Congrats!

Congratulations to Sarah, the winner of “Pick Three,” our teen winter reading program! Sarah won a $25 Target gift card.

I asked participants in “Pick Three” to write a very short review of the books they read. Here are some of my favorites:

“You Wish”: Amazing, I wish it could really happen!
“How to Save a Life”: Sincere, kind, and loving story.
“Eragon”: A well-created, interesting adventure.
“Seth Baumgartner’s Love Manifesto”: Hilarious, loved it, one of my favorites.
“Bras & Broomsticks”: Teenage witch + sister = trouble.
“The Picture of Dorian Gray”: Handsome man falls to Hedonism.
“Manga for the Beginner”: Love it, and now I love drawing!

Legend

“I’m not worried about losing this fight. I’m more worried that I’ll accidentally kill my opponent.”

After five years as a criminal on the run, Day has become the most wanted fugitive in the Republic.

After five years of training to become a soldier, June will stop at nothing to find Day, who she believes to be her brother’s killer.

Now the most accomplished prodigy in the Republic and the most accomplished criminal on the streets will face off with explosive results. The Republic’s crimes against its citizens surprise even Day, and June’s foundations are rocked by the shocking lies and cover-ups she finds. It’s possible they have more in common than they ever imagined. Can adversaries become allies to uncover the truth?

My Review:  I loved the characters, the fast pace, the daring of Day’s crimes and the smart, methodical way June finds him.  Their different backgrounds make their relationship so intriguing, and the sinister motives behind the Republic’s manipulation of its citizens still lurk beneath the surface.  June and Day have a long way to go in their quest to discover the truth about the Republic, but I for one can’t wait to go with them. Luckily, book 2 will be released fall 2012.

Read this book if you like The Hunger Games but wonder what Capitol residents think of the government. In Legend you see the shocking differences between Day’s slum experience and June’s upper class lifestyle and how they’re each treated by Republic officials.  Check it out today!  Legend by Marie Lu is now available at the library.

Katie

The Scorpio Races

“These are not ordinary horses. Drape them with charms, hide them from the sea, but today, on the beach: Do not turn your back.”

Sean Kendrick knows better than most that the legendary water horses of Thisby are deadly – his father was killed in the annual Scorpio Races when Sean was a child.  But the horses’ deadly hunger is married to a terrible beauty and strength that calls to Sean’s wildness and love for the sea.

Puck Connolly, on the other hand, is happiest with both feet firmly planted on the island, with no regard for the water horses’ dark allure. Until she enters the Scorpio Races and discovers the other world that exists on her island – a world that no one understands better than Sean Kendrick.  Both Sean and Puck need to win, and as they grow closer to race day and to each other, they realize that even if they both survive the Scorpio Races, only one can triumph.

My Review:  Whether or not you love horses, read this book!  Thisby comes alive through the ritual and danger of the races, when only those courageous enough to brave the water horses on land and those lurking in the sea will experience the true exhilaration of the races. Puck and Sean love the island in different ways but both are strong and loyal and set on a fixed course that could determine the rest of their lives.  They’re each so much a specific part of the island and I loved that.

Pick up The Scorpio Races if, like me, you can’t get enough of Maggie Stiefvater’s gorgeous writing, if you love a setting that comes alive, and if you want characters that will stay with you.  If you’re an aspiring writer, you can also check out Maggie Stiefvater’s revision process for part of the book by visiting her website.

Katie Clark
Teen Librarian

 

Make a Scarf

Tuesday, January 10 at 3:30, we’re making scarves at the library, but don’t worry – you don’t need any special equipment or experience because we’re finger knitting! See you Tuesday…
Katie

Winter Reading

The teen winter reading program, “Pick Three” is more than half done, but there’s still plenty of time to read!  Grab a book log at the library, pick three types of books and read one book in each category (like a fantasy, a non-fiction book, and a romance). Bring back your book log by January 14 to receive a free pair of ear buds and be entered to win a grand prize, a $25 Target gift card!

Break It Down

Tomorrow is the start of my own little winter vacation, so the blog will be taking a short break until my return after New Year’s. Have a great Christmas if you celebrate it, and a happy happy New Year! Remember, the library’s closed on December 24, 26, 31 and January 2, so come in and load up on books in before then!

In January, expect reviews of the third book in Rick Yancey’s Monstrumologist series, The Isle of Blood, and Maggie Stiefvater’s new book The Scorpio Races.
See you after the holidays!
Katie

The Girl on Fire

InStyle magazine has taken the fashions of The Hunger Games to the next level, with 12 fashion designers sketching their version of Katniss’ dress for The Hunger Games movie.  The designers include Project Runway past winner Christian Siriano, established designers like Tommy Hilfiger, and some great rock and roll ideas from Rachel Roy and The Blonds.  My favorite: Charlotte Ronson’s black catsuit and fiery cape and headpiece, which is exactly how I envision Katniss as the girl on fire.  Check out the gallery at InStyle and comment me with your favorite design!

New Books

	Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor Seventeen-year-old Karou, a lovely, enigmatic art student in a Prague boarding school, carries a sketchbook of hideous, frightening monsters–the chimaerae who form the only family she has ever known.Check out daughterofsmokeandbone.com to meet the characters and read an excerpt.
	The Outcasts by John Flanagan In book one of the Brotherband Chronicles, a companion to the Ranger’s Apprentice series, Skandian outcasts Hal, Stig, and others do battle at sea against the Wolves and the Sharks, in the ultimate race across icy waters where not everyone thinks of the competition as play.
	The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler It’s 1996, and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet. Emma just got her first computer and Josh is her best friend. They power up and log on–and discover themselves on Facebook, fifteen years in the future. Everybody wonders what their Destiny will be. Josh and Emma are about to find out.
	Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber Perry’s parents insist that he take Gobi, their quiet, Lithuanian exchange student, to senior prom but after an incident at the dance he learns that Gobi is actually a trained assassin who needs him as a henchman, behind the wheel of his father’s precious Jaguar, on a mission in Manhattan.

Baby, It’s Cold Outside

December weather is truly upon us, and if you’re anything like me, reading helps get you through the cold weather. Here are a few wintry books to help get you in the mood to read…

	Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan Told in the alternating voices of Dash and Lily, two sixteen-year-olds carry on a wintry scavenger hunt at Christmas-time in New York, neither knowing quite what–or who–they will find.
	Trapped by Michael Northrop Seven high school students are stranded at their New England high school during a week-long blizzard that shuts down the power and heat, freezes the pipes, and leaves them wondering if they will survive.
	Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters by Nicole Standiford Upon learning on Christmas Day that their rich and imperious grandmother may soon die and disown the family unless the one who offended her deeply will confess by New Year’s Day, each of the three Sullivan sisters sets down her offenses on paper.
	The Drop by Jeff Ross Alex wants to be a part of the elite Backcountry Patrol of snowboarders, but first he and three other hopefuls–Dave, Bryce, and Hope–must endure a series of tests that forces them to confront their own fears and the treacherous mountain terrain.
	The Devouring by Simon Holt The existence of Vours, supernatural creatures who feast on fear and attack on the eve of the winter solstice, becomes a terrifying reality for fifteen-year-old Reggie when she begins to suspect that her timid younger brother might be one of their victims.
	The Greek who Stole Christmas by Anthony Horowitz In this fast-paced, funny mystery, fourteen-year-old Nick and his brother, an ineffectual private detective, try to prevent the threatened murder of an international pop star in London at Christmas time.

Winter Reading Returns!

Anyone is grades 7-12 can participate in “Pick Three,” our teen winter reading program.  Just grab a book log at the library, pick three types of books and read one book in each category (for example, a fantasy, a non-fiction book, and a romance). Bring back your book log by January 14 to receive a free pair of ear buds and be entered to a grand prize, a $25 Target gift card! One book log per participant.

A Few New Books

	Blood Wounds by Susan Beth Pfeffer Willa seems to have a perfect life as a member of a loving blended family until the estranged father she barely remembers murders his wife and children, then heads toward Willa and her mother.
	A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness Thirteen-year-old Conor awakens one night to find a monster outside his bedroom window, but not the one from the recurring nightmare that began when his mother became ill–an ancient, wild creature that wants him to face truth and loss.
	The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson A fearful sixteen-year-old princess discovers her heroic destiny after being married off to the king of a neighboring country in turmoil and pursued by enemies seething with dark magic.
	The Watch that Ends the Night by Allan Wolf Recreates the 1912 sinking of the Titanic as observed by: millionaire John Jacob Astor; a beautiful young Lebanese refugee finding first love; “Unsinkable” Molly Brown; Captain Smith; and others including the iceberg itself.
	Putting Makeup on Dead People by Jen Violi Donna’s discovery that she wants to be a mortician, helps her come into her own and finally understand that moving forward doesn’t mean forgetting someone you love.

Fun Nonfiction

Check out our new display of nonfiction in the library’s teen corner, featuring fun nonfiction like these new books:

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Variant

“They take the ones that no one will miss.”

At Maxfield Academy, there are no teachers. No security. No adults at all. There are only students, locked in with no option but to band together into gangs for protection.  New student Benson Fisher must choose to join either the Society, whose orders come from the school’s unseen creators, Havoc, the confrontational gang looking to rule, or Variant, the gang that takes any other student who’s trying to keep their head down and survive. But Benson isn’t just planning to survive. No matter what, Benson is planning to escape.

My Review: The fact that Maxfield is basically keeping all its students prisoner is just the first revelation that will alternately anger, shock, and infuriate you. I was rooting for Benson all the way and I felt his frustration when the other students try to talk him out of trying to escape. It seems like NOT trying would be crazy, but that’s before Benson finds out the punishment for escape attempts. Let’s just say detention at Maxfield is worse than at your school.

Check out Variant by Robison Wells if you like sinister boarding school stories, want a completely unexpected twist in the middle, and don’t mind a cliffhanger ending in anticipation of the second book.

Katie Clark, Teen Librarian

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a great Thanksgiving weekend, everyone! The library will close at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday and of course we’ll be closed all day on Thursday. We’re open our regular hours, 9-5, on Friday and Saturday. Have a great Turkey Day, I know I will!

Dawn Has Broken

Weekend Wishes

You guys probably have noticed that in order to keep this blog fresh! new! and awesome!, I try to post a few times a week - at the very least, on Mondays and Thursdays. So today’s Thursday, and guess what? The idea factory is currently out of stock.  Haha, sorry!  But never fear, I plan for a weekend of nothing serious and everything fun, so my brain will be back on Monday fully refreshed.

Next week I’ll have for you a review of Variant by Robison Wells (intriguing so far; heard it has a great twist at the end), and we’ll talk about a little movie called Breaking Dawn Part 1.  Romantic vampire/human wedding AND gruesome birth of a half-vampire baby in the same movie?! Count me in. See you with all that next week – have a great weekend!

Katie

Hunger Games Trailer Premiere

It’s here! The Hunger Games official trailer was released this morning. Check it out here and let me know what you think.  I’m coming around to Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss - she does have that rangy, strong yet vulnerable look I wanted for Katniss. I completely forgot Donald Sutherland is Snow!! He has just that touch of menace I need.  The one person I’m still not sure about is Woody Harrelson as Haymitch.  I guess I just pictured him as a little older and more broken down.  I’m happy they ended the trailer just at the first look at the arena - definitely left me wanting more.  Can’t wait until March 23!

From Matched to Crossed

Before you read this review, my standard spoiler alert applies! This is the second book in the series, so if you haven’t read the first one, you might not want to read this review. You can read my review of the first book, Matched, here.

“The world is so much bigger than I thought it was.”

Now that Ky has been taken to the Outer Provinces and an almost certain death, Cassia knows the only way to find him is to take a work position nearby and hopefully escape. If her plan works, she and Ky can join the rebellion against the Society, a secretive movement called the Rising. But Cassia and Ky have different ideas of what to do with their newfound knowledge of the Society and the Rising, and they must face the thought that love between a Citizen and an Aberration might not be meant to last.

My Review: This fast paced survival story widens the world of Matched to include the people whose work and sacrifice made Cassia’s seemingly perfect world in the Borough possible.  It also expands the story so that it alternates between Cassia’s and Ky’s point of view.  Ky’s back story is so important to the book, it only makes sense for him to tell his own part of the story.

I love how Ky’s experiences forged him into the leader he has become, and Cassia’s strength and independence make her a great heroine. Cassia makes her own choices about her path to the Rising, and she and Ky are truly equals (no weak-willed girls here, thankyouverymuch). There are also some glimpses into the formation of the Society and the Rising that will whet your appetite for book three, which I’m hoping will blow the lid off the entire series. There’s still a lot left to find out, so don’t miss Crossed by Ally Condie, now available at the library.

Katie

Think You’re Ready for the ACT? Take the 10 Question Challenge!

There are still spots available for our ACT Ten Question Challenge event for high school students. Think you’re ready for the ACT? Take the 10 question challenge and be sure! You will sample 10 test-like ACT questions, learn 10 score-raising strategies and find out how to be really ready for the ACT. Presented free of charge by Kaplan Test Prep.  Join us Wednesday, November 16 at 6:30 p.m. Click here to register online.

Every You, Every Me

“I had gotten so used to being alone, but never entirely used to it. Never used to it enough to stop wanting the alternative.“

Slowly, slowly, Evan is unraveling. His guilt sadness about what happened to his friend Ariel has never faded, and now it seems someone else knows what he did happened the day she went away. Someone who knew Ariel is stalking  punishing tormenting Evan with photographs of him, of Ariel, of the past, leaving him wondering if he did the right thing for Ariel and if he’ll ever be able to break free from his destructive obsession.

My Review: As the photographer gets bolder and Evan starts to spiral downward, I was racing to finish the book and see what happened. What did Evan do and what exactly did happen to Ariel? The book is written like I wrote the first part of this review, with words and even whole pages struck out as Evan tries to control his thoughts.  Also, the photographs Evan sees are part of the book, which drew me in even more.

Read this book if you want to look into the mind of someone with a mysterious past who is on the verge of losing himself. I also recommend it for fans of books written in poetry form, because it has such a unique format.  Every You, Every Me by David Levithan is available now at the library.

Katie