Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

A Novel

By: Robin Sloan

Narrated by: Ari Fliakos

Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

A gleeful and exhilarating tale of global conspiracy, complex code-breaking, high-tech data visualization, young love, rollicking adventure, and the secret to eternal life - mostly set in a hole-in-the-wall San Francisco bookstore.

The Great Recession has shuffled Clay Jannon out of his life as a San Francisco Web-design drone - and serendipity, sheer curiosity, and the ability to climb a ladder like a monkey has landed him a new gig working the night shift at Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. But after just a few days on the job, Clay begins to realize that this store is even more curious than the name suggests. There are only a few customers, but they come in repeatedly and never seem to actually buy anything, instead “checking out” impossibly obscure volumes from strange corners of the store, all according to some elaborate, long-standing arrangement with the gnomic Mr. Penumbra. The store must be a front for something larger, Clay concludes, and soon he’s embarked on a complex analysis of the customers’ behavior and roped his friends into helping to figure out just what’s going on. But once they bring their findings to Mr. Penumbra, it turns out the secrets extend far outside the walls of the bookstore.

With irresistible brio and dazzling intelligence, Robin Sloan has crafted a literary adventure story for the 21st century, evoking both the fairy-tale charm of Haruki Murakami and the enthusiastic novel-of-ideas wizardry of Neal Stephenson or a young Umberto Eco, but with a unique and feisty sensibility that’s rare to the world of literary fiction. Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore is exactly what it sounds like: an establishment you have to enter and will never want to leave, a modern-day cabinet of wonders ready to give a jolt of energy to every curious listener, no matter the time of day.

©2012 Robin Sloan (P)2012 Macmillan Audio

Felt like a novella wrapped around a Google ad.

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The strange mix of fictional corporations, historical characters, and fonts with bizarrely overwhelming mentions of GOOGLE GOOGLE GOOGLE annoyed me. Leveraging all of Google's power was a quick way to illustrate some of the efforts, but lauding their cafeteria, management structure and general nerd culture to the degree and pages he devoted to it was unnecessary. The resolution also angered me for reasons I can not describe without "spoilers".

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The characters, other than his caricature of a "quirky nerd girl" girlfriend, were likeable. The mystery wasn't really that mysterious, but the natural way the story was told made it feel more friendly and enjoyable.

What about Ari Fliakos’s performance did you like?

He does an excellent old man voice.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

It could be properly Wes Anderson-ed up to be enjoyable, but it would really depend on the director.

Loved it

I didn't really know what I was purchasing, but sort of picked it up on a whim. I was entranced...the story weaved its own spell of intrigue, yet it was mixed with these odd, delightful elements. The narrator was delightful for this role. Really enjoyed this!

A little too similar to Ready Player One

I actually looked up which book was written first. While this book is clever it borrows too much from Ready Player One. Same character tropes, same plot progression. I didn't dislike this book, it was fun to read but I was disappointed when I realized how similar they were half way through. Also, for a book about books- it didn't reference literature that much except for the made up Dragon Song Chronicles.

Witty, engaging, and unpredictable. Top rate story

Perfect fit of narrator to story. Fun, engrossing story. Never dull. If you love both books and digital technology you will enjoy this book. The author has created a wonderful story where the two modes are f communication and storytelling converge. Delightful characters abound. You feel like you know them and therefore actually care what happens as the story unfolds. Lots of fun. The only fly in my enjoyment ointment is that the ending left me slightly less than satisfied. It was a quick wrap up to tie all loose strands together. I wanted the story to go on and explore the lives of the characters. In other words, I wasn't ready for it to be over. Had lots more bandwidth for more chapters.

Not as Cool as the Title Holds

It was an okay book with a combination of the surreal and structured electronic world. Interesting topic and the plot went downhill as the characters were too spread out and none really developed any depth. Somehow Google and Immortality and cult were in a the same sentence. Also, the leading female character sucks....

Two dimensional

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. This book tries just a little too hard to show its nerd credentials. The female characters are especially tiresome: the protagonist's relentlessly Manic Pixie Dream Girl in particular. The mystery, such as it is is not all that interesting. And the sucking up to Google is really obvious. Was the author angling for a job there or something?

Would you recommend Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore to your friends? Why or why not?

No, see the answer to this question above.

Which scene was your favorite?

I actually really liked the beginning of the book -- the slow reveal of what this place was. But the rest was just not that interesting.

Do you think Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Only if the author can muster up something with more heft and substance.

Any additional comments?

The narrator is pretty good; and it's not that the book itself is awful--it's just mediocre.

Definitely interesting, but to me, anticlimactic

If you could sum up Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore in three words, what would they be?

original, nerdy, imaginative

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

I liked the mystery of the whole thing and how it slowly developed, but the ending, "the solved mystery" lacked and I was disappointed

Which scene was your favorite?

When the crew visits the secret library

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, I got it to listen to on a long car trip, it definitely kept me intrigued for the whole time

It starts good but that's it..

It starts like a very fun, good, thriller mystery, that would make you want to continue hearing / reading. Really.
however somewhere before the middle it just loses its way and you don't find the storyline interesting enough to follow anymore...
all the relationships in the book are shallow and lack real feeling.
However the performance is wonderful, I would look for more books by Ari.

I want to give a 2....but...

I was really into this book until about 1/3 of the way in. I kept listening because I was hoping it would turn around but I gave up with about 3.5 hours left. It doesn't seem fair to give it a 2 if I didn't finish it. I did like the author's writing style very much - maybe the plot just wasn't for me. I do LOVE this narrator though and he probably kept me listening for longer than I would have otherwise.

Interesting quest

What did you like best about this story?

I always like to read or listen a story about books. And I like to read or listen a story placed in SF Bay Area where I can relate to.
So this book is a double whammy.

Any additional comments?

I can tell the author is not a San Franciscan.No local person calls Bart a train.