I Love Him to Pieces by Evonne Tsang

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Dicey Bell is used to being one of the guys on the baseball team, but when she starts hanging out with Jack Chen, she thinks things might start to change. Maybe she has a chance to have a real relationship, were it not for that nasty zombie invasion.



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Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard by David Petersen

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I can't say enough about how I love mouse guard. David Petersen has taken everything I love about the Redwall Series and added stunning art. The series is just as dense as Brian Jacques work, including the guard's long lineage and a variety of legends upon which to build future books. This volume collects the work of many authors and illustrators, all with a new Mouse Guard Story to tell.



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The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


An excellent fictional account of a real event. The narrative kept my interest well, but there wasn't a whole lot of story arc. Still a moving story



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Children of the Sea, Volume 1 by Daisuke Igarashi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Incredible art and an original story. Can't wait to continue with this one.



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Annexed by Sharon Dogar

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Most of us have read The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. It is an amazing portrait of a teenage girl facing evil and tragedy that will eventually claim her and most of her family. But how many of us have thought about what the ohttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifther residents of the hidden annex felt through the two years they hid from the Nazis? This is an amazing fictionalized story of how a teenage boy may have dealt with his self imposed imprisonment and the deportation that followed. The fact that I knew how it would end, didn't detract from the drama and heartbreak of Peter's story.



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The Hunger Games Party, October 20

The Hunger Games | CLEVNET Library Cooperation | BiblioCommons Celebrate Teen Read Week with a Hunger Games Party. If you haven't read this suspenseful series, reserve your copy today. Join us on October 20 at 6:30 PM and compete in our version of Panem's deadly game (without the "to the death" component of course). Show your fashion prowess by designing outfits from the recycled materials provided, or join in a Who's Who game to guess who is playing or should play your favorite characters in the upcoming movie.

How I Stole Johnny Depp's Alien Girlfriend by Gary Ghislain

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I wish the story stood up to the expectations I had because of the title. There was a lot of action, a convoluted plot whose twists and turns keep you wondering for at least a few chapters if Zelda is crazy or not, but I was looking for a bit more development for characters and story. Everything moves really quickly, and the book reads pretty fast as well, but I felt like something was missing. Maybe I should give it a slower read, and things will fall into place, but overall, this book didn't live up to a truly awesome title.



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Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


While post-apocalyptic settings are generally my least favorite, it's hard to find anything bad to say about this book. I enjoyed the way the desperate global situation was conveyed easily through the character's daily lives, rather than breaking up the narrative with explanations. It's also clear throughout the story that the author's focus is firmly on his characters, their emotions and actions than on the exotic new world they live in. While the world of Bright Sands Beach is clearly drawn, it's descriptions don't intrude on the story which can often happen in stories with such foreign locations. I also appreciated the way each characters actions, especially Sloth and Lucky Strike, play into Nailer's thought process as he tries to navigate his own way through life. He has something to learn from all of them, even his father. This is a very well written book, with realistic characters and a well rounded plot. A well deserved Printz Winner.



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We Need You!

Silent Library is coming again. We will host the wild and crazy game show during Teen Read Week in October, and we need your suggestions on silly, gross or just plain nutty challenges. Post your ideas here as comments.

Teen Summer Reading Program

Teen Summer Reading Program

Ways to Win:
1. Get a scratch-off ticket for each book you check out (limit 5 per week). You could win instantly or your tickets will be put in a drawing for a grand prize.
2. Play our "You Are Here" photo game and guess where the photographer was standing when they took each picture. (Located on the teen bulletin board)

Programs:
Taste of the World
Help prepare and taste dishes from countries and cultures around the world. Dates include June 14 & 28 and July 12, at 2:00 PM. Register now.

Silent Library
Bring your friends and challenge other teams to complete crazy tasks while staying silent. July 26 at 2:00 PM. Register now.

Volunteer Opportunities:
We need teen volunteers to support our children's programming through the months of June and July. Contact the library and ask for Chrissy to volunteer.

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I've read quite a few accounts of survival during deportation to Siberia, both non-fiction and novelizations, but this one added to my understanding with both details I've never heard and incredible depth of emotion. Lina is a wonderful character, both relatable and believable, her mother is determined and intelligent, and the fellow prisoners who create a community around them are a believable mix of strength, weakness, defiance and defeat. I was heartbroken when the story ended that I didn't get to witness Lina's eventual release and how she was reunited with those she loved. But in a way, the questions left by the novel mirror the questions left by the disappearance of so many people into the Soviet gulag system. For every story we hear, there are many many more that were never told, because so many people didn't survive. This is a great first novel, and handles a difficult topic with talent and grace.



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Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Ruby was sure she could make it the last few months of her senior year without anyone finding out her mother was gone. Why should she be sent off to stay with someone else when she was doing just fine on her own. Sure they'd turned off the gas, and the electricity, but she wasn't starving, and she could make it on her own. Here sister, Cora doesn't agree, and Ruby goes to live in Cora's perfect neighborhood, with her perfect husband and perfect house. Ruby figures this is no place for her, and the minute they take their eyes off of her, she's going over the fence. But it turns out life isn't so perfect for Cora either, and if Ruby decides to stay, she won't have a perfect life, but she might have a real family.



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The Luxe by Anna Godbersen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Long before the ladies of Gossip Girl were flouting the rules of society in New York, there were the ladies of Luxe. Elizabeth is engaged to Henry, but she's in love with the stable boy. Her sister is looking for adventure, and Henry might be in love with her instead. And Penelope will do anything to have Henry for herself. Filled with elaborate turn-of-the-century fashion and social rules, The Luxe will take you back to a different age, but it's the same old story of love, lies and loss.



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Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious Adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy by L.A. Meyer

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Mary Faber has had enough of the squalor and begging on London's streets, so she sheds her past and her name and becomes Bloody Jack, a cabin boy on one of Her Majesty's ships. The food is good, and there are friends and a great many things to learn, but there are also too many chances for discovery and danger.



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Little Brother by Cory Doctorow

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


There's been another terrorist attack on America soil, this time in San Francisco, and the Department of Homeland Security has moved in to ensure the safety of the public. But are they taking things too far? After an unfair and terrifying brush with the DHS, Marcus decides to put his considerable hacking skills to use in subverting their unconstitutional scrutiny. Can a bunch of underage computer geeks beat the best the DHS has to offer, and are they in the right to fight for their freedoms, or are they becoming terrorists themselves? Smart from start to finish, Doctorow has written a great book. Don't miss it.



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Oh. My. Gods. by Tera Lynn Childs

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Phoebe's mother has announced that she is remarrying, and they are moving from LA to Greece. What could be worse. Perhaps the fact that everyone at her new school is a descendant of a Greek God, powers and all. Everyone except Phoebe.



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