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Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore (2012)

by Robin Sloan

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: Mr. Penumbra (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
8,2747211,031 (3.79)4 / 673
Fantasy. Fiction. Literature. Thriller. HTML:

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 twenty-first 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 reader, no matter the time of day
… (more)

  1. 215
    The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (derelicious, BookshelfMonstrosity)
    derelicious: Both are books about books, with secret societies and mysteries to untangle. The Shadow of the Wind is more gothic and takes place during the Spanish Civil War, and Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore is lighter and takes place in modern times.
    BookshelfMonstrosity: Although they have very different settings (1950s Spain in Shadow of the Wind and modern San Francisco in Mr. Penumbra's), these adventure stories, with underpinnings of romance, offer unique perspectives on the role of books and reading in our lives.… (more)
  2. 121
    Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (Yells, bookworm12)
  3. 50
    The End of Mr. Y by Scarlett Thomas (Anonymous user)
  4. 61
    The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (SqueakyChu)
  5. 20
    The Library of Shadows by Mikkel Birkegaard (Anonymous user)
  6. 20
    Lexicon by Max Barry (Anonymous user)
    Anonymous user: Both books are non-traditional geeky mystery/thrillers.
  7. 20
    The Circle by Dave Eggers (conceptDawg)
    conceptDawg: Similar content and themes
  8. 20
    The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin (sturlington)
  9. 20
    A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cossé (lycomayflower)
  10. 20
    Shelf Monkey by Corey Redekop (nsblumenfeld)
  11. 20
    The Martian by Andy Weir (sturlington)
    sturlington: Mr. Penumbra's reminded me in tone and its reverence for tech, geeks, and pop culture of both The Martian and Ready Player One.
  12. 10
    Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson (Othemts)
  13. 21
    1Q84 by Haruki Murakami (BookshelfMonstrosity)
  14. 10
    The Magicians by Lev Grossman (aethercowboy)
    aethercowboy: Both books deal with a fictional fantasy series that holds a lot of significance to the story.
  15. 10
    The Writer & The Witch by Robin Sloan (MitraLibrary)
  16. 10
    An Abundance of Katherines by John Green (Othemts)
  17. 10
    The Book in the Renaissance by Andrew Pettegree (librorumamans)
    librorumamans: This is the real deal: a thoroughly researched, non-fiction treatment, with particular emphasis on the influence of printing on European culture.
  18. 10
    The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman (generalkala)
  19. 00
    The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow (Othemts)
  20. 11
    Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn (Runa)

(see all 24 recommendations)

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» See also 673 mentions

English (699)  German (6)  Dutch (4)  Italian (2)  Spanish (2)  Portuguese (Portugal) (1)  Piratical (1)  Catalan (1)  All languages (716)
Showing 1-5 of 699 (next | show all)
SEPT 2020, 2nd read
Honestly just as enjoyable the second time around. Always a new detail to notice or appreciate, and listening to this on audio is such a pleasant experience. I wish the Dragon Song Chronicles were real because I badly want to read them!

SEPT/OCT 2019, 1st read
This is book that has been hovering around by TBR for at least 5 years since a customer at a bookstore I was working at raved about it and told me it was unlike anything they had read. I just didn't get around to it until now; I needed something engaging to listen to on my college commute and this was sitting there so I figured I'd finally try it. And I get what that customer meant. "Mr. Penumbra" is truly a unique book, and at no point was this novel what I thought it was going to be.

Goodreads has a solid synopsis, but what it doesn't hint at are the wonderful, sometimes bizarre conversations that take place in the story. There is a lot of discourse around printed books and bookstores VS digital spaces and reading technology, but NOT in a "which is better?" way. This book could have been disastrous in that respect, painting those who read print books as "superior", but Sloan does such a beautiful job of highlight the constraints and affordances of each medium and putting them in conversation with one another. It made my little bibliophile heart swell seeing characters embrace reading as a whole, as an enjoyable, immersive artform that doesn't favor a certain platform or person. I really think this book is a celebration of reading, of curiosity for the sake of curiosity, of sharing knowledge, and the bonds formed between readers.

There were a few moments here and there that I think were a little out of place; for instance, I personally thought too much time was spent on the Google headquarters and describing people readers would never see again. Just from a plot perspective I would have like that trimmed down a bit. And I ALMOST didn't like the ending, but then I did? I think it's what I said before and it just wasn't what I was expecting, so it was a little jarring. But not in a bad way!

I just got a lot of delight out of this book. It's very transportive: it takes readers to new cities, pokes into crevices of thoughts that maybe you hadn't considered before, and paints a world that's both familiar and magical - and for me, that's a really special thing for a book to do. I can't wait to read more of Sloan's writing, and if we ever get a "Mr. Penumbra's" movie I'm gonna LOSE. MY. MIND. ( )
  deborahee | Feb 23, 2024 |
"Your life must be an open city, with all sorts of ways to wander in."

Clay Jannon, an unemployed and desperate ex-web-designer, takes a new job as a night shift clerk at Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. It doesn't take long for Clay to realize that the dusty bookstore is more curious than he initially thought, there are rarely any real customers but there is a small committed group that simply borrow books. Clay isn’t permitted to read any of the books, a rule he soon breaks, and he quickly discovers that the store is a front for something larger. Clay ropes in his friends and a cute girl who works for Google to use high-tech means to uncover the reason behind the bizarre behaviour of his customers. What they discover is a group hunting an ancient secret.

I found myself immediately drawn in the story and just wanted to turn yet another page. The plot was at times slow-moving, but did have some interesting twists and surprises, but what made it for me was the characters, in particular Clay and Ajax Penumbra. OK Clay is a little misogynistic but on the whole he just seemed an engaging and likeable, generous and kind-hearted, regular guy with a somewhat ironic and whimsical outlook on life, with powers he doesn't even realise he has.

A slight downside was Sloan’s characterization of women. There are only two or three major female characters and they are feel merely stereotypes and somewhat two-dimensional alongside their male counterparts.

This book isn't science fiction and it isn't literary fiction, there are no killings, shoot-outs or car chases but is an eclectic and eccentric old-fashioned mystery solved using modern means. I found the technological aspects of this novel interesting if a little troubling, (how much Google and other tech-giants influences our everyday lives) . This book is a quick read but worth it for anyone who’s interested in a whimsical discussion about old-fashioned paper books and technology, friendship and the true meaning of eternal life.

"Walking the stacks in a library, dragging your fingers across the spines.....it's hard not to feel the presence of sleeping spirits." ( )
  PilgrimJess | Feb 8, 2024 |
Marvelous book that'll appeal to modern day readers and bibliophiles, contrasting the modern urge to go digital in all things and why that may or may not be a misstep.

Don't want to spoil anything about this really good and fast read...except not to read it when you're already exhausted as it'll keep you awake for over 100 pages even when you really need the sleep more. ( )
  SESchend | Feb 2, 2024 |
Loved this book!

Reminded me a little bit of "Ready Player One" only with books instead of video games. Mysterious characters, a giant puzzle to solve, a bit of romance and wonderful friendships between a bunch of bookworms.

Plus the book itself has glow in the dark books on it. Super cool!
( )
  hmonkeyreads | Jan 25, 2024 |
enchanting, mesmerizing, uplifting.

Oh how I loved this book. It is simply written, but immediately grabbed me and swept me into the world. The characters are charming and I feel completely at home while reading it. It's wry and tense and comfortable and mysterious. J'adore!
  Zehava42 | Jan 23, 2024 |
Showing 1-5 of 699 (next | show all)
Mr. Penumbra’s 24 hour Bookstore flourishes in the nebulous terrain between super-powered digital information and the text warriors of yore. It rocks in terms of crazy imaginative leaps and is so optimistic about the longevity of books in print that it makes bibliophiles like me positively clap with glee. It does have its share of shortcomings though, but more on that later.
added by SimoneA | editThe Express Tribune, Anam Haq (Nov 10, 2013)
 
And if, in the end, the plot doesn’t entirely satisfy – the love story is a little weak, the 500-year old mystery rather too neatly solved – this novel’s ideas will linger long in the mind.
 
“Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore” is eminently enjoyable, full of warmth and intelligence. Sloan balances a strong plot with philosophical questions about technology and books and the power both contain. The prose maintains an engaging pace as Clay, Mr. Penumbra and the quirky constellation of people around them try to determine what matters more — the solution to a problem or how that solution is achieved.
added by SimoneA | editNew York Times, Roxane Gay (Dec 14, 2012)
 
"In the end, though, the book works fine as an engrossing mystery — and as an intelligent meditation on technology’s trajectory and limits."https://www.librarything.com/work/12661675/book/132262683#
 
I loved diving into the world that Sloan created, both the high-tech fantasyland of Google and the ancient analog society. It’s packed full of geeky allusions and wonderful characters, and is a celebration of books, whether they’re made of dead trees or digits.
added by ablachly | editWired, Jonathan Liu (Oct 6, 2012)
 

» Add other authors (8 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Robin Sloanprimary authorall editionscalculated
Corral, RodrigoCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Fliakos, AriNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Kagan, AbbyDesignersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Solow, NannaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
FOR BETTY ANN AND JIM
First words
Lost in the shadows of the shelves, I almost fall off the ladder.
Quotations
Now I've resigned myself to sitting at the front desk, but I can't stop squirming. If fidgets were Wikipedia edits, I would have completely revamped the entry on guilt by now, and translated it into five new languages.
You know, I'm really starting to think the whole world is just a patchwork quilt of crazy little cults, all with their own secret spaces, their own records, their own rules.
He has the strangest expression on his face -- the emotive equivalent of 404 PAGE NOT FOUND.
Now, for the first time in my life, I empathize 100 percent with Fluff McFly. My heart is beating at hamster-speed and I am throwing my eyes around the room, looking for some way out.
There is no immortality that is not built on friendship and work done with care.
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (2)

Fantasy. Fiction. Literature. Thriller. HTML:

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 twenty-first 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 reader, no matter the time of day

No library descriptions found.

Book description
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 have 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, they "check 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. Soon Clay has embarked on a complex analysis of the customers’ behavior and roped his friends into helping him figure out just what is going on. And when 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 twenty-first century, evoking both the fairy-tale charm of Haruki Murakami and the enthusiastic novel-of-ideas wizardry of Neal Stephenson or the young Umberto Eco, but with a unique and feisty sensibility that is 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 reader, no matter the time of day.

TEXT EDITION:

CLAY JANNON, twenty-six and unemployed, reads books about vampire policemen and teenage wizards. Familiar, predictable books that fit neatly into a section at the bookstore. But he is about to encounter a new species of book entirely: secret, strange and frantically sought after.

These books will introduce him to the strangest, smartest girl he's ever met. They will lead him across the country, through the shadowed spaces where old words hide. They will set him on a quest to unlock a secret held tight since the time of Gutenberg — a secret that touches us all.

But before that, these books will get him a job.
Haiku summary
Mystery Bookstore
needed better ending but
still amusing read.
(legallypuzzled)
Every time Google
pauses, I shall think fondly
of men in black cowls.
(legallypuzzled)

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An edition of this book was published by Penguin Australia.

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