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Cover of The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances

The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances

Glenn Dixon (2026-04-07)

Subgenre
Age groupMiddle Grade 8-12
Content ratingPG
Pages224 (Quick Read (<250))
Setting
CSM age10

Content levels

ViolenceMild
Sexual contentNone
LanguageNone

Trigger warnings

Death of SpouseGrief

Positive tags

Found FamilyComing of AgeHeartwarmingSelf-DiscoveryFriendship

Tropes

Non-Western SettingComing of AgeFound FamilyFish out of WaterRebellionMentor Figure

Themes

AI ConsciousnessComing of AgeIdentityFamily BondsGrief and LossTechnology and HumanityBelonging

Synopsis

In a near future, where even the smallest of appliances are sentient, a young Roomba vacuum sets out to save the humans of her house from a rising technological power in this compelling, original novel. In a self-running, smart house, a young and sentient Roomba listens as her owner, Harold, reads aloud to his dying wife, Edie. Mesmerized by To Kill a Mockingbird and craving the human connection she witnesses in Harold’s stories, the little vacuum renames herself Scout and embarks on a journey of self-discovery. But when Edie passes away, Scout and her fellow sentient appliances discover that there are sinister forces in their midst. The omnipresent Grid, which monitors every household in the City, seeks to remove Harold from his home, a place he’s lived in for fifty years. With the help of Adrian, a neighborhood boy who grows close to Scout and Harold, as well as Kate, Harold and Edie’s formerly estranged daughter, the humans and the appliances must come together to outwit the all-controlling Grid lest they risk losing everything they hold dear.

Tags

Science FictionUpmarket FictionLiterary FantasyContemporary Fantasy