Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Book Spine Poetry

Today is the last official day to celebrate April Poetry Month!  

So in honor of spring, and found poetry, and books, and procrastination, and cleverness, I bring you...

Book Spine Poetry


"My name is not easy
I'm not who you think I am
Run is not my Indian name
Don't call my Ishmael
I am not Joey Pigza
I am the ice worm
I am David
My name is Mina
Poetry speaks who I am"

I recently discovered this thing. And yes, it is a Thing. It seems that everyone already knew about this; it's been all over the internet, and I'm only just catching on. But fortunately I discovered it in time to stretch my creative muscles and share this last hurrah to Poety Month with you! 


"Everything you need to survive the apocalypse
Blood and chocolate
Love and other perishable items
Riding out the storm
The long wait for tomorrow"
 By Elise Doney 
This afternoon at the Lynnwood Library, I scanned the stacks, searching for those catchy clever titles. I didn't know what I was looking for, so I just gathered as many books as I could carry and sat down in the Teen Center to assemble my spine label poetry. 


"Take me there
I'll be there
All the way
Wish you were here"
By Elise Doney

I fumbled the books, and muttered to myself, and was not at all a natural book spine poet. But the people in the Teen Zone totally helped me out. Together, we created this beauty:  


"Confessions of a serial killer
Tell me a secret
Little black lies
Will work for prom dress"
By Elise Doney and Lynnwood teens

What do you think? Maybe next year for Poetry Month, we can have a spine label poetry contest!
 Would you enter?

Saturday, April 27, 2013

2013 YALSA Teens' Top Ten


The nominations for YALSA's Teens' Top Ten have been announced!

This is really the list to watch because teen readers like you nominate and choose their favorite books from the previous year!

The list is sponsored by YALSA, which is an organization you should definitely check out for the latest in young adult literature. You can visit their blog here!

And at Sno-Isle Libraries, you'll find the Teens' Top Ten list all linked up to our catalog. So catch up on the ones you missed, put them on hold, and read all summer long!

Voting will take place Aug. 15 – Sept. 15 on YALSA’s brand new Teens’ Top Ten site for teens at www.ala.org/yalsa/reads4teens. 

The winners will be announced during Teen Read Week in October.

It will be hard to choose a favorite... 

Friday, April 26, 2013

Weekend Book Give-Away: If You Find Me

This week's book is a brand new psychological drama/mystery/family story called If You Find Me written by Emily Murdoch.

There are some things you can't leave behind... A broken-down camper hidden deep in a national forest is the only home fifteen year-old Carey can remember. The trees keep guard over her threadbare existence, with the one bright spot being Carey's younger sister, Jenessa, who depends on Carey for her very survival. All they have is each other, as their mentally ill mother comes and goes with greater frequency. Until that one fateful day their mother disappears for good, and two strangers arrive. Suddenly, the girls are taken from the woods and thrust into a bright and perplexing new world of high school, clothes and boys. Now, Carey must face the truth of why her mother abducted her ten years ago, while haunted by a past that won't let her go... a dark past that hides many a secret, including the reason Jenessa hasn't spoken a word in over a year. Carey knows she must keep her sister close, and her secrets even closer, or risk watching her new life come crashing down.

Right now, there are eight people patiently waiting for us to get If You Find Me on the shelves.   You might be able to skip the line and get your own Advanced Readers Copy, if Random Number Generator picks your answer to this question:   Tell me about the last time you found yourself holding your breath while reading a book. Which book was it, and what was happening that was so suspenseful?


Winner will be selected with Random Number Generator on Tuesday April 30, 2013. Be sure to leave a name with your entry, and check back to see if you won. To win you must be a teen (6th-12th grade, or 12-18) who uses a Sno-Isle Library.  

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Trailer Tuesday: Prodigy by Marie Lu

Prodigy is the sequel to the incredibly popular Legend by Marie Lu.

From the publisher: "In a dark future, when North America has split into two warring nations, fifteen-year-olds Day, a famous criminal, and prodigy June, the brilliant soldier hired to capture him, discover that they have a common enemy. As they make their way to Las Vegas where they join the rebel Patriot group and become involved in an assassination plot against the Elector in hopes of saving the Republic."


Friday, April 19, 2013

Weekend Book Give-Away: Notes from Ghost Town

For those of you who enjoyed Kate Ellison's suspenseful The Butterfly Clues last year, you will be happy to know she has a new book out called Notes from Ghost Town:

Olivia Tithe was excited for the summer and spending it with her best friend, Stern. But that was ruined when he was mur­dered...by Olivia's mother. Flashing forward, Olivia's life has been transformed since that awful night. After her mother's incarceration, Olivia must move on, but she hates her father's new fiancĂ©e, Heather, and with her dad's new real estate development (she calls it Ghost Town) in the works, she barely sees him. But a new boy, Austin, has kindled feelings inside her that she hasn't felt since Stern's death. Arriving at the same time as this new guy is a mysterious note that brings Stern's murder back to the forefront; Olivia knows that she must discover the truth behind her friend's death once and for all.

For a chance to win an Advanced Readers Copy of this rather creepy sounding mystery, tell me about something that you were looking forward to, that didn't turn out as you hoped...for better or worst.

Winner will be selected with Random Number Generator on Tuesday April 23, 2013. Be sure to leave a name with your entry, and check back to see if you won. To win you must be a teen (6th-12th grade, or 12-18) who uses a Sno-Isle Library.  

Thursday, April 18, 2013

2013 Teen Video Contest Winners

And now the moment you have all been waiting for, the announcement of our Teen Tech Month Video Contest winners!

In first place we have a book trailer for a great work of classic fantasy by J.R.R. Tolkien: The Silmarillion.  Packed with adventure, action, drama, costumes, and sword fights, this video makes me wonder 1) why I haven't read this yet and 2) when is Peter Jackson going to finish up with The Hobbit and start in on this book?

Congratulations to Mary H. & Mathaus S. for making our most popular entry this year.  We will soon have a ceremony at the Monroe Library to celebrate and present you with the $150 gift card from Best Buy.

Our second place winner is Escaping the Pages by Elizabeth F. from Camano Island, who you may remember from last year with another terrific stop motion entry Ginger May's Trip to the Library.  In this year's video Harry Potter and his friends and enemies escape from their book into our Muggle world.  Elizabeth will be awarded a $75 gift card for Best Buy.

 The 2013 Teen Tech Month Librarian's Choice Award goes to Mallory P. of Mukileo for Read More Books, starring a very handsome reading cat named Boots.  This award also comes with a $75 gift card for Best Buy.

Thank you to everyone who entered.   We always enjoy your videos and love having the opportunities to show off what great teen talents are to be found in our community!

All prizes are generously provided by the Sno-Isle Libraries Foundation, who are wonderful supporters of our teen programs and events.


Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Trailer Tuesday: Venom by Fiona Paul


I don't actually know anything about Venom, other than what I've seen in this trailer, which has a totally awesome surprise. Awesome if you like sudden creepy surprises, I suppose. ;)


From the publisher: "In Renaissance Venice, orphaned Cassandra Caravello is one of the elite but feels trapped in the city of water until she stumbles upon a murdered woman and is drawn into a dangerous world of courtesans, grave robbers, and secret societies, guided by Falco, a mysterious and alluring artist."


Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Trailer Tuesday: When We Wake by Karen Healey

When We Wake is Karen Healey's third novel, and if you read either Guardian of the Dead or The Shattering, you know that she can write a riveting climax.


From the publisher:"In 2027, sixteen-year-old Tegan is just like every other girl--playing the guitar, falling in love, and protesting the wrongs of the world with her friends. But thenTegan dies, waking up 100 years in the future as the unknowing first government guinea pig to be cryogenically frozen and successfully revived. Appalling secrets about her new world come to light, and Tegan must choose to either keep her head down or fight for a better future"



For more cryogenic sleep, check out Across the Universe by Beth Revis and A Long, Long, Sleep by Anna Sheehan.

Friday, April 5, 2013

Weekend Book Give-Away: Black City


In the mood for reading about star-crossed lovers in a post-war fantasy world?  If so, Black City by Elizabeth Richards might be just the book for you!

Ash, a sixteen-year-old twin-blood who sells his addictive venom, "Haze," to support his dying mother, and Natalie, the daughter of a diplomat, discover their mysterious--and forbidden--connection in the Black City, where humans and Darklings struggle to rebuild after a brutal war.

For a chance to win an Advanced Readers Copy of Black City, tell me about the most unlikey/unsuitable/unrealistic crush you've ever had (no need to name names, just say why it would probably never work...like me and Johnny Depp ;)

Winner will be selected with Random Number Generator on Tuesday April 9, 2013. Be sure to leave a name with your entry, and check back to see if you won. To win you must be a teen (6th-12th grade, or 12-18) who uses a Sno-Isle Library.  

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Trailer Tuesday: Shadowlands by Kate Brian

I confess, I read the prologue when this appeared on the new shelf, promptly checked it out, and read it that weekend. I look at 80% of the new teen titles that come in before they hit the shelf and I very rarely do that...

From the publisher: "Rory Miller had one chance to fight back and she took it. Rory survived… and the serial killer who attacked her escaped. Now that the infamous Steven Nell is on the loose, Rory must enter the witness protection with her father and sister, Darcy, leaving their friends and family without so much as a goodbye. Starting over in a new town with only each other is unimaginable for Rory and Darcy. They were inseparable as children, but now they can barely stand each other. As the sisters settle in to Juniper Landing, a picturesque vacation island, it seems like their new home may be just the fresh start they need. They fall in with a group of beautiful, carefree teens and spend their days surfing, partying on the beach, and hiking into endless sunsets. But just as they’re starting to feel safe again, one of their new friends goes missing. Is it a coincidence? Or is the nightmare beginning all over again?"

Monday, April 1, 2013

Vote now for Teen Tech Month Video Contest

Voting has now begun for the Sno-Isle Teens 2013 Teen Tech Month Video Contest!  Click here to see all of the videos, and then vote.
Which video will you pick as your favorite?  We have a great selection this year, featuring  epic fantasies, Harry Potter characters escaping from their book, a very smart cat, lots of love for your libraries, and tributes to some of your favorite books.