Robot Dreams

Told visually without words, Sara Varon’s graphic novel for children, Robot Dreams (2007), deals with the often melancholy nature of friendship and relationships in a world where unintended consequences and other people often get in the way of the people we love.

The story begins with a lonely Dog receiving a package in the mail. It is a kit for a “build it yourself” tin robot. Dog sets to work building the robot. He takes Robot to the library, letting his new Robot friend pick out a movie to watch. Robot chooses Castle in the Sky. Back at Dog’s home, Dog and Robot make popcorn together and then sit on the couch to watch the movie. Dog notices that Robot has gone to sleep, so he covers his new friend with a blanket and then goes to bed himself.

The next day, they return to the library and Dog shows Robot a guide to Dog beaches. They leave the library, check the bus schedule, then board a bus which takes them to the beach. Dog jumps into the water, but Robot is frightened and puts just one toe into the ocean. However, he enjoys this and then joins his friend in the water; they swim for a while. Then they come back to the beach and lie down on blankets, falling asleep.



When Dog wakes up, he taps on Robot to wake him up. Robot finds that the salt water has rusted him, and he cannot move at all. He makes several attempts, but he is rusted solid and stuck. Sadly, Dog gathers his things and leaves, not knowing what else to do. Lying alone on the beach, Robot falls back asleep. He dreams about the day, reliving arriving at the beach with Dog, but imagining that he chose not to go into the water and stayed on the sand, reading a book, until Dog tapped him on the shoulder and they left together. When he wakes up, he is still alone on the beach.

Time goes by. In September, Dog goes back to the library and finds a Robot repair manual. He reads it and gathers materials to try to fix his friend. He goes to sleep, dreaming about leaving Robot alone on the beach. He wakes up. He calls a taxi to go to the beach immediately but finds that the beach has been closed and a fence has been put up. He can see Robot still there on the sand, frozen, and alone. Depressed, Dog leaves.

A trio of rabbits is rowing a boat near the beach when their boat suddenly springs a leak. They make a desperate dash for the beach and contemplate the hole in the boat. They see Robot and go over to him. Robot dreams they will take him with them, but they only chop off his leg, using it to repair their boat, and then row off without even a glance back.



Dog waits out the winter, making new friends, but none of them are right. He makes friends with a duck, but the duck soon leaves to migrate with his fellow ducks. He makes friends with an anteater, but when they try to share a meal, the anteater’s choice of food makes Dog sick. He finally makes friends with a snowman, which works out well, but when the weather warms up, the snowman melts, leaving Dog lonely again.

Meanwhile, on the beach, a mother bird builds a nest on Robot. He likes the company, and when her eggs hatch and the tiny birds emerge, he becomes much attached to them. However, when the birds grow up, they fly away, and Robot is once again alone. Robot frequently dreams of meeting Dog again; sometimes these dreams are happy, and sometimes they are sad. A scrap metal collector finds Robot, picking him up from the beach, to bring him to a nearby dump where he leaves Robot on a pile of trash. Robot is very sad, but he is soon discovered by a raccoon that takes him off the dump.

Cruelly, Raccoon takes Robot apart, using Robot to build a radio, transforming the rusted Robot into a new form that plays music. Raccoon loves the music and begins to dance. He and Robot become friends. Robot is happy not to be alone anymore. Raccoon takes Robot with him.



One day, when Raccoon and Robot are out, Robot sees Dog, who has purchased a new robot kit and built himself a new Robot friend. Robot forgives Dog for leaving him on the beach and is happy that Dog has found a new friend.