"Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore" Review

A Not So Ordinary Bookstore

                                                     

The massive shelves of an old bookstore clash with the surrounding city of technology and development give this enjoyable novel its start.  Sloan’s Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore follows the main character Clay Jannon who lives in the ever advancing city of San Francisco.  Clay is young and smart but facing unemployment after his web design job at a start-up bagel company goes south.  In a desperate search for some money, Clay comes across the bookstore that bears the name of its owner, Mr. Penumbra.  Clay takes on the job of the night clerk in the lonely bookstore that receives almost no business, but still manages to keep its doors open around the clock.  The bookstore itself is unlike anything Clay has ever seen; the tall, narrow building is stacked full of books, however none of them seem to be current or follow any sort of pattern.  The oddest part of the store is the section of books Clay calls, “the waybacklist,” that are rented out by members of a club that visits the store.  Clay originally keeps his eyes off the books, but when his roommate Mat comes to visit they crack open a book to find not a story but a code.  This development causes Clay to focus on one sole purpose: cracking the code.  Along the way, Clay is met by many challenges but also love, renewed friendship, and knowledge.  Clay must find the meaning within the books to help unlock the mystery of the bookstore, Penumbra, and life itself.

The themes in the novel revolve around relationships between characters and contain a positive message that resonates well with the audience.  The main theme traced throughout the book is how friendship affects one’s life and also how eternal life is always present.   Although these concepts may not appear directly related on the surface, the historical figure Griffo Gerritszoon lives on forever through the typeface that he creates during his time spent with his mentor Aldus Manitius.  Although the novel follows the reading group, The Unbroken Spine, who is devoted to unlocking the words of Manutius from centuries ago, it is actually Griffo who holds the key to immortality that they all seek.  Griffo notes how important Aldus has been in supporting him in his endeavors, indirectly stressing that “there is not immortality that is not built on friendship and work with care” (288).  The relationship between the two characters is the key to unlocking the theme hidden within the text of Sloan.  Instead of a special way to make someone live forever hidden in the story of Manutius, the bond between the two men illustrates that although man cannot live forever, friendship and strangely enough font, can last a lifetime.  The relationship between these two highlights good morals, which helps create a positive perspective that resonates well with readers.  By developing these themes of friendship, Sloan creates an enjoyable story where readers are able to relate the ideas to their own lives, which adds significance to the storyline. The relationship between characters that invokes positivity into the story helps the novel to reach a greater audience.

The setting of the story creates a mental image that makes the book a better read.  Setting is an important aspect that often can make or break a story, and in the case of Sloan’s novel, setting places the book a cut above the rest.  Various locations play a role throughout, but Mr. Penumbra’s Bookstore is by far the most iconic.  Clay describes getting books off of its shelves, “look straight ahead, not up or down; you keep your eyes focused about a foot in front of your face and you let the books zoom by in a blur or colorful spines” (11).  This brief, yet descriptive insight into the store depicts the detail that Sloan uses constantly in regards to setting.  The level of intrigue rises greatly when this is the case, and is why this book is transformed from something good into something great.  The massive shelves and blur of color that are described create a clear mental image of a bizarre bookstore that sticks for the entire story.  A clear mental image aids better understanding, and more importantly, leads to more enjoyment for the person reading the book.  A book that is fun to read, and easy to understand because of its descriptions, make this a book many people will enjoy.  For this reason, the detailed setting Sloan illustrates, is the reason the book is such a page-turner.

The end plot created by Sloan is logical, and it must be for the novel to be read from a realistic point of view.  Throughout the story, the plot follows a course of realistic events that could easily happen in everyday life.  The end of the novel continues this trend, which dismays Kat who says, ‘“it’s not good enough…he was so talented, and yet he still died”’ (278).  The death of Gerritszoon, the one who is thought to have the key to escape it, is the only logical way for Sloan to wrap up the story, present his argument on eternal life, and not turn towards the fantasy genre.  Unlocking a key to a true human immortality would have given nothing more to the novel as a whole, and it would instead require an entire new plot to track what this development would mean.  The story falls in a realistic fiction genre, and the death of Griffo is the only way to keep the story from completely changing directions.  Although this choice made by Sloan could be taken as boring, without the realization that no immortality exists, Sloan would not have been able to present the main themes and arguments that he develops.  As a result, the end plot is a necessary wrap-up that helps maintain the realistic tone of the novel.

Robin Sloan does an excellent job in his work, Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore, creating memorable moments, exciting characters, and an intriguing plot that keeps the pages turning.  This story is the perfect mix of reality and fiction, its fiction helping to create the aspects of the story that help it to be so interesting.  This is a book that should be read by all people, it can be enjoyed by young and old alike because the themes that it presents will ring true for every age group.  Readers will enjoy this rather easy read, and how it keeps a positive tone in each situation throughout.  Bottom line: Sloan’s novel is a must-read for every age and every stage, worth the praise placed upon it and sure to keep the reader on the edge of their seat.

This I Believe

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Ryan Cullen

This I Believe

I am not the cause of the demise.  I am not the reason race divides.  I am not the reason for the riots.  I am not the reason fires burn with no one to quell them, crimes occur with no one to stop them.  I am not the reason for bankruptcy, for mayoral scandals, for incompetent leadership. I am not the reason for the fall of Detroit. 

            However, I do believe I am the reason for the comeback.  I am the reason the city’s population grows faster than ever before.  I am the reason business after business decides to call this place home.  I am the reason a school can thrive for over a century when nothing else can.  I am the reason people believe.  I am the reason I believe.

            This new generation that has grown around the city of Detroit is above all else exciting.  In many cases, it is those who grow up outside the tough environment of the inner city itself who are most motivated for change.  A group who is proud to be part of the D.  A group that does not want to drive away and never look back, but instead live in this community for the rest of their lives. This group is where I associate myself, and although there may not be any great reason or calling, I feel a powerful bond towards it. 

The bubble that is Grosse Pointe would probably not be the expected venue, nor the city of Detroit the expected topic of a 16-year-old giving his perspective on what in life he truly believes.  I am not writing about the city because I find it to be an easy topic, I’m not writing about it because I think it’s the model of the perfect city.  I am writing about Detroit because I believe in us.  I believe in this generation that is tired of hearing how crappy their city is.  I hate the gaze I get when I describe where I go to school.  But here’s the interesting thing, I also relish it.  I think to myself about how cool it is, how great of an opportunity I have, how I’m proud of not only my school but my city.  I do not want to simply agree and talk about the bad neighborhood, the poverty, the crime, but instead I find myself saying, “this idiot doesn’t know what they’re talking about.”  Sure there’s plenty of things wrong, but there damn sure are a lot of things right with this city, and I want to make a lot more of them.

            I know that I cannot change all that has happened to this city, much of it bad.  It is apparent to me that dwelling on the past is what made Detroit truly fall behind.   Whether this be human rights that divided people 50 years ago, or the unfair characterizations of a community on the comeback today.  For Detroit to prosper, I believe in the power of myself and I believe in the power of my classmates, my fellow preppy Grosse Pointers and the citizens of Detroit themselves.  I believe in the power of each individual to be part of the change.  I don’t care about their background, their social status, their religion, whether they’re gay, straight, black, purple, orange, or white, I care about change.  I believe in change.  I believe in my generation. I believe in I.  I believe in Detroit.

My Favorite Narrator

My favorite narrator throughout the many books that I've read would be the first-person narration in Let The Great World Spin by Colum McCann.  The first-person perspective is really an interesting viewpoint because it looks at the overlapping lives of the different characters in the novel.  This type of narration is central to this story because it allows the reader to see the overall concept and progression of the story, while the characters must struggle to learn them on their own.  This fits the story so well, and is the main reason why it's such a good novel to read.  It does not fit the normal first-person boundaries in the sense that it only follows one character, but instead there are many different characters who narrate at different points in the story.  This enables the reader to understand what each character thinks of another, and also predict the impact the different characters will have on each other.

The novel focuses on the summer of 1974 in New York City, and in particular the type rope walk that took the bustling city by storm.  Within this period, the lives of many different characters are followed and the audience is able to gain the perspective of different races, classes, and groups during a changing time not only in New York but in the entire world.  The story follows characters like Corrigan, a Jesuit brother working with prostitutes in the inner city, Claire, a grieving mother who lost her son in Vietnam, and Lara, a recovering drug addict who plays a role in Corrigan's death and carries out a relationship with his brother.  All of the characters lives overlap in some way, and the narration is what illustrates how the characters react to the situation each has been put into.  I find it most interesting to get another character's point of view on a certain person after they have already narrated.  I found that it changed my perspective on almost every character, as it gave an unbiased look at each persons life.

This is my favorite narration because of all the new things I learned about the city and the characters because of the changing perspective.  The overlap is just so interesting, and in many cases unlikely, but McCann does a great job tying it all together to create this marvelous story.  I would recommend it based purely on the fact that it keeps the reader extremely interested as they don't full into the lull that a one person narration often creates.  The changing worldview really keeps the audience on it's toes and makes the novel and narrator one of the best I've read.

Ryan Cullen

Poster Campaign Proposal

In order to reach the greatest possible amount of the student body here at U of D, I have decided to begin a poster campaign encouraging reading through a variety of different methods.  The poster campaign will likely be seen by almost the entire community at school, often more than once by the same person.  This will hopefully get people to stop and look, because often students just walk right by posters and do not think twice about it.  The goal in mind is to make students aware of some of the things they are missing out on when not reading, and also to give them suggestions as to what would be an enjoyable read while still challenging them to increase their education.

            The main slogan for my poster campaign will be, “Good Books from Great Teachers.”  The concept is to ask 10 different teachers for recommendations on their favorite books, articles, or reading tips to students.  I will explain to each teacher my goal of improving literacy and convincing fellow students to pick up a book in their free time.  By using some of the more popular and well-liked teachers, the students will be drawn to the posters for the simple reason that they want to see what they have to say.  The teachers I will be using for this poster campaign are: Davidson, Miller, Slaughter, Hill, L. Godwin, Evalt, Diehl, Chandler, Foerg, and Teasdale.  All of these teachers are beloved by a large part of the student body and thus will draw increased interest rather than simply reading suggestions from a fellow student.

            The format of the posters will highlight two different teachers, one on each side, with the main heading running across the top of the page.  Besides the photo used for ID cards for the teachers, I will include images that show the cover of the novel, as well as pictures of books, magazines, etc. in a variety of colors that will add some pop to the posters.  Under each teacher’s name and picture will be the text containing their selections for the different topics.  I am also going to include a reading tip at the bottom of each.  However, I will make sure that the text is kept to a minimum so that students can simply read it in between classes or see some titles with a passing glance.  In total I would like to make 5 different poster sets, each one containing 5 copies.  The first week I will hang 2 of these sets (10 posters total) throughout the school, and on the second week I will hang the remaining three.  This is to ensure that the information is fresh and relevant, thus gaining the attention of more sets of eyes.  A key to this will be changing up the color scheme so it does not seem like it’s the same poster being used.  I’d like to hang the posters in a variety of different places throughout the school: outside the door of the teacher being highlighted, on the wall of the main staircase, on the wall of the second floor side staircase, in the atrium, and in the cafeteria.  This will make sure that students are able to see the posters in a variety of locations, the poster outside of the door will also hopefully bring questions from students to that teacher.

In summary, each set of posters will be unique, highlighting different teachers and pursuing the goal of making students at U of D more interested in reading and help bridge the literacy gap one small step at a time.