Alice in Wonderland...sneak peak

Have you heard a new version of Alice in Wonderland is coming out next year? And Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas) is directing and Johnny Depp is starring! The USA Today has some great pics...it looks awesome.

My Sister's Keeper...the movie

The movie version of My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult opens this Friday, June 26!

Super Smash Bros Brawl Tournament

Thanks to everyone who came out yesterday to play Super Smash Bros Brawl! And congrats to the winners of the first SSBB Tournament...

First Place: Josh
Second Place: Billy
Third Place: Sam
Third Place: Christopher

We've got two more gaming events this summer. On July 15 there will be open play and on August 6 we'll have a Mario Kart Tournament. For more info check out: www.shorewoodlibrary.org/teen

And stop by the library's Facebook page to see tournament pics.

Series Update

A lot of great series have new books coming this summer...

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (Hunger Games #2)

The Siege of Macindaw by John Flanagan (Ranger's Apprentice #6)

Ghostgirl: Homecoming by Tonya Hurley (Ghostgirl #2)

Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover by Ally Carter (Gallagher Girls #3)

After Dark by Nancy Collins (Vamps #3)

Hunger by Michael Grant (Gone #2)

Diary of a Wimpy Kid #4 by Jeff Kinney

Boys R Us by Lisi Harrison (Clique #11)

Realistic Fiction

Sometimes if I read a really great book in a specific genre, I get hooked on that genre for a while. For the past couple of weeks I've taken a break from fantasy, sci-fi, and everything else to read realistic fiction. Here are a few of my favorites:

Same Difference by Siobhan Vivian
Emily is discovering a love for art that brings her to Philadelphia for a summer art program. She makes new friends, grows as an artist, and begins to realize that while life is always changing somethings can stay the same.

When it Happens by Susane Colasanti
Tobey is a slacker guitar player. Sara is smart, organized, and an A student. Despite the fact that Sara is dating Dave, Tobey is determined to get her to see beyond the surface, and fall in love with him. This funny novel of finding the right someone is told from both Sara and Tobey's perspective.

I Know it's Over by C.K. Kelly Martin
What happens when you're 16 and your ex-girlfriend tells you she's pregnant? Nick thought he had a great relationship with Sasha, then she broke up with him, and a month later he finds out she's pregnant. This beautiful, emotional novel shares Nick and Sasha's story.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Making difficult decisions that will dramatically alter your life is never easy. In If I Stay by Gayle Forman, Mia has to decide...do I live...or do I die. After being involved in a terrible car accident, Mia is stuck somewhere between life and death. She sees her body being taken to the hospital, she watches her family and friends talk to her, and she reflects on her life. All leading up to making the most important decision...stay or go.

Over the course of this brief, beautifully written novel, you come to know Mia, her family and friends, and you think about the decisions that change a life.

Summer 2009

There's a lot going on this summer...




1. Sign-up at the library
2. Read 1000 pages...Congratulations, you've won a coupon prize pack!
2. Read 2000 pages...Congratulations, you're entered into the Grand Prize Drawing!

Summer Reading runs May 26th to August 15th.




Join us for games, food, and the announcement of the winners in the summer reading Grand Prize Drawing! We're giving away books, gift cards, and prize packages to dozens of lucky readers. The Prize Party will be August 26th from 6-7:30 p.m.





Enjoy popcorn and soda while watching a great movie! No registration required, open to students entering 5th-12th grade. Movies begin at 6 p.m.; comparison of book and movie will follow.

June 24: City of Ember
July 8: Twilight
July 29: Coraline
August 5: Inkheart




Gaming is back this summer and better than ever! We've got Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart, Clue, Apples to Apples, Jenga, chess and more. There will be tournament prizes for first through third place; board games will be available at all events. Gaming Madness is open to students entering 5th-12th grade. Events run the following days from 2-4 p.m.:

June 18: Super Smash Bros Brawl Tournament (Mario Kart Open Play)
July 15: Mario Kart & Wii Sports Open Play
August 6: Mario Kart Tournament (Super Smash Bros Brawl Open Play)

For more info about all of these events go to: www.shorewoodlibrary.org/teen

Not Child's Play: Picture Books for Teens

Contrary to what you may think, picture books are not exclusively for young children. A format usually associated with nursery rhymes, bright illustrations, and lovable characters has been manipulated and reshaped by a number of author/illustrator teams, fast becoming a form used to fashion stories of gravity, fantasy, and mystery. From the Atlantic slave trade to an imperialist allegory to a deadly alphabet, picture books employ a variety of artistic mediums and literary styles to tell condensed, interesting, powerful narratives. Encompassing the silly and irreverent to the serious and horrific, these tales intertwine beautiful language and stunning illustrations, melding word and art, bringing simple stories to full, realized life. Below you will find just a few of the picture books enticing to teen readers.

The Watertower by Gary Crew, illustrated by Steven Woolman
In the tiny desert town of Preston, an old, ominous water tower looms on the hillside. The residents are unsure of when the structure was built or by whom, it has simply always been there, rusting and watching. On a scorching summer's day Spike Trotter convinces his hesitant best friend, Bubba D'Angelo, to go for a swim. But concealed within the bulky tank, the dark, tepid waters hold a secret.

The Middle Passage: White Ships, Black Cargo by Tom Feelings
This wordless narrative, told in haunting black and white illustrations, captures the hopelessness and brutality of the middle passage. During the almost four centuries of the Atlantic slave trade, African people of both genders and all ages were consistently ripped from their homes. If the horrible sea voyaged was survived, they were faced with a foreign, often short, new existence. Feelings conscientiously depicts the pain and suffering of this dark period in western history.

The Gashlycrumb Tinies, or After the Outing by Edward Gorey

Basil, Clara, Neville, and Olive, among others, expire in a number of surprising ways in this macabre ABC book. The black and white etchings capture each child's unique and unfortunate end. The simple, rhyming, cautionary tale targets youngsters who perhaps whine a tad too frequently, are a touch too curious, or provoke the local wildlife.

The Rabbits by John Marsden, illustrated by Shaun Tan

With sparse language and intricate, colorful illustrations, Marsden and Tan caution readers on the potential environmental and cultural devastation of un-checked colonization. An indigenous population of squirrel-like animals, living harmoniously in their natural surroundings, is suddenly and violently overrun by invading Rabbits. Following victory, the Rabbits fight amongst themselves, consume, and steal with devastating consequences.

The Wall: Growing up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis

What if you loved to create--dance, music, art, and film--but instead of allowing your imagination to run wild you were told what to say, to write, to make? Sis was born and raised in Communist Czechoslovakia following World War II. From a very young age he loved to draw, however school and policy soon dictated his creations. Western society and values were shunned; informers tattled on neighbors, fear and suspicion ruled daily life. Enticed by western freedoms plus a love of art and rock & roll, Sis secretly cultivated his interests until able to relocate.

The Arrival By Shaun Tan

Leaving behind family, home, and country for the promise of a new life is a daunting undertaking. Without words, Tan recreates an immigrant experience, depicting a world foreign to our own. In doing so he fashions the doubts, fears, dreams, and unlikely friendships these amazing journeys render. In a photo album format readers explore the stories of numerous immigrants, all refugees escaping dangerous homelands, finding hope and help in each other.

Woolvs in the Sitee by Margaret Wild, illustrated by Anne Spudvilas

Ben is all alone. Without parents, siblings, or any family to speak of, he cowers in a dark basement, blotting out the world with ratty curtains. He is hiding from the woolvs. His only friend, Missus Radinski, is a kindly upstairs neighbor. She does not believe in the woolvs and reassures Ben that life will soon return to normal, to the before. One day Ben pays a visit. Missus Radinski is not home, the woolvs have been about. Frightened yet determined, Ben resolves to abandon his hiding place and rescue a friend.

(by Abby, Graduate Student Intern)

Hunger Games Movie!

That's right The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins has been optioned for a movie! And Collins will write the screenplay. I love this book and hope the movie is amazing.

I'll keep you posted with more info as I hear about it.

Summer 2009 Preview

Teen Summer Reading will start in June! Here's your sneak-peek of what we've got planned...

Summer Reading is back with great coupons and prizes! We've got coupons for the Brewers, Jimmy Johns, Discovery World Museum, Noodles & Co, Culvers and many more.

And for the first time Summer Reading winners will be announced at our Prize Party at the end of August. There will be food, games, Wii, and tons of cool prizes for the winners of the Grand Prize Drawing.

Summer Gaming Madness will include open play and tournaments on the Wii!

Movie Talkers Book Group compares several great books to their movie versions. Read the book, we'll watch the movie together (on a big screen with lots of popcorn), and then spend 20-30 minutes talking about them.

More info about Teen Summer Reading coming soon!