as components of the universe.

Anyway, those are some of the books that came to mind right away. I'm sure there are others, but these are all quite fun.

Hope this helps!

Chris

Isabella Amaris · Nov 9, 2011

The Bicentennial Man... by, of course, Isaac Asimov... ain't he grand?

Oh, in fact, the entire Robot Series by Asimov... not sure if I, Robot is part of that or not though, hmmm...

ETA: the movie A.I. by Stephen King was also derived from a book, I think... or short story... which I, sadly, haven't read... coming to realise that I'm more a movie junkie than a reader ha

...

Buffysquirrel · Nov 9, 2011

There's City, a collection of short stories by Cliff Simak. The stories are told by intelligent dogs but involve a robot butler.

The AI movie was based on three stories by Brian Aldiss, but mainly Supertoys Last All Summer Long (very different from the film) which is told from the POV of an android boy.

There's also John Sladek's Roderick books. Roderick is a robot who goes to school, among other things.

Philip K. Dick's short story The Electric Ant is told from the POV of a man who discovers he's an android and starts interfering with his own program.

There's also Walter Tevis's Mockingbird, in which an android is a significant character.

Lyra Jean · Nov 9, 2011

Marumae said:
I actually haven't! Oh wow I don't know why I didn't think of Asimov, I actually liked the movie (I blame Alan Tyduk) thank you.

The movie is nothing like the book at all.

Buffysquirrel · Nov 9, 2011

Lyra Jean said:
The movie is nothing like the book at all.

It would be quicker to list movies that were like the books.

Marumae · Nov 9, 2011

Thanks for all the rec's guys, I've ordered some of the books from the library for a start. I've read A. Lee Martinez. before so I'm looking forward to this one.

It's not a novel, but a comic book: Pluto by Naoki Urasawa.

It's a murder mystery with a robot detective as the protagonist. It focuses on the tension of being an intelligent robot in human society.

Ooooooh I loooove Naoki Urasawa, Monster is one of my favorite stories (Manga really) of all time and this looks FANTASTIC! Thanks again!

Lyra Jean said:
The movie is nothing like the book at all.

I expect that. I'm still going to read it though.

Dave Hardy · Nov 9, 2011

Just remembered a prime example, Soul of a Robot and Rod of Light by Barrington Bayley. Bayley was an amazing writer, with wild, space opera adventures coupled with philosophical concepts. SOAR & RoL are told from the point of view of Jasperodus, an AI robot who wants to determine if he truly is a living soul.

Lyra Jean · Nov 10, 2011

I expect that. I'm still going to read it though.

You won't be disappointed. I actually enjoyed the book more.

Lyra Jean · Nov 10, 2011

"The moon is a harsh mistress" has a an AI as one of the main characters.

lbender · Nov 10, 2011

Not robots, but there was a book published in the eighties about a computer program becoming self aware - "The Adolescence of P1", by Thomas Ryan. Great book - never heard of the author since, and nobody ever mentions the book.

Anaximander · Nov 14, 2011

Sounds kinda like an old shelved WIP of mine... I wrote one about a computer program slowly gaining sentience. It was really interesting to write, but difficult, and I never got it to a point where I was happy to let people read it.

BardSkye · Nov 14, 2011

Three more from Asimov: The Caves of Steel, Robots of Dawn and Robot and Empire. Linked novels featuring R. (robot) Daneel as one of the main characters.

Ardent Kat · Nov 15, 2011

Great suggestions, everyone! My TBR list grows...

defcon6000 said:
The Alchemy of Stone by Ekaterina Sedia has a clockwork android as the main character.

Since "andro-" means "male" rather than "person", she would technically be a gynoid. (I think she's called a "construct" or a "golem" in the book, right?)

Marumae · Nov 16, 2011

These are all awesome suggestions! Thanks guys! Got my hands on the A Lee Martinez book, I'm enjoy it. It's been forever since I read a science fiction/fantasy with humor in it.

defcon6000 · Nov 16, 2011

Ardent Kat said:
Since "andro-" means "male" rather than "person", she would technically be a gynoid. (I think she's called a "construct" or a "golem" in the book, right?)

If we're going to get into the technical stuff, then technically she has no sex because she's a machine. No ovaries.

But frankly, I don't care about the technical stuff.

Ardent Kat · Nov 17, 2011

defcon6000 said:
If we're going to get into the technical stuff, then technically she has no sex because she's a machine. No ovaries.

I dunno about ovaries, but her creator DID have sex with her. Data from Star Trek had sex at least once in the series, too. Robot or not, that's pretty sex-specific.

A character needn't have male sex organs to be presented as male. Most androids (even one as shapeless and sexless as R2-D2) are "he" rather than "it." Especially since most androids in SF are designed to imitate the appearance of humans. (Otherwise, we'd probably call them robots if they're less humanoid)

I invented a more gender-neutral term "mechanosapiens" (intelligent machines) in a MS of mine with android protagonists.

Hiroko · Nov 17, 2011

I live for the books on thinking machines, be they robots, cyborgs, AI, you name it--they're my favorite kinds of focals and I'll read anything with them featured. (Er, living for might be a bit much, but I really really enjoy them.)

This might sound like an obsessive old lady confession, but my trouble with finding more books/discussions on thinking machines is partly why I started writing - and finishing - my first novel.

Architectus · Nov 20, 2011

You might like Ware Tetrology, by Rudy Rucker, especially, the second novel in the series.

Virtual Girl, by Amy Thomson
Put into the body of an adult female robot at the tender age of a few weeks, Thomson's protagonist Maggie runs away from her lecherous creator to figure out who she is.

Saturn's Children, by Charles Stross
The tale of a sexbot named Freya designed to service humans in a world where humans have gone extinct, Saturn's Children is a zany but fascinating thought experiment about robot consciousness.

And finally the link to the page I got these from.

http://m.io9.com/5266293/thirteen-books-that-will-change-the-way-you-look-at-robots

Books About Androids and Robots?

Queen of Quixotica

A Little Lost

Queen of Quixotica

slow and steady

Don't let your deal go down,

Kill your television

Chris, King of Elfland's 2nd Cousin

Two years old now.

Queen of Quixotica

Don't let your deal go down,

Two years old now.

Two years old now.

Barbershoppin' Harmony Whore

Kill your television

Queen of Quixotica

Kill your television

Which of them was the machine?