Ajax Penumbra 1969

By: Robin Sloan

Narrated by: Ari Fliakos

Length: 1 hr and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

From Robin Sloan, author of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore, the story of Mr. Penumbra’s first trip to San Francisco - and of how he got entangled with the city’s most unusual always-open enterprise….

It is August 1969. The Summer of Love is a fading memory. The streets of San Francisco pulse to the sounds of Led Zeppelin and Marvin Gaye. And of jackhammers: A futuristic pyramid of a skyscraper is rising a few blocks from City Lights bookstore and an unprecedented subway tunnel is being built under the bay. Meanwhile, south of the city, orchards are quickly giving way to a brand-new industry built on silicon.

But young Ajax Penumbra has not arrived in San Francisco looking for free love or a glimpse of the technological future. He is seeking a book: the single surviving copy of the Techne Tycheon, a mysterious volume that has brought and lost great fortune for anyone who has owned it. The last record of the book locates it in the San Francisco of more than a century earlier, and on that scant bit of evidence, Penumbra's university has dispatched him west to acquire it for their library. After a few weeks of rigorous hunting, Penumbra feels no closer to his goal than when he started. But late one night, after another day of dispiriting dead ends, he stumbles across a 24-hour bookstore, and the possibilities before him expand exponentially....

©2013 Robin Sloan (P)2013 Macmillan Audio

Fun story, great narrator!

Any additional comments?

This is an entertaining little story -- humorous, mildly adventurous, clean. What makes it really great, though, is Ari Fliakos' performance. He's terrific! Each character is given the perfect voice. I recommend for all ages.

The Back Story

The 24 hour bookstore is a modern icon, and it's good to learn of its custodians' roots. There's still a lot to learn, though. Great fun.

Cute prequel to a wonderful book

Mr. Penumbra ' s 24 Hour Bookstore is a fun and charming book. This prequel is not as good but has the same style of quirky characters and charm and is a worthwhile addition.

A bit of an explanation

That's what this book is - it traces how Mr. Penumbra arrives at the bookstore. Not much more.

a love letter to books

Robin Sloan takes his readers on a brilliant adventure, made even more intriguing by a love of books, collecting, and a fascinating bit of San Francisco history. If your home smells like a used/antique bookstore, this story is definitely for you. More books, please.

good introduction to ajax penumbra.

Good prologue to the 24 hour bookstore explaining the main character and how he got to where he was on the first book

Why couldn't it be longer!?!

The only remotely negative comment I have in regards to this book is that it is entirely way too short!!!

Penumbra Prequel Is Too Slight

Not anywhere near as good as Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, the full length novel to which this short story/novella serves as a prequel. This story of how young Ajax Penumbra came to San Francisco 35 years earlier and ended up in his bookstore proved interesting enough to me as a fan of 24-Hour Bookstore, but it could not have stood on its own and doesn't rank with its predecessor, which is near the top my all-time list of audiobooks.

The big difference between the original novel and this prequel is the point of view. 24-Hour Bookstore is narrated in the first person by young Clay Jannon in the present day. His charisma and exuberance and ingenuity really carries the novel. 1969 is in the third person, relating the story of Penumbra's early years, filling in an important part of the story, but without that same sense of wonder and discovery.

The collision of the old world and new technology is the central theme of both stories. For Clay, the limitless capabilities of modern computing open up doors to relearning "old knowledge" contained in legacy technology like print and literature, marrying the widsom of the ages with the promise of the future. In 1969, microcomputing, still in its infancy, provides a backdrop to Penumbra's journey, but he makes different choices than Clay makes three decades later. As likable as Penumbra is, his big flaw is timidity. 1969 proves that timidity was indeed his starting point. How might Penumbra's world have turned out if he had been as bold and resourceful in 1969 as Clay was in 24-Hour Bookstore?

Having read 24-Hour Bookstore in print as well as listening to it as an audiobook, I knew already that Ari Fliakos augmented the experience by adding a lively voice to the narrative and good characterizations. He does no less in 1969.

Any fan of 24-Hour Bookstore MUST read/listen to this prequel. Chances are I'm being too picky in my critique and most fans will love it as much as the novel. For those who haven't read 24-Hour Bookstore, I would of course recommend reading/listening to that first and then doubling back to 1969. However, I have seen reviews where people read this first and liked it well enough to continue on to 24-Hour Bookstore, so either way, I guess.

Perfect prequel

This is the perfect prequel to Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, giving readers a better understanding of who Ajax Penumbra is and how he came to own the 24-hour bookstore. Just as interesting as Mr. Penumbra in this story is how Robin Sloan writes about San Francisco and its history. Sadly, this one was over far too soon; I'm hoping Mr. Sloan will write more about Ajax Penumbra, his life, and his bookstore.

fun add-on to the full book

Fun little prequel to 'Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore', telling us how young Ajax Penumbra came to be involved with the bookstore and The Membership. There are no major plot point reveals, but it's an enjoyable glimpse for fans of the longer book. The audiobook is read by the same narrator as the long book.