I feel totally justified in calling Guojing a genius. I have been a fan of hers since I read her wordless picture book Stormy. Her ability to display emotion on her characters' faces without using words, is truly remarkable and this book is no different. Even though there are a few words in Oasis, the story is primarily told through the details of the illustrations, and it is amazing how much the reader begins to feel for AI Mom. I felt the book came to a satisfying conclusion and I would readily read anything else Guojing publishes.

Beautifully illustrated book. I wish the plot touched more on the environment and what made the world come to just being a planet of sand.

This story is super sweet and has beautiful artwork. Jiejie and DiDi created a good example of how it can be difficult when there is a single parent household and the parent must work frequently. I also love that their mother's hesitation to trusting the robot. It made for a sweet heartwarming read about family.

Guojing’s illustrations are beautiful, stark in black and white but soft with texture and round-faced characters. JieJie is a sweet and thoughtful older sibling, shouldering the responsibilities of caring for DiDi and reassuring him of their mother’s return. As the AI replicates the role of a mother, the burden the young girl carries is made even more apparent once she is able to let go and be taken care of. By contrast, once we glimpse the life of the mother working in Oasis City, a new layer is added to the role of AI robots and the humans that create them. This story is sad and bleak at times, but the hopeful solution at the end was satisfying and took me by surprise. An interesting tale at a time when AI is becoming ever more present in our own lives, I appreciated the nuance of the relationships between this little family and the robot that became a part of it.

Oasis by Guojing tells the tale of a future where two children send their days waiting for their mother to come home, going across the desert for water and surviving sandstorms. When they find a dismantled robot, Jie Jie is able to repair it and the relationship evolves from there. The artwork draws one in to the desert and the story keeps one wanting more.

Beautiful! The art is so expressive and atmospheric and the plot, though simple, is effective. I thought the story was going to take a technology is evil turn, which I do usually enjoy, but I appreciated the more balanced view this took.