City of Bones Synopsis and Quick Review

City of Bones Synopsis and Quick Review

Sanjana Nath

            This week I began to read the novel City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. I'm not very far into the book just yet, as I have only just started it. So far, I have read five chapters, and they were all extremely well-written, and left me wanting to read more. I didn't want to put the book down, and the story only just began. 

           The main character is a young teenager named Clary Fray, and she and her best friend Simon, decide to go to an all-ages club called Pandemonium one night. While at Pandemonium, Clary saw a group of teenagers who seemed extremely odd. She saw one of them holding a knife, following a young boy into a storage closet. Feeling worried, she followed them and spied on the group of teens and stood hiding behind a shelf, watching as one of the boys spoke strangely, then killed the other boy. The group of teens discovered Clary spying and started to explain that what they killed was a shapeshifter, not an actual human being. This was the beginning of Clary's life spiraling out of control. She figures out that nobody else is able to see the teenagers except for her, they're practically invisible. A few days later, Clary's mother goes missing and Clary is sent to a place called The Institution by one of the teenagers from Pandemonium; Jace.

          So far the book has been gripping and I have only wanted to read more. I hope to be able to read more, and I only expect the book to get better from here. I wonder what is going to happen in the book, and I'm looking forward to finding out! So far the book is very enjoyable, however I do have a lot of unanswered questions. However, I haven't read too much just yet so I expect a lot of my questions to get answer somewhere later on in the book. I think it will be a great read and so far I am recommending it :)



Summer Reading Project

         One theme that can be found in Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan, is that technology is powerful. For example, when Clay was able to solve the Founder's Puzzle, he used the technology of his laptop to aid him in his research. He created a program for the bookstore and was able to solve the puzzle just by creating this program. The Founder's Puzzle has taken most people many years filled with endless decoding and reading, however Clay was able to solve it in a matter of a few days with the help of his computer. Without his computer, Clay may never have even figured out what the Founder's Puzzle was, so his laptop was definitely an essential component towards the plot of the story.

         I really enjoyed the humor throughout the novel. The book was very peculiar and unexpected and that was very enjoyable to me. There were a lot of random twists and turns, new barriers and conflicts that must be solved throughout the story. It was like an obstacle course, a new problem arising every time you solve one. I liked how the book was on a topic that's very unique. I have never read another book that had a similar plot to that of this one. This involved an old bookstore combining with the latest technologies of Google itself. I also enjoyed how the author was able to make me laugh at a characters silly remarks throughout the story.

        However, there were a few negative qualities about the story. Some of the time, the book felt like there was no purpose. Every time a conflict was discovered, the solution would be very simple and not too exciting. I was reading and the author would mention a secret organization of bibliophiles, however that didn't seem very significant. These book lovers were searching for the key to immortality, however the main character, Clay Jannon, says that he knows there really isn't any chance of immortality. It was slightly contradicting and when the conflict was finally solved, the solution was very minor. It was something simple, and led the reader to believe that there was going to be a grand finale or major solution in the end. It was not really as exciting as it could've been.

My article is a book review and summary of the novel Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. It describes the book thoroughly without giving away any spoilers. I would say it is very well-written.

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore Article

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