Simon Carter, $0.99, ISBN 978-0463791110
Sci-fi, 2019

Simon Carter’s Reboot offers a familiar premise: a robot, or an android, or whatever one wishes to call it, discovers through its interaction with its master the true meaning of humanity, that kind of thing. In this one, John, our metallic friend, has faithfully serves his inventor and feeds the inventor’s dog until they all learn that the old man has only two weeks left to live. Much existential angst follows.

Well, this isn’t a very long story, but it is just the right length, to hit all the right spots. I like this. While I won’t say this is something that bowls me over, I find it well-paced, succinct, and even poignant at places. The theme of a tin can learning both the good and the bad of humanity practically power the sci-fi genre, and this one won’t add anything new to the bigger scheme of things, but it’s a well-written take on that theme. I feel for the professor, the tin can, and that danged dog, and I think I choke up a little by the time I reach the last page.

So yes, this one is somewhat short yet simple and packs a punch. No boot for Reboot here, just my thumbs up for being both bittersweet and cathartic.