Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore (Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, #1) in Around the World in 80 Books

Jan 21, 2013 Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-about-books

Clay Jannon shuffles into Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore in search of a job and discovers another world. Clay mans the bookstore during the long hours of the night shift and is surprised to learn that there are very few real customers. Instead, the same people return regularly and, rather than buying books, check them out. A mysterious bookstore. A mysterious society. Seeking a mysterious secret hidden through the ages in books. Mysterious.

Clay is intrigued and draws on the knowledge of new an ...more

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Sep 11, 2014 Andrea rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: funny, fantasy

This was a thoroughly enjoyable book. I put it on my "fantasy" shelf although the fantasy element is not as strong as it might seem at first. Clay, the protagonist, is a young San Franciscan enjoying his steady climb as a website designer at an upstart bagel company. Then, 2008 happens and Clay finds himself looking for a job. He wanders into Mr.Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore and is hired on the spot. But Mr. Penumbra's is not exactly an ordinary used bookstore. Along with a quirky collection of h ...more

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Nov 13, 2012 Nancy H rated it liked it

Although it was not what I expected, this is a good book about the intersection of computers and books. It is the story of a secret society that has been trying for 500 years to break the code hidden in old books, and one of its most important members, Mr. Penumbra. Mr. Penumbra hires a clerk who is curious and who has computer 'geek' friends who help him try to solve the riddle. There are modern-day quests using both physical items and computers, and the main character eventually finds a soluti ...more

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Jan 11, 2014 Snowtulip rated it really liked it

Shelves: contem-fic

How much fun is this book! Not what I expected at all.

The geekery is over the top and you just enjoy where this story takes you. I love that so much of this story revolves around the association of a fantasy dragon trilogy.

I love that they go on a quest (I love it, a quest)! It's a grand adventure wrapped in secret societies, books, technology, and pop culture thrown in.

This book made me smile silly :D ...more

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Nov 03, 2012 Annie rated it really liked it

I fully expected to love this book, since the subject-matter is right up my alley: secret societies of book lovers, code breaking, geeks in love, mysterious typography, funky Bay Area bookstores, Google lore, and so much more. And I was very entertained, for the most part. I just wish the whole novel had kept its drive from beginning to end.

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