47 pages • 1 hour read
Robin Sloan, Rodrigo CorralMr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2012A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 17-19Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 17 Summary: The Rebel Alliance
Back at their hotel, Clay and the others must figure out a way to scan Manutius’s book without Corvina’s knowledge. Once again, Clay turns to Grumble and his portable cardboard book scanner, the GrumbleGear 3000, which is perfect for their mission. It is also decided that Clay should be the one to break into the Reading Room and scan the book; in fact, he has plans to scan Penumbra’s book too, as insurance against Corvina’s threat of burning it. Deckle arrives and is persuaded to help them. He agrees that computers could be very useful to their work, and he was the one who originally built the bookstore’s database. Clay now needs to find a laser cutter so that he can build the book scanner; he asks Mat who suggests he ask Grumble. Clay sends a message to Grumble through his website and waits for a reply. Meanwhile, Kat is increasingly excited by the prospect of immortality whereas Clay continues to be skeptical and thinks of the fellowship as a cult.
Chapter 18 Summary: Pop-Up
Clay receives a positive reply from Grumble: “tell me what you need” (165) and sends Clay to an address where he can collect the pre-cut pieces necessary to build the scanner. Neel accompanies Clay to the address, which turns out to be a pop-up pizza store. They collect the scanner frame and then purchase two cheap digital cameras. Walking through the bustling city, Clay contemplates the choice between immortality “in a book-lined catacomb down beneath the surface of the earth, or death up here, with all this?” and decides that he’ll “take death and a kebab” (171). Back at the hotel, Kat reveals that Google’s PM has been extended and that she’s been elected to it. This is good news not only for Kat, but for Clay, who realizes they now have “executive support” (172) for the project of decoding Manutius’s book. They spend the afternoon practicing assembling and dismantling the book scanner. As Clay prepares to leave, he remembers Deckle’s warning that he has to be “done and departed, leaving no trace, by first light” (175).
Chapter 19 Summary: The Black Hole
Clay enters the library and almost immediately regrets not asking Deckle where the light switch is, as he has to make his way through the Reading Room in complete darkness. He assembles the GrumbleGear 3000 and begins scanning Manutius’s book. He is spooked as the table begins to shake, but he realizes that it is only the subway passing by. Having finished with Manutius’s book, he searches the shelves for Penumbra’s codex. He finds a book by someone called Moffat—the name of the author of The Dragon-Song Chronicles—and wonders if it’s the same person. However, the book has been burned and when he touches it “a sheaf of blackened pages comes loose inside and falls to the floor” (182). Bending to retrieve the pages, he finds Penumbra’s book. He has just finished scanning it when the lights come on and he realizes it is nearly8 AM .and he should have been gone hours ago. Hearing a voice, he grabs his stuff and dashes through a nearby door. Luckily, Deckle finds him and makes a plan for his escape; left alone in the room, now with the light on, Clay can see what looks like a printing press set with Gerritszoon typeface. When Deckle returns he confirms this is the case, although unfortunately they no longer have the original punches, or molds, for the letters: “We break letters but we can’t make new ones” (187). Suddenly, a bell announces Corvina’s arrival. Deckle hands Clay a black robe and warns him, “Stay quiet. Stay in the shadows” (188).
Chapter 17 – Chapter 19 Analysis
When Penumbra is trying to persuade Deckle that he should help them to make a digital copy of Manutius’s book, he argues that Corvina’s attitude is an insult to the spirit in which Manutius operated: “He was an entrepreneur, Edgar!” (160). He makes an interesting point, as we often associate innovation exclusively with the present moment, not the past. While Corvina seems to think that Manutius would reject the methods made possible by new technologies, Penumbra argues that this is a false assumption; just because computers didn’t exist when Manutius was alive doesn’t mean that he wouldn’t have used them if they were. Clay’s use of Grumble’s DIY book scanner also raises interesting questions about the availability of technology. The cardboard frame and Grumble’s distribution methods—using a “pop-up” or temporary business—enables people who don’t have access to the kind of financial resources that a corporation like Google has to participate in technological innovation and digitization projects. Much like the printing press made books available to a much wider audience, Grumble’s work has a democratic element to it, making new and often expensive technologies available to ordinary people. Deckle’s remarks about the fellowship’s inability to make new letters in the Gerritszoon font suggests that as older technologies become obsolete, the rejection of newer methods will become increasingly impractical.
Clay’s reaction to learning more about the Unbroken Spine is reflected in his growing skepticism about the idea of immortality. As he observes the streets around him, he concludes that to participate in life as it happens is a far better way to spend your time than pursuing the dream of everlasting life. Clay’s meditations raise questions about what “life” is and what constitutes a good life or an enjoyable life. And is more time spent alive the same thing?
