All posts by Sharon
Road Trippin’
Imagine this:
You’re on your way to a remote archeological summer camp when you discover it has been canceled. You step off the train to use your cell phone and figure out your next step only to have the train pull away leaving you stranded and without any of your belongings.
Meanwhile…
Your parents are sailing around the Caribbean with a sketchy itinerary and a missing cell phone.
Meanwhile…
Your grandpa who is house/dog-sitting for your family has hit his head and is suffering from selective amnesia.
What’s your next step?
If you’re Ry, you will stumble upon a kind, eccentric and slightly crazy man who will offer to drive you cross country to find grandpa and if that doesn’t work he’ll take you to Miami to catch a homemade plane to San Juan and then sail you to an island where your parents may (or may not) be.
As Easy as Falling Off the Face of the Earth is an awesome book. The plot moves quickly, the characters are quirky, and the prose is gorgeous. I have a strong feeling that this book will end up being my most often and highly recommended new teen title.
Last year’s favorite chronicled another bizarre road trip…
Cameron is your average teenage loner/stoner. He floats through life with as little effort as possible and a minimum of emotion…until he contracts Creutzfeldt Jakob (aka Mad Cow) disease. After being diagnosed Cameron goes on a whirlwind fever-dream of a road trip with the help of a pink haired, glittery angel, a death-obsessed dwarf, and a viking god in the guise of a yard gnome. Need I say more?
Going Bovine is a beautiful, stunning, extraordinary novel that made me laugh and cry and fall in love with the act of reading over and over again. Don’t miss it.
~ Tricia is the teen librarian at CPL. She is ECSTATIC that it is autumn in New England! Apple picking, sweatshirts, football, foliage, and reading outside in the crisp fall air under a nice, warm sun.
The Chosen One
Caution: Do NOT begin this book if you have anything important or timely to do.
Once you start reading The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams it is IMPOSSIBLE to stop.
Kyra is in some ways a typical 13 year old girl; she loves to read, has a boyfriend named Joshua and adores her younger brothers and sisters. Unlike other teenage girls, Kyra lives on a polygamist compound and is in a horrifying and dangerous situation. She has been chosen to become the seventh wife of her abusive, elderly uncle and if she resists she will be putting her life and the lives of everyone she cares about in danger. There are many aspects of the compound that Kyra hates, such as the book burnings, having to meet with Joshua in secret, and the way her family must act according to the whims of Prophet Childs, but life there is all she has ever known. Will Kyra be able to leave her family behind and escape the compound or will she stay trapped and be forced to marry her uncle?
This is a fast-paced and heartbreaking novel with a strong, thoughtful protagonist. Kyra is an amazing girl who remains hopeful and resilient when faced with dreadful options. This is the perfect book for anyone who loves an edgy & tense story that will keep you turning the pages no matter how late it is or how hungry you are. A great read!
~ Tricia is CPL’s teen librarian. She can’t believe September is just a few days away…
A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend by Emily Horner
Cass is a girl on a mission. She is spending the summer riding her bicycle from the suburbs of Chicago to the California coast where she will deposit her best friend’s ashes. Since Julia’s death Cass has felt alone and untethered. All of Cass’s friends were really Julia’s friends and she doesn’t know if she can count on them now that Julia is gone. While on her journey, Cass will have her first kiss, first girlfriend, first break-up and first breakdown.
Cass’s summer journey is interspersed with scenes from the following Fall when Julia’s friends are staging the play that Julia was writing when she died — Totally Sweet Ninja Death Squad. Cass is forced to work with Heather, a girl she used to know who made life in middle school miserable. Only now Heather has changed; but can Cass forgive her for the past and allow her into her future?
I have not been this in love with a novel since reading My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger. This book has all the elements that make young adult literature my favorite thing to read–first love, discovering who you are, and the quirky friendships you make along the way. Add to that already wonderful mix a musical about ninjas and a clarinet serenade by moonlight and you have a beautiful and touching coming of age story.
~ Tricia is the teen librarian at CPL. She promises to begin posting consistently to the Teen Zone Blog now that the insanity of this year’s Summer Reading Program is winding down.
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Tricia is CPL’s teen librarian. She LOVES audiobooks and is super excited for a long weekend full or reading, roller derby & bbqs.
Readergirlz!
Hey there CPL rgz!
Our group was mentioned on the readergirlz blog!!! And if that isn’t amazing enough, there is also a shout out on Little Willow’s blog!
For all of our current members: Congrats! And for anyone interested in joining this awesome book club, read on for more information:
Readergirlz — Tuesday, July 20th from 4-5:30pm
Read, reflect, reach out — and share with friends!
Pick up your copy of this month’s readergirlz.com recommended read at the Teen Services desk and join us for a lively discussion of the book. To complete the afternoon we will have themed snacks and an author playlist.
July’s title is: I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You by Ally Carter
Sweethearts by Sara Zarr
Teen-aged Jenna is smart, pretty and popular. What her friends and boyfriend don’t know is that Jenna used to be Jennifer–a shy, overweight, picked-on child with a soul mate who disappeared. Jenna’s past and present converge when Cameron, her one true friend, abruptly re-enters her life.
After being so intensely affected by Sara Zarr’s newest novel, Once was Lost, I was apprehensive about reading her earlier work. The bar had been set so high for me, I was worried her previous novels wouldn’t live up to my expectations. Boy, was I wrong. Sweethearts is a tender, realistic portrayal of one girl’s difficult youth including her flawed but well-meaning family and her indescribable connection with a boy who needed a friend as desperately as she did. A beautiful novel.
~ Tricia is CPL’s teen librarian and is currently preparing for an orientation for her summer teen volunteers.
The Batboy by Mike Lupica
If you like books with great sports writing, schmaltzy endings, and regular kids in extraordinary situations, then you should definitely read The Batboy.
Brian loves baseball, even though his big league father left him and his mom because of it. Now 14-year-old Brian has the ultimate summer job as a batboy for the Detroit Tigers. Life gets complicated when his favorite player joins the team. Hank Bishop has just served a suspension for steroid use and appears to have little patience or passion for the game of baseball or for his biggest fan, Brian.
This is a great novel with two layers. In the first storyline Brian is working at Comerica Park in a position any sports fan would envy. The second thread follows Brian and his best friend Kenny in their own season of baseball, which is presented in a way that makes it just as exciting as the plot happening in the majors.
A wonderful story.
~ Tricia is CPL’s teen librarian, who loves the over-the-top endings in (most) sports books and movies.
Dramarama by E. Lockhart
Sadye and Demi are best friends. Kindred spirits in a town that isn’t ready for their big personalities and high levels of razzle dazzle. The duo is on their way to Wildewood Academy for a summer full of singing, dancing and lots of drama.
Dramarama has it all! Dancing, singing, acting, falling in love, getting your heart broken, jealousy, fighting, and finding yourself. I loved everything about this book. The characters leap off the page and the summer theater camp setting lends itself to lots of high drama. Most of all, I loved Sadye. It was wonderful reading about a character whose big dreams don’t quite come true, but who never stops speaking up for herself and what she knows is right.
5 stars!
~ Tricia is CPL’s teen librarian who wants to go back in time and be best friends with all of E. Lockhart’s heroines.
Raven Summer by David Almond
How smitten am I with David Almond’s books?
Let’s see…
1. I drove to a children’s literature conference in Toronto for an opportunity to hear him speak.
2. I will read everything he publishes.
3. He is tied with Roald Dahl in the standings for my favorite children’s author.
4. I have very high expectations for every book of his I read and I have never been disappointed–this includes, Raven Summer.
While out walking with a friend, fourteen-year-old Liam follows a raven that leads him to an abandoned infant. After discovering the foundling, Liam’s life begins to change. He meets two foster children who profoundly affect his view of violence and war, as well as his relationships with family and friends.
~ Tricia is CPL’s Teen Librarian. She is really excited to see the conclusion of Ponyo this afternoon at Anime Club.
Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
Auden is an insomniac overachiever who excels in everything except her social life. The responsible, focused daughter of divorced writer/professors, Auden is looking for a change. For eight weeks she moves to the beach with her father, stepmother and infant half-sister, Thisbe. Over the course of that summer she makes friends, meets an amazing boy, and begins to discover who she really is.
Reading a Sarah Dessen novel is one way I officially kick off my summer. Sitting on the balcony in my outdoor rocker with an iced tea and one of her books is my idea of a perfect summer afternoon.
Along for the Ride includes all of the elements I enjoy in a Sarah Dessen novel — a summer setting, personal growth, love, friendships, and family dynamics.
Read this wonderful book and follow it up with an Impromptu Hot Dog Party for you and your friends.
Happy Reading!
~ Tricia is the teen librarian at CPL. She is writing this post during a meeting of the wonderful & amazing Young Writer’s Group.