When most of humanity is ready to take "The Next Step" - that of surrendering individual and corporeal existence to merge into one massive, communal, electronic intelligence - one tribe of hunter-gatherers chooses not to participate in the "Upload". Afraid to allow any corporeal humans to remain on the Earth for fear that they might - inadvertently or otherwise - cause dammage to the computers storing the collective consciousness of the Uploaded humans, the dissidents are sent to live on the moon in a habitat which has been specially constructed to mimic their native African jungle home. Now, many centuries later, the humans of Earth have come to realize the limitations of their Uploaded existence while those residing in the lunar colony are just beginning to spread their wings and explore the full potential of theirs.
This is a simple, elegant tale, in which Sawyer expertly juxtaposes the story of the Uploaded with that of the lunar colonists, thereby creating a vivid picture of what it means to be truly human.