3.5 stars.

I didn't read the first book, A Psalm for the Wild Built, and even with allusions made to that book throughout it didn't really make a difference for me to enjoy this one.

It's quite a short read but long on thought; the notion of just existing, service, the good of community/ecosystems beyond the individual was fascinating and I'd love to spend time with even others who read this to get their thoughts. Unconstrained by our current social norms, what would happen? Who would we be? What could we want? And is there a fundamental difference in all of us not based on anything but the evolution of our consciousness that makes us just very ... Us.

I loved Mosscap. That needs its own declaration.

Disclaimer: I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Everything Becky Chambers writes is a gift. There's just no other way to put it. This novella picks right up where the first one left off and gives us two characters that continue to grow and change in subtle ways as they try to answer the question "What do you need?" I easily read this in an afternoon and it left me smiling and content.

I don't know that I've ever connected so much with a character as I do with Dex. I love everything about this series and could happily read a new volume every year until I die.

Dex & Mosscap are phenomenal. I love the side characters in this one.

These books are a blanket burrito for the soul.

If you liked the first book in this series, "A Psalm for the Wild Built," you'll probably like this one, too. For me it was a little dull. I love world building and philosophical explorations but I didn't find anything really new here -- perhaps I'm too old and have been through these kinds of discussions too many times before. Also, try as I might, I still have trouble with using the plural "their" for a singular gender neutral pronoun. I just keep looking for the other people and having to reset each time. I loved Chambers' Wayfarers series which combined great plot and characters with the world building and philosophy, but this series is frankly too dull for me.

It is always a delight to visit the worlds of Becky Chambers. They are always thoughtful and fully integrate into their settings. Here, in A Prayer for the Crown-Shy we continue the journey of monk Dex and robot Mosscap. A Psalm For the Wild-Bilt introduced us to the small moon Panga, a world where the robots gained sentience and chose to leave the servitude of humans to live separately in the wild, but with a promise to some day check in. Humans had to change their lives from this machine edge and now live in a very environmentally friendly manner. Monk Dex seeks to find themselves in the wilds and meets robot Mosscap who has come seeking the answer(s?) to the question "What do people need?"

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy sees Dex and Mosscap journey about Panga asking that question of many different locales, those accepting of technology and those who have reverted as best they can to pre-technology lifestyles.

Through Mosscap we can see how one integrates and learns about a society they were not raised in. How one adapts using their own experiences and connects with others in a meaningful manner. In general this book can serve as the beginning of many debates about commercialism, philosophy or in recognizing what is truly important.

Picking up where “A Psalm for the Wild Built” leaves off, Sibling Dex, a tea monk, and Mosscap, a conscious/sentient wild built robot, head back to civilization. They travel to different settlements where Mosscap can meet a variety of humans to see how they have progressed since the robots left for the wild places. Accompanied by Dex, who helps it understand how humans and their communities function, they are greeted by a welcoming and inquisitive public. Similar to “Psalm”, this world is progressive, accepting, and supportive which allows for safe exploration of philosophical explorations of robot/human relations, purpose in life, and related topics. More philosophical than “Psalm”, this novella focuses more on Mosscap’s journey. For those who haven’t read the first book in the series, I recommend reading “Psalm” first because it provides more background on the world the story is set in which gives the philosophical discussions more depth.

I read A Psalm for the Wild-Built last year and loved it so much I had to request a galley of the second book in the series. My only complaint about either book is that I would have loved it if they lasted a little longer, since reading them feels like the kind of reading I want to be doing all the time: comforting, interesting, digestible but not fluffy. This book made me think and feel and identify with its characters through the conversations between Sibling Dex and Mosscap, but also as they venture in to a number of communities in this book. The world of this series is one I want to inhabit, and yet people are not without needs and have problems with no solutions. But it feels like there is space to find those answers in this world and in this book. I look forward to what comes next in this series!

Becky Chambers is putting out the best philosophical / wholesome science fiction there is right now. Gorgeous. Can't wait for the next one.

I received an advance copy via NetGalley.

I adored the first Monk & Robot novella when I recently read it as a Nebula novella finalist. To me, it was a strong four-star read. This book? Five stars. Yes, it was even better.

The concept of the series is this: ages before, robots gained sentience and split off from humanity, retreating into the wilderness. Human civilization continued to grow and blossom nevertheless. Enter Sibling Dex, a humble tea monk who enjoys their work, kinda-sorta, but feels a restless dissatisfaction with life. They get it into their head to travel deep into the wilderness to hear crickets that are extinct everywhere else... and that is where they encounter Mosscap, an excitable child-like robot who wants to learn all about humanity.

In this volume, they venture into the human realm, where Mosscap meets more people--and domesticated dogs, and rides in boats, and takes in everything with glee. The book is gentle in the way of many of Becky Chambers' books. There is no big bad guy, no looming, world-ending threat. This is about people being people, even if one of them is not people, and this book in particular is about the importance of community.

Quite honestly, I want to live in this world. It is by no means perfect, but there is a level of consideration and compassion that leaves me with a deep sense of yearning.

The second book in the Monk and Robot series will scratch the same itch as the first -- it's a cosy and philosophical read that explores consent, happiness, mental health, and the wants and needs of human beings. As Mosscap branches out and learns more about humans and the world outside of the familiar wilds, Dex turns inward on a journey of self discovery.

If you prefer your books to have strong plots, this one wont be for you. However, if you enjoy Chambers' signature cosy science fiction with a healthy dose of philosophy, you'll absolutely enjoy A Prayer for the Crown-Shy.

Becky is a genius, and her latest book continues to prove that out. I never thought I could love characters as much as I love her Wayfarers, but Dex and Mosscap are simply perfect. Sweet and lovely and thought-provoking and incandescent.

This book gave me a warm blanket, a cup of tea, and a hug I didn't know I needed. I was instantly absorbed in the lush, kind world painted by Becky Chambers. The back-and-forth between Sibling Dex and Mosscap felt realistic, and I loved seeing how the friendship between the two had developed since the first book-- especially the way it changed with Mosscap's newfound fame! Its question of "What do people need" remained the heart of the book, and I thoroughly enjoyed the way Mosscap and Sibling Dex wandered through many different possible answers without judgement and without there being One True Answer.

A tremendous follow-up. This series continues to deliver thoughtful investigations of humanity and community.

The remarkable sequel to A Psalm for the Wild-Built that further develops the friendship between Mosscap and Sibling Dex while introducing them to a human society eager to meet an elusive robot. A very reflective and philosophical novella, readers will find the continuing journey of our robot and monk friends to be a comfortable and usually pretty relaxed experience, with some stressful moments as Mosscap discovers elements of human society that make it a little upset and an unexpected confrontation with the concept of its own mortality (that Sibling Dex reacts strongly to). I loved almost every moment of this story and cannot wait for more.

If you read the previous book and liked it, this is more of the same and you'll not be disappointed. An easy recommendation for fans of the author, though readers should finish the first entry in the series before starting this one.

The Monk & Robot novella series feels like a science fiction fairytale. In this installation, Sibling Dex and the robot Mosscap are heading back into civilization to find the answer(s) to what humans need. Each chapter is a new location on the way to The City, where they meet new people and discover new places. It’s utterly delightful. As a reader, we get to experience the world through Mosscap seeing everything for the first time, learning about the world through it and it’s questions and experiences. It’s not a fantasy story but there’s such a magical, fairytale feeling as you read. There’s this enormity of Mosscap’s question for humans and what they need and our two main characters (and the reader!) get to be surprised by the varied answers. Becky Chambers is one of my all time favorite authors. I eagerly await more!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

**An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher**

Chambers' strength for character writing blends beautifully with philosophical discussions about what living a fulfilling life means in a world where people have seemingly solved most of the big problems that plague us as a species.
This is a perfect followup to one of my favorite books of the last few years, the only real complaint I have is that I now have to wait quite a while for another installment. Highly recommended.

The following is not an original thought and I'm plagiarizing something I saw on Goodreads, but it holds true and is worth repeating: Becky Chambers' A Prayer for the Crown-Shy is one of those books that when the Advance Readers Copy lands in your inbox, you drop everything and immediately read it for review purposes, forgetting that we're still three-ish months away from its release date and there are other books I have on my plate that are coming up sooner than that. I hope the publisher isn't mad at me for throwing my hat in the ring so soon, but the previous book by Chambers called A Psalm for the Wild-Built was so good and so life-affirming that I wanted to get my mitts on this sequel as soon as possible. I don't think, for me, there was another book coming out in 2022 that I was so in expectation of. A Psalm for the Wild-Built was such a perfect pandemic novel (written before the pandemic ironically) that it was like getting a warm hug and a good cup of tea as you read it. Does A Prayer for the Crown-Shy live up to the hype?

Before we get to that, a recap. The first book was about the journeys of a non-binary tea monk (or a monk who serves tea and listens to people's problems) named Sibling Dex and a robot they encounter in their journeys named Mosscap who has returned to the world of humans after all robots went into self-exile a few centuries before. Mosscap has come back to answer the question, what do humans need? By turns tender and philosophical, A Psalm for the Wild-Built was a book that was gentle and soothing, and just the type of novella that was so in tune with the times that it wound up on a Most Influential Science Fiction Books of All-Time list only months after it was published. To that end, A Prayer for the Crown-Shy picks up where A Psalm for the Wild-Built ended, with Dex and Mosscap returning to civilization on the moon of Panga and becoming something of celebrities in the process. Whereas with A Psalm for the Wild-Built, Dex was the student and Mosscap was the teacher, those roles get reversed here as Dex introduces Mosscap to elements of human culture.

Roughly of the same novella-like length as A Psalm for the Wild-Built, A Prayer for the Crown-Shy probably won't be named the feel-good book of 2022 in a way that the first book in the series was named a year prior (especially by me). It's a tad bit darker, as Mosscap begins to confront its mortality when a piece of it malfunctions during the events of this book. It's also a bit frustrating because Dex isn't as patient as Mosscap, so that means they often get flummoxed explaining things to Mosscap, which doesn't do too much for the touchy-feels. Mosscap, too, comes off as a little bit needier in this book, which can be a bit of an annoyance because it seemed to be so wise in the first book. However, while A Prayer for the Crown-Shy is a notch below the previous book, it is still a commanding read. When Dex and Mosscap visit Dex's family, the scene is so touching and heartfelt that it approaches and perhaps exceeds the quality of writing found in A Psalm for the Wild-Built. There are tender moments scattered here and there throughout the read, but this book has none of Dex's wisdom offering tea monk services (they're more of a guide in this novella), and the towns they visit are crowded with fans and onlookers, thus not offering the kind of solitude that A Psalm for the Wild-Built brought to readers by being set in the forests and mountains.

Still, I would heartily recommend A Prayer for the Crown-Shy to fans of A Psalm for the Wild-Built, with the caveat that they should expect something different in this outing. A Prayer for the Crown-Shy is maybe less of a continuation in feel, and more of one that explores the flip side of the relationship between Dex and Mosscap. If you've read A Psalm for the Wild-Built, you'll already know that Chambers uses the pronoun "they" for Dex, and this comes off as less intrusive and confusing in this book (part of a lot of readers' complaints about the first novella was that they weren't always sure if "they" was referring to just Dex or Dex and other people in scenes with two or more folks - or a robot). This is presumably because you'll be used to it by now, and perhaps Chambers heard the complaints and has gotten a little clearer in her writing. All in all, A Prayer for the Crown-Shy is a more unique, but still dazzling novella that only slightly disappoints. However, the door is left open for another sequel, so perhaps this is all part of a proposed trilogy. (And, if so, it'll be interesting to see where Chambers will go from here.) The ending is particularly poignant, and you'll probably feel sad when you close this quick read for good - which is an entirely alternate feeling that one might have had with the previous novella. I suppose this is just another way of saying that A Prayer for the Crown-Shy is a companion book about two companions, and it has an alternate tone. Perhaps this is a good thing because A Psalm for the Wild-Built was a lot to live up to and just turning in a carbon copy would have diminished that book. A Prayer for the Crown-Shy mostly lives up to the hype, and you should definitely check it out if you're already read the first book in the Monk and Robot series. It's a good follow-up, and that's all we can ask for in a sequel.

“What do you need?”

This simple question leads Mosscap, robot ambassador, on their mission to reconnect with humanity.

We follow Mosscap and their monk companion Sibling Dex as they return from their journey into the wild back into society. As social expectations pile up, their eyes seek each other across the room for comfort.

This book, much like the first installment, is lovely. Tenderness blows in every breeze. This story continues the series’ quest for purpose and meaning, and you can hear Dex’s emotive heartbeat as they struggle to define themselves. Offsetting this existential angst, Mosscap’s child-like wonder carries such sincere joy that warms you long after you’ve set this book down.

Books like these are beautiful and necessary.

Utterly stunning follow up to the first book. Hopeful, wistful, and kind. Beautifully written and lyrical. The quintessential hope punk series. Gives me a reason to keep on living, honestly.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dex and Mosscap continue their adventures through the world the humans have made. The pair venture forth into the cities where Dex and Mosscap get the opportunity to interact with humans in a larger community.

As with her last book, Chambers writes an intriguing, and thought provoking story. Reading about Sibling Dex and Mosscap roaming from small city to city brought up discussion of ‘what is self’, gender, and fairness- to name a few.

Mosscap’s outsider perspective is simultaneously humorous and still rather clinical. It is seeing humanity with new eyes and it gives us, as the reader, an interesting perspective on how humans live and the world that we interact with.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It is an intriguing story with diversity, interesting perspectives, and brought a smile to my face while watching this unlikely friendship bloom. If you are looking for an intriguing book that makes you question the world, but doesn’t bring you down- this is the book for you! I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed The Book of Koli by M. R. Carey and anything else by Becky Chambers.