Some more new titles...

More of our brand new books! Click on the titles to found out if the book you're looking at is available now and to reserve it if it's not!

Edenville Owls
Robert B. Parker

Bobby, living in a small Massachusetts town just after World War II, finds himself facing many new challenges as he tries to pull together his coachless basketball team, cope with new feelings for his old friend Joanie, and discover the identity of the mysterious stranger who seems to be threatening his teacher.

The Hollow People
Brian Keaney

On an island that houses the asylum where law-breakers are imprisoned, two teenagers rebel against a rigidly controlled society where dreams are considered antisocial and all citizens over the age of 14 take a drug to control their behavior.

Kiki Strike: The Empress's Tomb
Kirsten Miller

Ananka, Kiki Strike, and the other Irregulars encounter a Chinese mummy, a ghost, trained squirrels, and old enemies as they try to stop an art forgery ring and safeguard the secret streets hidden beneath New York City. (If you haven't already, check out Kiki Strike: Inside The Shadow City - this is the sequel!)

Marked
P.C. Cast

Zoey Redbird's world is very much like our own, except in her world, vampires have always existed. In this first book of this new series, Zoey enters the House of Night, a school where, after having undergone the "Change", she will train to become an adult vampire--that is, if she makes it through.

Thieves Till We Die
Stephen Cole

Teen geniuses Jonah, Motti, Con, Tye, and Patch, working for their mysterious benefactor, Coldhardt, are out to recover more stolen artefacts when one of their members is kidnapped, and they must add a rescue operation to the mission. (Also check out the first in this series: Thieves Like Us.)

Hot Off The Presses!

Here are some more great new YA books that can be found on the PPL shelves. Make sure to reserve the one you want if it's not available now. Click on the pictures and titles to look these up in the catalog.

Evil Genius
Catherine Jinks

As a diligent student of criminal mastermind Dr. Phineas Darkkon, Cadel Piggott has grown into quite an intelligent thief and computer hacker, but he's only 14. Is he really ready to go all Super Villain?

The Marvelous Journey Home
John M. Simmons

This wonderful story is a fictional adaptation of the author's real-life experience with the Russian adoption process. Read it and gain unique insight into the perspectives of several players in the adoption process including the adoptive parents, the children and adoption officials and supervisors.

Peak
Roland Smith

After Peak Marcello is arrested for scaling a New York City skyscraper, he's left with two choices: wither away in Juvenile Detention or go live with his long-lost father, who runs a climbing company in Thailand. When Peak joins his fathers he's in for a surprise: he wants Peak to be the youngest person to reach the Everest summit--and his motives are selfish at best.

Secrets Of My Hollywood Life
Jen Calonita

Longing to experience the life of a "normal" teenager, sixteen-year-old actress Kaitlin Burke assumes a false identity to attend a local high school.

Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You
Peter Cameron

With his freshman year at Brown looming in the near future, eighteen-year-old James begins to plan his escape by saving the money from his summer job at his mother's art gallery in order to get a cabin on the prairie where he can finally find the sanctuary he needs.

Looking For New Books?

You've come to the right place! PPL just got in a whole bunch of new YA books. I'm only putting some here now - watch this space for the rest over the next week or so.

Don't forget to click the books to find out if the one you want is in. If they're not, just add yourself to the reserve list from home!

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Sherman Alexie

Budding cartoonist Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school...where the only other "Indian" is the school mascot.

Freak
Marcella Pixley

While her sister blossoms into a beautiful being and makes new friends, 7th grader Miriam is left alone to deal with her "freak" status. She faces the harsh criticism and teasing of the popular clique whose merciless abuse pushes her to the breaking point.

How To Ruin A Summer Vacation
Simone Elkeles

When sixteen-year-old Amy, a spoiled American teenager, goes to Israel for a three-month summer vacation with a father she barely knows, she is not prepared for his Jewish family and the changes they bring about in her life.

Slam
Nick Hornby

At the age of fifteen, Sam Jones's relationship with his girlfriend gets complicated and Sam's life of skateboarding and daydreaming about Tony Hawk changes drastically. At a loss for what to do, Sam turns to Hawk's autobiography for answers.

Uprising
Margaret Peterson Haddix

In 1927, at the urging of twenty-one-year-old Harriet, Mrs. Livingston reluctantly recalls her experiences at the Triangle Shirtwaist factory, including miserable working conditions that led to a strike, then the fire that took the lives of her two best friends, when Harriet, the boss's daughter, was only five years old.

Series Spotlight: The Twilight Saga

So, by now I'm sure most of you have at least heard of Stephenie Meyer's amazingly popular Twilight Saga. If not, here's the deal.

Bella Swan is new to Forks - a small town outside of Seattle, Washington. It's a far cry from sunny Phoenix, where she used to live before deciding to move in with her Dad. Once there, Bella catches the eye of Edward Cullen - and let's just say her life will never be the same.

Twilight, the first of the series, follows Bella and Edward as they try to figure out their relationship. Which proves not to be easy, for reasons you will immediately understand. But you'll have to check it out for yourself to figure it out. If's well worth the read.

New Moon and Eclipse continue Bella's story - and for those that have already gobbled those up - don't fret. Stephenie Meyer has promised there's more on the way.

Want more Twilight news? Check out Stephenie Meyer's website and the Twilight Lexicon. where you can find all kind's of fun stuff - even pictures of Bella's truck!

Peeps by Scott Westerfeld

Peeps is not your ordinary book about vampires.

In an alternate New York City, parasite-positives (called "peeps" for short) abound, exhibiting some strange behaviors. They don't care for sunlight, have lost all interest in checking themselves out in the mirror, and have developed a taste for rare meat.

Cal's been infected, but has hit the genetic lottery, as he is not affected by the usual vampirish side effects. Classified as a carrier, he works for the mysterious Night Watch, an organization older than NYC dedicated to rehabilitating Peeps and stopping the spread of the parasite. But does Cal know everything about his bosses? Something doesn't smell right - and it's not just the rats.

If you liked Scott Westerfeld's Uglies trilogy, or vampire stories, or just biology in general, you must give Peeps a try.

More new stuff

Here's the last bit of the new books we just got in. Come in and get them, or reserve them from home! (Just click on the pictures or the titles to find the one your want in our catalog.)

Cross My Heart And Hope To Spy
Ally Carter

When the Gallagher Academy, a secret spy school for girls, hosts male guests from Knowlton-Hale, Cammie is blamed for a series of security breaches that forces her to clear her name while trying to deny her attraction to an incorrigible hottie named Zach. (Check out the first one, too: I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have To Kill You.)

How To Take The Ex Out Of Ex-Boyfriend
Janette Rallison

Giovanna rashly breaks up with her boyfriend Jesse when he refuses to help her twin brother with his campaign for Student Council president, but fixing her mistake may be more difficult for her than she realizes.

Jinx
Meg Cabot

Having had bad luck all of her life, Jinx feels inspired when she moves in with her aunt and uncle in New York City, but when her cousin turns out to be a real brat and a member of a coven, Jinx's bad luck seems to be just the thing needed to keep her cousin's bad magic in check.

Kissing The Bee
Kathe Koja

Senior year is flying by, the prom is approaching, and Dana, her best friend, Avra, and Avra’s boyfriend, Emil, are about to encounter the pains and pleasures of that intricate beehive called adult life.

Mistik Lake
Martha Brooks

As family secrets surrounding her aunt's tragic car accident suddenly come to light and tear her fragile family apart, Odella finds comfort in a new friend, Jimmy Tomasson, who provides her with the emotional support and personal confidence she needs to get to the bottom of what really happened so many years ago.

Spells & Sleeping Bags
Sarah Mlynowski

Finally certified as a witch, Rachel is thrilled to spend the summer at Camp Wood Lake with a new group of friends, but between the mosquitoes, a simple spell gone awry, and a backstabber of a roommate sharing her cabin, Rachel begins to wonder if this particular sleep-away camp is the best place for such a talented witch. (Also check out: Bras & Broomsticks and Frogs & French Kisses.)

And the new books just keep on coming...

Check 'em out!

Extras
Scott Westerfeld

Fifteen-year-old Aya Fuse, an Extra, just wants to lay low, so when she discovers the secret lives of the Sly Girls, she wants to report their story, but she knows that would propel her into a celebrity status she's not prepared for. (Also check out: Uglies, Pretties, and Specials.)

Girl At Sea
Maureen Johnson

High-school junior Clio Ford reluctantly gives up her dream job and a potential first kiss to take a working vacation with her estranged father on a yacht in Italy.

Kat Got Your Tongue
Lee Weatherly

After a terrible car accident, Kat wakes up with no idea who she is, and no memory of anything before the crash. She doesn't even recognize her mum, much less her friends from school—Poppy, Jade, and the mysterious Tina. Only after she finds her old diary—written in a voice no longer her own—does Kat begin to discover the terrible secrets of her previous life.

Love Sick
Jake Coburn

Falling in love is never easy, but when Ted finds himself in a situation that could cost his college career, he struggles to keep control as everything around him spins into a nasty web of attraction, greed and betrayal.

Open Court
Carol Clippinger

Seeing her training partner have a breakdown at a tournament, Hollaway Braxton begins to rethink her ranking, her training, her goals, and her life upon being sent to a professional tennis academy where the balance between winning at all cost and being a normal teenager seems nearly impossible to maintain.

Repossessed
A. M. Jenkins

A fallen angel, tired of being unappreciated while doing his pointless, demeaning job, leaves Hell, enters the body of a seventeen-year-old boy, and tries to experience the full range of human feelings before being caught and punished, while the boy's family and friends puzzle over his changed behavior.

New Books Abound

Remember those new books we were telling you about? Here's five more! If the one you want is not in, no sweat. Just call us and we'll reserve it for you, or you can do it yourself by clicking the links in the titles and pictures. Happy reading!

Boot Camp
Todd Strasser

Kidnapped and sent to live in a disciplinary boot camp, fifteen-year-old Garrett knows that he has been wrongly imprisoned and so feels there is no choice but to attempt a daring escape in order to save himself.

Hit and Run
Lurlene McDaniel

Determined that nothing will get in the way of his athletic and collegiate future, Quin makes a major decision one fateful evening that puts a string of events in motion--with love, ambition, and guilt overriding what is known to be right and just.

Love Is A Many Trousered Thing
Louise Rennison

Georgia thought her heartbreak-osity troubles were over when Masimo announced that he wanted to be her one and only. But just as she hits Swoon City, Robbie, the original Sex God, shows up. How in the world has Georgia accidentally acquired two Sex Gods?

Unforgettable: An It Girl Novel
Cecily von Ziegesar

Arriving at the elite Waverly Academy, determined to become a fabulous "It" girl, Jenny Humphrey finds her dreams coming true when she befriends the two most popular girls in school--until the notorious Tinsley Carmichael returns.

The Social Climber's Guide To High School
by Robyn Schneider

Filled with practical tips, celebrity-inspired advice, quizzes, and more, this guide provides lessons on surviving high school, maneuvering through the daily dramas, and becoming a member of the school's A-list through personal charm and determination.

Also, don't forget! ReaderGirlz wraps up its month long run of YA author discussions this week! Don't miss the rest of these great authors!

10/28: Holly Black
10/29: Cynthia Leitch Smith
10/30: Dia Calhoun
10/31: Stephenie Meyer (*SPECIAL TIME: MIDNIGHT EST*)

Breakfast At Bloomingdale's

Breakfast at Bloomingdale’s is a girlie book, I may as well state this right now. It’s also irresistible, and if you've seen the movie Breakfast at Tiffany's,you'll get it even more. Cat Zappe (not her real name) and her grandmother Nina live for fashion and make all of their own clothes. Their big dream is to live in Manhattan and have their clothing line sold in Bloomingdale’s department store. In their heads swim visions of Tiffany's,where “nothing can go wrong”. When something does go wrong big time, and even her boyfriend abandons her on the interstate, LBD-clad grief-stricken Cat must make her way to New York City alone, all while trying to avoid her crazy therapist mother. Some of her adventures could happen in real life; others you’ll just have to channel your inner Gwen Stefani and try to keep up with Cat’s caffeine-fueled soap-opera life.

The New Books Have Landed

We've just gotten in a whole slew of new YA books. We don't want to overwhelm you with the entire list just yet, but here's a taste. Click the pictures or the titles to see if the book you're looking for is in. Don't fret if the one you want isn't in at this exact moment - request it from home!

Here are the first five:

All-In
Pete Hautman

Having won thousands of dollars playing high-stakes poker in Las Vegas, seventeen-year-old Denn Doyle hits a losing streak after falling in love with a young casino card dealer named Cattie Hart.


Diva
Alex Flinn

Despite her mother's objections, sixteen-year-old Caitlin determines to pursue her dream of becoming an opera singer by attending a performing arts school in Miami.


Duchessina
Carolyn Meyer

Having lived her entire childhood locked away in a convent, Catherine, heiress to the entire fortune of the Medici family and one of France's most powerful queens, must muster the courage needed to find her voice and make her own opinions known in order to avoid a disastrous marriage and unhappy future.

First Shot
Walter Sorrells

David Crandall, haunted by his mother's murder two years ago, uncovers a dark family secret that leads him to believe that his father, headmaster of the military school in which David is currently a senior, is the killer.


Scrambled Eggs At Midnight
Brad Barkley & Heather Hepler

Calliope and Eliot, two fifteen-year-olds in Asheville, North Carolina, begin to acknowledge some unpleasant truths about their parents and form their own ideas about love.

Which Teen Novel Are You?

You love to read, obviously. And your favorite flavor of reading is YA, is it not? Now, the real question - do you love quizzes?

Because if you do, this quiz is the one for you: YA-er E. Lockhart, author of The Boyfriend List, has created a test to find out what teen novel YOU are! Check the quiz out here and let us know which one you turn out to be. (Which teen novel am I? John Green's Looking For Alaska!)

And remember ReaderGirz 31 Flavorite Authors For Teens extravaganza? E. Lockhart's on the list of chatters this week!

Here's this week's schedule:
10/22 - Lisa Yee
10/23 - Carolyn Mackler
10/24 - E. Lockhart
10/25 - Janet Lee Carey
10/26 - Gaby Triana
10/27 - Lauren Myracle
10/28 - Holly Black

An Abundance of Math Equations

Imagine you knew who was going to be the dumper and the dumpee before your relationship even started - wouldn't that make life a whole lot easier? YA author John Green has devised a way to help you out with that.

In his An Abundance of Katherines, former child-prodigy Colin sets off on a road trip with his best friend Hassan after being dumped by his 19th Katherine. While on this trip, among other things, Colin works out an equation to predict the rise and fall of romantic relationships.

Now you can chart out your very own destiny, as John Green has provided you, dear reader, a handy version of the equation on his website. You can check that out here.

Also, remember, you can chat with John Green as part of ReaderGirlz Teen Read Week celebration tonight!

The next week of guests includes YA authors Sara Zarr, Deb Caletti, Rachel Cohn, Kirsten Miller, Mitali Perkins, and Sonya Sones. Don't miss it!

Do you want to chat with your favorite authors?

Come on, of course you do. You just didn't know how easy it could be...until now.

So, you've all heard of Teen Read Week, right? Right? (If you haven't, it's a weeklong celebration of YA literature and teens, well, reading it. Oh, and it's next week.)

In celebration of this wonderful week of reading goodness, ReaderGirlz is hosting chats with your favorite YA authors all month long! I don't want to overwhelm you with the entire amazing schedule, so I'll just post the next few.

10/11: Sarah Mlynowski ("Bras & Broomsticks")
10/12: Cecil Castellucci ("Boy Proof")
10/13: Kirby Larson ("Hattie Big Sky")
10/14: Tanya Lee Stone ("A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl")
10/15: John Green ("Looking For Alaska" and "An Abundance of Katherines")

Here's what you have to do to participate: click this - or the picture up there - and follow the directions listed under "Hanging Out With Your Favorite YA Authors". I mean, I can't do ALL the work for you.

Have fun! (Next week I'll post the rest of the schedule to keep you up to date!)

P.S. If you haven't read these authors' books yet, check 'em out. I provided links to where you can find them in our catalog and everything.

Welcome Back!

Well, I guess you could say the YA blog went a little defunct for the last few months. We're sorry! Things get busy around here sometimes!

But don't worry - we'll be updating more frequently and adding all kinds of new stuff to the blog. Why not let us know what you want to see in the comments? Or, you can always e-mail us at yalibrarian@peninsulapublic.org.

So, as a welcome back present, why not check out the poll at the bottom of the page and let us know what you think?

The Golden Compass movie

The book "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman is being made into a movie, coming out in December 2007. (Promises to be really, really good, like the books.) Someone sent this website to me, if you know anything about the book, the main character, Lyra has her own personal daemon (not a demon) a magical animal which is like her companion. This site matches you with your own daemon. It's cool, try it.

http://www.goldencompassmovie.com

Still reading...

I promise that I'll put up some choice reviews-soon, but for the guys among us, here's another graphic-intensive link to chew on:

http://guysread.com


Jon Scieszka compiled a collection of short stories, cartoons, etc., written by male authors which we have here in the library called Guys Write for Guys Read (YA 810.8 G is the call number: come and get it!). The web site takes this one step further and gives lists of reviews and suggestions for books that will appeal to the boys.

hellooooo

Sorry that I haven't been in awhile, busy reading, check out this website for good book suggestions.

http://www.readingrants.org

This should hold you for a little bit.

Love, Football, and other Contact Sports

Short stories about football at Argyle High. Football doesn't excite (Have any of you noticed all the things I don't like? And that I always seem to read books about things I don't like?). I don't even watch the Super Bowl. Go for this one, girls, to understand the obsession, and guys, even though it sounds like a chick book, you'll relate. It even has an explanation of football rules for those of us who are no-clue(me). My favorite was "Big Chicago".

Bomb Mars Now!!

Another book that I picked solely for the cover, but I also love these person-peering-in-behind-the-scenes books, too. Korman knows how to take you into a scene. Now, I remember these punk rock bands of the eighties, but can't say I loved the music. Those who know me know I love my classic rock, the atmospheric, moody, serious-sounding epics, back when people made music for the music. Stuff to play air guitar by. But I'm old.

Need help with the ever-elusive homework research?

Have any of you ever gone to our website? http://www.peninsulapublic.org (Okay, put your hands down) Go to Research Tools on the left, click "From Home" and you'll be overwhelmed with all the magazine articles, book criticism and you'll be so smart you won't know what to do with yourself. Just make sure you have your library card number to get access, otherwise you'll end up just looking smart.

"In the dream, there's always open ice...."

I'm not a sports fan, but you don't have to be to read this. Have you ever wanted to do or be something so badly, but you couldn't or wouldn't ever be able to? Nick Taglio is feeling the emotional equivalent of punching his fist through a wall, and life is not normal anymore.