Monk and Robot
Monk and Robot by Becky Chambersby Becky Chambers
Ranked 4 of 5 science fiction novellas by recommenders
Recommended as a warm, optimistic science fiction story about a future where people still deal with everyday, human-sized problems.
Recommended as a warm, optimistic science fiction story about a future where people still deal with everyday, human-sized problems.
4 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 4
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 4 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 4 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Optimistic, hopeful vision of the future
“It is very much a book about a Good Future, where people still have people sized problems.”
Comment from 14 Sep 2026 in “Writing a better reality: The case for optimistic sci-fi (2022)” “It kind of depicts what you're describing as your fantasy.”
Comment from 21 Apr 2026 in “As Oceans Warm, Great White Sharks Are Overheating” Charming and enjoyable to read
“I just read and enjoyed the Monk and Robot novellas”
Comment from 19 Jan 2026 in “Sins of the Children (Adrian Tchaikovsky)” “"Robot and Monk" is charming.”
Comment from 13 Jun 2026 in “A low-carbon computing platform from your retired phones”
Other science fiction novellas people recommend
The four most recommended other science fiction novellas, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mannaby Marshall Brain | 28 | 3 | 90% | 11 | — | Approved |
| Prime Intellectby Roger Williams | 9 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
| The Lifecycle of Software Objectsby Ted Chiang | 6 | 3 | 67% | 3 | — | — |
| Monk and Robotby Becky ChambersThis page | 4 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
| Malakby Peter Watts | 3 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
All 5 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“started reading the first few pages early and couldn't put it down”
“It is very much a book about a Good Future, where people still have people sized problems.”
“"Robot and Monk" is charming.”
“It kind of depicts what you're describing as your fantasy.”
“I just read and enjoyed the Monk and Robot novellas”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.