ROBOT ISLAND

Sixth grader Willis Shine eludes the police by hiding in a town where all the inhabitants are robots.

Willis is on the run after stealing several rare books from the library of the wealthy Mrs. Shorthouse. Willis’ Uncle Tod, his neglectful guardian, an unscrupulous, unsuccessful used bookshop owner, is the mastermind behind these crimes. He set the boy up with a job reading to the elderly woman and then instructed him to acquire specific books. When Willis turns on the electricity that powers a robot town, a project of the late Mr. Shorthouse that’s hidden on a lake island, the helpful, personable robots resume jobs they last performed in 1955. The island community is a quirky, retro, mid-century suburban wonderland, and robot Nathan618 offers Willis the kind of care parents might have given him—routines, regular meals, notes in his packed lunches. Willis’ friends Harrison Choi (who comes from a loving Korean American family) and Galaxi Katzenberg (“her parents wanted her to have an anything-is-possible sort of name”) are determined to find their missing friend despite his recent rude behavior. Willis is earnest and perceptive, a boy whom readers will root for who’s drawn a harsh lot in life. Most of the third-person point-of-view chapters follow Willis, but Harrison and Galaxi have their own sections as well. The ending satisfyingly wraps up a story that’s worth a large and willing suspension of disbelief. Most cast members present white.

Warmly funny and entertaining.