Road Trip!

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Sarah

Can’t wait for summer vacation? Take a look at this reading road-trip, made by Texas school librarian Naomi Bates. Ninety-five YA books set in forty-seven states, plus book trailers for more than fifty of them!

Not sure where to start? You could always head down to Florida with The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, or enjoy the Arizona sunshine in Everybody Sees the Ants.

If you’d rather stay close to home, try John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars, set in Indiana, or Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side, which takes place in Pennsylvania.

Of course, you don’t even have to leave your home state. You can always pick up I Am Number Four or Tales of the Madman Underground, both set in Ohio itself!

Need Something to Hold You Over Until “Hunger Games” Movie Release?

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Donna

The excitement and hype is really building for the Hunger Games Movie release March 23, 2012. After practically devouring the Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay, I find myself looking for other dystopian type books to hold me over until the movie comes out in March.

Matched by Ally Condie was a good read for my dystopian mood. The book begins with Cassia looking forward to attending her “Match Banquet”. An event when seventeen year olds find out whom the Society has chosen for them to marry and be their lifelong partner. When a technical glitch occurs and another young man flashes on her matching screen before the Society choice appears, Cassia begins for the first time in her life to question the Society decisions. If a mistake could be made by them, would it be so bad for Cassia to make some choices of her own? Could she pick a better career choice, a place to live, even a future spouse?

Cassia soon learns that freedom of choice has no place in the Society. Mistakes in the eyes of the government are not easily forgiven, and perfection and freedom are not always the same. But Cassia seems to be drawn down a path that she can’t abandon, no matter what cost to her and her family.

Crossed, the second book in the Matched series is now available, and on my “Next Read” list.

And You Thought the ACT Was Bad

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Meg

Scored by Lauren McLaughlin is set in the near future when teenagers are scored on everything that they think and do. A score of 90 or above and college is paid for; below 70, there is nothing for you but the military. The main character, Imani, has a score above 90 until her best friend falls in love with a non-scored. Her score positive choice is dump her friend and raise her score. However, she must decide which is more important loyalty and friendship or a future granted by ScoreCorp.

This surveillance style dystopian fiction was quite an enjoyable read. The plot moves at a good pace and it was a nice change from other young adult dystopian novels that romance was not really one of the main tenets. I particularly enjoyed that the book’s setting is very recognizable. The only real difference from the world of today is the surveillance “eyes” and the gadgetry that goes along with them. This book covers relevant topics like privacy, race and class in a meaningful way that teens could really relate to. I felt that the conclusion was rushed and the book would actually have been a lot better if it had been a little longer. There were a lot of good ideas discussed that could have been expanded on. However, I still recommend this book to anyone looking for a good dystopian novel that is a quick read.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Posted on January 14, 2012 by Laura S

Prepare to be sucked into the beautifully crafted world of The Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor . Karou, an art student with an unbelievable hidden past has a secret. Covered in tattoos with hair that grows blue straight out of her head, Karou’s friends in Prague think that the drawings of monsters and angels in her sketch book are imaginary, but really, they’re her family. She might not know who she is or why she always has a feeling that something is missing in her life, but Karou knows that the monstrous chimera who raised her love her. When black hand prints start appearing on the magic doors she uses to travel the world, Karou has no idea that she is about to be dragged head first into a epic war between good and evil that spans worlds.

Regular teenaged life is mixed with beautifully described otherworldly beings in a book you’ll be surprised to find yourself still reading at 3 A.M. Good luck figuring out who is good and who is evil in this fantastic offering from National Book Award finalist Taylor. A great pick for fans of Cassandra Clare and Kami Garcia.

Looking For Another “End of the World” Read?

Posted on January 11, 2012 by Donna

ashes Don’t know what it is about the ”end of the world as we know it” books, but they hold a certain fascination. When you mix disaster, impending doom, zombies, and throw in a little romance, a book is sure to get attention.

Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick is one of those books that once you start reading it, you can’t stop. The book starts out with Alex, a teenage girl, heading out on a hiking trip for a personal journey to sort things out. Life has been more than a little unfair to her the last couple of years. Not only did she lose both of her parents, but she has developed a brain tumor. So you might say that things couldn’t get worse for Alex. But when an electromagnet pulse shoots through the area killing many and turning many others into inhuman cannibals, Alex is now thrown into a fight to survive. Along the way, she meets up with Tom, who has just returned from the war in Afghanistan, and Ellie, a young girl who has been left alone in the wilderness when her Grandfather is killed by the EMP.

As the adventure progresses, Alex is constantly trying to stay one step ahead of not only the “zombies” but also those people who turn out to be more dangerous and treacherous than “the Changed.”

Ashes is the first book in the Ashes Trilogy. The second book “Shadows” is due out sometime in 2012.

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Laura S

I’ve seen a lot of trends come through the library. Vampires, werewolves, fallen angels, a never ending stream of paranormal trends. But I think that’s about to change. I predict the next big thing in YA literature is the Space Opera. Case in point: Across the Universe by Beth Revis.

Full of mystery, romance and dystopain awesomeness, this sci-fi gem proves that finally, the Space Opera is getting the attention it deserves! Cryogenically frozen with her parents, Amy is set to sleep for 300 years while the gargantuan ship Godsend delivers them to their new world. That is until something goes horribly wrong and Amy is ripped violently awake. After centuries trapped in a giant ship hurtling through space life on board is so different from anything Amy has ever seen she doesn’t know what to think. On Godspeed Eldest is in charge and his word is law. Elder, the only other teen on board and Eldest’s protégé, is intrigued by Amy and her differences. Together they must figure out what is happening to the ship and why colonists are being attacked in their sleep. With chapters that alternate between Amy and Eldest’s point of view, Revis sucks you into this debut novel.

For other awesome Space Operas try Black Hole Sun by David Macinnis Gill or Living Hell by Catherine Jinks. And once you read it and are desperate for the sequel, A Million Suns can be put on hold!

Bumped by Megan McCafferty

Posted on January 7, 2012 by Laura S

bumped

After a virus makes everyone over the age of 18 infertile, teens become the most prized members of society. Contracted out to conceive children, teenage girls are treated as celebrities. Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Melody has it made, she’s scored a contract to have a baby for a wealthy couple and things couldn’t be going better. Other than the small problem of her growing love for her genetically inferior (and there for unacceptable bumping partner) best friend Zen that is. Her twin couldn’t be more different; Harmony has been raised in religious isolation, and now shes on a mission to convince Melody that pregging for profit is not the way to go.

Unlike other dystopian YA books, Bumped is a light-hearted, funny romp. But if you look deeper, hidden behind the likeable characters, mistaken identity crisis, compelling love story and interesting, bubbly take on the dystopian future Bumped offers a stark view of where our social media and sex appeal obsessed culture is headed.

Learn to Draw Manga

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Laura

Ronald LaCour will be teaching manga style drawing at the Amelia Branch on Saturday, January 7 at 2:00p.m. Call 752-5580 to register.

According to Mr. LaCour the workshop will “focus on the importance of structure in drawing. The target style is manga, but, these tools can be applied to any style of drawing. Usually after learning what to look for in drawing, students feel adventurous in exploring new styles and developing styles of their own. I encourage people to bring in their work, so if time permits I can help some with one on one tips and tricks to improve their art.”

Mr. LaCour was kind enough to answer a few questions -

Question: Do you have a favorite artist/artistic period?
Answer: I am a permanent fan of Art Nouveau. The style is used in a range of creative ways.

Question: How is drawing manga different from traditional western comics?
Answer: Manga tends to be more expressive than western comics in my opinion. You can tell when an artist is using manga techniques by the way they distort the figure. Manga also has an automatic appeal. The simplicity of features combined with expressive figures is reminiscent of traditional cartooning. These figures normally would look out of place in heavily detailed environments, but, in manga it seems to be acceptable that an oddly distorted figure could exist in a more realistically detailed image. I’ve always found this idea very interesting and entertaining.

Question: What/who inspires you artistically?
Answer: My inspiration comes from life, more than anything. I like to create, so I’ve always liked to work off my own style. That being said I love looking at new styles and have my favorite artist.A few of my favorites include:

Alphonse Mucha
Joe Madureira
Kim Jae-Hwan

And finally, what’s your favorite flavor of ramen?

A: I like Oriental Flavor Ramen. It’s my favorite.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Posted on December 30, 2011 by Laura S

divergent

By far one of the best YA books of 2011, Veronica Roth gives us fast paced novel of survival against all odds. Divergent is a great choice for fans of The Hunger Games longing for another dystopian adventure. Roth, only 22 years old, creates a world that is terrifyingly possible and a strong, dynamic female character in Tris.

In the devastated world of our dystopian future, Chicago remains as a beacon. To prevent future tragedy its citizens have decided there were five things that brought our society crashing down; greed, lies, cowardice, war, and ignorance. To combat those horrible things, the people have chosen to devote their lives to one of five factions extolling a virtue that will save society; Abnegation (the selfless), Candor (the honest), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). When Beatrice Prior makes the shocking choice to give up her life with family as member of Abnegation she doesn’t realize how hard she’ll have to fight for her place as one of the Dauntless.

Draw on Your Creativity Interview

Posted on December 22, 2011 by Laura

Kim, a branch staffer at the Felicity Branch will be teaching a drawing class over the next several months. Each session will focus on a different type of drawing. Register for the program by calling 876-4134.

Kim’s been a professional artist for over 25 years and bring a lot of experience and enthusiasm!

She was gracious enough to answer some questions for us.

Q: Do you have a favorite medium to work with? And why?
Kim: My favorite medium is colored pencil. I love using lots of different colors and layering them to create texture and depth.

Q: What was the most difficult thing to learn when you learned to draw?
Kim: The most difficult thing to learn was to not overwork a drawing. Sometimes it’s hard to know when to stop.

Q: What inspires you?
Kim: The natural world inspires me–animals, clouds, mountains, sunsets, and on and on.

Q: Do you have a favorite resource like a book or website?
Kim: I have a LOT of books of Vincent Van Gogh’s work that I periodically look through for inspiration and aspiration.

Q: When did you discover that you enjoyed drawing?
Kim: It wasn’t a discovery, I’ve just always done it because I love doing it. My parents met when they were both students at the Chicago Art Institute, so it runs in the family!

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