BOOK CLUB - Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore - Discussion

[Risscaboobs]

If you're done reading January's Book (Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan), let's have at it! If you're not quite done (like me!), just jump in when you are finished.


Discussion Questions

1. Related to the word “umbrella,” Mr. Penumbra’s last name can refer to an area of partial illumination (especially in astronomy) or something that serves as a shroud. What makes his bookstore a source of light, even though it operates in the shadows?



2. What were your initial theories about the bookstore’s mysterious patrons and their project? What did you predict Manutius’s message would be?



3. At the heart of the novel is the collision of old-world handwork and the automated digital age. How do Clay and Mat build a bridge between these two worlds?



4. Discuss Clay’s pursuit of love. What makes Kat attractive to him? What does it take to win her over?



5. The characters remind us that fifteenth-century technologies of the book—from punch-cutting to typesetting—were met with fear and resistance, as well as with entrepreneurial competition and the need to teach new skills. How does this compare to the launch of e-books? If you try to picture what literacy will look like five hundred years from now, what do you see?



6. If you were to file a codex vitae, capturing all you’ve learned throughout your life, what would it contain?



7. As Clay and the team of Google decoders take on the same challenge, what do they discover about the relative strengths of the human brain and technology?



8. Neel’s financial backing makes it possible for Clay to outwit Corvina and the Festina Lente Company, despite its many lucrative enterprises. In this novel, what can money buy, and what are the limitations of wealth?



9. Clay’s literary idol, Clark Moffat, was forced to make a choice between the Unbroken Spine project and his commercially successful fiction. If you had been Moffat, which path would you have chosen?



10. Are Penumbra and his colleagues motivated only by a quest for immortality? If not, what are the other rewards of their labor-intensive work? Can books give their authors immortality?



11. How did you react to Gerritszoon’s “message to eternity,” revealed in the closing passages? How can his wisdom apply to your life?



12. Discuss the physical traits of your copy of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. Do you have a hard copy or an e-book, and where did you buy it? How does the design of the book enhance your reading experience?



*Questions courtesy of Lit-lovers

[Risscaboobs]

angelashly, bunnyfungo, rach7170, budders, cdnfroggy, mamascarlett, pianolove, allisong, CestLaVie, rablissful, butlerfan, pearbear, tatorhead328, 45thparallel, pippa, @blanche, kittyforman, bookworm, betches, cake, nelzie, windwithfingers, roguelily, Peekaru, kclause, loves2read, scsmith, bonzo, silverspoon, oreobitsy, reginaphalange8, criss, lupineaura, Nymeria, Radley, flat, @frank, Cher, helloerrbody, nenarene, daisy818, ktg, coffeecoffeecoffee, sluttybigb00bz, wanderingheart, ginandtonic, northernlghts, moutonrouge, dreadpirateroberts, Taitai, haleyscott, scsmith, lucilleaustero, bearfootz, jewel, blurnette989, NamasteBirches, byjove, pinkflamingo, fikafairy, grumpycat, @nellybluth, cribs, elsiemae, Radley, meggriffin; seamonster, bearfootzcontinued, @kelltothekell, onlymee, twohopes, fosterlove, Notarobot, sakura, RunsforWineandCarbs, zoeylucy, jedi, brewcitygal, flyliceandcoffee

[zoeylucy]

Still waiting on it from the library!

[Risscaboobs]

I’m listening to the audiobook. Having a bit of trouble getting into it. Anyone else?

[roguelily]

I pretty much hated this book with every Fiber of my being

[Deleted]

I enjoyed the book for what it was. It was quick/ easy/ pretty lighthearted read which i'm into these days. The mystery intrigued me enough. I didn't love the book but didn't mind it. I do not know what it's classified as science fiction though. I was expecting things to get a little more out there.

[Taitai]

I guess I'm in the minority, but I really liked this book! I enjoyed the author's voice and informal tone. I thought the premise was interesting.

I can see how the ending might be a let down for some, but I found it kind of refreshing that the story did not end up involving any supernatural or paranormal activity.

It was easy to read and lighthearted, with a mystery that drew me in and kept me engaged. I found the protagonist to be likable as well. So, thumbs up for me. 👍

[pianolove]

I enjoyed this. I agree that I'm not sure what makes it science fiction though.

I thought the bit about immortality was interesting. My brother has said things along the vein that Kat did as far as technology will make us immortal, "downloading" your brain onto a computer, etc. so as she looked to technology and future progress to make this happen, the people in the unbroken Spine were looking to the past (Manutius) to make this happen for them.

[roguelily]

Jan 17, 2018 9:34:14 GMT -6 Risscaboobs said:

OK I came back on a proper laptop to answer the questions

Discussion Questions

1. Related to the word “umbrella,” Mr. Penumbra’s last name can refer to an area of partial illumination (especially in astronomy) or something that serves as a shroud. What makes his bookstore a source of light, even though it operates in the shadows?

I don't know.. this bookstore felt dark, dusty, and claustrophobic to me. (And not in a good way!)


2. What were your initial theories about the bookstore’s mysterious patrons and their project? What did you predict Manutius’s message would be?


I definitely assumed they were doing some kind of decoding / puzzle. I think I assumed the people were some kind of special "creatures" though such as vampires or other immortals.



3. At the heart of the novel is the collision of old-world handwork and the automated digital age. How do Clay and Mat build a bridge between these two worlds?


Google is life... i read a goodreads post that said it seemed for all the Google fangirling, the author must have been trying to get a job with them.

4. Discuss Clay’s pursuit of love. What makes Kat attractive to him? What does it take to win her over?

No idea. This felt very one dimensional to me.

5. The characters remind us that fifteenth-century technologies of the book—from punch-cutting to typesetting—were met with fear and resistance, as well as with entrepreneurial competition and the need to teach new skills. How does this compare to the launch of e-books? If you try to picture what literacy will look like five hundred years from now, what do you see?

6. If you were to file a codex vitae, capturing all you’ve learned throughout your life, what would it contain?


File these two under "too deep for a one to 2 star book"

... skipping the others


11. How did you react to Gerritszoon’s “message to eternity,” revealed in the closing passages? How can his wisdom apply to your life?

I was basically like 'oh really, that's it? Cool story bro".


12. Discuss the physical traits of your copy of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. Do you have a hard copy or an e-book, and where did you buy it? How does the design of the book enhance your reading experience?

I had a library paperback that appeared to be quite well used/read. I enjoyed reading it while in the pool. Because I'm still too much of a wuss to bring my kindle in a pool, paper books are still my preference for pool reading

*Questions courtesy of Lit-lovers

[claudia]

I read this about a year and a half ago with my book club and loved it. I don't remember all the details, but I still want to discuss!


2. What were your initial theories about the bookstore’s mysterious patrons and their project? What did you predict Manutius’s message would be?

I had a lot of theories that were extremely far off. I thought it might be some sort of cult or puzzle society.

5. The characters remind us that fifteenth-century technologies of the book—from punch-cutting to typesetting—were met with fear and resistance, as well as with entrepreneurial competition and the need to teach new skills. How does this compare to the launch of e-books? If you try to picture what literacy will look like five hundred years from now, what do you see?
I think this is an excellent point. We've all read articles about how brains don't process digital information the same way as physical books, but then there are also studies showing that our brains adapt. But a lot of people (myself included at times) dig in our heels about physical print being far superior. However, I think people are starting to come around to realize it isn't sustainable/environmentally friendly to have huge libraries of printed books. I can't picture 500 years from now, but even in 50 years, I think we'll see a huge decrease of reading books in the traditional sense.


8. Neel’s financial backing makes it possible for Clay to outwit Corvina and the Festina Lente Company, despite its many lucrative enterprises. In this novel, what can money buy, and what are the limitations of wealth?


9. Clay’s literary idol, Clark Moffat, was forced to make a choice between the Unbroken Spine project and his commercially successful fiction. If you had been Moffat, which path would you have chosen?
I probably would have chosen commercially successful fiction. But that was partly because many of the Unbroken Spine participants seemed insufferable.


10. Are Penumbra and his colleagues motivated only by a quest for immortality? If not, what are the other rewards of their labor-intensive work? Can books give their authors immortality?
I think they were also motivated by being the ones to crack the code. There was wanting an accomplishment that went beyond the final goal.

12. Discuss the physical traits of your copy of Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. Do you have a hard copy or an e-book, and where did you buy it? How does the design of the book enhance your reading experience?
I had a hard copy from the library.

[Taitai]

roguelily You make a good point about the Google fan girling. I kind of had to roll my eyes at that - like - okay, the author thinks Google is everything and amazing. I get it. Don't need any more description of how wonderful this company is.

I also was thinking the members of the book club were not just ordinary people. I think the author intentionally led us to believe that, by dropping these little red herrings...like when the protagonist first followed that old lady to her house. He mentioned she was really old, yet he couldn't keep up with her on the steep climb up to her house. I figured that was hinting at her immortality or something. Same thing when the protagonist tried to chase down Mr. Penumbra on the Google campus after the big Google hack didn't work. I remember the protagonist saying Penumbra got away super fast and the protagonist couldn't catch up. Again - another supposed hint that the unbroken spine people had some supernatural element to them.

When it turns out they were just ordinary old people, I was like...I guess they must have been in great shape and the protagonist in horrible shape? 🤷‍♀️

When the protagonist said that his female roommate was an android in the beginning of the book, I was also confused. Since the book was labeled science fiction, I was like...wait...is she an actual robot android, or is this a descriptive term for her personality? Wasn't really sure she was human until a lot later in the book.

[Risscaboobs]

I am still struggling to get through this. I have about 3 hours left on the audiobook, so hopefully today.

[Risscaboobs]

Holy hell. I hated this book.

It was just way too slow and not interesting enough to me. I really, really struggled to finish it. It didn't actually grip me until the last twenty minutes maybe. I did like the ending message; so I did not find the ending disappointing (if anything, I rejoiced because it was finally OVER! haha).

Good things I can say is that, for the audiobook, the narrator was good. I did enjoy the "voice" of Clay. He was funny and well-written. I did enjoy the technological aspect of this book.

I just did not find the premise gripping or interesting enough to keep me wanting to read. I don't think it's a book I normally would have picked up.

[cdnfroggy]

I read this book last year (I think) and I enjoyed it. It wasn't mind blowing or anything, but I did like the premise. I was hoping for something a bit more supernatural to be occurring, but when it wasn't that, it was also a bit of a surprise.

[loony]

I just listened to the first half on my drive to my mom’s and will finish it this week. The narrator is great and I’m enjoying it thus far.

[byjove]

I read this book when it was first published, so it's been a while, but I remember liking it up until he goes to England and there is all the secret society stuff. It seemed like such a departure from the rest of it, I was kind of like meh. I generally remember liking it though.

[sakura]

I really enjoyed it in the beginning; the writing was good and it had a semi-magical, Night Circus feel to it. I continued to enjoy it, but it started to feel a bit flat around the time they went to New York.

While I appreciated how the key was hiding in plain sight and that the message was immortality is in friendship, the way it all wrapped up was pretty disappointing. I really was hoping for something a bit more magical. It made me so sad for all those people working so hard on this encrypted secret, and then ... what were they left with?!?

[loony]

I listened to this on two long drives. It was engaging and entertaining (and checked the “set in a bookstore” off my PopSugar list).

I have friends that work at Google, Yahoo and Apple, and grew up in the general culture. I thought it was funny and satirical in the fan-googling. They really do have resources and money that no one else has.

I also liked that they went on this long “quest” and the answer wasn’t anything mind blowing. It would have been ok to have more actual science fiction/supernatural things, but I kind of liked the irony.

I don’t know if I would have felt the same way if I was reading on the page, but the style definitely lended itself to the audio.

[roguelily]

Feb 17, 2018 16:11:21 GMT -6 loony said:

I listened to this on two long drives. It was engaging and entertaining (and checked the “set in a bookstore” off my PopSugar list).

I have friends that work at Google, Yahoo and Apple, and grew up in the general culture. I thought it was funny and satirical in the fan-googling. They really do have resources and money that no one else has.

I also liked that they went on this long “quest” and the answer wasn’t anything mind blowing. It would have been ok to have more actual science fiction/supernatural things, but I kind of liked the irony.

I don’t know if I would have felt the same way if I was reading on the page, but the style definitely lended itself to the audio.

This is an interesting take! I can definitely see it being better on audio. I almost think with audio your brain doesn’t have time to over-analyse, so it reduces nitpicking and allows you to just enjoy whatever is there. I just started The Davinci code on audio for this reason. I’ve never read it and i feel like I would probably not like it if reading it, but can enjoy it on audio. So far so good.