Cartoonist and musician Kochalka strikes again, this time with a very simply illustrated black and white pictorial narrative about a battle between a monkey community and a self-run robot factory encroaching on the monkeys' unspoiled forest domain. The robot factory seems to operate all by itself, spitting out parts that self-assembleAa robot fits itself with a newly minted head and declares, "The future is now," echoing years of Wired magazine headlines. The territorial but sensitive little monkeys spend their time making music and chasing butterflies until the waste material from the robot factory contaminates their forest playground. The robots are equally ticked off after finding monkey poop near the carcass of a robot comrade, done in by the outraged monkeys. In the end, the monkey/robot war destroys the factory and the forest, too. But interpreting Kochalka's witty, charming little fable as a social-political metaphor for the struggle between man (or monkey) and machine probably reads too much into itAnot to mention taking all the fun out of it. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Description

An exciting action-packed rumble-in-the-jungle! A factory of self-replicating robots is stripping the jungle of its natural resources, threatening the territory of a colony of nearby monkeys. A series of encounters between the two groups quickly escalates into all out war.

Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
"Why caN't we all love each otheR, MoNkey aNd ouR Robot bRotheR?" Read the first page

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Concordance

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

8 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)

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4.0 out of 5 stars Technology doesn't always conquer, Jun 20 2004

By	Jenn (Saskatchewan, Canada) - See all my reviews

Although this book is not excatly black and white, more white and green it is a classic. No it's probably not meant for children and all though it did give me a good chuckle near the end (I love it when the robots talk!!! :D:D) there is some depth to it. Subtly (or not so subtly, whichever you prefer) this book shows how technology is not perfect (although my broken microwave could also tell you that) I did manage to flip through this book relitively quickly but not because I lost interest, simply because it is not too thick and there are only a handle full of words. I have flipped through it a couple of times since and it never ceases to make me smile at one point or another.

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4.0 out of 5 stars A snazzy little read, May 20 2004

By	deaner73 (Palo Alto, CA USA) - See all my reviews

James Kohalka's, "Monkey vs. Robot," is a snazzy little gem of a read. You'll probablly be able to finish this book in 10-15 minutes the first time you go through it but will certainly find great enjoyment flipping through it several times again enjoying the wonderfully minimalistic style of this graphic novel.

Makes a great gift item for friends/family who don't really like to read but act like they do - in that they'll actually be able to finish a book for once with enough hip-factor to display on their shelf/coffee table for future conversational highlight.

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1.0 out of 5 stars Not 'deceptively' simple...just plain simpleminded, Jan 23 2004

By A Customer

This book is so stupid it ought to be a crime to give it to children. And yet there are adults praising this garbage? Just one more example of the failure of the American education system, I suppose.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars (Nearly) Wordless Joy
This is some of the finest work Kochalka has ever done, and it's a frequent companion on trips despite its brevity. Read more

Published on Aug 22 2002 by Anna Johnson-Betty

5.0 out of 5 stars the kind of comic everybody should read
Having grown up reading my dad's old Spider-Man, Batman, and EC books and then "graduating" to "mature" books like Madman, Sandman, and the Maxx, you could say... Read more

Published on May 17 2002 by Molli and Ryan Vandehey

5.0 out of 5 stars Good read
Though I love the [junk] out of this book, I can not say that it is James' best work. Check out his Sketchbook Diaries (published by Top Shelf) for a real taste of what Kochalka... Read more

Published on April 23 2002 by Urine Man

5.0 out of 5 stars less is more
Monkey vs. Robot may initially appear simple: it has a minimal art style, barely any words, and an essentially straightforward plot. Read more

Published on Nov 7 2001 by Jeremy P. Bushnell