Waiting on Wednesday [251] – SOURDOUGH by Robin Sloan

Waiting on Wednesday is the brainchild of Breaking the Spine, although Jill isn’t hosting this meme anymore. In any case, I will continue to post Waiting on Wednesdays, simply because it’s one of my favorite posts to do each week:-D

I was so excited to discover this book last week, when several bloggers listed it in their Top Ten Books for the Second Half of 2017 lists, and I immediately knew I wanted to feature it this week:

In his much-anticipated new novel, Robin Sloan does for the world of food what he did for the world of books in Mr. Penumbra s 24-Hour Bookstore

Lois Clary is a software engineer at General Dexterity, a San Francisco robotics company with world-changing ambitions. She codes all day and collapses at night, her human contact limited to the two brothers who run the neighborhood hole-in-the-wall from which she orders dinner every evening. Then, disaster! Visa issues. The brothers close up shop, and fast. But they have one last delivery for Lois: their culture, the sourdough starter used to bake their bread. She must keep it alive, they tell her feed it daily, play it music, and learn to bake with it.

Lois is no baker, but she could use a roommate, even if it is a needy colony of microorganisms. Soon, not only is she eating her own homemade bread, she s providing loaves daily to the General Dexterity cafeteria. The company chef urges her to take her product to the farmer s market, and a whole new world opens up.

When Lois comes before the jury that decides who sells what at Bay Area markets, she encounters a close-knit club with no appetite for new members. But then, an alternative emerges: a secret market that aims to fuse food and technology. But who are these people, exactly?

Leavened by the same infectious intelligence that made Robin Sloan s Mr. Penumbra s 24-Hour Bookstore such a sensation, while taking on even more satisfying challenges, Sourdough marks the triumphant return of a unique and beloved young writer.

Sourdough by Robin Sloan. Releases in September 2017 from MCD/Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore was one of my favorite books of 2012, and even though it’s taken five years for Sloane’s next book to come out, that’s OK. This sounds totally wacky and the speculative elements are a little suspect, but I’m still looking forward to seeing what this talented author does next. And, sourdough! *Update: I just got approved for this on NetGalley, so any Sloan fans head over there!*

Let me know what you’re waiting on this week:-D

Posted June 7, 2017 by Tammy in Waiting on Wednesday / 14 Comments

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14 responses to “Waiting on Wednesday [251] – SOURDOUGH by Robin Sloan

    • Tammy

      I agree, the story sounds bizarre, but I just have to read this because of the author!

  1. This really does sound quite bizarre – but equally fascinating and intriguing. Sour dough – who’d have thought it. I think I”m absolutely going to have to read this without a doubt.
    Lynn 😀

    • Tammy

      Thats my reason exactly. I loved Mr. Penumbra so I’m pretty sure I’ll love this as well.

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