Robin Sloan, author of “Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore,” trades in the views of San Francisco Bay for a visit to Rowan Public Library.
In a world where technology is rapidly changing and children are being “born digital,” Sloan still appreciates thoughtful and meaningful engagement with the physical world. “When I’m using the Internet, I have 25 tabs open, and even if somebody sends me … something interesting, odds are … it’ll get kind of lost in the shuffle,” Sloan told NPR in a 2012 interview. “If I find a book, especially a novel, and I make that decision to kind of sit down with it and start it, I think it gets a kind of attention, a quality of attention that’s actually really rare these days.”
“Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore” is Sloan’s first novel, and is certainly deserving of a rare quality of attention. Set mostly in San Francisco, it is the story of an unemployed designer who finds work in the most unlikely place — a quirky old bookstore with a name he hopes “is not a euphemism for something.”
Clay meets and falls in love with Kat, an extremely talented and charismatic character who defies all computer programmer stereotypes. Clay, Kat and a few friends work together to solve an old world mystery using high-tech, new world technology.
Join Rowan Public Library on Thursday, April 3, at 6 p.m. at headquarters to hear Sloan speak about his first novel.
This presentation is part of the 411 Community Read partnership among Cabarrus, Stanly, Davidson and Rowan counties. It is supported by grant funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Federal Library Services and Technology Act, as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources.
For more information about this special event, please visit www.rowanpubliclibrary.org or call 704-216-8229.
All events will take place at the Cabarrus County Public Library — Kannapolis Branch, 850 Mountain St. All events are free and open to the public. Call 704-920-1180 for more information.
Introduction to eReaders — Would you like to learn more about your tablet and how you can read books on it? We will discuss our online resources for eReaders and how to get the most out of your tablet. All tablets are welcome, but you do not need one to attend the class. Thursday, April 3, 5 p.m.
Eggs-perimental Drop Competition — Join in the competition for the NC Science Festival in an Egg Drop Competition. Make a container at home or at the library that you think will protect an egg that will be dropped off a Kannapolis firetruck. Make your container at the library on Thursday, April 10, 5 p.m. Egg Drop Competition, Saturday, April 12, 3 p.m.