ReadItDaddy's Chapter Book of the Week - Week Ending 18th October 2019: "The Last Human" by Lee Bacon (Piccadilly Press)

Our Chapter Book of the Week proves once again that dystopic fiction is alive, and well, and positively thriving in middle grade once again, hooray!!

"The Last Human" by Lee Bacon is the sort of story we absolutely love on the blog. It sets out its stall in the most thrilling way, depicting a world where humans have long become extinct through our completely stupid self-destructive ways.

But the world isn't silent or still. Amazing intelligent robots are everywhere, and twelve year old robot XR-935 is absolutely happy to live in a world where humans no longer pose a threat to robotkind.

There's no more war, no pollution, no crime, none of that messy 'falling in love' business - and the world is now a utopia - if a slightly sterile and robotic one.

However XR-935 is about to discover something that threatens to change all that, and may be the only hope for survival for someone unexpected. A 12 year old human girl who, by all accounts, is entirely impossible!

How will robot society deal with this girl and will XR-935 discover an unlikely friend?

We don't want to spoil too much about this one, suffice to say that it feels like the sort of book I would completely consume in one sitting as a kid (and in fact C pretty much did just that, then was kind enough to let me have a read afterwards, very good of her!)

There are so many clever twists to the tale as XR and his new-found human friend embark on a dangerous quest that could have major implications for the future of robotkind.

But for now we'll sit back, give you a knowing wink, and tell you that this is a book that you absolutely need to experience yourself, that covers the nuances of prejudice and friendship, of climate change and adjusting to world-shattering change all in space of a story that will long stick in your mind.

Sum this book up in a sentence: Intelligent, witty and thought-provoking all at the same time, this is a superb slice of scifi for middle graders.

"The Last Human" by Lee Bacon is out now, published by Piccadilly Press (kindly supplied for review).