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Echo Boy

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About this listen

In order to stay human, Audrey has built a moat around herself; a moat of books, music, and dreams. It makes her different from the echoes: the sophisticated, emotionless machines, built to resemble and work for the humans.

Daniel is an echo - but he's not like the others. He has feelings he was never designed to have, and cannot explain. And when Audrey is placed in danger, he's determined to save her.

©2014 Matt Haig (P)2014 W F Howes Ltd Contemporary Fiction Genre Fiction

Critic reviews

"Matt Haig uses words like a tin-opener. We are the tin" (Jeanette Winterson)
"Poignant and thought-provoking" ( The Bookseller)
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I love Matt Haig. 'The Radleys' is wonderful and when I see somebody lingering over a copy of 'The Humans' in a bookshop, I can hardly resist the urge to implore them to buy it. I knew Echo Boy was aimed at the young adult market (alas not my demographic) but as this is Matt Haig I couldn't resist.
This story is set in the not too distant future. Global warming has taken a hold on the planet and people lead their lives supported by an army of robotic servants called Echos. Technology has advanced to a level that the Echos are beyond robots and the heroine's father is an anti technology activist caught up between two warring mega companies who are constantly pushing the boundaries with their new 'products'. Sound familiar?
This is an interesting story filled with imaginative details and interesting moral dilemmas. I did think it span slightly out of control when it ended up more of an action story rather than a cerebral experience. The narrators are undoubtably skilled but I thought their voices were wrong. The main characters are two teenagers and yet they sounded flat and middle aged and there was no sense of youthful vigour.
The story progressed to a satisfactory ending and it was an overall worthwhile experience. It's just tha I can't wait for Matt to write another book aimed at his more mature audience.

This could be our future.

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Assume that this is the first of a series of books in this setting. I enjoyed it, but too many ends are left untied.

Good but feels unfinished - more to come?

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I generally really enjoy Matt Haig's books, The Humans is one of my favourites, this one was an OK listen, but definitely not amazing. It did keep me hooked til the end though so I can't say it's not worth a listen.

Not Matt Haig's best

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Another fabulous and thought-provoking novel from Matt Haig. I loved it from start to finish.

Fabulous

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Narrators terrific. Story good but for me not as brilliant as the author’s “The Humans”. I like his extrapolations of or into the future as much as I used to like Asimov’s. I disagree with the high carb food for Echos - not if they had blood & flesh & were based on humans. Good to see him talk about high fat drinks for humans. But I think when Haig is researching his physics chemistry & what-not he would benefit from researching more on biochemistry too. Anyway, good book on the whole. Entertaining.

Entertaining & good ideas about the future

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