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Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Ari Fliakos
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
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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.
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When Maggie Banks arrives to run her best friend's struggling bookstore, she expects to sell bestsellers to the small-town clientele. But with the town on the map as a top literary destination and the tourist society bent on keeping businesses historic, Maggie is banned from selling anything written this century. So, when a series of mishaps suddenly tip the bookstore toward ruin, Maggie will have to get creative to keep the shop afloat. And in Maggie's world, bookish rules are made to be broken.
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Fast read great narrator great storyline
- By Julianne P McGuirk on 03-17-24
By: Shauna Robinson
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Kingdom Keepers: The Return Book One Disney Lands
- Kingdom Keepers: The Return, Book 1
- By: Ridley Pearson
- Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
With the defeat of the Overtakers behind them, the five teenagers known as the Kingdom Keepers should be celebrating. By all accounts they saved Disneyland from certain destruction. Why then did their mentor leave one last puzzle for them to decipher? The Keepers must solve a puzzle of the past, or be crushed under an evil that makes the Overtakers seem like gentle souls.
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Why do I keep buying these?
- By Rebecca on 04-04-16
By: Ridley Pearson
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Truly Devious
- A Mystery
- By: Maureen Johnson
- Narrated by: Kate Rudd
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early 20th century tycoon, who wanted to make a wonderful place full of riddles, twisting pathways, and gardens. "A place", he said, "where learning is a game." Shortly after the school opened, his wife and daughter were kidnapped. The only real clue was a mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym "Truly, Devious".
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I enjoyed it, but I’m pissed about the ending
- By Laura on 04-08-19
By: Maureen Johnson
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Learning to Swear in America
- By: Katie Kennedy
- Narrated by: Aaron Landon
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
An asteroid is hurtling toward Earth. A big, bad one. Maybe not kill-all-the-dinosaurs bad but at least kill-everyone-in-California-and-wipe-out-Japan-with-a-tsunami bad. Yuri, a physicist prodigy from Russia, has been recruited to aid NASA as they calculate a plan to avoid disaster. The good news is Yuri knows how to stop the asteroid - his research in antimatter will probably win him a Nobel Prize if there's ever another Nobel Prize awarded. But the trouble is, even though NASA asked for his help, no one there will listen to him.
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An Absolute gem of an audiobook. Well worth buying
- By Amiesbookreviews on 03-30-17
By: Katie Kennedy
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Firespell
- Dark Elite, Book 1
- By: Chloe Neill
- Narrated by: Mary Kane
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
From the author of the Chicagoland Vampires novels, a new series about a boarding school filled with something worse than homework. Lily's parents have sent her to a fancy boarding school in Chicago filled with the ultra-rich. If that wasn't bad enough, she's hearing and seeing bizarre things on St. Sophie's creepy campus. Her roommate, Scout, keeps her sane, but keeps disappearing at night. When one day Lily finds Scout running from real-life monsters, she learns the hard way that Scout is involved in a splinter group of rebel teens.They protect Chicago from demons, vamps, and dark magic users....
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The Narrator OMG
- By Patricia_N_ on 08-20-16
By: Chloe Neill
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The Grimm Legacy
- By: Polly Shulman
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Elizabeth has just started working as a page at the New York Circulating Material Repository - a lending library of objects, contemporary and historical, common and obscure. And secret, too - for in the repository's basement lies the Grimm Collection, a room of magical items straight from the Grimm Brother's fairy tales. But the magic mirrors and seven-league boots and other items are starting to disappear.
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Great Story
- By Lady on 12-19-12
By: Polly Shulman
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The Cutting Room
- A Time Travel Thriller
- By: Edward W. Robertson
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In the future, there are many parallel Earths - but only one of them has time travel. Known as Primetime, its criminals break into the pasts of other worlds, far beyond the reach of conventional police. Blake Din is the top agent of the Cutting Room, the group tasked with stopping these trespassers. After a mission to undo the murder of a young boy, he uncovers extensive damage to another world's timeline - and a conspiracy that reaches all the way back to Primetime.
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Characters and their journeys mildly interesting
- By Sailfish on 09-27-16
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Con Academy
- By: Joe Schreiber
- Narrated by: Michael Hinton
- Length: 6 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It's his senior year, and Will Shea has conned his way into one of the country's most elite prep schools. But he soon runs into Andrea, a fellow con artist. With the school not big enough for the both of them, they make a bet that whoever can con Brandt Rush, the richest, most privileged student in the school, out of $50,000 gets to stay at the school. Will starts setting up his con (an online poker scam) with his uncle, who's one of the best grifters in the business, and with the unwanted help of his father.
By: Joe Schreiber
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Idoru
- By: William Gibson
- Narrated by: John McLain
- Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Colin Laney is here looking for work. He is an intuitive fisher for patterns of information. But Laney knows how to sift for the dangerous bits. Which makes him useful - to certain people. Chia McKenzie is here on a rescue mission. Her idol is the singer Rez, of the band Lo,Rez. When the Seattle chapter of the Lo,Rez fan club decided that he might be in trouble in Tokyo, they sent Chia to check it out. Rei Toei is the idoru - the beautiful, entirely virtual media star adored by all Japan. Rez has declared that he will marry her. This is the rumor that has brought Chia to Tokyo.
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The narrator made me turn this off in 10 seconds
- By Rob on 12-02-18
By: William Gibson
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How Like a God
- By: Brenda W. Clough
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
What would it be like, to get absolute power? Would you wear a cape and fight crime? Rule the planet? Or perhaps you would be like Rob Lewis, and watch your world collapse around you. Does absolute power corrupt absolutely? Rob is going to find out.
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At one point the main character rapes at 13 year old girl
- By Richard Davis on 05-29-21
By: Brenda W. Clough
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Off to Be the Wizard
- Magic 2.0, Book 1
- By: Scott Meyer
- Narrated by: Luke Daniels
- Length: 10 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
It's a simple story. Boy finds proof that reality is a computer program. Boy uses program to manipulate time and space. Boy gets in trouble. Boy flees back in time to Medieval England to live as a wizard while he tries to think of a way to fix things. Boy gets in more trouble. Oh, and boy meets girl at some point.
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Hang in there
- By Kelly on 03-04-17
By: Scott Meyer
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Click'd
- By: Tamara Ireland Stone
- Narrated by: Suzy Jackson
- Length: 5 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Allie Navarro can't wait to show her best friends the app she built at CodeGirls summer camp. CLICK'D pairs users based on common interests and sends them on a fun (and occasionally rule-breaking) scavenger hunt to find each other. And it's a hit. By the second day of school, everyone is talking about CLICK'D. Watching her app go viral is amazing. But when Allie discovers a glitch that threatens to expose everyone's secrets, she has to figure out how to make things right.
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Great read!
- By Connie on 06-29-19
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Superheroes
- By: Peter S. Beagle, Daryl Gregory, James Patrick Kelly, and others
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman, Joe Barrett, Christina Delaine, and others
- Length: 17 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Modern gods and goddesses, remote, revered - and like the pantheon of heroes and heroines of ancient myth - possessing great power tempered with flaws. Now, find within this anthology great tales by gifted and award-winning authors who move superheroes from the four-color panels of comic books to the fantastic pages of fiction, stories that will remind anyone who ever wanted to wear a cape or don a cowl of the extraordinary powers of the imagination!
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Pretentious tired old concepts
- By BookofJoy on 12-29-14
By: Peter S. Beagle, and others
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Await Your Reply
- A Novel
- By: Dan Chaon
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Three strangers who are trying to find their way in the wake of loss become entwined in an identity theft scheme, which has a resounding impact on them all. A gorgeously written psychological study, and a meditation on identity in the modern world, this is a literary novel with the haunting momentum of a thriller.
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Well Narrated, but Thoroughly Depressing
- By Rob Prindle on 12-04-09
By: Dan Chaon
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Female character harassed and *apologizes* for it
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The irascible A. J. Fikry, owner of Island Books - the only bookstore on Alice Island - has already lost his wife. Now his most prized possession, a rare book, has been stolen from right under his nose in the most embarrassing of circumstances. The store itself, it seems, will be next to go. One night upon closing, he discovers a toddler in his children’s section with a note from her mother pinned to her Elmo doll: I want Maya to grow up in a place with books and among people who care about such kinds of things. I love her very much, but I can no longer take care of her.
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The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry
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In Victorian London, Genevieve Timmons poses as a spiritualist to swindle wealthy mourners—until one misstep lands her in a jail cell awaiting the noose. Then a stranger arrives to make her a peculiar offer. The lord he serves, Mr. Pemberton, has been inconsolable since the tragic death of his beautiful bride-to-be. If Genevieve can perform a séance persuasive enough to bring the young lord peace, she will win her freedom.
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Excellent!
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Meet Phluttr - a diabolically addictive new social network and a villainess, heroine, enemy, and/or bestie to millions. Phluttr has ingested every fact and message ever sent to, from, and about her innumerable users. Her capabilities astound her makers - and they don't even know the tenth of it. But what's the purpose of this stunning creation? Is it a front for something even darker and more powerful than the NSA?
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Wow!
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What listeners say about Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- january
- 11-04-12
A light, fun, easy listen
Before I read/listen to a book I read lots and lots of reviews. After I finish a book I go back and reread the reviews and think to myself, "Oh! That's what they meant!" It's so difficult to tell if you'll like a particular book when people are being so careful not to give anything away in their reviews. So now it's my turn to try to write something meaningful without giving anything away.
At first I thought the book was set sometime in the near future because of the way the author describes things. But it was just clever wording about our present situation. So, there's a guy, Clay, who is an out of work graphic designer. He's been applying for jobs, but there's not enough to go around, especially in graphic design. He's out walking one day when he comes upon a bookstore with a help wanted sign in the window. He walks in, meets the owner, Mr. Penumbra, and is hired on the spot for the overnight shift. (A 24 hour book store?!?!? What a fantastic idea!)
It seems a little odd to say, but I thought it kind of rushed too quickly into the mystery. I like to be eased into a book. On the plus side, you get sucked into the story right away. There's no looking back.
I don't agree with some of the other reviewers that said it's too techie, and a love letter to Google. I don't live in California, or work for an internet related company, but I search Google 50 times a day. This book demonstrates how dramatically our lives have changed in such a short time. Maybe this is how they felt at the turn of the last century with the rise of the automobile.
As for the end, I thought Mr. Sloan brought this book to a lovely conclusion. It's wrapped up nice a neat, like a Christmas package. No loose ends and no head scratching. This book is light, but not fluffy. It's a good book to kick back and relax with. Don't take all the negative reviews too seriously. This book is not too techie for average people. This is our life now. You'll get it.
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198 people found this helpful
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- Paula
- 10-21-12
A Profoundly Mesmerizing Tale
I loved this book! And no one could be more surprised by that statement than me! I'm an over-60 female listener with absolutely no background in the underworld of imaginary dragons and such; and have only fleeting technological understandings. Nevertheless, this story caught my head and heart and I enjoyed it thoroughly. The narration is among the best I've heard -- flawless!!! It is a centuries old mystery set in such contemporary times and places that you can't help but be drawn in. Great story!!
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131 people found this helpful
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- Brendolynne
- 01-04-13
Nerdy, action filled romp through cyber space
As a nerd this was a very fun read, as there are few books I've read that deal with tech issues and have decent plots. Unfortunately the characters were consistent with my two decades long experience of being the only girl in the place. The male characters were varied, eccentric, complex and evolved as the novel unfolded. The three or four females tossed in were two dimensional male figments of imagination. The two young ones were gorgeous, brilliant with no discernible character. The older female, who made a few brief appearances, was the skinny, frail squirrelly old bitty you see in children's books. Sorry for the sexist rant. Thought Robin was female when I purchased this book and had to transition into male think a chapter in.
That aside, the plot was contemporary and ingenious. Enjoyed the peek into Google employment (as I've always wanted a field trip through the place) and the amazing inventions and contrivances created to solve the mysteries. Truly entertaining right to the end. The last philosophical reflection I thought very apt at how our society has to find that delicate balance between high tech and the native artisan. Do we really want Google to replace our brain? As one who has had a passion for computers most of her life and is a Montessori teacher I struggle with that balance every day. Sloan's conclusions were very insightful. The narration by Ari Fliakos was marvelous. He could read me to sleep any night of the week.
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- Susan
- 11-02-12
Fun, thought-provoking, mysterious.... and FUN !
Would you consider the audio edition of Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore to be better than the print version?
This is a book to be HEARD. Very much at issue in this novel is the relationship between content and method of delivery. The narrator uses his voice to great advantage, just the right nuances -- sometimes he appears to be going over the top, but then you realize that the effect is spot on.
What other book might you compare Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore to and why?
In an odd way, MP24HB reminds me of The Night Circus -- there is the same sense of alternate reality layered onto "real" reality. Mr Penumbr'a is shorter and less serious, the setting is very different, and the "magic" here is in the technology.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Oh, yes. In fact, I almost did.
Any additional comments?
This would make a good book club selection -- a nice length, easy to follow, light-hearted, but offering some interesting discussion points. In the thousands of years of human history, print hasn't been around all that long. Is it really a tragedy that many are turning to digital and audio sources for "reading" material? Is it ultimately an either/or situation? What would you do for immortality? What's a friend? A mentor? For that matter, what is a book?
Not perfect -- the epilogue is superfluous -- but a very nice debut.
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- donna
- 01-22-13
Still Thinking about this Book!!!
I am not much of a fiction reader; I prefer nonfiction most days, but occasionally I am drawn into a good story. I was hooked almost immediately, by the narrator's artful presentation and timing...and the main character, an intelligent, yet unemployed, geeky, introvert living in San Francisco working in a mysterious 24 hour bookstore, just piqued my interest. I am not a tech person, but I learned a lot from the technical conversations and descriptions of what it is like to be a Google employee and to view solving the problems of this mystery through high tech means. It was a wonderful, thought provoking adventure, and I learned things that have been beneficial in my everyday life. It has been months since I listened to this book, and I am still thinking about it regularly. I would definitely recommend it to my friends, and l plan to listen to it again.
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- Susan Mather
- 10-09-12
4.5+. Google employees, tech folk & book-mystery
What did you love best about Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore?
Google employees, computer geeks (from low geek to high geek, on the geek scale), a solid story I'm glad I read but after this one, you've just got to read Peter Clines' 14. They're both good, and 14 is definitely 5 stars (just in case you only have 1 credit left). Or you could Exchange a book you just couldn't read after buying it.
Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?
Semi-edge of my seat, yeah. It's been a week or so but I really really liked this one, narrator, characters, and unique, hi-tech references (but nothing that you won't understand, yet enough to whet your appetite).
What about Ari Fliakos’s performance did you like?
He fits his character, which is a compliment; it means the narrator didn't stand out, instead you focus on the story which is the better (by far) than concentrating on a narrator's crummy accent or whatever. No whatever's here.
If you could rename Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, what would you call it?
Are you kidding? Title's are the hardest; and besides, I liked this title. It's one of the.reasons I bought the book. It fits somehow.
Any additional comments?
It's much better than reading those romance novels where women fall for these controlling men, geez. Don't women know by now that control is the opposite of love? No, the guys in this book, they're way more cool, well the main one is. Enjoy. And then read "14".
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- Pamela Harvey
- 10-19-12
Geek-Fic
This book reads more like a YA geekfest rather than the novel as it's advertised. The characters are well-drawn - could be archetypes of all the marginal guys (& gals) from my high school days - marginal because they were brainiacs and mathletes and did not participate, either by choice or by expulsion from the "it" group, in the popular cultural elite du jour.
Yes, it's all about an unusual bookstore but not from an adult's perspective of the store nor from the viewpoint of what happens in the neighborhood. I just felt caged in the mind of a precocious and brilliant teenager - even though the protagonist is way older than that - and was really looking for a book for an older demographic. Which is a convoluted way of saying this was not the book for me.
The writing seemed juvenile and I kept thinking I was reading a Harry Potter book with different settings and different characters.
NOT what I expected AT ALL. Another waste of a credit.
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- Aryn
- 10-29-12
What a lovely and unexpected tale
The story was not at all what I was expecting, and it was all the better for that. I'm afraid to say anything about the story, because the expectations might ruin it for you. But, no violence, ideas offered, a great imaginative tale that kept me guessing, willingly, til the end. Wish I had a book group to discuss it with. YMMV
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- book lover
- 10-05-12
wonderful book, terrific narration
Fabulous book--original, whimsical, well written. Delightful narration.
One of my favorite books ever. I would give it a "10" if I could.
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- Timo
- 11-16-12
Modern day fantasy for grown up super-nerds
This is probably one of the nerdiest books I have ever read. But that is ok, because I am a nerd. To enjoy this book you should have played Dungeons and Dragons as a child and languished in the very special teenage limbo where you dreamt of good looking, cool girls who liked you for your brains and were into computers. And then you grew up to become a successful media or communications manager, web designer or SEO specialists. Sounds familiar? Then you will love this book. Else, you will probably be a bit bewildered and confused because most of the references won't make sense to you. So much for the story.
As for the delivery: I think Ari Fliakos does a great job reading this book and bringing the different characters to life.
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