Most stories about cybernetically “uplifted” animals tend to portray them as alienated super-soldiers or jolly butlers, but Mary Robinette Kowal probably has the right idea in her story “Evil Robot Monkey,” online as an audio.
The story, from the Solaris Book Of New Science Fiction Vol. 2, is up as an audio file on Kowal’s site, and it’s well worth listening to. For one thing, Kowal has a great reading voice, very smooth and NPR-ish, and for another, the story is awesomely depressing. It’s a great examination of art and the creative process, and what it feels like to be an artist who’s looked at merely as a curiosity or as a momentary amusement for child barbarians. And art as a containment device for impotent rage. Robot Death Monkey illustration from RobotDeathMonkey.com. [“Evil Robot Monkey” at Mary Robinette Kowal]
