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In a fast-paced future where machines have taken over many of the jobs once held by people, a little robot may be humanity's best hope for survival.
It’s late on Earth, but mechanical workers are still busy delivering parcels, chopping trees, and cutting hair. Looking after children. Clearing mines. Running assembly lines in the chicken factory. All rushed by a boss yelling, “Hurry up, chop chop!”
“Chop Chop, that’s me,” thinks one little robot. He works, he delivers, he dashes back and forth. Chop Chop is programmed to do everything, and always does his best. Faster and faster he goes, but it’s never quite enough.
Award-winning author-illustrator Linda Bondestam’s latest picture book combines science fiction, humor, and an adorable robot to pose a question for kids and adults alike: What will happen if the wheels of our world keep rolling at turbo speed?
"Part of the book’s appeal is its humour. Bondestam includes jokes for the adult audience such as a reference to the song ‘Öppna landskap’ (Open Landscapes) by Ulf Lundell. The irony of one robot being replaced by another robot is also not lost on mature readers (...) Children may especially connect with Chop Chop’s size in the illustrations. Unlike the other robots, he is small, not the height of the adult characters in the book, but just the size of the children."
— Elizabeth Lutz, Swedish Book Review
"In Chop Chop, Bondestam curiously explores the picture book format through landscape panoramas, illustrations that bleed beyond their frames, and an unusually high page count for a picture book. The contrasting yet subtly smudged colour palette works effectively alongside sharp and concise phrases and snappy dialogue. Form, colour, and text combine seamlessly into a cohesive and compelling picture book narrative. With Chop Chop, Bondestam continues to boldly explore the picture book format both in content and form. As in My Life at the Bottom, she demonstrates a unique ability to (children’s) literarily portray burning contemporary societal issues. Neither climate catastrophe, war, nor the end of the world are foreign themes in this cohesive body of work, which warmly and rebelliously insists on conversations about the conditions for life on our planet. Even within the themes of robotics and AI versus working life under capitalist terms, Bondestam manages to squeeze out a hopeful vision of new possibilities."
— 2025 Nordic Council Children and Young People’s Literature Prize Jury
"The size of the book and the choice of materials do justice to the insightful illustrations, which play a key role in the narrative. The illustrations use a wide range of narrative imagery in a varied and justified way. The element of surprise remains until the end of the work. Apart from the effect varnish on the cover, the book has a matte finish throughout, which soothes the reading experience."
— The Most Beautiful Books of 2024 Jury