Looking for Alaska being challenged

The book Looking for Alaska by John Green is being challenged in a New York high school. Watch this video of John discussing the challenge and what you can do to stand up for your freedom to read.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHMPtYvZ8tM

Walking on Glass by Alma Fullerton

Mercy or murder
Which would it be
Relieving the suffering
She brought on herself.

How do you choose
When you can’t move
forward or back
Being in this limbo is like
Walking on Glass


Check out the book trailer for Walking on Glass

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdI5tlDUU9U

You might also enjoy the book trailer for In the Garage also by Alma Fullerton

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPE3R6xuvzA

Mary's Review: Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

Its been proven that these two authors work well together: in the right circumstances they create an amazing kind of chemistry. Which is why No Kiss List is something of a disappointment. Drama abounds: Ely makes a move on Naomi's not-exactly serious boyfriend (she, of course, is clinging to the childhood dream of marrying Ely), they get into a serious fight, and soon their friends and entire apartment complex is split between the two of them. Here's the thing though; these are selfish people. So much so that at times its almost impossible to sympathize with either Ely OR Naomi. Luckily there's some other narrators as well. Bruce I, Naomi's first boyfriend, wants her back. Bruce II, the current Bruce is increasingly confused. The doorman is in love with Naomi, and the pair's friends Robin and Robin (one boy, one girl) are just caught up in the middle of it. They all have their moments, but only Bruce II truly succeeds in gaining the reader's affections. The poor kid is just so normal in a sea of divas and pseudo-stalkers, 15 and hitting the clubs. Unfortunately there's just enough to keep the reader there hoping that these people will grow and mature. And they DO...right before the novel's conclusion. In its own way it becomes more satisfying that way. If only there had been a little more reason to care along the way.
Final Verdict: 3Q, 3P

Jessica's Review: From Heaven Lake by Vickram Seth

From Heaven Lake is the travel log of Vikram Seth, a Stanford student traveling in China doing research and seeing the sights. He has spent at this point two years as a graduate student at Nanjing University and in 1981 instead of going straight home (New Delhi, India) for the first time in three years, he delays the reunion by deciding to hitchhike across China through Tibet particularly to see the city of Lhasa. He meets different obstacles along the way but also discovers the kinds and peculiarities of the people of China. I recommend this book to anyone who reads diaries or travel logs, or loves the realistic down to earth real life adventures.
Rating: 4Q, 2P

*This book is NOT available at NCPL but can be requested through InterLibrary Loan*

Dane's Review: Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

Honestly non-fiction is your friend. Read it! It sharpens the mind like a whetstone.

Into Thin Air is a book of accounts, previous goings on, summits, treks, and historical achievements of the tallest peak worldwide. No, not the mountains of peas kids won't eat, EVEREST. The book is brutally real, written by a news writer who went on the 1996 Everest "Disaster", where many met their end to unpredictable winds. However, it's a great read to anyone interested or just a lover of climbing or misery. Either way it's informative and KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!

Rating: 4Q, 2P

Slam by Nick Hornby

Sam is a skater (READ: Skateboarder) and was 16 when he experienced the hardest slam of his life. He’s used to the bumps, bruises, scrapes, and broken bones that come from the occasional slam of a trick gone wrong. He’s also used to being looked down upon by others because he’s the son of a teenage mom. Sam’s mentor and hero is Tony Hawk (TH) and if you know anything about skating, you know that TH is the man. Sam’s read TH’s autobiography “Hawk-Occupation: Skateboarder” so many times, he knows it by heart. Sam is such a super fan that when he needs advice or someone to talk to, TH is his man. I know, he doesn’t REALLY talk to TH but he does talk to the poster on his wall and TH talks back (using quotes from the book, but still its advice that can be very worthwhile!). When Sam meets Alicia, he never expects that the next slam will change their lives forever? Is it possible that TH help him deal this slam?

Josh's Review: Leven Thumps and the Gateway to Foo by Obert Skye

The first time that I saw this book I thought it looked just about as ridiculous as the title sounded and that was that. I hemmed and hawed over picking it up for a long time. Each time I would pick up the book, read the insert on the cover, say that sounds like it would be interesting, and then put the book back down and walk away. Finally curiosity got the better of me and I picked it up, opened right to the middle and read. Well long story short I ended up reading the whole thing even though it took me awhile; I can’t wait to get home to start the second one in the series. Onward and inward. If you are looking for something that is really just off the wall, then I would suggest that you read this book. For starters, the way that Skye writes is kind of addicting and the way he writes the story pulls you along for a ride that is truly like none I have ever read. Some of the things that he writes and put in to his stories are things that I have always dreamed about writing but have been to chicken to actually write about. In a way it reminds me a little of Kafka’s Metamorphosis in whichGregor Samsa wakes up as a giant cockroach. What makes this book different for others is the outrageous things that he puts in it. Talking toothpicks, burns, nits, etc, etc, etc, so on and so forth. I would recommend this book for anyone that is tired of the old and want something a bit out of the ordinary and looking for something a bit off the wall.
Rating: 4Q, 4P

How do authors wish each other a Happy Birthday?

YA authors Maureen Johnson, E Lockhart, David Levithan, Scott Westerfeld, Bennett Madison, and Libba Bray send John Green a Happy Birthday video. See these crazy teen authors in action!!!

A Day in the Life of Meg Cabot

For those of you who can't get enough of Meg Cabot, or mearly wonder what it must be like to be a famous author, check out this video of a normal day in her life. LOL!!

Author Rick Yancey

Learn more about Rick Yancey, author of The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp and Alfred Kropp, the Seal of Solomon by checking out this video on youtube.

Coraline Book Trailer

Looking for something good to read? Take a look at this book trailer!!

(click on the cover or title)

Coraline by Neil Gaiman (book trailer by Bonsaininja Studios)

Booktalk Podcasts by Nancy Keane

Looking for something good to read? Listen to these suggestions from

Booktalks Quick and Simple by Nancy Keane (look for more on her website, http://nancykeane.com/rss.html).

Click on the title or the book cover to hear more about the book!!

The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie






The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt






Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah






Beastly by Alex Flinn

What Happened to Cass McBride by Gail Giles




You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah! by Fiona Rosenbloom

More Twilight and Stephenie Meyer

For those of you (like myself) who can't wait for the fourth volume in the Twilight series, here is an audio podcast of Nancy Pearl interviewing Stephenie Meyer.



Book Lust with Nancy Pearl featuring Stephenie Meyer

Christopher Paolini & the Inheritance Series

For those of you anxiously awaiting book 3 in the Inheritance Trilogy, you'll be delighted to hear the book 3 will be released September 23, 2008. There will also be a 4th book in the series. Click here to hear from Christopher Paolini himself.