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| First Written | 2012 |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Origin | US |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
| ISBN-10 | 0374214913 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0374214913 |
| My Copy | library |
| First Read | October 15, 2013 |
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
This is a very fun, bubbly little adventure/mystery, about the titutlar bookstore, secret codes, friendship, and computers. I told a friend that it's like one of William Gibson's Cayce Pollard books, but if it was set in the absolute present and if Gibson got really cheerful about everything.
It's strange to read a book that feels so absolutely of the moment. It's set in San Francisco among bookish web developers and designers, and important plot points revolve around the existence of new technologies that I use every day (Ruby! Mechanical Turk! Hadoop!)
Noted on October 17, 2013
But Ruby, my language of choice... was invented by a cheerful Japanese programmer, and it reads like friendly, accessible poetry. Billy Collins by way of Bill Gates.
Quoted on October 17, 2013
Ashley is beautiful. Probably too beautiful - too shiny and clean-lined, like a 3-D model. Her hair is blond and straight, cropped clean at her shoulders. Ashley is an account executive at a PR agency. At first I thought I had a crush on her, but then I realized she's an android.
I don't mean that in a bad way! I mean, when we figure them out, androids are going to be totally great, right? Smart and strong and organized and thoughtful. Ashley is all of those things.
Quoted on October 17, 2013
I've never listened to an audiobook before, and I have to say it's a totally different experience. When you read a book, the story definitely takes place in your head. When you listen, it seems to happen in a little cloud all around it, like a fuzzy knit cap pulled down over your eyes.
Quoted on October 17, 2013
Neel takes a sharp breath and I know exactly what it means. It means: I have waited my whole life to walk through a secret passage built into a bookshelf.
Quoted on October 17, 2013