Librarina

9:10am: Holy box of books, Batman!
This morning, I received a HUGE box of YA galleys... I'm talking THIRTY FOUR "advance reader" copies -- some of which are for books that aren't released yet! What does this mean?!? AWESOME SUMMER READING PRIZES!!! Lots of thanks and a big shout out to Heather Doss of Bookazine!

And, for those of you who need specific authors, titles, and plot summaries to whet your appetite, I have decided to include a few:

• Busted by Phil Bildner [August 28, 2007]

Jock? Cheerleader? Total nerd? Doesn't matter. You're busted. In Phil Bildner's second novel, he puts to good use his experience as a high school teacher as he propels us through a series of interwoven stories about kids doing things they're pretty sure are wrong. There's a violated "zero tolerance" policy on a senior field trip and the cruelest bully high school has ever seen. Throw in a gambling ring and a group of honor students doing very non-honor things and every crowd gets busted somehow.


• Guyaholic by Carolyn Mackler [August 14, 2007]

V Valentine is the queen of meaningless hookups... until a fateful hockey puck lands her in the lap of Sam Almond. And things with Sam are different -- meaningful. So now what? With humor and compassion, Printz Honor winner Carolyn Mackler takes readers on an unforgettable ride of missed exits, misadventures, and the kind of epiphanies that only come when you're on a route you've never taken before.


• How to Get Suspended and Influence People by Adam Selzer [February 13, 2007]

It all starts with an assignment. Leon's "gifted and talented" class has to make educational videos for the sixth and seventh graders. Leon originally chooses "sex ed" as his subject in the hopes of showing a flash of boob. But as time goes on, his project starts to mean something. He wants to tell the younger kids that puberty is tough, but what they're going through is normal. After researching the avant-garde movement, Leon crafts his video in the style of Fellini: La Dolce Pubert. It's deeply disturbing yet comforting. But when the gifted program's director sees it, she suspends Leon—and he finds himself at the center of a townwide debate over censorship. Who gets to decide how far is too far?


• What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones [June 5, 2007]

My name is Robin. This book is about me. It tells the story of what happens when after almost 15 pathetic years of loserdom, the girl of my dreams finally falls for me. That seems like it would be a good thing, right? Only it turns out to be a lot more complicated than that. Because I'm not gonna lie to you -- there are naked women involved. Four of them, to be exact. Though not in the way you might think. Don't get me wrong -- my girlfriend's amazing. But the way things have been going lately, I'm starting to believe that the only thing worse than not getting what you want, is getting it.


• The New Policeman by Kate Thompson [January 23, 2007]

Who knows where the time goes? There never seems to be enough time in Kinvara, or anywhere else in Ireland for that matter. When J.J.'s mother says that what she really wants for her birthday is more time in her day, J.J. decides to find her some. But how can he find time for her, when he barely has enough time to keep up with school and his music? And where will he get time to find out if the shocking rumor is true—that his great-grandfather was a murderer? It seems as though J.J.'s given himself an impossible task. But then a neighbor reveals a secret to him—there is a place where time stands still. J.J. realizes he's the only person who can make the journey, but to do so he'll have to vanish from his own life. And when J.J. disappears from the village, enter the new policeman. . . .


• The Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin [September 7, 2006]

It all starts when Matthew observes a heroic scene in a convenience store: A man named Murdoch puts himself between an abusive father and his son. Matt is determined to get to know this man. And when, amazingly, Murdoch begins dating Matt’s mother, it seems as if life may become peaceful for the first time. Matt and his sisters have never before known a moment of peace in a household ruled by their unpredictable, vicious mother. And so, after Murdoch inevitably breaks up with her and the short period of family calm is over, Matt sees that he needs to take action. He refuses to let his family remain at risk. Can he call upon his hero, Murdoch? And if not, what might his desperation lead him to do? A thought-provoking exploration of self-reliance and the nature of evil and a heart-wrenching portrait of a family in crisis, this is Nancy Werlin’s most compulsively readable novel yet.


• Zane's Trace by Allan Wolf [August 28, 2007]

Zane Guesswind is running from one death straight toward another -- his own. Taking off in a stolen 1969 Plymouth Barracuda, armed with his brother's driver's license, a six-pack of Mountain Dew, a jumbo pack of Sharpies, and a loaded gun in the trunk, he's headed for Zanesville, Ohio -- to kill himself at his mother's gravesite. He's got no rearview mirror and no more worries. But when Zane picks up Libba, a hitchhiker also on her way to Zanesville, he gets a lot more than a girl who wants the last word in any argument. With each mile marker that he passes, Zane gets farther from the life he knows and closer to figuring out who he is. This suspenseful novel is a fast-moving read with a supernatural twist -- and an insightful look at families and how we can only escape them when we accept the way they are.

So yeah... Summer Reading is on the way, and I am really excited about the programs we will be having! If you live in or near East Greenbush, you should definitely be signing up and coming in to participate. This year's theme is Get a Clue @ Your Library for Tweens (and younger kids) and You Never Know @ Your Library for YAs. For the purpose of the SRP, Tweens will be any students entering 3rd-5th grade in the fall and YAs will be any students entering 6th-12th grade in the fall. For more info, check out newsletter, which can be found on our website: http://www.eastgreenbushlibrary.org... Or, you may even see me when I come to visit your school!

Happy Reading!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Current Audiobook:
Lion Boy: The Truth by Zizou Corder

Audiobook Waiting List:
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1: The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson
Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Current Book:
Sardine in Outer Space by Emmanuel Guilbert

Book Waiting List:
Spelldown: The Big-Time Dreams of a Small-Town Word Whiz, A Novel by Karon Luddy
Story of a Girl: A Novel by Sara Zarr
Grief Girl: My True Story by Erin Vincent
A Pure, Swift Cry by Siobhan Dowd
A Drowned Maiden's Hair: A Melodrama by Laura Amy Schlitz
Hugging the Rock by Susan Taylor Brown

Pre-Ordered:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling [coming out July 21, 2007!]

3:44pm: Busted
TEEN

If nothing more, this book was an incredibly engaging read. I seriously could not stop reading it for more than 5 minutes without needing to go back to it. Every time a patron or a coworker needed my attention, I lamented the fact that I had to stop reading in order to help them. Nevertheless, I love my job, so I did what was requested of me... And then ran back to read some more!

In about 4 hours -- a "broken" 4 hours, mind you -- I read this book from front to back. Rather astonishing if you are privy to how many of my books need to be renewed so that I can finish them! Some of the passages are scandalous; others shocking; and some are simply chilling. Most importantly of all, though, this entire book rang true to me. As a former high school student AND a former high school teacher, I found myself drawing parallels between these characters and the students, teachers, and administrators I have known. Bildner certainly didn't hold anything back, and I think it would behoove a lot of adults to pay attention to books and movies that portray this reality.

The only thing that I disliked about this book is the sudden ending. Perhaps that will be changed before the final draft is published. I think I will have to re-read this book [in its final form] just to try and wrap my mind around the whole thing a little better. It worked as a whole, but a few parts felt stiff and jagged. Like I said in my earlier post, though, this is an advance reader copy. I guess it may simply be that the "suddenness" of the ending left too many questions with me. But, that may have been Bildner's point in ending the book like this. Sure, you know what happens with most of the characters... But that last little nagging question keeps popping up. What about him?

If you need to know who he is and why I care what happened to him, though, you're going to need to read the book.

Happy Reading!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Current Audiobook:
Lion Boy: The Truth by Zizou Corder

Audiobook Waiting List:
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1: The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson
Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Current Book:
Sardine in Outer Space by Emmanuel Guilbert

Book Waiting List:
Spelldown: The Big-Time Dreams of a Small-Town Word Whiz, A Novel by Karon Luddy
Story of a Girl: A Novel by Sara Zarr
Grief Girl: My True Story by Erin Vincent
A Pure, Swift Cry by Siobhan Dowd
A Drowned Maiden's Hair: A Melodrama by Laura Amy Schlitz
Hugging the Rock by Susan Taylor Brown

Pre-Ordered:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling [coming out July 21, 2007!]