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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. Penumbras 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 hes embarked on a complex analysis of the customers behavior and roped his friends into helping to figure out just whats 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 thats rare to the world of literary fiction. Mr. Penumbras 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. Read more Continue reading Read less AMAZON.COM REVIEW Amazon Best Books of the Month, October 2012 (Debut Spotlight) : Mr. Penumbras 24-Hour Bookstore is an old school mystery set firmly in tech-loving, modern day San Francisco. Clay Jannon (former web designer) lands a job at a bookstore with very few patrons and even fewer purchases. His curiosity leads him to the discovery of a larger conspiracy at play, one exciting enough to rope in his best friend (CEO at a startup) and love interest (works at Google) . As Clay and company unravel the puzzles of Mr. Penumbras book shop, the story turns into a sort of nerdy heist, with real-life gadgets, secret societies, and a lot of things to say about the past, present, and future of reading. Sloan originally self-published Mr. Penumbra as a short story through Kindle Direct Publishing, before expanding it to its current form with a traditional print publisher--a fitting trajectory for a fast, fun story that has so wholly and enthusiastically embraced the tension between the digital and analog books. --Kevin Nguyen REVIEW "Delightful." -- Graham Joyce, The Washington Post "An irresistible page-turning novel." -- Newsweek "One of the most thoughtful and fun reading experiences youre likely to have this year . . . extremely charismatic . . . deeply funny . . . theres so much largehearted magic in this book . . . Sloan is remarkably gifted and has an obviously deep affection for both literature and technology." -- Michael Schaub, NPR Books "A jaunty, surprisingly old-fashioned fantasy about the places where old and new ways of accessing knowledge meet . . . [Mr. Penumbras 24-Hour Bookstore] cleverly uses the technological age in the service of its fantasy . . . Sloans ultimate answer to the mystery of what keeps people solving Penumbras puzzle is worth turning pages to find out." -- Tess Taylor, San Francisco Chronicle "[A] winning literary adventure . . . Sloan grounds his jigsawlike plot with Big Ideas about the quest for permanence in the digital age." -- Thom Geier, Entertainment Weekly "Fantastic . . . I loved diving into the world that Sloan created, both the high-tech fantasyland of Google and the ancient analog society. Its packed full of geeky allusions and wonderful characters, and is a celebration of books, whether theyre made of dead trees or digits." -- Jonathan H. Liu, Wired, GeekDad "Robin Sloan cleverly combines the antiquated world of bibliophilia with the pulsating age of digital technology, finding curiosity and joy in both. He makes bits and bytes appear beautiful . . . The rebels journey to crack the code--grappling with an ancient cult, using secret passwords and hidden doorways--will excite anyones inner child. But this is no fantasy yarn. Mr. Sloan tethers his story to a weird reality, striking a comical balance between eccentric and normal . . . The pages swell with Mr. Sloans nerdy affection and youthful enthusiasm for both tangible books and new media. Clays chatty narration maintains the pace and Mr. Sloan injects dry wit and comedic timing suited to his geeky everyman . . . A clever and whimsical tale with a big heart." -- The Economist "Man, is this book fun--especially for any book nerd who isnt in denial about living in the modern age. If you love physical books (the smell! The feel!) but wouldnt give up your iPhone for any reason, if you like puzzles and geeky allusions and bookish cults and quests, then this book is for you. It also glows in the dark." -- Emily Temple, Flavorpill "What makes Mr. Penumbras 24-Hour Bookstore so impressive is Sloans great gift for storytelling and his cast of brilliant, eccentric characters. Think of this novel as part Haruki Murakami, part Dan Brown and part Joseph Cornell: a surreal adventure, an existential detective story and a cabinet of wonders at which to marvel." -- Carmela Ciuraru, Newsday "Beguiling . . . The plot is as tight as nesting boxes, or whatever their digital equivalent . . . Sly and infectious." -- Karen R. Long, The Cleveland Plain Dealer
About the Author
Robin Sloan is the author of the novels Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore and Sourdough, published in the U.S. by MCD. He grew up near Detroit and now split his time between the Bay Area and the internet.
