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

is there a difference between old and new?

learn how an old school book store owner and a young creative with a Mac figure out the meaning of life! a great mystery, compelling story that I did not want to our down! countless plot twists, connections and a history lesson all in one.

Fun story!

This is a fun book to listen to. It has unexpected twists in it. I thought the narrator did a great job.

Pure fun!!

This story was just an absolute delight, beginning to end. The narrator really sounded like a carefree 20-something guy trying to find his place in the world. The wit and silliness of the main character's commentary was fun and just the right touch of humor. I do wonder what the written version of this book looks like, though that might just be the graphic designer in me wanting more visual input. While I had fun imagining what the crazy code books looked like and what the font might be, I do wonder if the printed version provided samples. Other than that, it was definitely an easy, fun listen, and I have recommended this to all my friends!

Exceptional

Exceptional, fun read! Current and classic! Fast and engaging! Will recommend to other avid readers and 'listeners!'

A Very Fun Listen

I am beginning all of my reviews with a rating like movies. I give this title a G/PG rating. There were only 2 expletives and only mild. There was no sex. This is not the usual type of book I listen to, however I really liked it. It was fun and lighthearted. It was not as "nerdy" as other reviewers have stated. My husband and I (60 and 55 years of age) enjoyed it as we drove along on a road trip.

Fun story

I gave this a high rating , not because of lyrical prose, or depth of thought, or intricate plotting, but because it was a decently crafted. fun story to read. No one died. no one was evil,.no one was deeply hurt. Everything ended well. I like escaping to that world sometimes. If you dont, then I do not recommend this book for you.

Like Books? Like computers? Get this.

This was like Dan Brown’s Davinci Code meets the nostalgia of Google in the late 2000s meets the sleeziness of Chuck Palahniuk. I learned about this book from an article about Google Books.

The author has my browser history?!?

Any additional comments?

This book employed--as short comments or larger plot devices--a wonderful cross section of my interests. My middle & high schooler and I all laughed out loud together as several points in the narration.

If you hate comic sans (or even know what that means), you'll probably like Mr. Penumbra's.

What a fun read!

nice blend of technology and quirky. very satisfying epilogue. great characters and the main character made me laugh several times

A Combination of old and new! Da Vinci Code-ish

This book draws you in with the mystery of what is happening and then hooks you with the uncomfortable feeling of doing something you are not supposed to.

The story starts of pulling you in because you want to understand more. But what I enjoyed was being pulled along with a peppering of getting caught doing something you know you shouldn't but you can't help yourself.

As a techie I did like the spattering of Google references, fact or fiction it didn't matter there was still a feeling of the contemporary.

There were shadows of the Da Vinci Code but nonetheless, thoroughly enjoyable.