February 12, 2017 PAPERBACK WRITER

The most important card in my wallet is my library card. Bet you thought I'd say credit card, gym membership card-- AAA card--right? Not sure how many people would say library card-- but I'd be lost without it. It's cracked, worn and covered in renewal stickers as I use it more than any other card.  80% of the books I read come from the library--I go online-- order them from LION--then pick them up when I get the email. It's great-- I can't possibly buy every book I want to read or I'd go bankrupt. I actually ONLY buy books I've read--can't live without-- and want to keep in my library. Yes, I do have a library in my house. It's my favorite room. It's where I go to hide from my family--read and relax--surrounded by my favorite books.  These are the books I've read more than once and will read again--they bring me comfort for one reason or another. Sometimes it's the characters because they feel  like old friends. Some have just made me laugh out loud while others have taught me  life lessons or helped me to understand human nature and accept things that might otherwise be hard. I wish I could get more of my students to turn off their phones and open a book. They don't know what they're missing because no school can teach all I've learned from books. Anyways,  in my next life I'll either be a librarian or own a bookshop like The Strand in New York City--now that would be a dream come true. Clay Jannon, a laid off web designer from San Francisco, lands what I think would be the best job in the world when he is hired at Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore in Robin Sloan's fun read of 2012.
This quirky novel won several awards a few years ago including NPR book of the year, 100 best books of 2012 and was a finalist for the LA Times book award.  I have a weakness I must confess--as soon as I see the words book or bookstore in the title of a book, I feel obligated to read the book and in this case, I'm glad I did. Clay, the protagonist in the story,  takes the job at Mr. Penumbra's bookstore  because there is a recession going on--there are too many "techs" out there and he can't find another job. Little does he know, it will change his whole life. Mr. Penumbra's bookstore is an odd place. It is an  old, dusty store with out-of-date books and few customers. No one really buys anything. The only customers that come in are old and  dusty too. They seem to only go into the store to "borrow" copies of very old books from the back shelves. This book is part fantasy, mystery and adventure as Clay enlists his CEO friend and GOOGLE girlfriend to help him figure out what is really going on in this bookstore that doesn't sell books.  Their search leads them to the real Mr. Penumbra and a 500 year old secret society dedicated to the preservation of books. This is a great read with interesting characters. There is also a kind of tension in the novel too--- between modernity and antiquity or the printed book vs. the ebook that Sloan seems interested in exploring. Find out what happens to Clay, Mr. Penumbra and the secret society when you read this novel of about 288 pages. It's an easy read--equivalent to a 4 mile run--that will leave you wanting to at least check out this bookstore in person. enjoy.