Monday, June 29, 2015

Teen Summer Reading List - 2015

Every year, I like to come up with a list of books that I recommend teens at the library to read during the summer.  Here is the 2015 list . . . .

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
When a plane crash strands thirteen teen beauty contestants on a mysterious island, they struggle to survive, to get along with one another, to combat the island's other diabolical occupants, and to learn their dance numbers in case they are rescued in time for the competition.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Sam LaCroix, a Seattle fast-food worker and college dropout, discovers that he is a necromancer, part of a world of harbingers, werewolves, satyrs, and one particular necromancer who sees Sam as a threat to his lucrative business of raising the dead.

Emily's Dress and Other Missing Things by Kathryn Burak
A new girl in Amherst, Massachusetts, comes to terms with her mother's suicide and her best friend's disappearance with the help of Emily Dickinson's poetry--and her dress.

Inside the Mind of Gideon Rayburn by Sarah Miller
Fifteen-year-old Gideon Rayburn becomes torn between two girls during his first year at a prestigious New England prep school--gorgeous Pilar Benitez-Jones and cute, smart Molly McGarry--and feels pressure to impress his two roommates with his choice.


More Recommended Reads for Teens --
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Diamonds in the Shadow by Caroline B. Cooney
Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick
Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel
Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix
The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde
The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey
My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins & Fenway Park by Steve Kluger
Mothership by Martin Leicht
Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George
The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
Star Crossed by Elizabeth C. Bunce
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
Wait for Me by An Na
William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope by Ian Doescher


Check out these books on display at the Arnold Branch through July 17, 2015.

Monday, June 22, 2015

Every Superhero Has a Story

This summer's theme at the Jefferson County Library is "Every Hero Has a Story".  Immediately you start to think of superheroes.  Here are some great chapter books featuring superheroes . . .

Sidekicked by  John David Anderson
Thirteen-year-old superhero sidekick-in-training Drew "The Sensationalist" Bean must overcome his not-so-superpowers and become the hero everyone needs when a supervillain, The Dealer, returns to Justicia.

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo
Rescuing a squirrel after an accident involving a vacuum cleaner, comic-reading cynic Flora Belle Buckman is astonished when the squirrel, Ulysses, demonstrates astonishing powers of strength and flight after being revived.

Jack Blank and the Imagine Nation by Matt Myklusch
Twelve-year-old Jack, freed from a dismal orphanage, makes his way to the elusive and impossible Imagine Nation, where a mentor saves him from dissection and trains him to use his superpower, despite the virus he carries that makes him a threat.

Horace Splattly, the Cupcaked Crusader by Lawrence David
When his little sister's magic cupcakes transform him into a flying, fire-breathing superhero, ten-year-old Horace Splattly has adventures which include confronting the monster at the school playground.


More Superhero Stories --
Captain Nobody by Dean Pitchford
Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey
Geeks, Girls and Secret Identities by Mike Jung
The Great Cape Rescue by Phyllis Shalant
Joshua Dread by Lee Bacon
Lab Coat Girl in My Triple-Decker Hero by Margie Palatini
Melvin Beederman, Superhero series by Greg Trine
Minion by John David Anderson
Public Hero Superhero by James Patterson
Searching for Super by Marion Jensen
Sidekicks series by Dan Danko
Super Chicken Nugget Boy series by Josh Lewis
Super Schnoz and the Gates of Smell by Gary Urey


Check out these books on display at the Arnold Branch through July 10, 2015.

Monday, June 15, 2015

Lions, Tigers, and Bears! Oh My!

Next week is our Wizard of Oz week at the library.  I tried to come up with a display to fit that theme and immediately thought of Lions, Tigers, and Bears!  Oh My!  So here are my favorite picture books featuring lions, tigers and bears . . . .

Library Lion by Michelle Knudson
A lion starts visiting the local library but runs into trouble as he tries to both obey the rules and help his librarian friend.

Beware of Tigers by Dave Horowitz
Despite being warned, two birds are deceived by a smiling tiger.

Cats Are Cats by Valeri Gorbachev
Miss Bell loves her cat Tiger, despite his tendency to act like a tiger.

Old Bear and His Cub by Olivier Dunrea
Although they love each other, Old Bear and his little Cub have a tug of war over which one knows best in a variety of situations.

Bear and Bee by Sergio Ruzzier
A hungry bear discovers that bees are not terrible monsters who never share their honey.


More Lions, Tigers and Bear!  Oh My! --
Andy and the Lion by James Henry Daugherty
A Beach Tail by Karen Williams
A Bear and His Boy by Sean Bryan
The Came Came Over to My House by Rick Walton
Bears by Ruth Krauss
Bearum Scarum by Vic Parker
Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds
How to Hide a Lion by Helen Stephens
I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen
It's a Tiger! by David LaRochelle
It's the Bear! by Jez Alborough
The Lion & the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney
The Lion's Share by Matthew McElligott
Little Tiger Lost by Jonathan London
Make a Wish Bear by Greg Foley
Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown
Old Bear by Kevin Henkes
Roawr! by Barbara Joosse
Song of the Circus by Lois Duncan
Tiger Pups by Tom Harvey
Tiny Little Fly by Michael Rosen
A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker
Zen Shorts by Jon Muth


Check out these and more books on display at the Arnold Branch through July 3, 2015.

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

The contestants of the Miss Teen Dream pageant thought it was going to be a fun trip to the beach.  That was before their plane had engine trouble and it crashed on an apparently deserted island.  Now there are only 13 contestants still alive -- no one else survived the crash!

What are they to do?

Explore the island?  Construct shelters?  Search for food?

Or should they practice their dances, interview questions, and talents for when they are rescued and they compete in the Miss Teen Dream Pageant?


This was a wonderfully snarky book that most teen girls would love.  It somehow manages to make fun of all the girl stereotypes while still portraying the girls realistically and kindly.  The many breaks for "commercials" for beauty products are hilarious.

For an additional boost of fun, try the audio version of the book read by the author Libba Bray.  She portrays each girl with a completely distinctive voice.  She also includes a section at the end of the audio about the writing of the book and its inspiration.

Monday, June 8, 2015

Have You Read the Series? Teen Edition

With the start of summer, it's the perfect time to start reading a series of books.  Here are some of my favorite teen series . . .

Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz
The Alex Rider Adventures #1
After the death of the uncle who had been his guardian, fourteen-year-old Alex Rider is coerced to continue his uncle's dangerous work for Britain's intelligence agency, MI6.

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
Beautiful Creatures #1
In a small South Carolina town, where it seems little has changed since the Civil War, sixteen-year-old Ethan is powerfully drawn to Lena, a new classmate with whom he shares a psychic connection and whose family hides a dark secret that may be revealed on her sixteenth birthday.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore
The Graceling Realm #1
In a world where some people are born with extreme and often-feared skills called Graces, Katsa struggles for redemption from her own horrifying Grace, the Grace of killing, and teams up with another young fighter to save their land from a corrupt king.

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Moon series #1
Through journal entries sixteen-year-old Miranda describes her family's struggle to survive after a meteor hits the moon, causing worldwide tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.

Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce
Song of the Lioness #1
Eleven-year-old Alanna, who aspires to be a knight even though she is a girl, disguises herself as a boy to become a royal page, a learning many hard lessons along her path to high adventure.


More Teen Series --
Abandon trilogy by Meg Cabot
Adventurers Wanted series by M.L. Forman
BZRK series by Michael Grant
Chaos Walking series by Patrick Ness
The Claidi Journals series by Tanith Lee
The Enemy series by Charles Higson
Gone series by Michael Grant
Halo trilogy by Alexandra Adornetto
I Hunt Killers series by Barry Lyga
The Luxe series by Anna Godbersen
Num8ers series by Rachel Ward
Redwall series by Brian Jacques
Shiver trilogy by Maggie Stiefvater
Witch & Wizard series by James Patterson
Zom-B series by Darren Shan


Check out these series on display at the Arnold Branch through June 26, 2015.

Monday, June 1, 2015

Reading is for the Dogs

When I am asked for animal stories, quite often they want stories about dogs.  So here are some of my favorite dog stories . . .

One Dog and His Boy by Eva Ibbotson
When lonely, ten-year-old Hal learns that his wealthy but neglectful parents only rented Fleck, the dog he always wanted, he and new friend Pippa take Fleck and four other dogs from the rental agency on a trek from London to Scotland, where Hal's grandparents live.

Lulu Walks the Dogs by Judith Viorst
Lulu needs help from a boy named Fleischman if she is to earn money walking her neighbors' dogs, and she finds out that if she wants her business venture to succeed, she has to be nice.

Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin
Rose Howard has OCD, Asperger's syndrome, and an obsession with homonyms. She gave her dog Rain a name with two homonyms. Rose and Rain are practically inseparable. And they are often home alone, as Rose's father spends most evenings at a bar, and doesn't have much patience for his special-needs daughter. Just as a storm hits town, Rain goes missing.


More Dog Stories --
Darling: Mercy Dog of World War I by Alison Hart
Duke by Kirby Larson
Elvis and the Underdogs by Jenny Lee
Just a Dog by Michael Gerard Bauer
Little Dog, Lost by Marion Dane Bauer
The Misadventures of the Magician's Dog by Frances Sackett
Mountain Dog by Margarita Engle
Road Trip by Gary Paulsen
A Simple Case of Angels by Caroline Adderson
Soldier Dog by Sam Angus
Stick Dog by Tom Watson
The Truth of Me by Patricia MacLachlan

Check out these books on display at the Arnold Branch through June 19, 2015.