"Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore"

A book about our relationship with books

If Robin Sloan had asked me to write a person-quoted-on-cover blurb for "Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore" I'd probably have sent in something like:

"A highly enjoyable typesetting mystery romp!" —Paul Hively

No hard feelings for going with George Saunders's blurb instead.

Upon reflection, I think what the novel suggests about our relationship with books and technology is every bit as interesting as its plot. A bookstore that stays in business without customers; secret codes; missing artifacts; strange cultists; these may be fun, but anxiety over technology's role in transforming society is timely.

"Devil Take the Hindmost"

"This time is different!"

Edward Chancellor's "Devil Take the Hindmost" is an in-depth study of financial speculation and panics over the last 500 years. The book's 400-plus pages really drive home two messages:

1. In the long run, greed is not good.
2. This time may be different, but probably not in the ways we hope.

"Till We Have Faces"

"Exerts, far beyond most novels,
that combination of ... wonder and
attraction." — The New York Times

C.S. Lewis's "Till We Have Faces" is a retelling of the myth of Cupid and Psyche, but while the original Roman myth depicts Psyche's fall, trials, and ultimate ascendance into godhood, C.S. Lewis's version describes her sister Orual's redemption from disbelief.

A few thoughts on milestones

After three years of work, I completed my master's program and received my diploma at a nice ceremony last weekend. I enjoy graduations: the celebration, the sense of closure, the costumes, and the speakers, whose commentary adds a modern sensibility to old traditions.

"The Boy who Harnessed the Wind"

And how!

"The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" is the heartwarming autobiographical account of how William Kamkwamba used his incredible mechanical aptitude to help his Malawian village. After a severe drought and famine, William is forced to drop out of school because his family can't afford the year's school entrance fees. Anxious not to fall behind his friends, he studies independently in the local library, and one day discovers a physics textbook called "Using Energy." By studying the book's illustrations, he learns how wind turbines can generate electricity, and dreams of building a machine to bring light and running water to his village and provide food security for his family.

"Zootopia"

Partners in crime investigation

"Zootopia" is an anthropomorphic animal movie, but it goes beyond imbuing animals with human characteristics: the eponymous city itself reflects human society and many of its complexities.

For her entire life, heroine Judy Hopps has heard that "in Zootopia, anyone can be anything," and now she's determined to make the world a better place by becoming Zootopia's first rabbit police officer. When she joins the force, she soon learns that not everyone's on board with anyone being anything, and that she must overcome her own prejudices to forge a friendship with Nick the fox and crack a case that could change the city's future.

Minor spoilers below.