Make a Date with a Book

Valentine's Day will be here is just one week.  Don't have plans for the day yet?

No problem!
Pick one of these great teen romance books to read this Valentine's Day . . .







The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brockenbrough
In Seattle in 1937 two seventeen-year-olds, Henry, who is white, and Flora, who is African-American, become the unwitting pawns in a game played by two immortal figures, Love and Death, where they must choose each other at the end, or one of them will die.

Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt
When Lord Death comes to claim sixteen-year-old Keturah while she is lost in the King's Forest, she charms him with her story and is granted a twenty-four hour reprieve in which to seek her one true love.

There Is No Dog by Meg Rosoff
When the beautiful Lucy prays to fall in love, God, an irresponsible youth named Bob, chooses to answer her prayer personally, to the dismay of this assistant, Mr. B who must try to clean up the resulting catastrophes.

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman
Seventeen-year-old Vince's life is constantly complicated by the fact that he is the son of a powerful Mafia boss, a relationship that threatens to destroy his romance with the daughter of an FBI agent.

Keeping the Castle by Patrice Kindl
In order to support her family and maintain their ancient castle in Lesser Hoo, seventeen-year-old Althea bears the burden of finding a wealthy suitor who can remedy their financial problems.


More Teen Romances --
Anna Dressed in Blood by  Kendare Blake
As I Wake by Elizabeth Scott
Beastkeeper by Cat Hellisen
Between the Lines by Jodi Picoult & Samantha Van Leer
Crash Into You by Kate McGarry
Cupid: A Tale of Love and Desire by Juilius Lester
Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst
Eat, Brains, Love by Jeff Hart
Fan Art by Sarah Tregay
The Last Forever by Deb Caletti
Love by the Morning Star by Laura Sullivan
The Princess Spy by Melanie Dickerson
Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matswon
The Shadow Prince by Bree Despain
Still Star-Crossed by Melinda Taub
These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman
This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith
Time Between Us by Tamara Stone
The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh


Check out these books on display at the Arnold Branch through February 27, 2016.

Masterminds by Gordon Korman

Serenity, New Mexico is the perfect town.  Honesty and integrity are valued above all else.  The kids who live there never lie -- they know it's a short leap from lying to the awful problems found elsewhere in the world.

Eli has never left Serenity . . . why would he want to?

Then one day, he bikes to the edge of the city limits and something so crazy and unexpected happens that it changes everything.  Eli convinces his friends to investigate further and it's soon apparent that nothing in Serenity is as it seems.  The clues lead to an awful discovery . . . one that will causes them to realize they can trust no one -- especially their parents.


Masterminds is the first book in a new adventure series by Gordon Korman.  It's a great, suspenseful read for kids.  Each chapter is narrated by one of five children in the town.  They each discover shocking secrets about their lives that will change everything they've every thought and believe.  I would recommend this to anyone looking for an adventure, suspense or a mystery.

It's A Love Written in the Stars . . . Romances for Teens

With Valentine's Day quickly approaching, many teen's thoughts turn to love.  Here are some great teen books featuring star-crossed romances . . .

Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt
When Lord Death comes to claim sixteen-year-old Keturah while she is lost in the King's Forest, she charms him with her story and is granted a twenty-four hour reprieve in which to seek her one true love.

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman
Seventeen-year-old Vince's life is constantly complicated by the fact that he is the son of a powerful Mafia boss, a relationship that threatens to destroy his romance with the daughter of an FBI agent.

The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith
Sparks fly when sixteen-year-old Lucy Patterson and seventeen-year-old Owen Buckley meet on an elevator rendered useless by a New York City blackout. Soon after, the two teenagers leave the city, but as they travel farther away from each other geographically, they stay connected emotionally, in this story set over the course of one year.

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
For three years, seventeen-year-old Cas Lowood has carried on his father's work of dispatching the murderous dead, traveling with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat, but everything changes when he meets Anna, a girl unlike any ghost he has faced before.

Prince of Shadows by Rachel Caine
The star-crossed tale of Romeo and Juliet, told through the eyes of Romeo's cousin, Benvolio, a thief known as the Prince of Shadows.


More Tales of Star-Crossed Loves
Alienated by Melissa Landers
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler
Crash Into You by Katie McGarry
Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst
Enchanted by Alethea Kontis
Everynight by Claudia Gray
In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters
Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner
Three Rivers Rising: A Novel of the Johnstown Flood by Jame Richards
Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson
The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski


These books will be on display at the Arnold Branch through February 20, 2015.

K-I-S-S-I-N-G! Tales of Love

I love a good romance story.  Whether the traditional boy meets girl and falls in love to those tales of star-crossed lovers, I can always read a good romance.  Here are some great teen romances . . .

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman
Seventeen-year-old Vince's life is constantly complicated by the fact that he is the son of a powerful Mafia boss, a relationship that threatens to destroy his romance with the daughter of an FBI agent.

Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt
When Lord Death comes to claim sixteen-year-old Keturah while she is lost in the King's Forest, she charms him with her story and is granted a twenty-four hour reprieve in which to seek her one true love.

Wait for Me by An Na
As her senior year in high school approaches, Mina yearns to find her own path in life but working at the family business, taking care of her little sister, and dealing with her mother's impossible expectations are as stifling as the southern California heat, until she falls in love with a man who offers a way out.

Lips Touch, Three Times by Laini Taylor
Contains three short stores of supernatural love, each focusing on a kiss that has consequences for the kissers' souls.

There Is No Dog by Meg Rosoff
When the beautiful Lucy prays to fall in love, God, an irresponsible youth named Bob, chooses to answer her prayer personally, to the dismay of this assistant, Mr. B who must try to clean up the resulting catastrophes.

Accidental Love by Gary Soto
After unexpectedly falling in love with a "nerdy" boy, fourteen-year-old Marisa works to change her life by transferring to another school, altering some of her behavior, and losing weight.


More Romances for Teens --
A Winter Night's Dream by Andrew Matthews
Time Between  Us by Tamara Ireland Stone
This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith
Things I Know About Love by Kate Le Vann
Taken by Storm by Angela Morrison
Street Love by Walter Dean Myers
Something Like Normal by Trish Doller
Of Poseidon by Anna Banks
Muchacho: A Novel by Louanne Johnson
Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
Heartsinger by Karlijn Stoffels
Gone, Gone, Gone by Hannah Moskowitz
Flavor of the Week by Tucker Shaw
Fancy White Trash by Marjetta Geerling
Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst

Football Season

The high school football season is underway.  Want more than just the Friday / Saturday night game?  Try reading one of these great football books for teens. . .

Knights of the Hill Country by Tim Tharp
In his senior year, high school star linebacker Hampton Greene finally begins to think for himself and discovers that he might be interested in more than just football.

Food, Girls, and Other Things I Can't Have by Allen Zadoff
Fifteen-year-old Andrew Zansky, the second fattest student at his high school, joins the varsity football team to get the attention of a new girl on whom he has a crush.

Pop by Gordon Korman
Lonely after a midsummer move to a new town, sixteen-year-old high-school quarterback Marcus Jordan becomes friends with a retired professional linebacker who is great at training him, but whose childish behavior keeps Marcus in hot water.

Gym Candy by Carl Deuker
Football is the only thing that has ever really mattered to Mick Johnson, who works hard for a spot on the varsity team his freshman year, then tries to hold onto his edge by using steroids, despite the consequences to his health and social life.

Dairy Queen: A Novel by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
After spending her summer running the family farm and training the quarterback for her school's rival football team, sixteen-year-old D.J. decides to go out for the sport herself, not anticipating the reactions of those around her.

Football Season

With the start of school comes the start of the football season.  Check out one of these great football stories for teens . . .

Pop by Gordon Korman
Lonely after a midsummer move to a new town, sixteen-year-old high-school quarterback Marcus Jordan becomes friends with a retired professional linebacker who is great at training him, but whose childish behavior keeps Marcus in hot water.

Gym Candy by Carl Deuker
Football is the only thing that has ever really mattered to Mick Johnson, who works hard for a spot on the varsity team his freshman year, then tries to hold onto his edge by using steroids, despite the consequences to his health and social life.

Knights of the Hill Country by Tim Tharp
In his senior year, high school star linebacker Hampton Greene finally begins to think for himself and discovers that he might be interested in more than just football.