Book Review & Giveaway: Troofriend – Kirsty Applebaum [Giveaway OPEN]

I’m so excited to write a review on the fabulous forthcoming book from Kirsty Applebaum.

And stay tuned for an exciting giveaway…!

Author(s): Kirsty Applebaum
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Publication date: 2nd April 2020

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Imagine having the perfect friend, one who never steals, lies or bullies.

Now you can, with the TrooFriend 560, the latest in artificial intelligence!

What can go wrong with a robot buddy? Especially one that’s developing human characteristics and feelings, and who has just run away with her human?

It’s actually been a few weeks since I read Troofriend and although I chirped about it quite a lot over on Twitter, I didn’t actually get around to writing a review. But I’m here now and I have to say the book has really stuck with me which is always a good sign!

There are a few reasons why I enjoyed Troofriend, but there are also reasons why I think this book is really important. It is aimed towards 8-12 year olds and introduces important subjects such as:

• artificial intelligence (AI) and AI rights,
• protesting and protecting rights,
• bullying,
• poverty, and
• corporate responsibility.

Applebaum touches on each of these subjects, which are gently interwoven in to the story, without making it a heavy read. For me, as an adult reader, this is what makes it so good. They’re current topics but also things we are going to have to seriously consider in the future – or maybe they will be for future generations.

Everything about this book is done well, from the character development and story telling to the world-building. The book itself has been carefully considered with a sans-serif font, good line-spacing, short to medium length chapters and plenty of breaks in the narrative. There are also eBook and audiobook editions.

Troofriend would make a fantastic classroom read with so much to talk about and debate. It’s a fun, fast-paced story that is guaranteed to delight its readers. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to Nosy Crow for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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I was extremely fortunate to receive both a proof and finished copy of Troofriend from the lovely people at Nosy Crow, so I’ve decided to give the final copy away to a lucky reader!

You can enter by visiting my rafflecopter page here.

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Order now

You can support your local bookshop by buying Troofriend through them directly, or via Hive.

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Comment below

What do you think of Troofriend? Will you be reading it? Let me know in the comments below.

Wishing you a wonderfully bookish week,