Staff Pick of the Week!

Check out The Year the Gypsies Came by Linzi Glass, a novel about family, apartheid, and how hope can come out of tragedy.







Twelve-year old Emily is growing up in apartheid Johannesburg (South Africa) in the 1960s when a family of wanderers is invited by her father to camp in their lawn. Throughout her life Emily has noticed that the fighting between her parents eases when they invite strangers to stay in their home. What her parents do not realize, however, is that this family brings troubles of their own, troubles that will spell tragedy for Emily's family, particularly for her sister Sarah. Emily is able to take comfort in her friendship with the family's Zulu night watchman Buza, but it takes her most of the book to understand the kind of oppression Buza faces on a daily basis. The themes of family and racism weave throughout the book to create a story you won't want to stop reading until the book is finished.

Get psyched for summer reading!

Summer reading will be here before you know it! And here's why you should get with the Mission Read program: Teens & Tweens will have a program every week ~ think scavenger hunts, Harry Potter parties, games, and prizes! And doesn't reading definitely beat watching reruns? And who doesn't want to know how Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows ends, or what the Clique will be up to next? Registration starts the week of June 18th, and programs start the week after that. Get ready to have a blast!

Staff Pick of the Week: Long Gone Daddy

This week's staff pick of the week is Long Gone Daddy by Helen Hemphill, a story of a preacher's kid who travels from Texas to Las Vegas with his father and his grandfather's corpse.

Harlan Q. and his preacher father Harlan P. don't exactly see eye to eye. Harlan Q. isn't exactly sure he believes in God like his father does, and Harlan P. has made it clear that if he wants to return home, he'll have to do some serious rethinking regarding his religious views. But Harlan Q. doesn't know if he really wants to go back home - the Hamiltons treat him well, and working at a funeral home isn't so bad. But then Harlan Q.'s long lost grandfather, Harlan O., turns up dead in a local motel room. In order to fulfill the terms of Harlan O.'s will, the other two Harlans must drive his corpse back home to Las Vegas. Little do they know what kinds of adventures, fellow travelers, and strange occurrences they'll run into along the way.

For more information, check out Helen Hemphill’s website at http://www.helenhemphill.com/works.htm

More Harry Potter stuff!

Check out Scholastic.com's website about Harry - it's got games, quizzes, info, and more!

The Teens & Tweens bulletin board is almost finished!

We're just about done with the teens & tweens space bulletin board, but still need some pics, poems, whatever you've got. We also welcome book, music or game reviews. Please drop all submissions off at the youth services department!

New Book Display

Check out the new book display that went up in the Teens & Tweens space today, and let us know if you have some favorite books about summer!

Is school out yet?: Books about Summer

Brashares, Ann
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants: For the first summer since they were born, Lena, Tibby, Bridget, and Carmen will be separated over the summer. But they have the traveling pants, which will keep them connected.
YA BRASHARES

Cole, Allison
Never Ending Summer: A graphic novel about Allison’s boring summer working at the local comic book store while her boyfriend goes to Australia. Could things get any worse?
YA COLE

Dessen, Sarah
Keeping the Moon: 15-year old Colie goes to spend the summer with her aunt while her mother, an exercise guru, tours Europe. Assuming her summer will likely be worse than her school year, she’s in for a few surprises.
YA DESSEN

Limb, Sue
Girl, (Nearly) 16, Absolute Torture: Jess had planned to spend the summer locking lips with her new boyfriend when her mother announces they’re taking a road trip which will include a visit to her dad.
YA LIMB

Lubar, David
Dunk: Chad is looking for a summer job at the boardwalk near his house when he becomes entranced by a clown working in a dunk tank. Wouldn’t it be perfect ~ make fun of customers all day inside the safety of the tank? For anger-filled Chad, it’s the best he thinks he can hope for.
YA LUBAR

McNamee, Graham
Acceleration: Duncan is working for the Toronto Transit Authority’s Lost and Found over the summer when he discovers a journal, filled with the thoughts of a serial killer ...
YA MCNAMEE

Myers, Walter Dean
Harlem Summer: All Mark is interested in during the summer of 1925 is his dream of playing his sax with Fats Waller. Unfortunately, not everything goes as planned, and Mark ends up doing more for his dream than he bargained for.
YA MYERS

Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds
The Grooming of Alice: It’s the summer between middle school and high school, and Alice’s friends Pamela and Elizabeth want to ensure they make a good impression. They’ve insisted on a workout program to last the whole summer, but Alice isn’t so sure that’s the right plan.
YA NAYLOR

Roberts, Willo Davis
Twisted Summer: Cici can’t wait for summer to start at Crystal Lake—she’ll get to spend time with her cousins, and maybe Jack will finally start to notice her as more than a little kid. But when she arrives she finds out a girl was murdered the summer before, and that Jack’s older brother was convicted of the crime.
YA ROBERTS

Schumacher, Julie
Grass Angel: When Frances’s mother decides to go to Oregon to a spiritual retreat for the summer, Frances refuses to go. But when her mother and little brother are gone, Frances feels abandoned and wonders if they’ll ever come back.
YA SCHUMACHER

New books!

Check out some new books that are going up in the Teens & Tweens space today:
The Year the Gypsies Came by Linzi Glass
Incantation by Alice Hoffman
Accidents of Nature by Harriet McBryde Johnson
Chicks with Sticks (Knit two together) by Elizabeth Lenhard
The Killing Sea by Richard Lewis
Crisis of Infinite Earths by Marv Wolfman & George Perez

Staff Pick of the Week

This week, check out Juliet Marillier's Wildwood Dancing, a story of fairies, witches, jealousy and love.

For nine years Jena and her four sisters have made their way every Full Moon to the Other Kingdom, a magical parallel world of fairies, dwarves, and otherworldly creatures, ruled by the witch Draguta. But when their father must leave their mountain home, Jena's cruel cousin Cezar decides the Other Kingdom must be destroyed. Jena has no one to turn to but her trusty friend Gogu the frog. Will she be able to stop Cezar from carrying through his plan of vengeance? Will she lose her older sister Tati to the Other Kingdom? Will she ever discover Gogu's true identity?

where are all the posters?

If you stop by the teens & tweens space in the next couple days, you'll likely notice just about all the posters are gone. Never fear - we're getting ready to decorate for the summer reading program (Mission Read) and will be back in business soon. If you have any artwork, collages, etc. you'd like to contribute, feel free! And remember, anyone who contributes gets a prize & will be entered into a drawing for yet another prize. :)

Countdown to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Don't forget, the release date for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is July 21st! Check out these websites for the latest Harry Potter news ...

Harry Potter ~ The Official Site

J.K. Rowling Official Site

The Leaky Cauldron

MuggleNet

Reminder ~ Teens & Tweens Program this Saturday!

Teens & Tweens
Runescape Tournament & Craft Day
Saturday, May 12th@ 3:00 PM

Want to learn how to play? Already know how & want to test your skills with other players? Come to our Runescape tournament! And if Runescape’s not your thing, we’ll also be making more Linus blankets, too. Please give us a call at 847-455-6016, ext. 3 to register. Snacks and prizes will be available. :)

Staff Pick of the Week

Do Not Pass Go by Kirkpatrick Hill

YA Hill

Deet lives a fairly ordinary high schooler's life in Alaska with his dad, mom, and two sisters. Sure, he's a loner, but he doesn't mind (usually). And sometimes he feels like the only adult at his house (his parents often waste money on things the family doesn't need), but what can he do? But then his dad gets sent to jail and Deet's whole life changes. Mom has to go back to work, Deet has to take care of his sisters, and he decides to start visiting Dad in jail, despite his shame of the situation. What Deet learns from his visits makes him understand his worldview needs a serious readjustment and the things he was ashamed of may not matter all that much.

Manga!

Want to draw it? Want to read about it? Want to see some anime clips? Check out these sites (and per usual, let us know if there's any we missed)!

Anime Ambition
Anime Nation
Animerica
Manga Tutorials
Manga University

Staff Pick of the Week

Each week we'll tell you about a new book on the shelves. If you decide it's a book you want to check out, let us know if you liked it! And if you have your own review, we'll post it!

Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (YA PFEFFER)

Miranda is concentrating on her fairly ordinary life (middle sibling, parents divorced, dad remarried), and the report that there's a meteor about to hit the moon doesn't sound very important. But then the meteor hits and everything changes: electricity becomes a luxury, less and less food is available, and school ceases to exist. Miranda's world becomes smaller and smaller as the moon wreaks havoc on everything she used to count on.

Told in journal entries, this is Miranda's story of a world completely broken down and a struggle to survive.

Free Comic Book Day!

Did you know that Saturday, May 5th is Free Comic Book Day? Click here to find information on participating comic book stores. You can also celebrate by checking out the graphic novels we have in the Teens & Tweens space!

Calling all artists!

The Youth Services Department is getting ready for the summer reading program "Mission Read: To the Library and Beyond." We need drawings, pictures, collages, etc. to decorate the Teens & Tweens space. For every picture you create and donate, your name will be entered in a drawing for a prize! Please have all your pics in by June 15th – you can drop them off at the Youth Services Desk. Thanks for your help!

New Books!

These new books were just put out on the shelf in the Teens & Tweens area. Let us know what you think!

• Anahita's Woven Riddle by Meghan Nuttall Sayres
• Defining Dulcie by Paul Acampora
• Do Not Pass Go by Kirkpatrick Hill
• A Fire in My Hands by Gary Soto
• Fresh Off the Boat by Melissa De la Cruz
• A Friend At Midnight by Caroline B. Cooney
• I Am A Taxi by Deborah Ellis
• Kid B by Linden Dalecki
• Mates, Dates, and Chocolate Cheats by Cathy Hopkins
• Mates, Dates, and Designer Divas by Cathy Hopkins
• Mates, Dates, and Mad Mistakes by Cathy Hopkins
• The Nature of Jade by Deb Caletti
• Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard
• So Not the Drama by Paula Chase
• So This is How it Ends by Tui T. Sutherland
• Spelldown: The Big-time Dreams of a Small-town Word Wiz by Karon Luddy
• Tamar by Mal Peet
• Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier

New Book Display

Check out the book display we just put up in the Teens & Tweens area today:

Explorers, Runaways, and Adventurers: Stories About Rebels

Anderson, M.T.
The Pox Party: While Octavian and his mother live a lavish lifestyle in the household of the Novanglian College of Lucidity in pre-Revolutionary War Boston, Octavian recognizes he is part of a science experiment and also a slave. When the College scientists decided to hold a small pox party (in hopes of staving off the disease), Octavian realizes it is time for things to change.
YA ANDERSON

Carney, Jeff
The Adventures of Michael MacInnes: Michael is a junior at a snotty boarding school in Maryland in the 1920s, where his free-thinking ideas and strange antics often change those who come into contact with him.
YA CARNEY

Hausman, Gerald & Loretta
Escape From Botany Bay: The True Story of Mary Bryant: Sentenced to hang for stealing a lady’s bonnet, Mary instead is shipped off to Australia with hundreds of other convicts to live in a penal colony. Once there, she plots her escape.
YA HAUSMAN

Henry, April
Shock Point: Cassie is kidnapped and taken to a school for troubled teens when she finds out her stepfather has invested in a drug that has caused teens to commit suicide. Somehow she must escape and warn others about the drug before it is too late.
YA HENRY

James, Brian
Tomorrow, Maybe: Chan has been living on the streets for two years, ever since her father married an abusive woman she couldn’t live with. Then Chan meets Elizabeth, a younger girl who needs her help but may ultimately betray her.
YA JAMES

Kibuishi, Kazu
Daisy Kutter: The Last Train: Daisy was once known as a fearsome outlaw, but now has quit the business to run a general store. Unfortunately, figures from her past (both human and robotic) soon come back to haunt her.
YA DAISY KUTTER

Lawrence, Iain
The Wreckers: 14-year old John is on a voyage with his father, the owner of a ship carrying valuable cargo. When the ship runs into a storm and is shipwrecked off the coast of a small Cornwall town, John soon realizes the town’s inhabitants plan to take the cargo from the ship and kill any survivors. Believing he is the only survivor John tries to run away, but then realizes his father has been taken captive by the town and he needs to save him.
YA LAWRENCE

McKernan, Victoria
Shackleton’s Stowaway: 18-year old Perce Blackborow stows away on the ship that will carry the Shackleton expedition to the Antarctic and ultimately become a shipwreck.
YA MCKERNAN

Ogiwara, Noriko
The Good Witch of the West: Firiel never knew her mother was a princess when she was exiled into the mountains twenty years ago. When Firiel attends a ball and finds out her true identity, she learns she must fight for her birthright.
YA GOOD WITCH OF THE WEST

Van Draanen, Wendelin
Runaway: Holly becomes a runaway after she decides to leave her abusive foster family. This is her story of traveling across the country, homelessness, and what it means to truly only have yourself to depend on.
YA VAN DRAANEN