S. F. Prescott

Fascinating and relatable.

Charlee Dyroff is a writer from Boulder, Colorado. Her work has appeared in Guernica, Slate, Lapham’s Quarterly, the Southwest Review, and more. One of her essays was selected for The Best American Food Writing of 2019. Her debut novel, LONELINESS & COMPANY, will be published in 2024.

Published May 7th, 2024.

Lee is a focused academic with high aspirations, described by her classmates as highly intelligent, she is also encouraged by her professors to push herself to be the best. So when she’s recruited into a secret government project to solve the problem of ‘loneliness’ by training a new AI tool about friendship, Lee takes a chance. But how far is she willing to go to teach the algorithm?

I really enjoyed this book. The premise hooked me immediately and kept me turning the pages. In her quest for success, Lee appears more isolated than she realizes. Her brains and ambition distance her from experiencing life the way she is supposed to when training the new AI tool, Vicky—a digital friend—to combat loneliness, an emotion removed from the Emotional Index. Lee hasn’t experienced loneliness (that she’s aware of) and approaches her duties to teach Vicky everything she knows about the ‘human experience’. In doing so, Lee is revitalized, but things quickly escalate beyond her control and it becomes unclear if she’s making her own choices or if the algorithm is ultimately driving her.

Lee is likable, and her transformation causes her to make completely different choices at the end of the book that felt more satisfying for her character arc. I enjoyed the mystery between Lee’s actions and the algorithm. The fact that in doing her job she was also being pushed to experience more and live her life as she should, instead of working constantly. It taught her how to strike a balance between work and her social life, something she had never made time for in the past. I loved the ending, and felt satisfied with Lee’ and the’s choices. The need for humans to strive for perfection is a theme expressed clearly in this book. The pace was steady throughout and I never felt like the story dragged at all. Overall, it was a very enjoyable read.

For readers who enjoy speculative fiction, stories about friendship and love, what it means to be human.

Synopsis:

Lee knows she’s the best. A professor favorite and fellowship winner, there’s no doubt she’ll land one of the coveted jobs at a Big Five corporation. So when, upon graduating, Lee is instead assigned to an unknown company in the dead city of New York, her life goals are completely upended.

In this new role, Lee’s task is to gather enough research to train an AI how to be a friend. She begins online and by studying the social circle of her clueless, outgoing roommate Veronika. But when the company reveals it’s part of a classified government mission to solve loneliness-an emotion erased from society’s lexicon decades ago-Lee’s determination to prove herself kicks into overdrive, and she begins chasing bolder and more dangerous experiences to provide data for the AI.

How far will Lee go to teach the algorithm? As the mysterious affliction spreads, Lee must decide what she’s willing to give up for success and, along the way, learn what it means to be a true friend.