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What Members Thought
Funny and hip. The ending was a little cheesy and it did what I hate when it sets something up that seems so great and then, oh hey it didn't work out but whatever. It was a great read though, and I was happy that I liked something everyone else has raved about. It makes me feel more connected to other readers when that happens.
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I didn't like the characters in this book, I thought the premise was really weird. I don't like really like science fiction, and while this book wasn't science fiction, it was about science fiction, and that turned me off to it. I also am not really too interested in all the amazing things that Google and technology can do, so I didn't like that part either. Most of all, I just didn't like the story.
Even though I knew otherwise, for some reason I thought this book was going to be about a nice o ...more
Even though I knew otherwise, for some reason I thought this book was going to be about a nice o ...more
This book was a total surprise for me. I read it as a part of my online book club. I picked it because it sounded slightly better than the two other choices, and I am so glad I did!
This is a story about a graphic designer, who gets a job as a clerk in a bookshop, that seems to be a site for borrowing books for some strange book club, where people show up to get books. He starts uncovering the secrets of the group, along with a visualization programmer from Google.
I could totally relate to the te ...more
This is a story about a graphic designer, who gets a job as a clerk in a bookshop, that seems to be a site for borrowing books for some strange book club, where people show up to get books. He starts uncovering the secrets of the group, along with a visualization programmer from Google.
I could totally relate to the te ...more
(Delayed this review somewhat due to travels)
"There is no immortality that is not built on friendship and work done with care"
Over the last few years, I've increasingly become a person who believes in both collaborative efforts, and tactile items. So a story that hinges on physical copies of the written word, and frame it with a collective effort to unbox a mystery is absolutely in my wheelhouse. I felt like I knew these characters - the sort that want to solve a puzzle, the sort that want to l ...more
"There is no immortality that is not built on friendship and work done with care"
Over the last few years, I've increasingly become a person who believes in both collaborative efforts, and tactile items. So a story that hinges on physical copies of the written word, and frame it with a collective effort to unbox a mystery is absolutely in my wheelhouse. I felt like I knew these characters - the sort that want to solve a puzzle, the sort that want to l ...more
This book didn't quite grip me as I thought it would. The characters' alleged love for reading doesn't strike the reader as being very true. While the discussion on technology is quite interesting in itself, and offers possibilities for extending the lives of books (if not humans!), it all felt too slick for me. Beyond a nostalgic yearning to revisit the fantasy world of one's favourite series during adolescence, nobody in the book professes a love for reading (which I can remember offhand anywa
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Have you ever read a book that as you reading it you are thinking of people to recommend it to? That was this book. I kept thinking my tech friends would love. My bookish friends would love it. The story was a lovely mix of mystery, bookstores, literary name dropping, Google, and secret societies. I wasn't sure what to expect but had heard this book was a fun read. That it was. And an easy read besides.
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3.5 stars. A fun, quirky, nerdy book about books and Google and the search for immortality, which is found where you'd least expect it.
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Loved. Creative & quirky, but also thought-provoking, & of course, very well-written.
I really didn't like it and I'm quite upset about that. Goodread friends that I consistently use to discover new books LOVED it. What did I miss? My expectations too high before reading? If I hadn't had disliked it so much the first time around, I would have considered re-reading. A big 2 star question mark
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What a ride! I love Mr.Penumbra's, from the mysterious bookstore, the cozy San Francisco, the crazy fellowship, the puzzling mystery, and especially the narrator, Clay Jennon. He's phenomenal! I wish there will be more books like this.
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Nothing deep here, but I did like the theme of how the printed book and technology can get along.
Oct 03, 2012
Anie
marked it as to-read
Oct 22, 2012
Janet Whalen
marked it as to-read
May 17, 2014
Becca
marked it as to-read
Nov 04, 2014
Mandy
added it
Jun 23, 2015
erin
marked it as to-read
