The short story “Tongtong’s Summer” by Xia Jia was published for the first time in 2014. It was translated to English by Ken Liu.

For Tongtong it’s a big change when her grandfather comes to live with her family. It’s not easy for anyone because her grandfather was very active and kept on working as a doctor even though he was more than eighty years old until he injured his leg. For that reason, initially he’s always in a bad mood but when Tongtong’s father brings home a robot caretaker and her grandfather starts using it in an unusual different.

“Tongtong’s Summer” is set in a near future where caretakers who use remote control robots take care of the elderly or people who are no longer independent anyway. This is the case of Tongtong’s grandfather, who injured his leg and for this reason lost his mobility.

It’s a story that shows the possible consequences of technological developments that may take place within a short time. In “Tongtong’s Summer” remote control robots were built to allow caretakers to use them for their job. However, that invention can also be used in different ways and that’s what will bring new stimuli in Tongtong’s grandfather’s life.

The basic idea of ​​”Tongtong’s Summer” concerns a technological development but the story mainly focuses on the characters and what they feel. The description of an old man who must face his weakness is realistic. Tongtong’s grandfather lost his autonomy and for this reason is in a bad mood but exploiting well the new technology that situation can change dramatically.

The story told in “Tongtong’s Summer” shows how smart applications of new technologies can change ordinary people’s lives by solving really serious problems. Xia Jia offers us an insight into a family with an optimistic message that today seems rare. For these reasons I think it’s worth reading it. If you like, you can buy it in an ebook anthology available on Amazon USA, Amazon UK and Amazon Canada.