Robots are a Girl’s Best Friend
Some kids get along better with a robot than with other kids. For that matter, some robots feel closer to a kid than to other robots. In Little Robot by Ben Hatke, you’ll find a sweet story about a girl with mechanical aptitude who finds friendship with the robot she rescues.
This is an unusual book because it contains relatively few words. Almost all of the story-telling is done in a wordless graphic novel format. It’s the story of a small dark-skinned girl who’d rather putter around in the junkyard alone with her trusty toolbelt than go to school with the kids from her neighborhood. One day a rock on the road leads to a crate from the robot factory falling off the delivery truck and into the river. The girl finds the crate in the river, activates the robot, and starts showing it around the junkyard. Meanwhile, the robot’s absence is recognized at the factory, and a guard bot is sent to retrieve it. During their adventures together, the girl rescues the robot, and they find and build human and robot friends. But in the end, they realize they’re happier together than with the others, and sneak off for more adventures in the junkyard.
This is a sweet story of friendship that children 2-8 will enjoy reading again and again. A hesitant young reader may enjoy having a book with fewer and smaller words they can read. I love seeing a stereotype-busting character wielding tools like a pro and finding it’s OK to enjoy life in your own way. Share this book with the young future engineers in your life.
Find Little Robot on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/1626720800/.
For reviews of other children’s books featuring diversity in technology and engineering, see STEM Area: Technology and STEM Area: Engineering.
For reviews of other children’s books featuring gender and racial diversity in STEM, see Diversity Type: Gender and Diversity Type: Race.
For reviews of other books that are great for the 3-8 age range, see Age Group: 3-5 and Age Group: 6-8.
Also see our full STEM listings of books and other resources that feature diversity in STEM.
