West Allis Public Library Teen Events

Winter Reading Bingo Ends Today!

2012-01-31T09:01:00.000-06:00

Four across, down or diagonally, you still have a chance to get your Winter Reading Bingo cards back to the library for a chance to win some cool books and gift cards!

Cards are due to the library by 9 PM on Tuesday January 31st to be eligible for the prizes!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Review: Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

2012-01-30T12:45:00.005-06:00

Jasper Jones is a legend for being a thief, arsonist and all around bad influence in his small Australian mining town. So when Jasper appears at Charlie's window late one night, Charlie feels he has to go with him.

Under the cover of darkness the two of them sneak away to a clearing in the woods, a place that is Jasper's. And there hanging from a tree is the shire president's daughter: Laura Wishart. Charlie is sick, and unsure of what he is supposed to do. Charlie would call the police and have them check things out, but Jasper knows that he would be blamed for the crime he didn't commit and asks Charlie to help him hide the body.

Burdened with the secret of Laura's where abouts, Charlie strives to keep a normal life. With his best friend Jeff trying to make the town cricket team and his crush Eliza Wishart holding back secrets from her sister's disappearance summer seems to move slowly while he waits to see when (or if) Jasper will come back looking for his help.

Life is not what it seems in small town Australia. People are scared of the fighting in Vietnam, and also the fear from Laura going "missing". Charlie's family seem to be right in the middle of it all, with a father who would rather retreat into his office and a mother who just seems angry.

Part To Kill a Mockingbird, part Everybody Sees the Ants, Jasper Jones is an intense read that is part mystery and part growing up story. Charlie serves as a reliable narrator, who tells us both his story, as well as the story of the town. Jasper is a creation of myth, as well as a real interesting character. He creeps in and out of town, and can not wait to get away from small town life.

Readers will not be disappointed in Jasper Jones (the character or the plot). Small town life, family and friendship are all looked into, and things are never what they seem.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler)

Wii Open Play This Saturday!

2012-01-27T17:14:00.000-06:00

Join us this Saturday, January 28th, in the Constitution Room (in the atrium, by the fountain) from 2-4PM for Wii Open Play! How does an open play work? We bring the games and the Wii, you bring yourself (and a friend or three!) and play Wii on the big screen. We'll have Wii Sports, Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Super Mario Bros. Wii. Four gamers to a round, winner stays in and the three losers swap out.

We'll also have board and card games for you guys while you wait to play Wii, or you don't have to play Wii - you can just hang out and play Apples to Apples or Would You Rather. The Constitution Room is now wireless, so bring your DS, your phone, your eReader, or your laptop along too!

No pre-registration required. Gamers are welcome to BYO controllers, snacks and soda.

See you Saturday!

Megan

2012 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults Announced!

2012-01-25T14:47:00.000-06:00

Need something new to read? Every year, YALSA (Young Adult Library Services Association) releases a list of the top reads for that year. Katie and I can personally vouch for the awesomeness of all of 2012's Top Ten - so what are you waiting for? Head to the library and grab one!

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson
Leverage by Joshua Cohen
Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King
Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall
Shine by Lauren Myracle
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr

Read all the amazing on this list already? Click here for the complete list of best fiction from 2012, along with past years' top reads!

Megan
(who is so very, very glad to see the gorgeous Daughter of Smoke and Bone getting some love!)

Book Review: Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol

2012-01-25T14:08:00.000-06:00

Anya just wants to fit in and be normal. But with a last name like Borzakovskaya and a mom who keeps making food that's so... Russian, it's hard. She hates gym, her grades kind of suck, nerdy Dima keeps tryng to be friends with her and there's no way she can be seen with him and his Russian accent, and she's pretty sure that gorgeous basketball star Sear will never notice her, especially since he's dating the gorgeous, perfect Elizabeth. Also, her best and only friend, Siobhan, is kind of mean to her.

So when Anya falls down a well, it really just seems like one more horrible thing in her horrible life. But Anya isn't the only one in the well. She finds herself sharing the dark with a 90-year-old skeleton - and the skeleton's ghost, Emily. Emily can't get too far from her bones, but she does wake Anya up to yell for help when a guy walks by the well opening.

When Emily appears in the girls' bathroom at school, Anya is shocked and more than a little annoyed - talking to the ghost of some dead girl is not really going to get her noticed in a good way. Plus, didn't Emily tell her she couldn't leave her bones? Turns out one of Emily's finger bones ended up in Anya's bag... somehow. But having Emily around is more useful than Anya anticipated. That biology test Anya didn't study for? No problem. Figuring out Sean's class schedule? Easy. Picking out an awesome outfit that's sure to get Sean's attention at a party? Anya's never had a friend that's so much fun to hang out with.

But when Emily goes all stalker poltergeist on Anya, things start to get pretty creepy. Anya decides to investigate a little further into her ghost's past, and what she finds sure doesn't sound like the sad story Emily told her about how she ended up in that well. It seems that Emily has a whole lot more in mind than just helping Anya fit in at school...

If you've ever been embarrassed by your family, wished you were more athletic, wondered why the cute boy you like doesn't notice you, or really wished you had someone to help you out on that bio test, you'll love Anya. This spooky graphic novel is both hilarious and very, very creepy - so the next time you fall down a well after a really bad day at school, make sure you leave any and all bits of skeleton behind you!

Megan
(now reading The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, which also promises to be creeptacular!)

2012 Printz Winner and Honor Books

2012-01-23T12:17:00.002-06:00

2012 Printz Award goes to:
Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley

2012 Honors:
Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey
The Returning by Christine Hinwood
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler

Congratulations to all of the authors!
Katie (Seriously excited about reading Jasper Jones and Why We Broke Up this week. Hopefully I'll get through this list in the next month!)

Book Review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

2012-01-20T09:01:00.000-06:00

Hazel's mother thinks she is depressed, so like most over worried mothers, she takes her to the doctor, who agrees that she is depressed and recommends that Hazel start attending a support group. And by the way, Hazel has terminal cancer, and it tied to an oxygen tank to help breath.

Hazel knows she is going to die, and most likely sooner rather than later, unlike most teens. Even at support group, she finds her self different from most of the kids. She finds their stories a bit ridiculous, and the leader even more so.

It is at the support group, where she meets Gus, or more formally Augustus Waters, dreamy, smart and most importantly totally into her. They become quick friends, and quickly something more.

Two teens, one terminal one seemingly full of life set out to find answers from the reclusive Peter Van Houten, author of Hazel's favorite book which ends in the middle of a sentence unfinished. Hazel went from a life confined to home, with her parents to a life of fun, adventure and even a bit of romance thanks to Gus.

You don't need to be a nerdfighter to enjoy John Green's latest book. Don't think this is just a sad book about teens with cancer, it's more than that. It's about teens who live with cancer and the choices they have to make, along with the decisions they are faced with. Pair this with Jenny Downham's Before I I Die, and make sure you have an abundance of tissue.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey)

Book Review: Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall

2012-01-17T14:00:00.001-06:00

Lupita loves her life. The oldest of eight, she lives in Texas with her flower-loving Mami and hard-working Papi, spending weekends and summers just across the border in Mexico with her Abuelita, uncles and aunts and many cousins. A talented writer, Lupita carries a notebook with her everywhere, often retreating to write under the mesquite tree in her mother's garden, and dreams of one day going to college to become a writer. Her drama teacher, Mr. Cortes, encourages her talent, giving her voice lessons and taking her to performing arts competitions. Balancing a family in two countries and maintaining a cultural identity that she loves isn't always easy, but Lupita is proud of who she is and where she comes from.

But when Lupita's mother is diagnosed with cancer, everything changes. As the oldest, she takes over many of the family responsibilities. Papi is working more than ever to make enough money to pay for the doctors and the chemo, and he and Mami are gone for weeks at a time while she's in treatment. Suddenly, Lupita is struggling to feed her younger brothers and sisters, help with homework, and keep the house clean, all while trying to keep her own dreams alive. Friends and neighbors do everything they can to help out and ease the burden, but everyone is struggling. Still, even though she is terrified Mami won't make it, Lupita tries to stay positive and keep hope alive for her family.

Written in Lupita's hopeful voice, this novel-in-verse journals Lupita's four years in high school as she struggles to come to terms with her mother's cancer, stay strong for her family, remain true to her Mexican American heritage, and realize her dreams to become a writer. Nominated for the 2012 Morris Award for debut YA authors, Under the Mesquite is a moving testament to the power of love, family, and friendship.

Megan
(now reading The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross, which promises to be full of steampunk, clockwork awesome!)

Teen Winter Reading Bingo

2012-01-15T12:01:00.000-06:00

You still have time to turn in your Teen Reading Bingo cards to the library! Make sure you complete at least one Bingo and you will be eligible to win some awesome gift cards and pretty cool teen books. Cards are due back to the library on January 31st, so there is still time to play!

Stop in the library, pick up a Bingo card and get to work! It's not all reading books, you get to watch movies, read magazines and surf the Internet to earn a chance to win the prizes!

Check out the original post for complete contest information, and I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, did anyone else get the pre-order signed copy?)

Book Review: Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley

2012-01-13T15:00:00.002-06:00

The summer the extinct Lazarus woodpecker reappears in 17-year-old Cullen Witter's tiny, going-nowhere Arkansas town is the same summer his 15-year old brother Gabriel disappears without a trace. It's also the same summer his longtime crush, the gorgeous Ada Taylor, finally notices him.

Spending the year in Africa as a missionary, 18-year-old Benton Sage hopes to change the world with his faith. Instead, he quickly finds himself in way over his head and disillusioned. He knows that distributing food, water, and medicine to the people of Ethiopa is important, but he's not sure if exchanging a few sentences about God with hungry people counts as saving them. Questioning his purpose in Africa and in life, Benton decides to look for answers elsewhere.

Cullen's life is full of interesting people. Best friend and all around good guy Lucas Cader, who researches missing persons cases incessantly and sleeps on Cullen's floor at least four nights a week after Gabriel disappears. Lucas's girlfriend Mena Prescott, who Lucas always found kind of annoying but, it turns out, is actually kind of awesome. Ada Taylor, gorgeous, smart, and Lily's very own Black Widow - every guy she's ever dated has ended up dead in a terrible accident. Ada Taylor's jerky football player boyfriend Russell Quitman, or, as Cullen likes to call him, the Quit Man, because that's what you can hear in Russell's wake - his victims yelling, "Quit, man!" Alma Ember, 19-year-old divorcee and recently returned to Lily after a brief experiment with college (and marriage) in Atlanta, who Cullen is sort of dating after Lucas sets him up on a date with her.

But the most important person in the world to him is his little brother Gabriel. And Gabriel is just... gone. And all anyone in town seems to care about is that stupid woodpecker that no one's even actually caught a good look at anyway. Cullen wants his brother back, and he'd appreciate it if people put in a little more effort toward making that happen.

How Cullen, Gabriel, and Benton come together in a series of startling coincidences and seemingly unrelated events is a story of uncommon beauty and unexpected humor. Nominated for the 2012 Morris Award for newbie authors of teen books, Where Things Come Back is a quiet novel that is unpredictable in the very best of ways. Reminiscent of To Kill A Mockingbird with its rich Southern setting and vibrant characters, this one's for all the book lovers out there!

Megan
(waiting for my hold to come in on the only 2012 Morris nominee I haven't read, Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe McCall!)

Book Review: Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories edited by Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant

2012-01-11T18:14:00.001-06:00

When a wounded soldier falls from an airship and lands in her garden, lonely Rose knows he's going to fall in love with her. And if things don't work out, well, there's always the time-travel device her father invented...

The Glory Girls are the most wanted outlaws in the West - and mechanical genius and Pinkerton Detective Adelaide Jones has been sent in undercover to discover their train-robbing secrets. But the allure of the Enigma Apparatus and the freedom of riding with the Girls might just be more than Adelaide can resist.

Constable Aurelia Etreyo knows that arrogant golden boy Detective Wilkins has the wrong man - there's no way homeless, rambling Nutter Norm could be the notorious, brilliantly elusive Califa Squeeze, the serial killer who's been terrorizing the city for months. Using the modern crime-solving Bertillo method, Etreyo sets out to prove that Nutter Norm is not the Squeeze - all before he's set to hang.

Sofia despises automatons with every fiber of her being - after all, they led to the death of her beloved father. Convincing her cousin Amelia that there is no way Nicholas, the dancing master automaton, could be in love with her, should be easy - shouldn't it?

If you love steampunk, you're going to love this fabulous collection of short stories! Holly Black, Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, Garth Nix, and M.T. Anderson are just a few of the authors that contributed tales of gothic horror, the Wild West, Appalachian toy-making faeries, clockwork romance, interplanatary misdeeds, and gadgets galore to this anthology of awesome. Wait, what's steampunk? It's that stuff that's Victorian and gothic and full of crazy advanced, futuristic technology that uses clockwork, gears and steam power. Automaton armies and space-going dirigibles, clockwork time-travel devices and swashbuckling adventures through past and future (sometimes at the same time) are all very steampunky. If you loved Kenneth Oppel's Airborn and sequels Skybreaker and Starclimber, Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince, and Philip Reeve's Fever Crumb and A Web of Air, this collection of the strange and marvelous will be something to savor!

Megan
(now devouring The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler and laughing pretty hard at the thought of running with a ginormous Discman!)

Book Review: Rotters by Daniel Kraus

2012-01-09T18:01:00.000-06:00

Joey's life is changing quickly. First his mother passed away unexpectedly. Then instead of being able to live with a friend or foster family, he is sent away to live with his father, a man he never knew existed in Iowa.

Used to big city life in Chicago, relative obscurity in school and good friends and teachers around him, life in small town Iowa is going to take some getting used to. Just by being the new kid, he has a target on the back, and it doesn't help that they've nicknamed his father "the garbageman". Between a couple of bullies, mean teachers and his father's absence at home, Joey is desperate for his old life.

Then he learns his father's secret. His father is part of a historic tradition with lineage going back to Shakespeare and Leonardo da Vinci. It has roots in environmentalism, and medical science. Not many men do this anymore, and getting caught is a serious crime. His father is a grave robber.

Thrust (after some begging) into the world of robbing graves, Joey's life changes. Sure, there's still bullying, and the stink, but there is also adventure and treasure. Learning the secrets of graveyard, finding good graves, and knowing what is worth digging are all lessons he must learn, and that is just the start.

The world of the grave digger is one of invisibility, even though other colorful characters share the job description. Tradition, and valuing life are two things these men do, and as the rules start to be broken, Joey and his father need to find a way to maintain their employment, even as their world starts to be exposed.

Rotters is a horror story that will grip you, reel you in, and make you question a lot of things. Not for the feint of heart, Rotters goes into detail about rotting bodies, crime and even some violence. Daniel Kraus must have done a lot of research, because you will feel like you are there with Joey and Harnett as they go on their night journeys.

This is not your average YA book, however if you loved the Monstrumologist (Rick Yancy) books, and wonder where all the good scary books are, you will have to check out Rotters by Daniel Kraus.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Hoping to read something light next, maybe Crossed, the sequel to Matched by Ally Condie)

Book Review: Legend by Marie Lu

2012-01-07T12:00:00.002-06:00

15-year-old Day is the most wanted criminal in the Republic. Not the most dangerous - Day is always careful never to hurt anyone, his hits designed only to destroy the Republic's reputation, not its citizens. JumboTrons across Los Angeles light up with a description of his crimes and a different photo every time, because the Republic has no idea who he is, or what he looks like. Only his older brother John knows he's still alive - his mother and little brother Eden believe he's dead, killed in a Republic Labor Camp after failing his Trial.

June is the Republic's most valued military asset in the war against the Colonies and their Patriot terrorists. A prodigy born into an elite, wealthy family, she received an unheard-of perfect 1500 on her Trial. Her education hyper-accelerated by the government, June, at 15, is the youngest senior at Drake University. Still, there are drawbacks to being a genius - at four years younger than her classmates, June doesn't have a lot of friends, just her beloved older brother, Metias, a captain in the military.

When Day's family is infected with the Plague and quarantined by the military, Day is desperate to find a way to get the Cure to them. The rich are always vaccinated against the new strains of the Plague - but Day grew up in the slum districts. He knows that without his help, his family will be dead in weeks. When Day raids the Los Angeles Central Hospital for medicine, he barely escapes with his life, jumping three stories to the ground, leaving his knife behind in a young captain's shoulder, and vanishing into the sewers.

From the moment June is told Metias is dead, her entire being is focused on revenge. She goes on an undercover mission to flush out the terrorist she knows murdered her brother, haunting the slum districts looking for whispers and rumors of Day's identity and location. But when June finally finds him, she discovers not all is as it seems. Day possesses secret knowledge the Republic is willing to sacrifice anything - and anyone - to keep secret.

You won't be able to put this one down as June frantically hunts for answers through the dark streets of a pretty scary future Los Angeles. Not sure who to trust and with everything she thought she knew turning out to be a lie, June is one tough, smart chick who fights hard and dirty to keep the people she loves safe. If you loved Divergent and The Hunger Games trilogy, this dystopian adventure will have you on the edge of your seat with its fast-paced, adrenaline-fueled plot. Check out this awesome, action-packed read @ the library today!

Megan
(now reading Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories - with stories about clockwork and gears, automatons and airships by Cassandra Clare, Libba Bray, and Holly Black, among other awesome authors, how can you go wrong?!)

Watch the book trailer for Legend!

Book Review: Winter Town by Stephen Emond

2012-01-05T13:04:00.003-06:00

Evan walks Lucy home on New Years Eve, before the ball drops and before she leaves for Georgia to live with her mom. They've been friends forever, and being apart is not something they are looking forward to.

Flash forward about one year, Evan is celebrating Christmas with his family when he gets a text from Lucy. Desperate to see her, he sneaks away from his family celebration to see her, surprised that the Lucy he knew has been replaced with someone new. Lucy now has choppy short black hair, complete with heavy eye makeup and pierced nose. A typically easy walk ends with a fight when Lucy starts to smoke, and Evan starts to lecture.

Winter break is going slowly to say the least, Evan has no clue what happened to his old Lucy, and the new Lucy isn't giving any hints beyone the new look and attitude. Things can't be okay, but Lucy won't tell him what is wrong.

Lucy's life has never been easy, even when her parents were together, and now things are worse. She doesn't want to tell Evan what has happened over the past year because she is sure he will hate her, and that will ruin whatever they are. But then again, is Evan's perfect life really that perfect? With college applications due, and his father gunning for an Ivy League school, Evan's art has taken a backseat to more academic pursuits.

Told through both Evan and Lucy's point a view, and including Evan's illustrations and the graphic novel the two of them are writing, Winter Town is a realistic look at the friendship between a boy and a girl. Both Lucy and Evan have a little bit of growing up to do, and while they are "just friends" each of them wanting something more.

Fans of Emond's first book HappyFace will want to take note, as well as if you enjoy books like Pete Hautman's the Big Crunch, or John Green's Looking for Alaska. Realistic romance isn't always easy to read, but trust me when I say that Winter Town is worth it.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Um, still reading Rotters...but it's getting good, and I think this time I'll finish it for real!)

City of Lost Souls Cover Reveal!

2012-01-04T16:00:00.002-06:00

Cassandra Clare fans, feast your eyes!

Coming to a library near you on May 8, 2012!

Which is waaaaay too far away for more Clary and Jace (and Sebastian! Argh! Sebastian!!), so check out this exclusive excerpt over on USA Today's website. Oh Simon... you know it's only going to get worse before it gets better!

Need more Cassandra Clare before May 8th? Check out her short story in Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories. I just finished it over breakfast this morning, and it was more delicious than a vanilla empanada - steampunk! With time travel! And clockwork dolls and thwarted love! And speaking of steampunk, don't forget about The Infernal Devices, the prequels to The Mortal Instruments. Will and Jem just may have captured my heart more firmly than Jace Wayland has - I mean, seriously, they wear cravats AND fight vampires. How does it get more fabulous than that?!

Megan
(who, if I could meet only one character from Cassandra Clare's awesome world, would want it to be Magnus Bane. He's just so fabulously rock star glittery!)

Read to Achieve with the Milwaukee Bucks!

2012-01-03T14:17:00.002-06:00

It's time for the 2012 Bucks Reading Challenge!

If you are in 3rd-10th grade, stop in the library beginning January 3rd to register and pick up your reading log. Students in 3rd-6th grade need to register at the Children's Reference Desk, and those of you in 7th-10th grade should register at the Adult Information Desk. (This program is limited to those of you in 3rd-10th grade. We didn't make the rules for this one.)

Here's what you need to do: Read! Once you sign up, we will give you a reading log where you will keep track of the pages you've read starting on January 3rd. Once you've reached 500 pages, come back to the library (with your reading log) and we will give you a voucher for a free ticket to a Milwaukee Bucks' Basketball game!*

Once you reach 500 pages, keep reading. Students who read 750 pages are entered to win "Overtime" prizes, including an autographed Milwaukee Bucks basketball!

Bucks Read to Achieve runs from January 3rd-February 28th 2011, and stop by the reference (or information) desk for more information!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

*There are two games to choose the ticket from, and you are responsible for sending in the voucher for your ticket. We'll give you all the information when you come in and register

Winter Events @ the West Allis Public Library!

2011-12-27T19:48:00.005-06:00

Whether you are in the middle of winter break from school, or just looking for something new to do, check out the West Allis Public Library! This winter we have a couple of events for you to check out, win prizes and read some cool new books!

First up is our Winter Reading Bingo. Back on December 1st we started our "Teen Winter Reading Bingo" where you read four in a row, across or four corners and enter to win gift cards and books!

Next, back again in Bucks Read to Achieve. Starting on January 3rd stop in the library to find out how you can win a free ticket to a Milwaukee Bucks basketball game by reading!

Finally, check out the 2012 MCTBA titles, and help us choose the next Milwaukee County Teen Book Award Winner! Ballots will be available in the library soon, but it's not too early to start reading.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now giving Rotters a second chance...)

Book Review: All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

2011-12-22T14:00:00.004-06:00

Chocolate and caffeine are illegal. New York City is rife with organized crime and run by mobsters operating speakeasies that deal in espresso and hot chocolate. Anya Balanchine is the daughter of murdered crime boss and former chocolate factory king Leonyn Balanchine and is trying to hold her family together and get through high school. Orphaned in the hit on her father - her mother was killed in a botched hit years earlier in the same accident that left her older brother and heir to the family business Leo with the mind of a child - Anya is responsible for raising little sister Natty (who also happens to be a genius), keeping Leo out of trouble and out of the family business, and caring for her dying grandmother.

All of which means that she should totally stay away from too-cute-to-be-true new boy Win - who also happens to be the son of the new assistant DA. There's no way she wants sweet, caring Win mixed up in her mess of a life, even if Win seems to be perfectly happy to get mixed up with Anya. She also definitely doesn't have time to get arrested for the attempted murder by poisoning of (absolutely ex) boyfriend Gable Arsley with contraband chocolate. And she for sure doesn't have time, or the inclination, to accept her birthright as the head of the Balanchine family and the chocolate business. In fact, she spends most of her time doing her best to make sure she, Leo and Natty have nothing whatsoever to do with Uncle Yuri and her cousins Mikey and Jacks, while still staying on their good side and ensuring their protection from the other chocolate families. Which lately hasn't really been working out so well.

With faithful and eclectic BFF Scarlet at her side, the fabulous and fabulously cute Win who won't leave her side (maybe it would help if Anya could stop kissing him...), loyal family lawyer Mr. Kipling and his underling, the slightly incompetent Simon Green, and the mysterious help (and even more mysterious motives) of rival chocolatier Yuji Ono, Anya navigates the dark streets of a city that's more Gotham than New York dodging family and family rivals in order to figure out who she is, who she has to be - and who she wants to be.

If you loved Holly Black's White Cat and Red Glove or Ally Carter's Heist Society books, then this fun, fabulous gangster read that's part The Godfather and part Batman (but without the gadgets - or The Joker) is for you! Love, loyalty, friendship and family all war for dominance in this smart, funny novel. Make sure you grab some holiday chocolate and caffeine to enjoy while you're reading - they'll be even more delicious than usual when you know you don't have to risk incarceration for them!

Megan
(who stayed up waaaaay too late reading the delicious Clockwork Prince last night!)

Book Review: The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

2011-12-20T16:00:00.002-06:00

Princess Lucero-Elisa of Orovalle is the younger of two princesses and quite used to being useless. Ignored by her father the king and treated with contempt by her beautiful, graceful, politically shrewd older sister, Elisa has spent the last 16 years of her life filling the loneliness inside her with pastries, friendless and neglected by everyone at court except her beloved nurse Ximena and ladies' maid Aneaxi.

She is also the bearer of the Godstone. The champion chosen and blessed only once a century, Elisa carries a sapphire jewel in her navel, a jewel that warms and comforts with prayer and grows cold as ice when danger is near. She is uncertain of her destiny, but Elisa is quite certain that the Godstone chose its bearer wrongly - she is no champion.

Elisa is also a new bride - a political marriage arranged by her father to the charismatic but indecisive Alejandro de Vega, king of Joya, in exchange for troops in support of the war against the mysterious, wild hordes and deadly animagi of Invierne, she has no idea who or what she is expected to be. When her new husband gently informs her that she is to be presented at the Joya court as his 'special guest' and her role as his wife is to be kept a secret, Elisa does not know how to react, much less what to do about her uncertain status. Alejandro insists that this is to protect her, but she has no idea from what it is she is being protected.

But when Elisa arrives in Joya, she discovers that she is the only one who has been kept ignorant of her Godstone's destiny. Kindly priest Father Nicandro reveals that there are a series of prophecies about the bearer of the Godstone, and that each champion must fulfill an act of service that will reveal itself in time. Elisa also discovers it's not just her marriage to Alejandro being kept a secret from the people of Joya - so is the fact that she bears the Godstone. She and her Godstone are the secret weapon in the war with Invierne - and the animagi and their spies must not discover her existence. But is Elisa ready to do what it takes to become a champion?

Nominated for the 2012 Morris award (given to an author of teen books for a first novel of awesome), The Girl of Fire and Thorns is an intricately plotted epic fantasy with a fully realized, complex world full of political intrigue and manipulation, murder, spies, sandstorms, jungle and dessert battles, kidnapping, conspiracies and betrayal, seriously scary sorcerers who use blood and sacrifice to channel fire, a touch of romance, fierce and loyal friendships, and a very mysterious Godstone and its princess. If you loved Kristin Cashore's Graceling and Fire, enjoyed Hilari Bell's Farsala trilogy, or think Robin McKinley's books are amazing (The Blue Sword = swoon!), you won't want to miss Rae Carson's first novel!

Megan
(now reading All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin - chocolate and caffeine have been outlawed in a New York City that's very Gotham, and main character Anya Balanchine, daughter of a notorious crime boss and chocolate smuggler, is trying very hard not to fall in love with the swoon-worthy son of the new DA!)

Milwaukee County Teen Book Award Nominees Announced!

2011-12-19T10:00:00.002-06:00

We're super excited to announce the 2012 nominee titles for the third annual Milwaukee County Teen Book Award! The fifteen nominees for 2012 were selected from titles published for teens between September 1, 2010 and August 31, 2011.

The 2012 MCTBA Nominees are:
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray
Starcrossed by Elizabeth Bunce
Stay by Deb Caletti
Where She Went by Gayle Forman

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Shine by Lauren Myracle
Trapped by Michael Northrop
This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel
Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian

Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Voting runs through March 1, 2012. Read one, some, or all of these awesome books and vote for your favorite by emailing your vote to mctba.votes@gmail.com or filling out a ballot at your local Milwaukee County library (ballots available soon!).

For more info, including past years' nominees and winners, check out the MCTBA blog!

Happy reading!

Megan
(who looooooved Okay for Now SO MUCH, but I think my heart belongs to Etienne St. Clair from Anna and the French Kiss... but I still haven't read Starcrossed!)

Morris Award Nominees Announced!

2011-12-16T13:00:00.001-06:00

The William C. Morris Award, given out by the American Library Association, might just be one of my favorite awards. Given to a newbie author writing for teens, I have so much fun trying to figure out which five of the pile of debut novels will be judged the most awesome of the year!

The 2012 Morris Finalists:

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson
Princess Elisa is 16, extraordinarily self-conscious, awkward, and the opposite of athletic - but she is the Bearer of the Godstone, the champion chosen once each century. The novel opens with her just married off to the king of Joya and not at all sure about her future. I'm reading this one now, and so far it's a delicious mix of political intrigue, spies, battles, and sandstorms.

Paper Covers Rock by Jenny Hubbard
16-year old Alex is racked by guilt after the drowning death of a friend. Set at an exclusive boarding school, this one's been compared to classic novel A Separate Peace.

Under the Mesquite by Guadalupe Garcia McCall
Lupita is the oldest of eight children. When her mother is diagnosed with cancer, she must step up and take care of not just her mother, but her siblings too. Written in verse, I've been anxiously waiting for this one to come in for awhile!

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Lina is 15 and looking forward to art school - until she and the rest of her Lithuanian family are ripped from their home in the middle of the night and deported to a concentration camp in Siberia during World War II. This heartbreaking, eye-opening novel of survival, love and hope (and based on the experiences of the author's family) shines a light on a long covered-up part of history.

Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley
In Cullen's sleepy Arkansas town, nothing ever happens. Until his seventeenth summer - with the inexplicable return of an extinct woodpecker, the death of his cousin Oslo and the disappearance of his little brother, Cullen's world is suddenly turned upside down.

More info on the Morris award, including past years' nominees and winners, here!

Megan
(who can't wait to spend my Sunday morning with a pile of pancakes finishing The Girl of Fire and Thorns!)

Book Review: Beatle Meets Destiny by Gabrielle Williams

2011-12-15T20:00:00.002-06:00

Beatle meets Destiny on Friday the 13th of Feburary. Neither one of them was supposed to be at the tram stop. Beatle is there because he was shooting some pool with the guys, but, due to it being Friday the 13th and Beatle being someone who exercises caution when it comes to superstition, decided to call it an early night. Destiny is there, wearing sunglasses at night (which is why Beatle had to say something to her - how could he not?), due to the fact that she had detention for something so ridiculous it doesn't bear talking about, which led to a whole series of unfortunate events which meant she couldn't go to the Blue Train concert with her friends and is instead headed home early on a Friday night. Without her glasses, which she left in Mathilde's purse, hence the sunglasses.

So they go get an ice cream. And Destiny kisses Beatle. And it's amazing.

But there's the tiniest catch - Beatle's girfriend, Cilla. Who is his twin sister Winsome's best friend. And who stuck by him when he had his stroke. Which is why Beatle definitely shouldn't have taken Destiny to the botanical gardens for a Valentine's Day picnic lunch and more kissing when, out of all the coffee shops in Melbourne, Destiny walks into his 4 minutes before his shift ends. Add into the mix that Destiny's older brother Frank is Beatle, Cilla, and Winsome's English teacher, and you've got pretty much a huge mess of fate. What's a boy to do when he meets the perfect girl at the wrong time?

If you adored Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist and Gayle Forman's If I Stay and Where She Went or wish author Stephanie Perkins was your best friend, add this smart, sweet and very quirky romance about chance, coincidence, and finding your destiny at the oh-so-wrong time to your must read list!

Megan
(now reading Morris award nominee The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson)

Gingerbread House Decorating Thursday December 15th 7PM

2011-12-14T20:13:00.004-06:00

Come on out to the library on Thursday, December 15th at 7 PM and decorate a Gingerbread House with us! We'll have all the supplies you need to make a wonderful tasty treat!

No registration is required and this event is open to Milwaukee County Teens, ages 12-18 or those students in grades 6-12!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (whose desk is full of candy just for tomorrow's program!

Book Review: The Things a Brother Knows by Dana Reinhardt

2011-12-13T19:45:00.003-06:00

Three years ago, Levi's older brother Boaz announced at the dinner table that instead of going to college, he was joining the Marines. Now he's coming home, and Levi doesn't know how he feels about that. He's not even sure if he loves his brother anymore. How can he, when Boaz's choice took away the choices of everyone else in his family?

But having Boaz home every day is almost worse than the everyday not-knowing of having him overseas fighting a war in a foreign desert. He won't come out of his room and he won't talk to anyone - all Levi can hear is his computer keys, the radio turned to static, and sometimes, late at night, the sound of his brother whisper-screaming. His mother's anguished pleading, his father's exasperated yelling, even Boaz's high school girlfriend, the mind-bogglingly gorgeous Christina Crowley, have no impact. Until the motherboard on Boaz's computer dies, and he asks Levi to borrow his laptop. Levi agrees - so long as he can have it after school for a couple of hours a day for homework and Facebook stuff.

Which is when Levi does something he's not proud of. He tracks everything Boaz is doing on the computer, and what he finds are maps - extremely detailed road maps of the east coast. And when he gets a rare glimpse into Boaz's room, there are maps covering every surface. Maps with names and addresses written all over them. So when Boaz announces that he's going to hike the Appalachian Trail over the summer, Levi doesn't know what his brother is really up to, but he knows it sure isn't hiking in the mountains.

With the help of his grandpa Dov and best friends Pearl and Zim, Levi decides he's going to do whatever it takes to understand his brother's choices and to make his brother understand his. Sometimes, there are things a brother knows - and sometimes, there are things a brother has to know. By turns heartbreaking and hopeful, heavy and flippant, angry-making and laugh-out-loud funny, The Things a Brother Knows is, at its heart, just a story of two guys figuring out what it means to be brothers. For anyone who's known someone serving overseas, thought about joining the military, questioned their own beliefs about war and serving their country, or just anyone with a brother, Levi and Boaz's journey will strike a chord. Don't miss this quick, powerful read!

Megan
(who just finished the deliciously quirky romantic comedy Beatle Meets Destiny by Gabrielle Williams!)

Teen Winter Events @ the library!

2011-12-11T12:01:00.001-06:00

Happy Monday! Can you believe December is almost halfway over? Some of you are preparing for finals, or gearing up for a great winter break trip, but perhaps you might want something else to do?

Check out the library! This winter we are offering two awesome programs for teens!

Thursday December 15th at 7 PM we are going to be decorating gingerbread houses in the Constitution room. We'll have all the supplies for you to make a graham cracker candy creation to take home and enjoy!

From December 1st- January 31st give our Winter Bingo a try! You'll read books and do other library activities to win cool prizes, like gift cards and books!

Stop in the library, check out the Teen Space and let us know what you think!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Review: Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King

2011-12-09T12:01:00.003-06:00

Lucky Linderman is anything but lucky. He has a mother who would rather live in the water and a father who he compares to a turtle, always retreating during times of danger. Add in being consistently bullied by Nader McMillan at school and the pool, it's no surprise that his happiest times are when he dreams of rescuing his grandfather, a POW from Vietnam who was never found.

Because of his "morbid" survey for part of a school assignment, and the follow through of teachers, counselors and other professionals who want to help him, and adding in the eventual final straw with Nader introducing his face to the concrete at the pool, Lucky's mother pulls him away from his Pennsylvania life to visit her brother and his wife in Arizona for a few weeks in the summer.

Lucky finds his aunt odd, but starts to enjoy spending time with his uncle, lifting weights and doing guy things. He's so much better than the turtle Father Lucky has back home.

Slowly things from the past come to light, and nothing is what it seems. With help from a beautiful Ninja girl and her friends, and of course his grandfather in dreams Lucky starts to put the pieces of his life together.

A.S. King writes a powerful book about bullying, family relationships, war and growing up. Lucky seems so normal, and so different at the same time. His life as a high school freshman was defined by one event that he thought was funny, and while that propels him forward, things really go deeper than that assignment.

Fans of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, Looking for Alaska by John Green and Leverage by Joshua Cohen will find Everybody Sees the Ants to be an excellent and engaging read.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Gingerbread House Decorating December 15th 7-8:30 PM

2011-12-07T19:01:00.000-06:00

It's a winter wonderland out there, and while visions of sugar plums may dance through your head isn't it time to see some sugar plums in real life?

Bring those sugar laden dreams to life at the library with our gingerbread house decorating event! We'll have icing, graham crackers and all sorts of edible decorating for you to make a house fit for winter! After we're done decorating, we will vote on our favorites, and everyone will leave with a house!

Like all West Allis teen programing, this event is open to Milwaukee County Teens, ages 12-18 or in grades 6-12. Sorry, younger/ older siblings moms and dads, this programs is just for the teens!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Have you started Winter Reading Bingo yet? Why not?)

Book Review: How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr

2011-12-05T18:32:00.004-06:00

Jill is not happy. She is waiting for a train to come, that will change her life completely. She is not happy with her mother's decision to adopt a child, especially with no legal arrangement or anything in writing. Just an agreement that will change their lives forever.

Mandy is on the train, sure that she is doing the right thing. Riding on the train to Colorado to meet a woman who she met on-line, who will raise her baby. She's 19, and has runaway from her mother and her mother's boyfriend. She doesn't want anything to go wrong. So much depends on that, and where she will go after the baby is born.

Two girls from two very different worlds are forced together when Jill's mother decides to adopt a baby after the death of Jill's father. Jill has lived a life of privilege, never really wanting for anything however with the sudden death of her father has fallen into a pattern where she pushes everyone away from her. Mandy has never had much, living with her mother and what ever guy she was seeing. She learned from an early age not to strive for too much, except for finding a guy and settle down .

Tied together by the upcoming birth of the baby, there is a lot they have to face. Sara Zarr takes a lot of tricky subjects and weaves them together skillfully to create a believable story based on unusual events. Both girls have to deal with their past. Jill shut out a lot of people after the death of her father, and will have to work to rebuild old friendships, and let her guard down to make new friends. Mandy has never really had a life of her own, and lives to please others. Living with Jill and her mom shows her a life she never knew was possible.

How to Save a Life will appeal to fans of Sara Zarr's other books, as well as authors like Sarah Dessen and Laurie Halse Anderson.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness)

Super Smash Bros. Brawl Tournament Saturday!

2011-12-02T15:14:00.000-06:00

Join us this Saturday, December 3rd in the Constitution Room beginning at 2PM for our annual fall Super Smash Bros. Brawl Wii tournament! We'll start with a few 4-player warm-up rounds to test your skills and order the tournament brackets. Tournament gaming will be 2-player, double elimination rounds (in other words, you can lose once before you're out!). All items (Smash Balls too!) will be on and set to high. Tournament rounds will be anywhere from 3-5 minutes each, depending on total number of gamers competing, with 3 lives per round. Register at the door on Game Day - we'll be opening the doors a few minutes before 2PM. Gamers limited to 24.

So, grab a friend, head to the library, and get ready to compete for the prizes - $25, $15, and $10 gift cards to Game Stop. What's not to like about that?!

Megan

Teen Winter Reading Starts Today!

2011-12-01T12:01:00.002-06:00

Are you looking forward to reading this winter break? Have you checked out some new blogs, websites or done research at the library this fall? Are there any movies based on books that you can't wait to read? Are you just looking for something new to read?

Then stop in the library and try our Winter Reading Bingo!

Stop in the library starting today (December 1st)and pick up a Bingo card in the Teen Space or at the Adult Information desk. You'll read books, and do other library-esque activities, and when you get a BINGO, bring the card back to the library and be entered to win gift cards, books and other fun library stuff.

Like all of our teen programs, this contest is open to teens living in Milwaukee County, ages 12-18 or in grades 6-12. Complete rules are on the Bingo card!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Trailer for Clockwork Prince!

2011-11-30T15:34:00.000-06:00

If you're like me, you've had next Tuesday, December 6th, marked on your calendar for months with multiple exclamation points, and you already have a plan in place to be at Barnes and Noble as soon as it opens to procure your copy of Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare! Or maybe you've already set your e-reader up to download your copy at midnight - or you've already got it on hold at the library!

Anyway, if you're as stoked as I am for book two in The Infernal Devices series, check out the book trailer - hello, masquerade!

Book Review The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

2011-11-29T12:01:00.004-06:00

The year is 1996, and Emma just got a new computer from her dad. While she's getting it set up, her neighbor Josh stops in with an AOL CD with 100 free hours of Internet. With a new computer, a phone line and 100 hours for Internet, Emma is ready to set up her new e-mail address and see what is out there.

When Emma sets up her e-mail, things get weird. There's this site, that has a girl named Emma, but she's like 30 something, and she's writing random things about her life on the Internet. Is this Emma famous or something? Thinking this is a joke that Josh is playing on her, both are faced with the truth: This Facebook is somehow showing future lives, and every decision they make in the present is slightly changing the future.

Faced with their ever changing future, Emma and Josh both start making different choices in the present. Some choices, like changing colleges, create big changes, while some choices, standing up for the popular girl, make small changes (they have boy twins now instead of girl twins). Of course all of this would be easier if Josh had not ruined their friendship last November, by trying to kiss Emma.

For anyone who has ever spent too much time on Facebook, or even just surfing the web this book is for you. Emma and Josh have different reactions to knowing their possible futures, and the power that comes from knowing what might happen. The Future of Us will make you think, and definitely make you wonder what if about the future.

Fans of Sarah Mlynowski's Gimme a Call will enjoy the future changing aspects, and fans of Rachel Cohel and David Levithan's books will enjoy the dual narrators. Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler give us a great story that will appeal to realistic fiction fans, even if part of the story is science fiction!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Getting ready for Winter Reading Bingo!)

Teen Winter Break Bingo: December 1st-Janurary 31st

2011-11-28T12:01:00.000-06:00

New this year the West Allis Public Library is offering a Teen Winter Reading Program!

Starting December 1st, check out the library Teen Space or Adult Information Desk. We'll have "Winter Reading Bingo" cards for you to fill out! Fill out a Bingo on the card by reading books, checking out blogs and doing other fun reading activities, and you will be entered to win prizes.

The full rules will be on the Bingo cards, and like all of our teen programs, this one is open to teens living in Milwaukee County ages 12-18 or in grades 6-12.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King)

Book Review: Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber

2011-11-23T12:00:00.002-06:00

Perry Stormaire didn't even want to go to prom, much less take his family's socially awkward Lithuanian foreign exchange student, Gobija Zaksauskunas, as his date. Still, he figures he can make it work - he can take Gobi to prom, make his mom happy and get his dad off his back, drink some punch, dance a few dances, drop her at home and still make it into the city for his band's first paying gig that night.

That isn't exactly how prom night goes.

Instead, under Gobi's thick glasses and the many, many folds of fabric that make up her traditional Lithuanian prom costume (it just can't be called a dress) is a an uberhot ninja assassin bent on revenge - and prom night is the only night all five of her targets are going to be in the city on the same night. After taking out a couple of guys ripping on Perry for taking Gobi to the prom, she and Perry head to New York in his dad's Jaguar (a total bribe - Perry's dad has only let him back it out of the drive and, sometimes, sit in it when he's studying). Turns out the whole foreign exchange student thing was all part of Gobi's elaborate plot - all she needed was a getaway car and driver. Within minutes of entering the city, Perry finds himself with a dead body and a whole lot of broken glass on the hood of his dad's Jag and Gobi holding him at gunpoint, calmly threatening to blow up his house if he doesn't stop freaking out and drive already.

An adrenaline-fueled, action packed thrill ride of a novel that reads like an action movie, Perry and Gobi wind through New York City, leaving a trail of bodies behind them. Why is Gobi so bent on revenge? You'll just have to pick up this dark comedy @the library! If you loved the Alex Rider series or Ally Carter's Heist Society and Gallagher Girls books, you'l love Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick.

Megan
(now reading Every You, Every Me by David Levithan, one of my absolute favorite authors - and, fun fact, editor of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins!)

Book Review: Cleopatra's Moon by Vicky Alvear Shecter

2011-11-21T16:52:00.000-06:00

Cleopatra, queen of Egypt. Stunning, unbelievably wealthy and extraordinarily intelligent, she allied herself to two of the world's most powerful men, Julius Caesar and Marc Antony, in an effort to keep Egypt free and unspoiled by Roman conquest - but it was not to be. In 30 BC, Julius Caesar's adopted son and heir, Octavianus, defeated Antony's armies and invaded Alexandria, capitol of Egypt and home to Cleopatra and her children - Caesarion, son of Julius Caesar, twins Cleopatra Selene and Alexandros Helios and their baby brother Ptolly, the children of Marc Antony. In the aftermath, Antony threw himself upon his sword in despair, and Cleopatra committed suicide - some say to save her beloved children, others out of grief for Antony, and still others to spare herself enslavement to Octavianus and Rome. Egypt had fallen.

Usually, that's where the story ends - with the suicide of Cleopatra. But what happened to her orphaned children?

Raised in royal opulence with her siblings, Cleopatra Selene's entire world is stolen from her by Octavianus. Her parents dead, her kingdom looted and destroyed by Rome, all she has left is her brothers. Even they are not safe - threatened by Caesarian's Roman lineage, Octavianus has Cleopatra Selene's beloved older brother hunted down and murdered. Cleopatra Selene, Alexandros and little Ptolly are enslaved and shipped to Rome, where they will be raised in Octavianus's household by his sister, Octavia (and the wife Antony left to be with Cleopatra) and his wife, Livia, who is rumored to be quite skilled at mixing poisons. Rome not only owns Egypt, it owns Cleopatra Selene, body and soul.

In Rome, Cleopatra Selene fights to stay strong, protect her brothers, and find a way to take her mother's kingdom back from Octavianus. Living in the home of her family's murderer, Cleopatra Selene's life is a tangle of secrecy, deception and lies. Other than her brothers, the one bright light in her life is Juba. A handsome soldier who serves Octavianus and lives in his household, Juba is at heart a scholar. He also is a captive - born a prince of Numidia, he was brought to Rome by Julius Caesar as a small child. With most of Alexandria's vast library of scrolls dismantled and absorbed into Octavianus's personal collection, Juba and Cleopatra Selene spend many hours discussing and debating the history of Rome, Egypt, and Numidia. Still, Cleopatra Selene wants only one thing - to gain freedom for her family - and Egypt.

Intensely researched and riveting, Cleopatra's Moon brings to light the story of the aftermath of the fall of Egypt. As Cleopatra journeys from Egypt to Rome she undergoes an intense personal journey, transforming her from a spoiled, precocious royal child to a self-reliant, independent young queen. For all fans of historical fiction, lovers of all things Egyptian, and anyone who wants more of the story after seeing the awesome Cleopatra exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum, check this one out @the library!

Megan
(now reading Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick - shy foreign exchange student is actually a ninja assassin? Awesome!!)

Breaking Dawn Part I Trivia Answers

2011-11-19T15:19:00.000-06:00

Thanks to all you guys who came to the library on Thursday before the midnight premiere of Breaking Dawn Part 1 to celebrate! We had an awesome time with yumalicious cake, music, trailers & clip screenings, the always spectacular fashion extravaganza of toilet paper bride, and, of course, trivia!

If you came to the Breaking Dawn Bash or just picked up the trivia in the teen space and want to double-check your answers (or just stump your friends while you're waiting in line to see the movie for the 6th time!), they're now available online. Click on the links below to check out the answers for each of the 4 sets of trivia.

How Well Do You Know the Bride & Groom?

Twilight Trivia Couple Match

Breaking Dawn Part 1 Quote Trivia

Breaking Dawn Part 1 Book Trivia

If you see me at the library, let me know what you thought of the movie! Overall, I thought it was pretty amazing - what a great book-to-movie adaptation. And that wedding dress (and kiss!)... swoon. But my favorite part? Absolutely, hands down, Jessica's wedding speech. Awesome.

Megan

Hunger Games Anyone?

2011-11-17T20:01:00.002-06:00

Need some Breaking Dawn detox? Then check out the awesome trailer for the Hunger Games movie. Coming to a theater near you March 23rd, 2012.

PS: We didn't create this video and we don't own this video, and are only using it to show how excited we are for the new movie!

Breaking Dawn Trivia Teasers, Part II

2011-11-17T15:58:00.000-06:00

Only a few more hours to go until it's finally time for Breaking Dawn! Keep yourself busy in the meantime with a few more trivia teasers...

Who Said It? Breaking Dawn Quote Trivia

"Over my pile of ashes."

"Why do you always have to love the wrong things, Bella?"

"Even you, Jacob Black, cannot hate me as much as I hate myself."

Breaking Dawn Book Trivia

Why does Charlie think he can't see Bella when she gets back from her honeymoon?

How many chromosomal pairs do humans, vampires and werewolves each have?

How do the myths and legends say vampire babies are born?

See you tonight - and don't forget your tickets!!

Megan
(who is super stoked to eat some of that deliciously amazing-looking cake!)

Breaking Dawn Trivia Teasers!

2011-11-16T18:35:00.000-06:00

We have a TON of trivia for you guys tomorrow night at the Breaking Dawn Bash! Book trivia, quote trivia, trivia to see how well you know the bride and groom, and Twilight couples trivia. Since there's soooooo much, we thought we'd give our loyal blog readers a jump start so on it. So, from the official trivia, here are three quotes and three book trivia questions - all from the wedding!

Who Said It? Character Quote Trivia

"I've been waiting a century to marry you, Miss Swan."

"No one dressed by me ever looks like an idiot."

"Bells, we're up to bat."

Breaking Dawn Book Trivia

Who takes Edward out for his bachelor party?

What flowers does Alice use in Bella's wedding bouquet?

Who is the only werewolf to attend Bella and Edward's wedding ceremony?

Bonus hint - make sure you brush up on your non-Cullen vampire couples - especially the Volturi wives!

Check back for more trivia teasers tomorrow afternoon before you head to the library for the Breaking Dawn Bash! The doors will open at 7:00 PM tomorrow, so make sure you get to the library a few minutes early to get in line. Don't forget your tickets - they not only grant you access to the release party, they're also your raffle ticket to win some of the fabulous Breaking Dawn swag we have to give away at the end of the evening! Don't have a ticket yet? As of this evening, there are still 6 remaining, so hurry to the library to get yours!

See you tomorrow night!
Megan

P.S. All trivia answers will be posted on the blog after the Bash.

Breaking Dawn Prizes - and Cake!!

2011-11-15T19:12:00.001-06:00

You guys! Breaking Dawn in T minus ONLY TWO MORE DAYS!!

Which means y'all have a party to get to at the library this Thursday at 7PM! If you don't already have your (free!) ticket, there are still a few available at the adult Information desk, so hurry up and gets yours!

So! Let's get down to party business! We'll have Breaking Dawn cake (woohoo!), tons of trivia, and, my personal favorite, toilet paper bride/groom (design your own wedding dress/tux out of TP, the ultimate in quality fabric!) with the opportunity to pose with (cardboard) Edward. We also will raffle off a ton of Breaking Dawn swag at the end of the evening. What swag, you ask?

Paperback of Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer with the movie cover and free poster inside
Breaking Dawn soundtrack
16-month Breaking Dawn wall calendar
Volume 2 of the Twilight graphic novel
A whole bunch of Breaking Dawn posters and 2 Eclipse posters
A couple of Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer hardcover books
An Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer hardcover book
A selection of paperback books of the Twilight series
Anything I happen to find at Hot Topic tomorrow!

Don't forget your ticket - it not only grants your access to our exclusive Breaking Dawn event, it's your raffle ticket too!

Look for trivia teasers on the blog tomorrow and Thursday, and we'll see you on Thursday night!

Megan
(who loves that every time I walk by my desk, not one but two life-sized Edwards are glowering at me!)

Book Review: Shut Out by Kody Keplinger

2011-11-13T12:01:00.001-06:00

Lissa has had enough. The members of the football and soccer teams at her school have been at war for more than 10 years, and it's starting to get ridiculous. This is the second time the car has been egged while she was making out with her football player boyfriend Randy, and it's the second time he's left her to take off after the soccer player who committed the crime. Lissa is tired of coming in second place to a stupid rivalry that no one really remembers how it started.

This war has got to stop, and Lissa thinks she knows what to do. She calls together other girlfriends of football players and some soccer players to suggest her way to end this pointless battle: the girls need to stop hooking up with their boyfriends until the boys stop fighting each other.

Things look promising for Lissa and the other girls, until homecoming when Lissa catches Randy kissing another girl in the bathroom. Heartbroken, confused and more than angry, Lissa is ready for a real war.

Shut Out is a PG-13 retelling of the Greek comedy Lysistrata by Aristopanes. Lissa is a take action girl who is able to rally the other girls in the school in teaming up against the boys. She has some cool friends, like Chloe the more liberated girl who suffers in reputation and Ellen a former best friend who just happens to be dating a soccer boy. Add in relationship issues with Randy, and the cute soccer boy Cash, and Lissa has a lot more on her plate than the silly war.

Kody Keplinger is a teen writer, and this book is a fun fast read. The language is authentic, and while the plot may make some readers uncomfortable, older teens will recognise the different kinds of relationships, and how sometimes we lie to our friends and ourselves.

Fans of Siobhan Vivian's Not That Kind of Girl or Megan McMCafferty's books will enjoy this book, as well as fans of funny realistic fiction, that deals with some big issues.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Getting ready to read Human.4 by Mike Lancaster)

Book Review: Bunheads by Sophie Flack

2011-11-11T10:56:00.001-06:00

Hannah Ward has always wanted to be a dancer. Intense, exhausting, exhilirating, terrifying, and insanely competitive, Hannah can't imagine any other life - and she's never wanted to. Moving to New York on her own to attend the Manhattan Ballet Academy when she was 14, Hannah is now a senior corps member with the Manhattan Ballet who dreams of becoming a soloist - along with every other girl in the company.

Dancing 12 or 14 hours a day in classes, rehearsals, understudy training, and nightly performances means Hannah's whole world is contained within the walls of the theater. Which is okay with her - all her friends are total bunheads too. Sweet, supportive best friend Bea, snarky, spoiled Zoe, and tiny Daisy with her crazy diets. There's also Harry the stagehand and his 9-year-old daughter Matilda, who worships Hannah and wants to become a dancer just like her. Still, there are things Hannah would like to do - like go to the Met, finish a book on her reading list, and have a boyfriend.

And then Hannah meets Jacob on a rare night out (if hanging out at her cousin's restaurant counts as going out). A musician who goes to NYU, Jacob is super-cute, funny, sweet, and totally into Hannah. He also knows nothing about ballet, which is kind of refreshing. Better yet, he loves sharing his non-ballet world and knowledge with Hannah. Still, with Hannah's crazy schedule, she and Jacob really only have time to text and email.

When Hannah lands the solo in one of the ballets she's understudying when the lead gets injured, she just knows it's going to be her year. But becoming a soloist means giving up even the small moments of free time she has - and giving up Jacob. Even when she isn't rehearsing or performing, she has to hit the gym, take Pilates and Bikram yoga classes, deal with her theater laundry and costumes, do physical therapy for injuries, and count every calorie to keep her dancer's body perfect. Hannah has never questioned her decision to devote her life to ballet - until now. Is ballet enough? Is the outside world really worth giving up everything she's worked so hard for?

A unique look at the inside world of professional ballet dancers, first-time novelist Sophie Flack danced with the New York City Ballet for nine years. Glitz and glamour, sweat and sacrifice, leg warmers and leotards, sequins and false eyelashes, pulled hamstrings and blown-out quads, kind costume designers and cruel choreographers spill off the pages. If you loved the movies Center Stage, Fame, Black Swan, took dance lessons as a kid, or can't get enough of The Nutcracker (which, by the way, dancers totally can - 50 performances between Thanksgiving and New Year's get reaaaallly old), check out Bunheads @the library!

Megan

(who is totally making Maggie Stiefvater's November cakes from The Scorpio Races this weekend!! Oh, sweet deliciousness of oozing honey and frosting...)

Book Review: Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

2011-11-09T18:20:00.000-06:00

Lola Nolan is a lot of things, but subtle isn't one. She is an aspiring costume designer who sees every day as an opportunity to dress up. Wigs, false eyelashes and sparkle are accessories that help her with her everyday look, and one of her biggest dreams is walking into the Winter Formal in full on Marie Antoinette dress.

On top of her fashion aspirations, Lola lives with her two dads, has a part time job at a movie theater, goes to school and has an awesome boyfriend Max, who just happens to be a bit older than she is. Life would be perfect if her dad's would just accept him, and if the Bell twins stay away.

First off there is beautiful Calliope Bell, champion figure skater who dominated Bell family life when she had to go off to competitions. Then there is Cricket, the inventor, who two years ago broke Lola's heart. Everything is just fine in Lola's world, until these two come back to town.

The Bell twins' appearance makes life turn truly dramatic for Lola. Just as she starts becoming friends with Cricket, things with Max start going a bit bad. Then her birth-mother barges back in her life, which is never easy for her. Of course, she has some great friends to help her figure stuff out, like Lindsey her detective friend and her supervisor Anna.

Full of laugh out loud moments, and a few that will bring a tear to your eye Lola and the Boy Next Door is a fun read. If you liked Anna and the French Kiss, you will enjoy this fun romance, plus here is a bit of Anna in this book! Fans of Sarah Dessen, Sara Zarr, and Meg Cabot won't want to miss this one!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Taking a break from YA to read Out of OZ, the final book in the Wicked Years series by Gregory Maguire.)

Book Review: Fateful by Claudia Gray

2011-11-07T12:19:00.001-06:00

When she reaches America, ladies' maid Tess Davis knows one thing will be true - she will no longer be a servant to the wealthy Viscount Lisle. Instead, she will take her meager two years' savings and walk away from Lady Regina's condescending disdain, drunken son Layton's crass rudeness, and the iron rule of cantankerous housekeeper Mrs. Horne. Only Irene, Lady Regina's daughter, is kind to Tess - but Lady Regina is so cruel to her sweet, shy daughter, it is small comfort. Tess's escape to freedom is so close she can taste it - only a few days' more servitude on the maiden voyage of the grand ship Titanic.

But the night before Titanic sails, Tess finds herself the target of a terror she never imagined stalking through the dark streets of Southampton. On a fruitless evening errand for Lady Regina, after dodging a frightening group of gentlemen, Tess is attacked by a creature that should not be in the middle of the city - a wolf. Even stranger, she is saved by a handsome, obviously wealthy young man - a man who, after driving the wolf away, tells her if she doesn't run from him, she's dead. Tess doesn't have to be told twice.

The next morning, Tess tries to forget her terrifying night encounter with the wolf. Still, as she boards Titanic with a heavy trunk of Lisle family valuables, she knows she can feel malevolent eyes watching her. Her suspicious are confirmed when a man with a Russian accent accosts her outside the Lisles' cabin. A sleek hunter, Count Mikhail is a wealthy man with a taste for violence, and Tess doesn't know if he is after her or the Lisles' wealth. Once again, she is rescued by the young man with the beautiful chestnut curls - Alec - who appears out of nowhere and drives Mikhail away before abruptly leaving Tess alone. Alec, Tess discovers, is Alexander Marlowe, son and heir of a wealthy, powerful American steel industrialist. Though she is captivated by him, Tess knows that millionaires and ladies' maids do not mix.

But Mikhail is not to be denied. That night, he corners Tess and drags her to the Turkish bath with him, where she expects to be beaten, murdered, or worse - but she does not expect the red wolf inside. Or for Mikhail to transform into the same black wolf that attacked her in Southampton, brutally attacking the red wolf before shifting back and leaving a terrified Tess trapped with the injured wolf. If Tess can survive the night, she knows she must discover what it is Mikhail wants from her - and what the gorgeous, forbidden Alec has to do with a Russian werewolf.

Full of passion, forbidden romance, terror and danger, and rich with the historical detail, glamour and glittering wealth of the first class passengers of the Titanic, Evernight author Claudia Gray has written a breathtaking paranormal romance set aboard the doomed RMS Titanic. Tess is feisty, spirited, and innovative, and Alex is brooding, moody, absurdly wealthy and absolutely gorgeous. If you love paranormal romance, this one's for you - and if not, well... come on! Werewolves on the Titanic? Fabulous!

Megan
(now reading Bunheads by Sophie Flack and wishing my pointe shoes from the 5th grade still fit!)

Book Review: Dark of the Moon by Tracy Barrett

2011-11-05T14:00:00.129-05:00

The story says that Theseus is a hero, the son of a king sent to the island of Krete to slay the Minotaur, a monstrous mix of man and bull living in the labyrinth beneath the palace. With the help of the princess Ariadne, Theseus was able to find his way out of the labyrinth with a skein of thread, saving the kingdom and freeing the people from terror and monstrous sacrifice.
Except that's not really what happened.

Ariadne is She-Who-Will-Be-Goddess, a priestess in training who will succeed her mother as She-Who-Is-Goddess, a living incarnation of the moon goddess and ruler of the island of Krete. Though she longs to leave Krete and see other lands, leaving the island would mean giving up her status as goddess - and destroy the island. So her whole world is her mother and Asterion, her brother. Huge and muscular, Asterion doesn't know his own strength - although he's not a monster, he breaks all his toys, even when those toys are human. The last children brought in to keep him company were dead before anyone thought to check on them, and so he is now kept imprisoned in his rooms beneath the palace. Ariadne is one of the few who can calm her brother, and keep him company without getting hurt. Rumors of his monstrousness have spread across the sea as far as Athens, where he is known as the Minotaurus, a terrible creature to whom the Kretans sacrifice children.

Theseus has always been told that his father is the sea god Poseidon, a fact that has led to years of merciless bullying by the other boys in his village. When his mother finally reveals that his father left something for his son beneath a huge boulder, Theseus spends an entire day figuring out how to move it - revealing a rotted pair of sandals and a short sword with the mark of the King of Athens, also known as Erecthus Poseidon. With no money for passage on a ship, Theseus sets off across the treacherous overland route to Athens to seek his destiny at the court of his father.

When Theseus arrives on Krete with a shipful of tribute children from Athens, Ariadne is one of the first to see the handsome stranger disembark. Lonely and curious about the outside world, Ariadne loves that Theseus does not seem to be afraid of her status as goddess. At first Theseus befriends Ariadne to glean more details about the fearsome Minotaurus and perhaps find a way to escape. As the pair spend more time together, a tentative friendship forms - one that may bloom into more, if they're only given time. But when a series of tragedies changes everything about Krete, Theseus and Ariadne must choose between saving the world they know or the people they love the most.

A unique twist on the myth of the minotaur (remember him as the terrifying creature who killed Percy Jackson's mom?), Dark of the Moon is rich with mythic and historical detail. Instead of a hero, Theseus is a young man with a talent for tale-telling searching for his place in the world. Ariadne is a sheltered princess with strong opinions who wants nothing more than to make sure her brother is safe before she explores the world. The tale of how Theseus and Ariadne escape their fates to forge their own destinies before passing into myth is for readers who love tales from Greek mythology and historical stories steeped in old magic. If you've read Marion Zimmer Bradley or Juliet Marillier's books, check out Dark of the Moon @the library today!

Megan
(Who can't wait to start Fateful by Claudia Gray - werewolves on the Titantic? Yes please!)

Book Review: The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

2011-11-03T14:09:00.002-05:00

How do you catch a killer you can't see?

When Rory Deveaux moves from Louisiana to London, she steps off the plane into a city gripped by terror. The night before, a body was discovered with eerie similarities to the first of five Jack the Ripper murders committed in 1888. The same date, the same murder weapon, the same wounds, the same location. And Wexord, Rory's new boarding school, is right in the middle of Ripper territory - London's East End, just 5 minutes from Whitechapel Road, Jack's old stomping grounds.

But Rory has bigger things to worry about than crazed copycat killers from the 19th century - English boarding school is absolutely nothing like American high school. There's the mad rush for showers every morning, dealing with snooty head girl Charlotte, weird classes like the mysterious 'Further Maths,' uniforms, and hockey. Horrible, horrible hockey. Thankfully, Rory has new roommate and all-around awesome friend Jazza (even if she is a swimming rock star, which means she's of absolutely zero help with the dreaded hockey) to show her the British boarding school ropes. Along with cute prefect Jerome and classes that are way harder than American history, Rory is so busy figuring out her new English life she doesn't have time for the Ripper. Oh, and there is the embarrassing episode where she almost choked to death at dinner in front of all her new classmates (and Jerome, of course) that she is trying to ignore.

But with London seized by Ripper mania, there are tour groups everywhere, pub parties nightly, the streets are crawling with tourists in Ripper top hats, and speculation about the next murder is all over the news. When the second body is found right on schedule, London and Wexford explode in a furor of gossip and fear. By the night of the Double Event, the police have no leads, no evidence, and no suspects.

Wexford students are on lockdown, so when Jerome texts Rory to bring Jazza over to the boys' dorm to watch the action from the roof at midnight, of course they sneak out. The only weird thing Rory sees is the polite, kind of creepy guy in an old-fashioned suit when she and Jazza are crawling back in to the girls' dorm through the bathroom window - and the weirdest thing of all is that Jazza didn't - or couldn't - see him. When the body is found at Wexford the next morning, Rory knows that she has to tell someone what she saw - but even she's not sure what or even if she saw anything.

Chilly fingers of horror will creep down your spine and won't let go as Rory slowly realizes that she is the only one who can see the Ripper - and that he is coming for her. Who, or what, is he? Is he the original Ripper, or something even worse? The damp, foggy streets of London and the gothic boarding school setting just add to the atmospheric intensity of this dark mystery that totally freaked me out. The perfect November read, make sure your doors and windows are locked and you've got spare batteries for your flashlight before you curl up under a quilt with Maureen Johnson's terrifying take on the paranormal - though that probably won't keep the ghosts out...

Megan
(who could barely tear myself away from The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater to come to work today, and it is just... wow. I have no idea how I'm going to sum up the awesomeness that is Maggie when I write the review, but I'll do my best!)

Breaking Dawn Bash Tickets Available November 1!

2011-10-29T16:00:00.036-05:00

Twilight fans, you've been asking for months, and it's finally here - this Tuesday, you can pick up your Breaking Dawn Bash ticket at the library!

Wait, what is a Breaking Dawn Bash? We'll be throwing a ginormously awesome party to celebrate the release of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn on Thursday, November 17th. Starting at 7:00 PM, we'll have trivia, games, music from the movie, a slideshow of stills and captures from the movie, and we'll be showing the clips, featurettes, and trailers that have been released on our big screen. There will be prizes for the trivia winners and, at the end of the evening, we'll raffle off a ton of Breaking Dawn stuff. So, start your evening with cake and prizes at the library before you head to the theater to get in line for the midnight release!

1. Tickets are FREE! But there are a limited number. All our Twilight parties have sold out, so get your Breaking Dawn Bash ticket early!

2. Tickets are available at the adult Information desk (in the middle of the library).

3. Tickets are REQUIRED for entry to the Bash on the 17th. IF the Bash does not sell out early, you will be able to get one at the door. But... don't count on it, since all the other Twilight parties have been full up!

4. You have to come to the library to get your Bash ticket - no phone reservations.

5. When you come in, you can sign yourself and one friend up. So, if there are 6 of you planning to come, at least 3 of you will need to come in to sign up.

6. Your parents or guardians can sign you up for the Bash if you can't make it to the library.

Stay tuned to the blog for more info! As the party gets closer, we'll be posting Breaking Dawn trivia teasers, info about ticket availability, raffle prize details (we had a TON of awesome stuff for Eclipse!) and more info about the festivities. Right now, I can tell you that oh yes, there will be cake, and it will be DELICIOUS. Also, there will be cardboard Edwards available for photo ops. I'm still working on a Jacob...

See you on Tuesday!
Megan
(who better start re-reading the epically massive Breaking Dawn so I can write the trivia!)

Wii Open Play Saturday!

2011-10-28T09:56:00.001-05:00

Head to the library this Saturday, October 29th, for the October Wii Open Play! We'll have Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Wii Sports from 2-4 PM in the Constitution Room (in the atrium, by the fountain), along with a smorgasboard of Halloween candy. So grab a friend and take a break from constructing your Halloween costume to play some Wii on the big screen! Gamers are welcome to BYO controllers, snacks & soda.

See you tomorrow!

Megan

Vistit the Beyond @ the West Allis Public Library

2011-10-26T20:31:00.002-05:00

Do you like ghost stories? How about real haunted houses?

Then join us Thursday October 27th at 7 PM to hear Curt Strutz share the insides of haunted houses that he has personally visited.

This program is free and open to teens and adults. There will be light refreshments for you to enjoy, because nothing goes better with scary stories than snacks!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now listening to Chime by Franny Billingsley, a which story perfect for creepy fall days!)

Book Review: Modelland by Tyra Banks

2011-10-26T12:01:00.002-05:00

High on top of a mountain is a place so exclusive that there is only one day a year that girls are chosen to enter. No one knows how to get in, but there are things that can increase your odds. It is from these girls that the Intoxibellas are chosen. Seven of the most beautiful supernatural women who are superstars.

Girls like Tookie De La Creme do not get into Modelland. Her hair that can't decide if it is curly, straight, frizzy or whatever, and her body is awkward. It's also her different colored eyes sit beneath her five-head. No, girls like her little sister Myrracle are made for Modelland, beautiful, graceful and perfect.

So why is it that Tookie is the once picked to go up to Modelland? And how did she get paired up with other girls who are too short, too big, or too pale to ever dream of becoming Intoxibellas? And is that really the last Triple 7 Ci~L, missing for months really leading them into Modelland?

Hold on to your hats and suspend all disbelief for this fun, fast and fashionable ride through a world where models rule. There is a lot going on, and friendship, family and of course fashion are all big parts of Tyra Banks' first book. It is over 500 pages, but it goes by fast as you are dying to find out what happens to Tookie and her friends.

Modelland is for anyone who has ever looked at a fashion magazine in disbelief, watched America's Next Top Model and practiced their runway walk. Trust me when I'm saying I can not wait for the second book in this series.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Review: This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel

2011-10-25T12:00:00.000-05:00

When twins Victor and Konrad Frankenstein and their beautiful cousin, Elizabeth, stumble upon a secret library full of ancient alchemy texts hidden deep beneath their Lake Geneva chateau, it is only the beginning. The dusty volumes call to a fiery passion lying deep with Victor. Though their father, a powerful magister, forbids his sons and niece to have anything more to do with what he declares to be a corruption a knowledge, Victor cannot rid himself of his obsession with the Dark Library and its ancient alchemical secrets.

When Korad falls deathly ill with a mysterious illness no doctor can cure, Victor will do anything to cure his brother - including defy his father's wishes. Desperate, he convinces Elizabeth and their friend Henry to accompany him to the Dark Library at midnight. There, they find a recipe for Vita Elixir - the Elixir of Life. Written in the Alphabet of the Magi, it is untranslateable except by an alchemist. But with the practice of alchemy forbidden (by Victor's father) in Geneva, it will be some trick in finding one.

After eavesdropping on a conversation between his mother and Maria, one of the servents, Victor discovers that exhiled alchemist Julius Polidori may still be in the city. Desperate for a cure, Victor sets out the next morning with Elizabeth and Henry to seek Polidori. When they find the man, he agrees to help them with the translation. Slowly, the rare and dangerous ingredients to the Elixir of Life are revealed, and Victor, with the help of his friends, sets out on a quest for life and power filled with darkness, danger, and death.

For fans of The Monstrumologist, gothic horror, tales of alchemy, and Kenneth Oppel's Airborn series, this prequel to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is a dark, eerie adventure full of very scary things that go bump in the night. Young Victor Frankenstein is ambiguously creepy - though he narrates the events, you are never quite sure of his motivations. Jealous of his twin's charismatic ease, intelligence, and especially of his and Elizabeth's passionate affection for one other, it is never clear if Victor desires the Elixir for love of his brother - or for love of fame, power and glory. Light a few candles on a dark and stormy night and curl up with this hair-raising, spooky read that's perfect for Halloween!

Megan
(now reading I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan - check out Katie's review of this sweet book that's making my heart smile!)

Teen Read Week Winners and Wrap Up

2011-10-24T13:12:00.002-05:00

First off a big THANK YOU to all the Teens who stopped in the library during our teen week celebration! 17 teens completed the scavenger hunt, 8 teens came to the Open House and 16 teens tried out our Get Real Trivia.

And now the winners:
Khamya was the big winner of the bag of goodies from the Scavenger Hunt
Gina, Spencer and Jake each won a $10 gift card from the Get Real Trivia

Want to know how you can win prizes by just stopping in the library? Check the blog to see what events, contests and other fun stuff we have going on!

Don't forget you can still turn in Teen Book Reviews. As soon as we get enough we will create a binder or book full of books you recommend!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading You Against Me by Jenny Downham)

Book Review: Falling for Hamlet by Michelle Ray

2011-10-22T12:01:00.000-05:00

Spoiler Alert: Falling for Hamlet is based on the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. This play is pretty well known, taught in many schools, and over hundreds of years old. If you don't know how it ends, and don't want to know, then don't read on. However, it is a traditional tragedy, and the definition of a tragedy includes the fact that everyone dies except the one person who lives to tell the tale. Oops.

Something was rotten in the state of Denmark, and this time Ophelia lives to tell her side of the story. Mega talk show host Zara has the exclusive interview with the girl who was in the inner circle of the Prince, his family and the castle as all of the tragic events started unfolding.

For starters, it's not easy being Prince Hamlet's girlfriend, especially when he's off at college and she's stuck in the castle with her father, brother, and even better the Queen. It doesn't help that Queen Gertrude is concerned with appearances, and doesn't always find Ophelia to be a suitable match for her son.

Then the King dies. The death is sudden, and there is very little investigation. Hamlet is not pleased with the events surrounding his father's death and burial, and makes it known to Ophelia how he feels. It's when he's back at school, and his mother is quietly and quickly engaged to Claudius (who just happens to be the brother of the dead King) that Hamlet looses his mind.

Now Ophelia is trapped, between her family and her boyfriend, and even worse: between doing what she is told and what she wants to do. All she wants to do is get away, but that is not an option. Here is her story, told with bits of the Zara interview, and interspersed with her interrogation with castle security.

Author Michelle Ray takes Shakespeare's famous work and stands it upside down. If you are familiar with the story of Hamlet, or have read the play the names of characters, places and quotes will be very familiar. This is a re-telling of the play, and there are somethings that are very different especially the fact that Ophelia lives to tell her story.

If you were entranced by the Royal Wedding, or are familiar with Shakespeare's play you will find Falling For Hamlet to be a gripping read!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Review: Exposed by Kimberly Marcus

2011-10-20T19:01:00.000-05:00

Photogirl Liz and dancer Kate have been forever best friends for, well, forever. And Liz is confident they will be forever bests forever - until she and Kate have a fight at their monthly sleepover. Liz stomps upstairs to sleep in her room, and Kate sleeps downstairs on the couch. When Liz gets up in the morning, Kate is gone. Liz calls to apologize, but that Monday at school, Kate is definitely avoiding her.

As the days pass, Liz tries over and over to apologize to Kate, but nothing seems to work. Their friends report back that Kate isn't mad at Liz, but then why is she avoiding Liz's calls? Ignoring her in the halls? Not making plans with her? And then Liz hears why at a party - last weekend, while Liz was sleeping upstairs in her room, Kate and Liz's brother Mike kissed.

Furious, Liz confronts Kate. Liz has always told Kate that Mike's off limits - plus, Kate has a boyfriend. But when Kate starts to cry, Liz forgives her, even though Kate won't talk to her about it. To make up for it, Liz shoots down all the rumors at school, defending her forever best. But when Kate is still avoiding her days later, Liz tracks Kate down again - and Kate finally tells her that what really happened. It wasn't just a kiss - and Kate tried to stop it. Liz can't believe it - there's no way her brother, obnoxious and a party boy, but still her brother, would force a girl, especially not his sister's best friend. Would he?

Written in raw, emotional free verse, Liz's struggle to understand and support both her brother and her best friend is heartbreaking and very real. Her world collapses, her parents focused entirely on proving their son's innocence instead of helping Liz prep her portfolio for art school applications. Liz's boyfriend Brian tries to be supportive, but Liz doesn't have any idea how to talk to him about how she feels. All Liz has left to cling to is her beloved camera, but the world behind the lens feels drab and out of focus. Wrenching and honest, readers of Laurie Halse Anderson, Lauren Myracle and Jo Knowles should add Exposed to their list.

Megan
(next up is This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel, a tale of the apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein - perfect for almost-Halloween!)

Teen Read Week and Final Call for Scavenger Hunt Sheets

2011-10-19T12:26:00.003-05:00

Teen Read week is almost half way over, but here at the West Allis Public Library, things are just getting started!

Stop in the Teen Space to answer one (or all four) of our Teen Read Week Trivia Questions. Each one you answer correctly, is an entry into a prize drawing. We will be checking for correct answers, and you can only try each question once. (We will disqualify any multiple answers, even if they are correct.) This contest will end Friday October 21st at 6 PM, and winners will be contacted the following week.

Also, there are yellow slips of paper for you to write book reviews on! How will these work? You write a short (2-3 sentences) book review for a teen book, and we will put it in a binder. That way when you are looking for something to read, you can check out what other teens have read!

Don't forget, Scavenger Hunt Sheets are due back to the library by 7PM on October 20th. We'll also be having our Teen Space Open House starting at 6:30 on the 20th, so stop in for some games and crafts!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Teen Read Week Trivia Starts Today!

2011-10-17T17:01:00.000-05:00

It's Teen Read Week! Celebrate the fact that you read by stopping in the library and getting some more books!

Starting Monday October 17th through Friday October 21 we will have 4 Get Real Trivia questions for you to answer. Each correct answer is an entry for a $10 gift card.

You can answer each question once, and can win one of the gift cards!

Don't forget that you have until October 20th at 7PM to complete and turn in your Scavenger Hunt Forms!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Who read Modelland by Tyra Banks this weekend, and has been practicing her smize since then!)

Book Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

2011-10-17T12:00:00.002-05:00

Blue-haired, incredibly talented art student Karou has always felt like she is missing some essential piece of herself - like she was meant to be doing something else, or maybe be someone else. Raised by the grim but kind horned chimaera Brimstone, Karou spent her childhood in his workshop sorting teeth and learning the power of wishes. As she grew older, Brimstone began sending her on errands to collect the teeth from his traders. Though Karou lives in Prague, the doorways from Brimstone's workshop are many, leading to the streets, markets, and bazaars of Paris, Marrakesh, Saigon, Canada, San Francisco, Hong Kong. The location of Brimstone's workshop is not exactly clear - when she asks, he will only tell her Elsewhere. She isn't sure exactly what Brimstone does with the teeth he collects, or how they're related to the wishes, but there is much about her grouchy caretaker and his world that is kept from her. Brimstone is not a fan of questions.

Many would call Brimstone and his comrades, the serpent woman Issa, giraffe-necked Twiga, and parrot-beaked Yasri monsters, devils, demons. They call themselves chimaera. Karou calls them family. Though at times Karou is enormously frustrated to have her life constantly interrupted by Brimstone's errands, she knows she will never leave him. Her friends in Prague, especially best friend and vivacious dancer Zuzana, accept Karou's mysterious absences, abrupt departures, wild stories and sketchbooks full of drawings of her chimaera family as part of her charming artistic eccentricty.

But everything is about to change. Black handprints begin appearing on Brimstone's doorways throughout the world, burned deep into the wood by brilliant winged creatures whose beauty is so intense it scorches everything it touches. And for the first time, Brimstone seems to be running low on teeth. It is coming home from an early rendezvous with a trader in Marrakesh that Karou first meets the seraph - winged Akiva, the most beautiful and the most deadly thing she has ever seen. His gaze scorching her, Karou finally knows what it is she is meant to be doing - killing him. But first, she must find Brimstone and warn him that the Seraphim have returned. Barely escaping Akiva's sword, Karou hurtles back into the workshop, only to find Brimstone gone. Breaking the unbreakable rule, she goes looking for him through a forbidden door - and everything she thought she knew about her world, and herself, is ripped away.

I have been waiting for this since I finished Laini Taylor's National Book Award nominee Lips Touch: Three Times, and just... wow. I am head over heels crazy in love with this book. Beautifully written, lyrical, lovely, and haunting, you will lose yourself down the twisting, ancient streets of Prague and the explore the strange Brimstone's workshop, and feel the white hot heat of Akiva's flaming, glorious beaty. An ancient war, blood feuds, epic battles, intricate world building, and star-crossed love that is so bittersweet and rich with romance it'll make your bones tingle, Daughter of Smoke and Bone is pure gold nectar for anyone who loves a gorgeously written novel. Completely absorbing, you'll sink into Laini Taylor's intricately woven world of chimaera and seraphim - put it on hold @ the library today!

Megan
(who also devoured Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer on vacation - just as delicious as Nightshade!)

Teen Read Week @ the West Allis Public Library

2011-10-15T12:01:00.001-05:00

Celebrate reading and all the great Teen books that are out by stopping in the library this week! Starting 10/17 and ending on 10/21 we'll have trivia and other fun stuff for you to do in the Teen Space.

Then on Thursday, October 20th we'll celebrate the Teen Space with our open house! Starting at 6:30, there will be take home (or work on @ the library) crafts, drawings for prizes and other library fun. We'll also announce the winner of the Teen Scavenger Hunt during the open house. You don't have to stay for the whole time, just stop in and say hi!

Don't forget, there is still time to finish the Teen Scavenger Hunt! There are still entry forms @ the library, and as long as you get them to us by 7PM on the 20th, you will be entered to win the awesome gift bag of books.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Looking forward to a weekend of reading!)

Mermaid Mania

2011-10-14T12:01:00.006-05:00

Are you just not that into the Vampire craze? Do Zombie books feel a little over done? Did you never think those Angel books were going to take off? Then why don't you try the newest in Paranormal YA: Mermaids. If you are just looking for a fish out of water love story, or a just a good tale (or tail) here are some Mermaid stories for you to enjoy!

Forgive My Fins and Fins are Forever by Tera Lynn Childs
A mermaid princess living as a regular high school student who must find her true love before she turns 18? If this were checked in I would be taking it home tonight.

Lost Voices by Sarah Porter
In this mermaid tale, mermaids are women or girls who have lived through something very tragic, and are transformed by the sea. Luca is new to the mermaid world, and finally feels at home, until she discovers the mermaid's more evil purpose.

The Mermaid's Mirror by L.K. Madigan
Growing up in a Northern California town, Lena has been forbidden to surf. Approaching her 16th birthday, she is drawn to the waves and starts unraveling a mystery about her past.

Aquamarine by Alice Hoffman
Friend Hailey and Claire discover a mermaid at the bottom of a pool after a bad storm. Now they need to get her back to the sea, which would be easy except that the mermaid has fallen in love with the boy working at the snack shack. Read the book, and then watch the movie starring Emma Roberts and Sarah Paxton.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Gearing up for Teen Read week! Don't forget you have until 10/20 at 7PM to hand in your Scavenger Hunt Sheets!)

Coming Soon to a Theater Near You

2011-10-13T14:01:00.000-05:00

Have you heard about the classic YA book that's being made into a movie to be released next year?

You think I'm talking about the Hunger Games, don't you? Sure I'm just as excited as the next librarian about seeing Katniss on the big screen, but another YA book is causing some buzz.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower, is an older YA title, first published in 1999. It takes place during Charlie's freshman year in high school, and he writes letters to a friend, who he doesn't know but he knows he can trust. From not having any friends, to being welcomed into the world of Patrick and his beautiful sister Sam, Charlie attempts to move from being an observer to a participant in life.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower takes on a lot of issues, and Charlie is not your average freshman. Fans of John Green's Looking for Alaska or Paper Towns or 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher will enjoy this realistic portrayal of high school.

The movie should be out in 2012, and it stars Logan Lerman (aka Percy Jackson), Emma Watson (aka Hermione Granger)and Nina Dobrev from the Vampire Diaries. Realistic fiction fans take note, pick up the book and wait for the movie to be released!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Teen Writer Spotlight: Teen Writer's Spotlight: Meerkats Vs Prairiedogs Prologue by Ashley

2011-10-12T12:01:00.004-05:00

The final teen writer for this year is Ashley, who shared with us the prologue to her story Meerkats Vs.Prairie dogs. Click here to read the story!

The rattling of bars was the first thing that Sage noticed as she came around. Her head still felt foggy, but she was able to take in her surroundings. She was in a small crate lined with towels. Taking a deep breath, she could smell other meerkats somewhere close by. None smelled familiar, but they all smelled of fear and confusion. This made her uneasy, and she moved a towel around to make it more comfortable.

Click here to read more!

Thanks to all three of our teen writers. Are you a teen writer who wants to be featured on the blog? Check our Teen Writer's Page for more information!

Teen Writer Spotlight: Poems by Mandi

2011-10-11T12:01:00.003-05:00

This summer teens from the area came and wrote with us at the second annual Teen Writers Camp. This week we are featuring some of those writers!

Today Mandi has two poems to share with you:

Click here to read The Chase
I went to the field one summer day
To ask the wind if he wanted to play

Click here to read Black Cat
Hey, Black Cat
Sitting on my shoulder

Teen Writer Spotlight: Pine Tree by Drea

2011-10-10T12:01:00.002-05:00

This summer, West Allis area teens came to the library to write during teen writer's camp! This week we are going to feature 3 very talented writers. Today we have a selection from Drea's longer work, There is a Child in Every Tree, called Pine Tree.

Penny woke early on a bright sunny Saturday morning. Today she could do whatever she wanted, because Governess was going out today. Penny planned to use the time to her up most advantage. She was going to explore the woods.
Click here to read the rest of her story!

Savenger Hunt, Teen Read Week and other fun news

2011-10-05T13:19:00.001-05:00

Teen read week is coming soon, and we are going to celebrate in style this year at the West Allis Public Library!

First off, stop in and pick up the Teen Scavenger Hunt. It's 15 questions, you'll learn something new about the library and you'll get entered to win an awesome assortment of teen books- just check out the glass display case in the atrium of the library! The Teen Scavenger Hunt will run through October 20th, and read this post for more information!

Then, we are going to feature some awesome teen writers next week right here on the blog! These were teens who came to the Writers Camp this summer and submitted their work. Are you a Milwaukee County Teen who wants your work on the blog? Send us an e-mail at waplteens@mclfs.org, and we'll tell you what you need to do!

Finally, we want to show off our new Teen Space in the library so we are hosting an Open House! On October 20th, around 6:30 PM, we'll have games, crafts and other fun stuff in the Teen Space. Plus there will be prizes!

Leading up to Teen Read Week we'll have daily trivia, contests and more. So check back in the library, and on the blog for more information!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Here's a hint for those of you doing the scavenger hunt- History is all around the library in pictures, and the one you want is very close to the teen space!)

Book Review: Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann

2011-10-03T12:54:00.001-05:00

Cryer's Cross is a small town in Montana with less than 200 people living there, nw minus since Tiffany Quinn disappeared last May. Everyone helped search for her, however she left without a trace leaving no clues to where she went or what could have happened.

With school starting, most people have moved on from Tiffany's disappearance. Kendall is looking forward to soccer with her (kind-of) boyfriend Nico and settling into a routine. She is also very aware of the empty desk where Tiffany used to sit in the classroom.

Kendall has a lot to look forward to her senior year in high school. She would like to go to a performing arts school, even though it would take her away from Nico and the life she has always known. Shortly after school starts, Nico starts acting strange. He's distant and forgetful, and then he goes missing too.

The town goes into search mode again, but now Kendall starts to think that maybe there is something more to Nico's disappearance than meets the eye. While most people think he ran off with Tiffany, Kendall knows he wouldn't do that. Sitting in his desk one day, she notices new graffiti and soon starts hearing his voice. Kendall realizes that there may be something with that desk that could lead her to Nico.

Creepy without being too scary, Cryer's Cross builds a mystery of the two missing students. Mainly told from Kendall's point of view, there is a more sinister voice telling the story in between chapters. Kendall is an unusual protagonist in that she has OCD, and this is what helps her figure out what may have happened. Helping Kendall out are new students Marlena and Jacián, one as a friend and one as maybe something more.

Readers looking for a spooky pre-Halloween read will enjoy Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Still reading Falling for Hamlet)

Book Review: The Fox Inheritance by Mary E. Pearson

2011-09-27T12:12:00.000-05:00

A year ago, Locke and Kara woke up. Raised by Dr. Gatsbro, they realize there is a lot they have missed, in fact over 260 years have passed since they were in a fatal car accident and declared dead. Locked in a black box of memories and nothingness they had nothing but each other, until the doctor re-created their bodies and gave them a second chance at life.

Dr. Gatsbro seems to have their best interests at heart, and when an important visitor comes to meet them, his best interests become more apparent. Kara and Locke are little more than illegal specimens to show people what they can do to extend their own lives past death. Faced with a future of being hidden and on display for investors, Kara and Locke escape, putting their lives in danger, and set off find an old friend who has a long legacy.

Now on the run, Locke is questioning everything he knew from the past year with Dr. Gatsbro, plus his past, which isn't easy to face due to it being so far in the past. Family, friends and history have all moved on, and yet here he is, with little to hold on to except his friendship with Kara and Jenna. After losing Kara, he sets off with his former maid, Miesha and Dot Jefferson, the bot who aided him in escaping the manor.

Hold on to your hats for this follow up to The Adoration of Jenna Fox. Author Mary E. Pearson creates a stand alone story using some of the same characters in a world that is very different from the one we live in. Locke and Kara go on the run pretty soon in the book, and the chase to find Jenna, get away from Dr. Gatsbro and figure out what they are is pretty intense.

Fans of science fiction and adventure will not be disappointed with The Fox Inheritance, and you don't need to read The Adoration of Jenna Fox to follow this story, however I'll bet you'll be dying to know Jenna's story, and hoping for a third book!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading Falling for Hamlet)

Teen Space Computers

2011-09-22T19:08:00.003-05:00

Need to do some on-line research for a report? Work on a paper that was due yesterday? What about just check Facebook, or your favorite blog? Don't want to wait for a computer upstairs and can't log on to one of the adult computers?

Then check out the Teen Space and use of the 6 new computers just for teens!

That's right there are six computers just for those of you that are ages 12-18. How does this work? Just like the computers in the Adult and Children's area, you need to log in with your library card and pin. Through the computer magic, it won't let people younger than 12 or older than 18 log on, so you can tell your little brother to try a computer upstairs and have your older sister try one of the other computers, these are just for teens.

Come in check out the computers, and maybe even pick up a copy of the Teen Scavenger Hunt. You can win prizes just by answering questions about the library, and the answer to the first question is in this post!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Reading Cryer's Cross, by rock star-author Lisa McMann, who is just as cool in person as her awesome books!)

Meet Author Lisa McMann at the Library Today!

2011-09-22T12:54:00.001-05:00

Head to the library after school today to hear New York Times bestselling author Lisa McMann talk about her new book, The Unwanteds (review below!), answer your questions, and get your books signed! Already own them? Just bring them with you! Don't have a copy but want one? Not to worry, Boswell Books is sponsoring the author visit and will have plenty on hand for sale! Just want to read the books? Put them on hold while you're at the library!

Lisa McMann will begin speaking at 4:00 PM in the library Constitution Room, so get here a little early so you can be sure to get a good seat. Following her talk she'll do a Q&A session, and then you'll have a chance to queue up, meet her and get your books signed!

See you in a few hours!

Megan
(who spent the morning devouring Fade after polishing off Wake last night - these are addictive!)

Book Review: The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann

2011-09-20T20:25:00.003-05:00

Alex has known for three years that he is an Unwanted. Still, on the day of the Purge from Quill, that doesn't make it any easier to accept that he is about to be thrown into the Great Lake of Boiling Oil along with the almost fifty other Unwanteds - or that his twin brother, Aaron, is Wanted when he is not.

In the gray desert land of Quill, thirteen-year-olds are sorted into three categories - the Wanteds, the Necessaries, and the Unwanteds. The Wanteds are strong and intelligent and are sent to University. The Necessaries perform all the duties essential to daily life in Quill. The Unwanteds are sent to the Death Farm to be eliminated for the crime of exhibiting artistic or creative traits. Alex's infraction? Drawing with a stick in the mud.

But when the gates to Quill clang shut, leaving Alex and the other terrified Unwanteds alone with the Eliminators, the most astonishing thing happens. The Death Farm vanishes, leaving in its place a lush, beautiful land filled with amazing creatures - and magic. The land of Artime is a safe haven created and kept secret by Mr. Marcus Today, a powerful mage who protects, teaches and guides the Unwanteds. Instead of being put to their deaths, Alex and his new friends Meghan, Lani and Samheed learn how to play musical instruments, act, and draw - and how to use their art to make magic.

With talking blackboards, a Tube that will take you anywhere you want to go, a menagerie of incredible magical creatures - platyprots, squirrelicorns, flying tortoises, Mrs. Octavia the crocodile-octopus teacher, and Simber, the living sandstone statue of a winged cheetah that guards the Unwanteds' Mansion, Artime is more amazing than anything Alex could have imagined. There is one catch though - students in Artime must also take Magical Warrior Training, because if the Quillians ever discover Artime and the Unwanteds' deception, they will destroy everything and everyone.

Sound awesome?! Then head to the library this Thursday, September 22nd at 4PM. You can hear author Lisa McMann talk about writing The Unwanteds and get your copy signed! Books will be available for purchase if you'd like to pick up your own copy. Don't want to buy it? If you loved Harry Potter, the Inkheart books, or the Alchemyst series, make sure you put this fun fantasy on hold @ the library! And while you're waiting, check out Katie's Top 10 Reasons to Read The Unwanteds!

Megan
(now reading Wake - why didn't I get around to reading this sooner, people?!)

Book Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

2011-09-17T10:00:00.001-05:00

Jacob has spent his whole life listening to his Grandpa Portman's extraordinary stories of life in a children's home on a small island off the coast of Wales, where he and the other children where kept safe and hidden from the monsters. His parents tell him his Polish grandfather was sent there during the war to keep him safe from the Nazis, but Jacob is pretty sure that as horrible as the Nazis were, they didn't have tentacles coming out of their mouths. When he asks Grandpa Portman why the monsters were after them, his grandpa shows him a box of old photos from his childhood. Strange snapshots of a girl levitating, a suit of clothes on an invisible boy, and a scrawny boy holding a giant boulder over his head. Things that should be impossible, but Grandpa Portman insists that the peculiar children were all very real - and so are the monsters.

As Jacob gets older, he's not sure if he believes Grandpa Portman's wild tales of tentacle-mouthed monsters and peculiar children. Until the day he finds his grandfather brutally attacked in the woods behind his Florida home. Lying in a pool of his own blood, Grandpa Portman makes Jacob promise to go to the island and warn them. He only manages to whisper a few cryptic clues before he dies - the name Emerson, a letter, the date September 3rd, 1940, and instructions to find the bird in the loop. When Jacob looks into the deep shadows, he catches a glimpse of a creature that can only be one of his grandfather's monsters.

Of course, no one believes him - monsters aren't real. The police decide that wild dogs killed Grandpa Portman, and Jacob spends his days with his psychiatrist, trying to convince himself that what he saw in the woods was a hallucination brought on by shock and stress. Until he finds the letter from Miss Peregrine revealing the location of the island. It's not easy, but Jacob convinces his parents to let him spend the summer on the remote Welsh island. When he arrives, however, he finds that his grandfather's childhood home is nothing but a bombed-out shell, destroyed when German planes attacked the island - on September 3rd, 1940. But when Jacob finds the trunk full of peculiar old photographs like the few Grandpa Portman showed him, he knows he has to find out what happened to the peculiar children - it's the only way he'll find out what really happened to his grandfather.

First-time novelist Ransom Riggs weaves a creeptacular tale of gothic horror, history, and family around a set of very peculiar, very real photographs he and his friends have collected over the years. You'll devour this fun, mind-bending novel, stopping only to pore over the very weird, very awesome vintage photos in the book.

The book trailer for this one is so awesome, I have to share it!

Megan
(now reading Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini, a paranormal romance that promises to be absolutely delicious!)

Teen Scavenger Hunt: 9/15-10/20/2011

2011-09-15T12:21:00.000-05:00

Think you know all there is about the West Allis Public Library? Test your skills, and maybe learn something new by taking part in the Teen Scavenger Hunt!

Using all of the library resources available to you, answer 15 questions about the library and the awesome books and other resources found here. Scavenger Hunt sheets can be found at the Adult Information Desk as well as in the new Teen Space @ the West Allis Public Library.

The Teen Scavenger Hunt runs from September 15th-October 20th, 7PM. Every completed sheet will be entered into a drawing for awesome teen books and more at our Teen Space Open House on October 20th.

Like all the the West Allis Public Library Teen Events, the Scavenger Hunt is open to teens living in Milwaukee County, ages 12-18 or in grades 6-12.

We'll post hints and clues on the blog during this time, so check back often!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (If you are reading this blog, question 10 will be a cinch!)

Book Review: Blood Red Road by Moira Young

2011-09-12T16:30:00.011-05:00

Lugh was born first on Midwinter Day, Saba two hours later. That's how it's always been - Lugh goes first and Saba follows behind. Lugh is taken by a group of black-robed men on horses in the middle of a dust storm, there is never any doubt in Saba's mind - she will follow and get Lugh back. Saba knows she's nothing without her twin. She needs nothing and no one but Lugh, especially not her baby sister, 9-year-old Emmi. Though Lugh has always been kind to Emmi, Saba has never forgiven her sister for their mother's death in childbirth.

Their father murdered by Lugh's kidnappers, Saba strikes out into the barren, wasted landscape, leaving everything behind to follow Lugh - everything except Emmi. From their home on the dry lakebed of Silverlake, Saba grudgingly treks with Emmi across five agonizing days of desert to Crosscreek and her father's friend Mercy. There, she discovers that the black-robed men are known as Tonton. Guards, spies, and executioners, they carry out the corrupt king's orders. Saba also learns there was a stranger present at Lugh's birth, a man who seemed oddly excited about a boy born exactly at midwinter, so excited that he left before Saba was born. Mercy believes the stranger has something to do with Lugh's kidnapping and the fact that the men made sure Lugh was born at midwinter before they took him makes Saba believe so too.

Leaving Emmi behind, Saba tracks Lugh into the Sandsea, a desert of treacherous, shifting dunes. She's headed for Hopetown, a squalid town at the foot of the Black Mountains where Mercy believes she may find answers to why the king's guard would want to take a boy from Silverlake born 18 years ago at midwinter. Saba doesn't care about finding answers - she just wants to find Lugh and take him back.

With a unique narrative style that lets Saba's voice shine through clear and true, this dystopian novel is the tale of an epic quest not just over a desolate landscape scarred with the ghosts of a violent past, but through the treacherous twists and turns of the human heart. Saba's journey from a sheltered, selfish girl to a strong, self-sacrificing survivalist is an amazing feat in and of itself, never mind everything she must endure before she finally finds her heart's desire. Saba's epic quest to find her brother takes her across deserts, into the gladiator cages of Hopetown, across dry, cracked lakebeds filled with monstrous horrors, and deep into the Black Mountains in defiance of a desperate king's thirst for immortality. For fans of The Hunger Games, Divergent by Veronica Roth, the Choas Walking series and other post-apocalyptic and dystopian fiction, Blood Red Road is an amazing read. Don't miss it @ the library!

Megan
(Now reading an advanced reader's copy of Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel - zombie steampunk!! Need I say more?!)

Book Review: My Favorite Band Does Not Exist by Robert T. Jeschonek

2011-09-08T12:01:00.003-05:00

Idea Deity meets Eunice when he is on the run from two men who want to take him back to his parents. In defiance of his parents, he has made up a band called Youforia, and posts information about their shows and songs on his blog and all the social networking sites. What really enrages him is that other people claim to love the band, and know their songs, even though Idea has made it all up.

Reacher Mirage is the lead singer of the band Youforia, and he is not ready for them to go public. However, someone keeps leaking information about all their shows and almost exposing them. He's not ready to be a star, and with all this buzz his band and manager are getting antsy for him to be ready to go "live". He finds solstence in the book Fireskull's Revenant, a fantasy epic that has two warriors dueling it out over a kingdom.

Which is the same book Idea is reading, to escape his own issues, mainly that he feels there is an author writing his life, and he is doomed to die in chapter 64.

My Favorite Band Does Not Exist is a fast and wild ride through multiple universes that exist an a similar plane. The three stories weave together and pick up and leave off at different points with similar characters appearing in each world. Idea and Reacher both are held back by their pasts and have pretty cool guides to help them get to where they need to be. Of course, with Idea out to stop a rumored Youforia concert and Reacher kidnapped and away from his band, it isn't clear what their course is.

Readers looking for something completely different will want to give this novel a try. If you liked the world jumping reality of Going Bovine , the magical mahem of The Wee Free Men or the paranormal humor of Hold Me Closer Necromancer, My Favorite Band Does Not Exist might just be the book for you.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Finishing off The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann. Look for a review soon!)

Book Review: Addie on the Inside by James Howe

2011-09-06T16:15:00.000-05:00

Addie is many things, but not all the things people call her at school. Yes, she is smart, and she likes to speak her mind. Sure she's tall and doesn't really care about her clothes or hair, but that does not give them the right to call her names. Right?

Addie's story is about being in 7th grade, and having great friends, and a cool boyfriend, and being sure of who she is and wants to be. At the same time, Addie isn't sure about that cool boyfriend, and how being popular is important. Thanks to those great friends, Addie has a place where she feels comfortable, and Bobby, Joe and Skeezie have been there with her since forever. Of course, there are the others, like Becca who moved away, and now is back, but not so nice. Or Tonni, who can be nice or mean even when saying the same thing.

Addie was first introduced in James Howe's The Misfits, and then again in Totally Joe. Now this outspoken girl gets her own book to shine in. Addie's thoughts are presented in poem form, and her interactions with teachers, classmates, parents and friends are all in poetry as well. Addie is a unique and realistic girl going through the things that most middle school students will encounter. What makes Addie amazing is her commitment to causes outside of her self, including injustice in the world and her school.

Addie on the Inside is a great read for anyone who has felt hurt by other people's words or who wants to make the world a better place. Young activists don't usually get such starring roles in books, and this girl wants to make the world a better place. Readers looking for a good middle school read shouldn't look much further, and while you're at it pick up The Misfits and Totally Joe.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading My Favorite Band Does Not Exist, which is weird and wonderful!)

Upcoming Events @ the Library!

2011-09-02T17:01:00.001-05:00

Summer reading is done, and school has just started, so you need something to look forward to, right? Megan and I have some super fun things planned for this fall @ the library, so keep your eyes on the blog, in the library, and where ever you get your library news!

Get out your red pens and mark September 22nd 4 PM on your calender. Author Lisa McMann is going to be @ the West Allis Public Library to talk about her new book The Unwanteds. Check out Megan's post for more information!

Then we are having a library scavenger hunt just for teens. Starting September 15th and running until October 20th, stop in the library, pick up our scavenger hunt sheet and get to work. All completed entries will be entered into a drawing for some new teen books, movies and other fun stuff. You might just learn something about the library too!

Next is Teen Read Week! From October 17th - 21st, we'll have trivia prizes and all kinds of fun stuff in our new Teen Space. Then join us on October 20th for our Teen Space Open House, where you can enter to win prizes, make some crafts and hang out in the new Teen Space.

Anyone up for a Breaking Dawn party? Keep November 17th open, so you can join us for an evening of Twilight festivities in preparation for the movie release. Tickets will be required for this event so check back for more info!

Finally, on December 15th help us make some delicious Ginger Bread Houses. Just in time for winter, we'll have all the stuff you need to create your very own house of candy and frosting. We'll vote for our favorites, and every one will leave with their own creation.

And that's all in addition to some Wii days, so gamers you are going to want to be here on December 3rd. (Edit: There will be another Wii date this fall, so keep your eyes on the blog for more information!)

Keep your eyes open for more information about all of these awesome events @ the West Allis Public Library!
Katie (Reading The Unwanteds. Put your name on the list for this fantasy/ adventure so you can tell Lisa McMann just how awesome she is!)

Book Review: Uncommon Criminals by Ally Carter

2011-08-31T15:00:00.024-05:00

When the elderly, frail, white-haired Constance Miller begs Katarina Bishop to steal the Cleoptra Emerald, Kat refuses the job. Not because she can't do it - this is the girl who robbed the Henley last year, after all - but because it's the Cleopatra. And everyone knows that the Cleopatra Emerald, all ninety-seven carats of it, is cursed.

Never mind that Constance Miller claims to be the Cleopatra's rightful owner and that the Cleopatra was stolen from the Miller family by its current owner's grandfather, Oliver Kelly, from the tomb that Constance's father was excavating in Egypt. Or that Constance was sent to Kat by none other than Visily Romani, the same name that brought Kat out of retirement, the name behind all of Kat's new jobs. Jobs like the Henley, and the job she just finished in Moscow - the one that retrieved a small Cezanne lost during the second World War from the Russian mob. Kat, after all, is the best of the best. Only she is good enough to steal the Cleopatra Emerald and set right the wrong that was done decades before.

Kat doesn't have a choice. The moment the name Romani was spoken, she knows she has to steal the Cleopatra. And with the reluctant help of her best friend, the jaw-droppingly gorgeous billionarie W.W. Hale the Fifth, the skills of her beautiful and beautifully talented cousin, Gabrielle, the explosion-loving Scottish Bagshaw twins and techno-guru Simon completing her team, Kat is confident she can pull off the craziest, riskiest heist in the long history of her family of art thieves. The same heist that went so terribly wrong for her Uncle Eddie in '67 - the heist that Uncle Eddie refuses to talk about, the one that means that under no circumstances can Uncle Eddie find out what Kat plans to pull off.

But even Kat's gift for seeing all the angles of a con isn't enough to break the curse of the Cleopatra. The past has a way of haunting those who mess around with cursed emeralds and doomed love, and not even Katrina Bishop, the girl who robbed the Henley, can escape it. But Katarina Bishop is no common criminal, and when all the odds are against her, she has no problem making her own.

This sequel to Heist Society is fun, fast, fabulous, and full of high stakes thrills! Sleek and chic, Uncommon Criminals is James Bond crossed with Mission: Impossible and Grace Kelly in To Catch a Thief (I loooooooove Grace Kelly - and who doesn't love Bond's high-tech gadgets?). Racing against the clock for a final showdown at the Casino Monte Carlo in Monaco, Kat and her team jet to Austria, New York, Moscow, Lyon, and plot the world's biggest heist in Uncle Eddie's New York brownstone kitchen and on Hale's luxurious yacht off the coast of Monaco. Savor what's left of summer with this delicious read and check it out @ the library!

Megan
(now reading Blood Red Road, a post-apocalyptic adventure set on a Tattooine-esque Earth - I think Kat would totally want main character and tough girl Saba on her team!)

Summer Reading Wrap Up

2011-08-30T14:14:00.001-05:00

First off, a big THANK YOU to the 69 teens who turned in reading logs this summer. Thank you all for being great readers! You read 1848 books, and that is AWESOME.

Also, a big thank you to all the teens who came to our programs. From Wii days, to the Writers Camp, Harry Potter Puppet Pals and the Teen Summer Reading Finale, it was fun to put faces with the names we saw on all the reading logs.

And in no particular order, here are the first names of the winners from our grand prize auction:

Michelle , Ashley, Mikayla , Sam, Karl, Harrison, Josh, Spencer, Ricardo, Drea, Chloe, Jake, Elijah, Emily and Naomi!

Again congratulations to all of the Teen Summer Readers. Check back soon for some cool fall programs, and other reading adventures @ the West Allis Public Library!
Katie

Book Review: Small Town Sinners by Melissa Walker

2011-08-25T20:31:00.004-05:00

Lacey Anne Byer is an all around good girl. The daughter of Pastor Ted has never questioned her early curfew, or wanted to rock the boat when it came to the rules she was expected to follow. She was able to work and hangout with her friends. In a small town what more could want to do?

It's when she meets Ty Davis, a new boy in town, that she starts to wonder about life outside the safety net of her world. Why don't her parents want her to hang out with him, when at first they were encouraging her to get him more involved with the church? Then there is the Hell House, the annual project the church teens put on to try to bring people into the church. As a junior, Lacey is eligible to try out for one of the lead roles, which she is awarded the understudy. When the main actress has to leave town due to her pregnancy, Lacey throws herself in to the role.

These two events cause Lacy to question the rules and morals she has believed all her life. With her two best friends, Starla Joy and Dean, as well as with some help from Ty, Lacey starts to see life is a little less black and white, and starts to find the grey areas in between.

Author Melissa Walker takes on a lot in this book that will get you thinking. No matter what your religious beliefs are, you will find something to relate to in Small Town Sinners. Each of the characters are going through things that cause them to question their faith and life. From Ty working out issues from his past, to Lacey, struggling with stepping away from her parents influence, the problems faced by these teens are relate-able.

Readers who enjoyed Laurent Myracle's Shine or Robin Brande's Evolution, Me and Other Freaks of Nature will find Small Town Sinners to be a thought provoking read.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Still working on Rotters, with Addie on the Inside on deck!)

Teen Summer Reading Finale and Silent Prize Auction!

2011-08-24T12:01:00.000-05:00

Thursday August 25th is our annual Teen Summer Reading Finale and Silent Prize Auction!

Starting at 6:30 PM, come to the Library Constitution Room. We'll let you know how many points you have to bid on books, DVDs and other fun library stuff. Every book you read this summer is worth a point in the auction, so the more you read the more chances you have to take home the prize you really want.

During the auction we'll have games, snacks and other fun stuff for you to do.

Around 8 PM we'll do the drawing for the grand prize gift cards, and figure out who gets to take the auction prizes home. Remember, you don't have to be at the finale to win the gift cards, you do have to be at the finale to participate in the prize auction!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Review: My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

2011-08-22T21:01:00.005-05:00

Brooklyn's life is full of bad decisions. For starters, she is better known as "Baby Brooklyn", the girl who fell down a well when she was two. For over 50 hours the nation watched as she waited in the abandoned mine shaft to be rescued. Now, a teenage Brooklyn, or Brooks, sits in a police station hearing things like "arson", "trespassing" and "underage drinking".

Sentenced to community service for her crimes, Brooklyn is also is grounded for life, and has little to look forward to other than mandatory community service, and helping rebuilding the model home she burnt down. Her best friend was supposed to be by her side (it was her idea after all), but Shayne has decided to ditch her, being arrested and everything really isn't the image Shayne wants to project. After Brooklyn gets caught smoking outside the school, thanks to a new boy, she is done making decisions. Now all of her decisions will be made by readers of her blog, My Life Undecided. What book should she read for English? Ask her readers. Should she try out for rugby? Put it on the Blog.

Brooklyn will do what her readers tell her, because she has learned that she is no good at figuring things out for herself.

Brooklyn is alone in her blogging adventures, but new friends come into her "real" life. New student Hunter seems to like her, even if he is responsible for her detention. Then there is the boy who saved her from choking on melon in the cafeteria, the kind-of-cute Brian. Old activities such as keeping up with celebrity gossip and keeping up her appearance have taken a back seat to her court mandated community service, school work and debate team.

My Life Undecided is a breezy summer read that will keep you reading. Will Brooklyn follow the advice of her blog readers, or will she make her own choices? You get to laugh, as Brooklyn tries to figure out a lot of things, from what to read for class to which boy she should hang out with. Brooklyn is a good kid at heart, who sometimes just makes bad choices. Similar to Jordan Sonnenblick's Notes From the Midnight Driver, with a little bit of Sarah Mlynowski's Gimme A Call. Jessica Brody perfectly depicts a girl looking for answers, unsure of how to make good decisions, and who wants to do right.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading Rotters by Daniel Kraus)

Summer Reading Logs: Last Call!

2011-08-22T09:01:00.000-05:00

That's right, it's the last day to bring in your summer reading logs. You have until 9 PM on Monday August 22nd to stop in to the West Allis Public Library with your completed reading logs to be eligible for all of the summer reading prizes.

What are you reading to win? 15 lucky winners will receive a $20 gift card. You are only eligible to win one of those gift cards. You are also earning points that you can use towards books, movies and other library prizes at the Silent Prize Auction.

Don't forget, Thursday August 25th is the Teen Summer Reading/ Silent Prize Auction extravaganza, so be here at 6:30 PM to bid on prizes, play some games, have some snacks and hang out with other summer readers!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Final prize note, you do not have to be at the Finale to win the gift cards, you do have to be at the Finale to bid on the prizes. Questions? Don't hesitate to ask!)

Book Review: The Magnolia League by Katie Crouch

2011-08-19T12:01:00.001-05:00

Alex (Alexandria) Lee is way out of her comfort zone. After the tragic death of her mother, she is forced away from the California commune life she always knew and into the world of Savannah, Georgia society. Her grandmother, known as Miss Lee, is the leader of a powerful group of society known as the Magnolia League.

Alex with her retro tie-dye t-shirts, dread locked hair, and self called "pudgy body", sees that she has little in common with the tall, thin and beautiful Madison and Hayes, the current Magnolia it girls. At Miss Lee's insistence the girls are to befriend her, and make her in to the perfect southern belle in time to debut at the winter ball.

There is something strange about the women of the Magnolia League. For starters, they eat whatever they want and are all thin. Also, they all appear to be much younger than they really are. Men fall at their feet, and into line around them, and money is never an object.

The secret to the Magnolia League's success? Hoodoo magic, practiced by Doc Buzzard and his family. Youth, wealth, beauty and love all come to these women through spells and magic. Life on the hippie commune was different, but old society ladies practicing Hoodoo magic is just weird.

There is life beyond the Magnolia's though, Alex befriends fellow outsider Dexter and there is Hayes' older brother Thaddeus, a handsome jock who doesn't get the appeal of the Magnolia League. Will Alex be able to resist the lure of the Magnolias and stay true to her self, or will she turn into just another MG?

Megan describes this book as "hoodoo fudge" and I can not think of a better description. One part Blue Bloods (Melissa De la Cruz) one part Pretty Little Liars (Sara Shepard), this magical mystery tour of the south is a fast pace immersion into debutante politics. Alex is steadfast in her morals, until she sees just what the magic can do for her life. Hayes and Madison are the perfect queen bee girls, who reluctantly take on the Alex as a project.

Fans of magical romance series will enjoy Katie Crouch's The Magnolia League. First in the series, if you enjoy book one, you'll be dying to read the follow up, The White Glove Wars!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody)

Teen Summer Reading Finale and Prize Auction

2011-08-18T12:01:00.003-05:00

You've done the reading, now it's time to be rewarded!

That's right, it's time for the annual Teen Summer Reading Finale. This year the festivities will start at 6:30 PM on Thursday, August 25th. The auction will take place from 6:30-7:30 PM. You'll have some free time to play games, enjoy some snacks and hang out with other summer readers.

Around 8 PM we will award all the auction prizes, and draw for the big gift cards. Remember you do not have to be present to win one of the gift cards, however you do have to be there to bid on the auction prizes.

Need a refresher on the auction rules? Click here, or stop in the library!

I"ll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading the Magnolia League by Katie Crouch)

Book Review: Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore

2011-08-17T17:42:00.004-05:00

The only one without an ounce of magical affinity in a family of witches, Amy Goodnight has spent her whole life keeping the lines firmly drawn between her, erm, quirky family and the rest of the world. Regular people and magic just don't mix well. Which is why ranch-sitting in Texas for Aunt Hyacinth for the summer with her sister Phin sounds perfect, and just like something normal people would do. Unfortunately, normal isn't exactly what Amy's projecting when she runs into gorgeous cowboy-on-a-horse Ben McCulloch - in her underwear, chasing a cow away from her Mini Cooper. Good thing Ben turns out to be a huge jerk with a big chip on his shoulder, especially when it comes to the Goodnights and Goodnight Farm, ghosts and magic. Even if he is smokin' hot.

Amy's plan to avoid Ben McCulloch for the rest of the summer doesn't last long. Rumors are swirling about a ghost, the Mad Monk, that haunts the McCulloch ranch, and it seems he's angry about the recent discovery of human bones by the river, if the strange night noises, the number of fences down and ranch hands bashed on the head is any indication. Amy is horrified, but Phin can't resist the chance to try out some of her experimental spectral equipment and manages to wrangle an invite to the dig site from Mark, one of the anthropology students working at the dig. Ben is far from pleased to see the Goodnight sisters on his ranch - especially when Amy discovers there is more than one skeleton buried on McCulloch ranch.

Top all that off with the fact that Amy seems to be haunted by the Mad Monk, and she's having a decidely not normal summer. He first shows up in her bedroom in the middle of the night, an unearthly blue column of light that sucks the warmth from her bones and the breath from her lungs. Which is odd, because no ghost should be able to make it past Aunt Hyacinth's protection wards. But when the ghost commandes Amy to look for him, she must make a choice - break her own rules, dive headfirst into the spectral world and help the ghost (even though he keeps trying to freeze her to death)? Or stay permenently attached to the Mad Monk?

With the help of an enthusiastic Phin, a reluctant, supercranky Ben, Ben's cantankerous grandfather, Mark and the rest of the University of Texas dig team, Aunt Hyacinth's dogs, and a herd of unruly goats, Amy dives straight into the mystery of what's really going down at the McCulloch Ranch. Who was her ghost? Are his bones buried at the dig site? Is he the Mad Monk? And why the heck does she want to smack Ben and kiss him at the same time?

Amy Goodnight is straight-up awesome. She's Nancy Drew with attitude - feisty, fun, snarky, smart and tough, she doesn't hesistate to deal with ghosts, her flaky big sister's obliviousness to reality (or at least other people's idea of reality), a crankypants cowboy, escape artist goats, and some seriously epic family rivalry. Texas Gothic is a delicious summer mystery that'll make you laugh, the hairs on your neck stand on end, and turn pages faster than you can fall into a Texas sinkhole at night. Check it out @ the library!

Megan
(who just finished the hoodoo fudge of a book that was The Magnolia League by Katie Crouch! Katie did too - look for her review soon!)

Teen Summer Readng 2011: The End is Near!

2011-08-16T12:01:00.000-05:00

Have you been reading this summer? Have you turned in all of your reading logs yet?

The last day to turn in your reading logs for the Teen Summer Reading program @ the West Allis Public Library is August 22nd at 9PM. All logs received by this time will be entered in our grand prize drawing, as well as all the books will be counted towards the silent prize auction.

Have questions about the finale? Check back on Thursday for more info about the annual Teen Summer Reading Finale (and second Annual Silent Prize Auction!)

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Rock Star Author Event!

2011-08-15T10:02:00.001-05:00

Do we have some AWESOME news for you, West Allis!! This fall, we'll be partnering with Boswell Books to bring you a super spectacular author event extravaganza!!

On Thursday, September 22nd, at 4PM, we'll be hosting the fabulous Lisa McMann, author of the Wake trilogy! She'll talk about her new book, The Unwanteds, which looks soooo good and will be coming to a library near you on August 30th, and then there'll be a signing session after where you can tell her how much you love her books while she's signing your copies.

Boswell is also hosting a bunch of other fabulous authors at other libraries in Milwaukee County - check out the full schedule here. Lauren Oliver (Before I Fall and Delirium), James Dashner (The Maze Runner), Catherine Gilbert Murdock (Dairy Queen and Princess Ben), James Howe and Margaret Peterson Haddix are among the star-studded line-up we have for you!

So mark your calendars, people, because this is one party at the library you do NOT want to miss out on! More info and details to come!

Megan

City of Lost Souls Excerpt!

2011-08-11T19:00:00.001-05:00

You guys!!! Or at least those of you who love Cassandra Clare, Jace and Clary as much as we do! First The Scorpio Races trailer, now this piece of awesome! Go check out this sizzling excerpt from City of Lost Souls, book 5 in The Mortal Instruments series, coming to a library near you May 1, 2012.

Why are you still reading this blog post?! Go!

Megan
(Yay Jace! Boo Sebastian!)

P.S. Friday morning addition - just ran across another CoLS excerpt from Cassandra Clare's blog!

The Scorpio Races Trailer!

2011-08-11T15:53:00.001-05:00

From the always-awesome Maggie Stiefvater, the trailer for the forthcoming The Scorpio Races:

Again, she astounds me with her creativity, artistry and time management skills by having animated as well as composed and performed the music (with her sister!) to create this trailer that has me even more excited for The Scorpio Races than I already was! Read more about the book on Maggie's website. Coming to a library near you October 18th.

Megan
(who now will be forced to find a local-ish Maggie Stiefvater book tour stop this fall so I can get my copy of Scorpio signed! Oh, the tragedy...)

Book Review: I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan

2011-08-10T14:31:00.001-05:00

Sam likes churches, so whenever he can find the time (and a clean shirt) he goes. Not wanting to be noticed, he sits in the back and leaves before the service is over. He goes for the music, which to him is a sort of religion.

Emily does not want to sing the solo in church that Sunday. She doesn't have the best voice in the choir, and if you ask her she doesn't even have a good voice. Now her father has gone too far, giving her the solo in I'll Be There, which isn't even a church song.

It's this song that brings them together. Sam, who would rather not connect with another human being who is not his little brother, an lives a life on the run with his father. Emily, who connects with everything while blending into her normal life, and lives a life of middle class comfort. Sam and Emily are drawn to each other, and even after running away, events keep bringing them together.

Sam and his brother Riddle were taken by their father at a young age, and due to unfortunate circumstances they were never quite "missing" and never had a stable childhood. Sam lives in fear of his father, who packs up to move at a moments notice, afraid of being caught. In spite of this, Sam is a sweetheart, who happens to be a musical genius, while Riddle is a bit of a riddle himself, spending time drawing in old phone books.

Random events keep bringing Sam and Emily together, as well as tear them apart. The point of view in I'll Be There changes, depending on who needs to be telling the story. Sure we get to see things through Sam and Emily's eyes, but Riddle gets turns in telling the story, as well as other memorable characters such as Bobby Ellis, Emily's sometime-kind-of-boyfriend, who has quite a memorable prom day.

I'll Be There is a quiet meandering story. If you enjoy books like Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins or Marcelo in the Real World by Franciso X. Stork, you'll enjoy the pacing and inner voice of I'll Be There. From the light romance, to the mystery of where Sam and Riddle are and the family drama that they have there is a lot to like in this quiet story.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading Paper Covers Rock by Jenny Hubbard)

Teen Summer Reading 2012: Final Count Down

2011-08-08T09:01:00.000-05:00

Summer is nearing it's end, and so is summer reading (sad face). Here is your (first) reminder that reading logs for the Teen Summer Reading program are due back to the library by Monday August 22nd, at 9PM. Entries received after this time will not be included in our drawing for the 15 $20 gift cards, or be able to be used as points in our Silent Prize Auction.

Don't forget to mark your calenders for August 25th at 6:30 PM. That's when we will be holding the Silent Prize Auction as well as the Teen Summer Reading Finale. There will be games, snacks and other summer reading fun just for you.

Check out the Silent Prize Auction Rules and of course let us know if you have any questions!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Review: Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury

2011-08-06T10:00:00.018-05:00

When bookworm Agnes Wilkins discovers the small iron jackal's head with a bit of linen knotted to it in the mummy's wrappings at Lord Showalter's garden party, she hides it inside her bodice only because she doesn't want to draw any more attention to herself. Her debut into London society is only a few weeks away and she is already tired of always being on parade. Agnes would prefer to just curl up at home with a novel. After all, Lord Showalter did say that his guests could keep anything they found at his mummy unwrapping party, and she can always return the jackal later, when all of society isn't watching the handsome lord pay her such diligent attention.

But then Agnes is followed and stalked through Lord Showalter's gardens by a suspicious-looking waiter. She manages to evade him and return to the party - only to have him turn up dead not long after. Panicked party-goers instantly blame the curse of the mummy, especially when it is discovered that Lord Showalter received the wrong mummy from the British Museum.

The next morning, Agnes discovers that everyone who participated in the mummy's unwrapping has been robbed or injured overnight - everyone except her. Agnes knows something big is unfolding, and she's pretty sure it has nothing to do with a mummy's curse. Instead, she is quite sure that someone is looking for something that was hidden in the mummy's wrappings. Something like the jackal's head she still doesn't quite know what to do with.

Agnes heads to the British Museum for answers, where she stumbles across Caedmon Stowe, the young, dashing, and very clever scribe who was taking notes for the museum on the night of Lord Showalter's mummy party. Together, they discover a secret message written on the linen knotted to the jackal - a message that speaks of Napoleon, and a standard of unthinkable supernatural power. An object that would assure Napoleon victory on the Continent, over England, and perhaps the world.

Together, Agnes and Caedmon must try to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, avoid devious French spies, race against the clock, keep their rendezvous (to be found together would be scandalous at best and most likely destroy Agnes's reputation and all her prospects for a good match) secret - especially from Agnes's mother and Lord Showalter - and recover the standard before Napoleon's spies. But when Agnes finds herself falling perilously close to in love with the entirely unsuitable Caedmon, will she be able to resist her own heart?

Smart, brave, feisty and daring, Agnes is an adventurous soul that you'll be cheering for as she climbs trellises, creeps through dark gardens, explores the depths of the British Museum's Egyptian collections, battles spies, unravels an international mystery, and falls in love. For fans of The Luxe novels, The Season by Sarah MacLean, anything Egypt, Napoleonic conspiracy, and (my favorite!) the great Miss Austen's novels, Wrapped is a fun romp through Regency-era London, complete with murder, mystery, intrigue, and a dash of romance. Check it out @ the library!

Megan
(who can't wait to dive into Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore this weekend!)

Book Review: Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski

2011-08-04T15:31:00.003-05:00

April does not want to move to Cleveland, so she does what any 16-year-old would do. She convinces her father to let her live with her friend Vi for the rest of the school year. April's father is relived that she has a place to live with a responsible while he moves to Cleveland for a new job. Vi's mother is glad that Vi will have a roommate to share the house while she is in a traveling production of Mary Poppins.

This is the first thing the did: lie. It was a simple lie, and surprisingly easy to pull off. With two fake e-mail addresses, and two parents on different schedules it was easy to convince April's dad that Vi's mom would be there.

April and Vi are looking forward to the freedom that comes from being unsupervised, but of course things don't always go as planned. That's where we start the story: April is in a compromising situation and her dad is making a surprise visit. She has about 15 minutes to make the house look like they have not broken any of his rules, when she is pretty sure they have violated every rule on the list.

Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) is a look at the ten things April did while living with Vi. Part "real life" stuff, like learning to cook, clean and make sure a house is in order. Part "fun" stuff, like having friends and boys over for parties, and part "growing up is tough" stuff, like dealing with her parents divorce, her mom living in France, a boyfriend who doesn't seem to be there all the time and a cute new boy who is a bit of a mystery.

April and Vi's experience is just about any teenagers dream. Living in a house, with an income from their parents, and without the supervision. Everything they do has real life consequences, and sometimes April can deal with them like an adult, and sometimes she just wants to run home.

Author Sarah Mlynowski has a knack for finding the "what if" questions teens might have. April does have a lot of freedom, but she also has a lot more responsibility because of it. Her life is not just parties and movie nights. While the book focus on the fun parts of living alone there is also the reality. Fans of books like An Abundance of Katherines by John Green, Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson and Siobhan Vivian's Not that Kind of Girl will enjoy the fun yet realistic look at life with out parents.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Still reading I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan, it's good but I've been busy this summer!)

Teen Writers Camp: Thursday August 4th @ 1:30 PM

2011-08-03T12:01:00.000-05:00

Thursday August 4th is our last session of the Teen Writers Camp this summer. Join us from 1:30-3 PM for a discussion on publishing your work. We'll have some publishing resources and you'll have that one last chance to get your work peer reviewed.

If you have any questions about the Teen Writers Camp Anthology, you'll have a chance to ask those as well.

Bring something you wrote to share with the group, and we'll listen to stories, eat some pizza and celebrate a summer of writing!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Teen Summer Reading Finale and Auction

2011-08-01T09:01:00.004-05:00

Now that's it's August 1st (where did summer go?) it's time to start thinking about the Teen Summer Reading Finale and Prize Auction. This year's finale will be on August 25th starting at 6:30PM. The silent prize auction will run from 6:30-7:30, and we'll have board games, Wii games and other things for you to do during that time.
Here are the rules for the auction:

You must be at the summer reading finale on August 25th to participate in the silent auction.

Bidding on prizes will run from 6:30-7:30PM.

Winners will be able to take their prizes home.

Points for the auction are earned by turning in West Allis Public Library Teen Summer Reading program Reading Logs.

Reading dates are from June 1st-August 22nd, 2011.

The last day we will accept reading logs is August 22nd, at 9 PM.

Library staff will track teen reading logs for points.

Points will be distributed to teens who attend the Teen Summer Reading Finale on August 25th.

Points are non-transferable, and we will only award teens the points they earned.

Teens who cannot attend the event are not eligible to participate in the auction.

Teens not at the event are still eligible to win one of the summer reading gift cards.

For each book read and turned in on a reading log, teens will earn one point to bid on available prizes.

Prizes will include, but are not limited to young adult books, DVDs, reading and summer theme prizes.

Questions about the teen summer reading auction? Either call the library (414-302-8500) and ask for Katie or Megan, or you can e-mail us at waplteens_at_mcfls.org!

Book Review: Hourglass by Myra McEntire

2011-07-30T16:00:00.093-05:00

Emerson Cole has spent the last 4 years pretty sure that she's crazy. She sees people from the past. Southern belles, jazz trios, guys in cravats - all ghosts that dissipate when she touches them. It started just a few weeks before her parents died in a horrible bus accident, and has only been getting worse since. Her brother, Thomas, is an architect who renevates old buildings in her small Southern town, and since Emerson sees (and hears) ghosts in the places they lived, this makes things a bit, well... haunted.

Her boarding school scholarship mysteriously dried up and sick of feeling like numb zombie, Emerson is off her meds (Thomas is on a need-to-know basis, and this is something he definately doesn't need to know) and back home for her senior year of high school. She just wants things to be normal, which means not telling Thomas about the southern belle she had to walk through to get in her front door. And then she meets the gorgeous Michael at Thomas's restaurant opening gala. The last in a long line of therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, mediums, and other useless frauds employed by her well-meaning brother to help her, Michael is a consultant for a mysterious organization known as the Hourglass. When Michael tells Emerson that he can help her and that she's not crazy, she is extremely wary - until Michael reveals that he, too, can see and hear the jazz trio from the 1920s playing at the party.

Things get even stranger when Emerson discovers that she and Michael have a connection so electric that it literally blows out light bulbs when they touch each other. When Michael finally reveals that her ability to see people from the past is just part of the amazing power she possesses -and what they have the potential to become together - Emerson's whole world is blown apart. Because it turns out that Michael is not only there to help her manage her powers, but he desperately needs her help - to turn the clock back on death.

Reading this book was just like savoring a frappuccino on a hot July day - cool, fresh, delicious, and keeps you awake til it's finished! With a unique twist on time travel, great characters (Thomas's wife Dru is awesome, and I seriously want Emerson's friend Lily to be my BFF - and make me a cappuccino!) and some seriously sizzling romantic tension between Emerson and Michael, you'll want to curl up and inhale this gothic thriller in one sitting. Check out Hourglass @ the library!

Megan
(who's loving Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury - nothing like a good tale of a ancient Egyptian mummy's curse in Regency London on a summer afternoon!)

Wii Open Play This Saturday!

2011-07-29T16:30:00.013-05:00

Join us this Saturday from 2-4PM in the Constitution Room (the door's in the atrium, by the fountain) for our summer Wii Open Play!

We have Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Wii Sports, so bring a friend and head to the library to beat the heat and spend a few hours playing Wii on the big screen in the AC! We have Wiimotes, nunchuks and wheels, but feel free to BYO Game Cube controllers or any other Wii compatible controller you want. Also feel free to BYO snacks and soda!

See you on Saturday afternoon!

Megan

Book Review: Level Up by Gene Luen Yang and Thien Pham

2011-07-28T19:55:00.008-05:00

From the time Dennis sees his first Pac Man arcade game at age six, he's hooked. Too bad his parents don't agree - in spite of the super obvious hints he leaves pretty much everywhere, Dennis doesn't unwrap a Nintendo set for Christmas. He unwraps a chemistry set. His father has big dreams for Dennis's future - dreams video games have no part in.

Two weeks before Dennis graduates high school, his father dies. The night of the funeral, he drives to an electronics store and starts playing - and he doesn't stop until he gets kicked out of college his junior year. Turns out being an awesome gamer doesn't help keep you in school if your grades suck. That's when his destiny finds him - in the form of four mini angels with very specific ideas about Dennis's future, specifically as a gastroenterologist. Dennis is sure that his dad sent the angels, so after they perform a small miracle and get him back into college, he reluctantly ditches his games and starts studying.

The (admittedly cute) angels may be obnoxiously bossy, but they do Dennis's laundry, keep his apartment clean, bring him food, and make flashcards. Their constant nagging keeps him on track - and gets him into med school. Which turns out to be not so bad, especially after Dennis makes friends with Hector, Ipsha, and Kat. The four start studying together, and Dennis doesn't really have too much time for the angels anymore. Too bad they have other ideas.

By turns laugh out loud hilarious and heartbreaking, watch Dennis try to figure out how the heck to play the game of life - which is bad enough without bossy mini angels. This one also ends with an awesome twist, so make sure you keep this one around for all those people who've ever told you playing video games is a waste of time (*cough* Mom *cough*). For anyone who loves comics, video games, or has wondered what they want to be when they grow up, check out Level Up @ the library!

Megan
(who'll be starting Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury when I get home - if I can manage to stop (re)watching episodes of season one of The Vampire Diaries...)

Teen Writers Camp: July 28th @ 1:30 PM

2011-07-27T12:01:00.001-05:00

It's our penultimate week for writers camp this summer! This week we will talk about editing our works. Bring something you've been working on this summer to have another teen help you edit.

If you have any questions about the 2011 edition of the Writers Camp Anthology, you'll have time to ask.

As usual, we'll have writing prompts, activities and other writing fun!

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie

Book Review: Leverage by Joshua C. Cohen

2011-07-25T14:45:00.002-05:00

Football reigns supreme at Oregrove High. The captains rule the school, and most teachers and coaches turn a blind eye to the players as long as the team is winning. Danny knows that as a small sophomore, he is a prime target for the team and their bulling.

Danny has a plan. As a gymnast he spends most of his out of school time working on being the best he can be, to help meet his goals: First, win the state high bar championship, next he will be captain of the gymnastic team, and finally as a senior he will win the state all around award and a full ride to the college of his choice.

Kurt may be an underclassman, new in school and wearing out-of-date clothes, but he is huge, scarred and is not going to take anything from anyone. He knows he is a target for his scars and stutter, however his size and ability on the football field will help him get by. Picked out of his old home, and placed in a foster home to play football, he knows this is his chance to leave his past behind.

Most non-football players stay out of the way of the team, led by captain Scott Miller, however when a cross country runner is being bullied, and one of the gymnasts stands up for him, a new war of sorts is started. It starts as pranks, however it escalates quickly after the football team's strength is challenged. Kurt and Danny make unlikely allies in this war, however when things go too far and neither sees a way out.

Leverage doesn't hold anything back, and can be tough to read at times. Kurt's past was not easy, and it keeps haunting him. Danny struggles with standing up for himself, and his teammates. They both witnessed something horrible, and coming forward may make things right but could also cost them both. Doing the right thing is not always easy, and with a little help from some unexpected people, Kurt and Danny might just bring the truth to light.

Sport books don't get much better than Leverage. Sports fans will enjoy the football highlights and gymnastic meets, and off the field things are only more intense. This is one of those great books that can be hard to read, however those of you who can make it through the dark parts of the book will be rewarded. If you enjoy books by authors Chris Crutcher, Chris Lynch and Pete Hautman, you will want to check out Leverage.

I'll see you @ the library!
Katie (Now reading I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan)

West Allis Public Library Teen Events

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Book Review: Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

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2012 Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults Announced!

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2012 Printz Winner and Honor Books

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Milwaukee County Teen Book Award Nominees Announced!

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Savenger Hunt, Teen Read Week and other fun news

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Summer Reading Wrap Up

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