The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances

When I first picked up The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances, I had very high hopes – after all, when have you ever read a book where a Roomba robot vacuum is the protagonist? Needless to say, Glenn Dixon has really knocked it out of the park with his ability to combine cosy elements (think Before the Coffee Gets Cold) with the rather bleak backdrop that the book is set against.

The first half of the book focuses heavily on Harold and Edie Winter, an elderly couple who live unassuming lives largely out of the sight of the ‘Grid’, which is described as an efficiency-seeking, omnipotent administrator over the whole world. Yet, when Edie passes, the Grid immediately identifies an issue: Harold is only one human, and thus there is apparently no need for him to live in such a large house anymore. And so begins the Grid’s attempts to drive him out, causing significant surprise to the sentient electronics that have been supporting him for so long. Nevertheless, the Roomba (self-named ‘Scout’ from To Kill a Mockingbird) is at great odds with herself due to her personal desire to protect Harold clashing with the overarching edict from the Grid not to interfere. She is also generally in turmoil: What is happiness? What is sadness? At the beginning, her fellow appliances tell her not to waste time with such questions, but Scout is determined never to let go.

Overall, Dixon has done an incredible job condensing so much into just 250 pages. His vision is strong, well portrayed, and flows. Yet, at its very core, this is a story about relationships and connections. When placed into a dire situation, both appliances and humans are able to band together against the common enemy and strive for a better future – and isn’t that what the human spirit is truly about?