Book Review: "Robopocalypse" by Daniel H. Wilson

What's not to love about apocalyptic literature? Granted, it's filled with carnage and the end of the world as we know it, but it also includes a heap of incredible challenges for our inspiring protagonists to tackle.

In Daniel H. Wilson's Robopocalypse, the challenges come in the form of technology that has gone haywire, seeking to obliterate humanity. This tale is set in the not-so-distant future when robots and computers are just slightly more ubiquitous than today.

Science fiction readers aren't the only ones excited about Wilson's latest book. Stephen Speilberg agreed to make a movie of the thing before it was even completed. That's probably because Wilson is not just the author of six novels, but he also has a Ph.D. in robotics. So when he writes about artificial intelligence gone wrong, it's chillingly realistic.

Wilson keeps the story interesting and not overly technical by focusing on the robot war experiences of several characters who populate different regions of the globe: a young daughter of a U.S. Congresswoman, an elderly Japanese inventor and recluse, an American soldier stationed in Afghanistan and a 20-something British computer hacker. Their combined perspectives foreshadow and detail Zero Hour and chronicle the fight for human survival. If you liked the style of "World War Z", check out this book!

-- review by Jennifer Callow, reference assistant