Morgan's January Picks

 

Mr. Penumbra's 24 - Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hours Bookstore had everything I look for in a book: drama, action, romance, a deeper meaning and lots of comic relief. The characters were relatable and interesting. 

The story is one of a quest to solve an age old mystery. It is a search for immortality, a battle with a secret society and a sort of coming of age tale for the main character. The story begins in a very peculiar book shop that is open all hours of the day and night and is managed by a wonderful older fellow named Mr. Penumbra. The story takes us all over the United States and keeps us on our toes as we go from the headquarters of Google to an underground secret reading room in New York.

Each of the characters successfully portrays a different type of person in our time, those who embrace technology wholeheartedly, those who straddle the divide between books and computers and those who seem completely against innovation.  The conflict in the book between the digital age and the written word helps bring forward important questions that our society will be grappling with for some time. This book is for true book fans as well as anyone who loves a little bit of mystery and puzzle solving. Mr. Penumbra was especially interesting for me as a character and I think his story line in the book was one of the most engaging. Now out in paperback this is definitely worth a read!

Loving Frank by Nancy Horan

Nancy Horan does an incredible job of bringing to life an impossibly difficult love story between Frank Loyd Wright and his Mistress Mamah Borthwick Cheney. A difficult portrait of both individuals at times it is still a beautiful retelling of their lives together. The story is interwoven with true historical details of Wright's life in architecture and his sometimes tumultuous relationship with his investors, partners and friends. This is a great read for fans of historical fiction, romance and contemporary fiction. Knowing that this book was published several years ago I should mention for all of you who have already read Loving Frank and enjoyed it Horan's newest book will hit the shelves in the next few weeks!