Ages 11-18
Blog Post
Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox (Audiobook)
by Cherie Lee
School's back in session soon and you might not have as much time to read for fun, but maybe you can still listen to a story while you walk, drive, knit, etc.
In this newest time-bending installment of the Artemis Fowl series Artemis must face his own younger self in a battle to find a cure for his mother's sudden deadly illness.
This audiobook was read by Enn Reitel while the previous audiobooks were read by Nathaniel Parker, though I didn't notice a huge difference in the characters voices, which is good. However, the previous audiobooks had fun music at the beginning and end whereas this one doesn't, so I did miss that. It was only little intros and outros, but I'd come to think of it as the Artemis Fowl theme song, so it's kind of like a TV show without a theme song now.
As for the story, personally I feel the books have lost their earlier pizazz, but this may just be because the stories tend to be more of the same thing. I really like Artemis as a character, but I found the stories more fun when he was more morally bankrupt (with just small feelings of remorse). So you'd think it'd be exciting for me to see his younger self again, but it was more frustrating because on one hand you have a character who hasn't gone through any of the character development that you know he will, and on the other is the older Artemis who has developed into a slightly less interesting character. Although, as I said, perhaps it's just that he hasn't changed as a character since the last book so there was just nothing much new to keep me interested. The plot also severely pushed the limits of my credulity even for a world were pixies live underground, and it was extremely confusing to boot. So not my favorite but I'd still read another if it came out.
Blog Post
School lunches. . . Ewwww!
by K.C.
Molly can’t stand perky Cassie Birchmeyer. When they are forced to collaborate on a school project, their bickering escalates into a food fight in the Sunshine Day School cafeteria. But because Sunshine Day isn’t your average high school, the girls’ punishment isn’t detention—it’s to work in the cafeteria as lunch ladies. Ugh! They’ll have to cook up a way to get along in order to get out of the kitchen.
Don't miss this fun read. Hot Lunch is the best thing to hit school lunch since Tater Tots.
Blog Post
Fighting, action, adventure for a 'tween
by annevm
This summer our 12-year-old son is crazy about The Five Ancestors series by martial artist Jeff Stone. The books are named for the animal Kung Fu styles of a young gang of orphaned warrior monks, including Tiger (Fu), Monkey (Malao), Snake (She), and Crane (Hok). Wikipedia has more about this series, which moves very fast and offers frighteningly high levels of fighting, action, and adventure. On BOCD Kiki Barrera is a wonderful reader. I told a youth librarian with expertise in 'tweens of our son’s enthusiasm, and she also recommends Archer’s Quest.
Blog Post
DVD Bits - Did You Enjoy Juno?
by ryanikoglu
Did you enjoy the creativity, quirkiness, and sympathetic situations of people in Juno,
even though you hope teen pregnancy doesn't happen in your family?
The TEEN book Weetzie Bat, tells a similarly flavored story that is every bit as quirky, poignant, humanly resolved and wonderful.
It's a tasty "snack" of a read that still offers hope and satisfaction after ten years in publication.
Blog Post
How I spent my summer vacation. . .
by K.C.
After she flops at washing hair at her mother's beauty shop, Irene is forced to take a job babysitting. It's at the beach, where she takes the kids to swim, that she first observes lifeguard Starla, a beautiful drama queen on whom she gets a girl crush.
Soon Irene checks out Starla's blog, and quickly realizes that Starla has noticed her--and appointed her the Witness, the person who will observe her vengeance against D., the boyfriend who dumped her. The role includes Irene's watching Starla key D.'s car.
When Irene discovers that D. is interested in her she knows that the countdown to real life is over and her fate is in her hands. Read My Almost Epic Summer.
Blog Post
Creativity Camp Theme of the Week: Tell Me a Story- The Wide World of Stories and Tales
by Cherie Lee
From anime, to comic strips, to printmaking, and making books, discover how stories are told through art and how you can create stories and books with your own art. This week the library will be featuring Caldecott Award Winning Books and a variety of guides on comics, illustration, and book design techniques. These can be found on the pillar directly to the right of the new books shelf. Come sharpen your pencils and your art skills! Are you the next Caldecott winner?
Blog Post
Jump Up, Double Dutch!
by Bertha
We've got Chinese, Double-Dutch and standard jump ropes ready to go for all levels of jump roping this Saturday, August 16, 1:00-4:00 pm at the Malletts Creek branch. Look for a section of the parking lot blocked off with orange cones. Come ready for a good time.
Check out the movie Jump In! or the Jump In! soundtrack or, if you're training for a fall sport, try the book Jump Rope Training which covers some great speed and quickness drills to get you ready for any sport. If you're still not inspired to jump, check out any of the Rope Masters videos on YouTube.
Blog Post
Chess, an Olympic sport?
by K.C.
At the 2000 Sydney Olympics chess was included as a trial sport for display. However, both speed matches played ended in a draw and little has been said about it until Time magazine’s Meaghan Haire posted “ Should Chess Be an Olympic Sport?” on August 5th.
Should the Olympic committee consider adding mental sports like chess, bridge, or Go? What about a combo of mental and physical like chess boxing?
Respond here or even better share your thoughts and play some chess this Sunday, August 17 at Pittsfield Branch. Join us 1-4 p.m. for Chesstastic!
Blog Post
Creativity Camp Theme of the Week: Medieval Times
by Cherie Lee
Creativity Campers, and any other kids who think it's a shame they weren't born in a time of lords and ladies, knights, and castles, can come to the Downtown Library's youth department and find books on the back of the new shelf that will transport them back to the middle-ages!
Blog Post
Fabulous Fiction Firsts #121
by muffy
Wendy Lee's accomplished debut Happy Family* explores the immigrant experience and what it means to belong.
Hua Wu exchanges poverty in Fuzhou with loneliness and back-breaking restaurant work in New York City. Meeting Jane Templeton and her adopted Chinese daughter, Lily, seems a stroke of good fortune, especially when she was asked to nanny. But things are not quite what they seem...
Fans of Gish Jen's Mona in the Promised Land, and National Book Award winner Ha Jin's latest - A Free Life will find Wendy's debut a compelling read.
Wendy Lee is a graduate of Stanford University and New York University’s Creative Writing Program. She lives in New York City.
* = Starred Reviews