The Wild Robot: Book Review!

Inside: Book review of The Wild Robot.

I don’t think I’ve ever reviewed a chapter book on this blog, but after reading The Wild Robot,  I absolutely HAD to share it with you.

I’m really surprised I didn’t stumble across this book a lot earlier because it’s been around for two years and I LOVE Peter Brown’s picture book My Teacher is a Monster!  (No, I Am Not.)

So maybe you’re in the same boat and this is a “new” book for you, too. If so, then read on.

Title: The Wild Robot
Author/Illustrator: Peter Brown
Publishing: Little, Brown & Company, 2016
Themes: Fiction, Robots, Animals, Friendship, Survival, Adventure
Ages: 6 – 12

Synopsis (from the book flap):

Can a robot survive in the wilderness?

When robot Roz opens her eyes for the first time, she discovers that she is alone on a remote, wild island. She has no idea how she got there or what her purpose is — but she knows she needs to survive. After battling a fierce storm and escaping a vicious bear attack, she realizes that her only hope for survival is to adapt to her surroundings and learn from the island’s unwelcoming animal inhabitants.

As Roz slowly befriends the animals, the island starts to feel like home — until, one day, the robot’s mysterious past comes back to haunt her.

Why I LOVE This Book:

1.It would be absolutely perfect as a read-aloud in a Grade 1 to 3 classroom. It espouses strong values (loyalty, courage, tolerance, perseverance, kindness) all while exploring the possibility of a robot actually living and surviving in the wilderness. In Peter Brown’s words, it’s a “robot nature story.”

2. This is a wonderful book to read if you’re teaching a unit on friendship. Roz struggles to make friends — everyone thinks she’s a monster — but the animals gradually come to realize that Roz is kind, helpful and trustworthy.

3. Roz adopts and raises a baby goose. The love and devotion between the goose and robot is real and very strong. Strange, right? But what a perfect segue into a discussion about what makes a family. Although families can look very different from one another,  the common ground is the love that unites the members within a family grouping.

4. This story would also mesh well with a unit on animals and how they survive and adapt to the seasons.

5. Do you have some techno wizards in your class? They’ll love the robot and I’m sure they’ll be intrigued with the way she learns to adapt to her environment.

6. And guess what? There’s a sequel called The Wild Robot Escapes. It was released just a couple of weeks ago. Yes! I can hardly wait to read it.

Links You May Like:

Please be sure to visit Peter Brown’s blog. He’s written a super interesting post about the process he went through when creating The Wild Robot. You can see his sketches, mind-mapping (yes, some published authors actually use that technique!) and research notes.

If you’re a Peter Brown fan, be sure to visit his Store & Freebies page, too. There are lots of colouring pages for his other books and some free activity kits.

Thank you for stopping by!

PS  If you’ve read this book, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments 🙂