YALSA 2014 Teens' Top Ten

The Teens' Top Ten is a "teen choice" list, where teens nominate and choose their favorite books of the previous year! Nominators are members of teen book groups in sixteen school and public libraries around the country.

Check them out on this link. 

Individual book trailers follow. 
Just click on the book title you would like to see. 

10. The Eye of Minds by James Dashner
9. Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo  Other trailer
8. Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson
7. The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau
6. Earth Girl by Janet Edwards
5. Monument 14: Sky on Fire by Emmy Laybourne
4. The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
3. The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson
2. Splintered by A. G. Howard
1. Eleanor & Park  by Rainbow Rowell

Which books should I buy for the library?
What do you want to read?

Ketchup Clouds by Annabel Pitcher

Dear Mr. S. Harris, 

Ignore the blob of red in the top left corner. It's jam, not blood, though I don't think I need to tell you the difference. It wasn't your wife's jam the police found on your shoe. . . .

I know what it's like.

Mine wasn't a woman. Mine was a boy. And I killed him exactly three months ago. 
Zoe has an unconventional pen pal--Mr. Stuart Harris, a Texas Death Row inmate and convicted murderer. But then again, Zoe has an unconventional story to tell. A story about how she fell for two boys, betrayed one of them, and killed the other.

Hidden away in her backyard shed in the middle of the night with a jam sandwich in one hand and a pen in the other, Zoe gives a voice to her heart and her fears after months of silence. Mr. Harris may never respond to Zoe's letters, but at least somebody will know her story--somebody who knows what it's like to kill a person you love. Only through her unusual confession can Zoe hope to atone for her mistakes that have torn lives apart, and work to put her own life back together again.

Book Trailer
261 pages
lexile 890

Golden Archer 2015- Middle School/High School

Divergent by Veronica Roth

 Tris Prior is warned she is Divergent and will never fit into any one group. When she discovers a conspiracy by a faction leader to destroy all Divergents, Tris must learn to trust in the mysterious Four and together they must find out what makes being Divergent so dangerous before it's too late.

Teaser

Lexile 700

487 pages

The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen

In a medieval kingdom, civil war is brewing, but a devious nobleman named Conner has a plan to gain control. He's going to put an impersonator of the king's long-lost son on the throne, and then he himself will rule from behind the scenes. After scouring the land, Conner finds Sage and three other orphans and forces them to compete for the role — or face certain death. Sage doesn't trust Conner one bit, but he's determined to win the competition. And he's got a few tricks up his sleeve...

Teaser

Lexile 710

342 pages

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.

Teaser

Lexile-850

352 Pages

The House of Hades by Rick Riodan

At the conclusion of The Mark of Athena, Annabeth and Percy tumble into a pit leading straight to the Underworld. The other five demigods have to put aside their grief and follow Percy's instructions to find the mortal side of the Doors of Death. If they can fight their way through the Gaea's forces, and Percy and Annabeth can survive the House of Hades, then the Seven will be able to seal the Doors from both sides and prevent the giants from raising Gaea. But, Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?

Teaser

Lexile- 680

583 pages

Prisoner B-3087 by Alan Gratz

Survive. At any cost.

10 concentration camps.

10 different places where you are starved, tortured, and worked mercilessly.

It's something no one could imagine surviving.

But it is what Yanek Gruener has to face.

As a Jewish boy in 1930s Poland, Yanek is at the mercy of the Nazis who have taken over. Everything he has, and everyone he loves, have been snatched brutally from him. And then Yanek himself is taken prisoner, his arm tattooed with the words PRISONER B-3087.

He is forced from one nightmarish concentration camp to another, as World War II rages all around him. He encounters evil he could have never imagined, but also sees surprising glimpses of hope amid the horror. He just barely escapes death, only to confront it again seconds later.

Can Yanek make it through the terror without losing his hope, his will — and, most of all, his sense of who he really is inside?

Based on an astonishing true story.

Teaser

Lexile-760

256 pages

Golden Archer 2015- Intermediate

Big Nate Flips Out by Lincoln Peirce

Everyone knows N-A-T-E does not equal N-E-A-T!

And when Nate's sloppiness gets out of hand, his best friend, Francis is in serious trouble. 

Can Nate clean up his act, or will he flip out first? 

Teaser

Lexile 420

216 pages

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hard Luck by Jeff Kinney

Greg Heffley’s on a losing streak. His best friend, Rowley Jefferson, has ditched him, and finding new friends in middle school is proving to be a tough task. To change his fortunes, Greg decides to take a leap of faith and turn his decisions over to chance. Will a roll of the dice turn things around, or is Greg’s life destined to be just another hard-luck story?

Teaser

Lexile-1020

217 pages

I Survived: The Nazi Invasion, 1944 by Lauren Tarshis

In one of the darkest periods in history, one boy struggles to survive...
In this gripping new addition to the bestselling I SURVIVED series, a young Jewish boy escapes the ghetto and finds a group of resistance fighters in the forests of Poland. Does he have what it takes to survive the Nazis -- and fight back?
Teaser

Lexile- 740
90 pages

Killer Species: Out for Blood by Michael P. Spradlin

It's a quiet night when Emmet takes his dog, Apollo, out for a walk in the backyard. Until the noise begins. Part batlike screech, part insect buzz -- it seems to be coming from the roof. Suddenly the sky is full of dark, beating shapes, and they're all headed straight for Emmet.
Dr. Catalyst's newest creations are hungry, and only one thing will satisfy them. Blood.
#3 in the Killer Species 
Teaser

Lexile- 780
168 pages

Wonder by R. J. Palacio

August Pullman was born with a facial difference that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face.

Teaser 

Lexile 790

310 Pages

Golden Archer 2015- Primary

The Dark by Lemony Snicket

Laszlo is afraid of the dark. 

The dark lives in the same house as Laszlo. Mostly, though, the dark stays in the basement and doesn't come into Lazslo's room. But one night, it does.

Teaser

Audio of Book

The Day the Crayons Quit  by Drew Daywalt

Poor Duncan just wants to color. But when he opens his box of crayons, he finds only letters, all saying the same thing: His crayons have had enough! They quit! Beige Crayon is tired of playing second fiddle to Brown Crayon. Black wants to be used for more than just outlining. Blue needs a break from coloring all those bodies of water. And Orange and Yellow are no longer speaking—each believes he is the true color of the sun.

What can Duncan possibly do to appease all of the crayons and get them back to doing what they do best?

Teaser 

 Audio of book

Oh, No! by Candace Fleming

Young children will delight in repeating the refrain "OH, NO!" as one animal after another falls into a deep, deep hole in this lively read-aloud. 

Teaser

Audio of Book

Pete the Cat and His Magic Sunglasses by James Dean

 Pete the Cat wakes up feeling grumpy—nothing seems to be going his way. But with the help of some magic sunglasses, Pete learns that a good mood has been inside him all along.

Teaser

Info

That is Not a Good Idea by Mo Willems

Inspired by the evil villains and innocent damsels of silent movies, Willems tells the tale of a hungry fox who invites a plump goose to dinner. 

Teaser

Banned Book Week

Video

Pinterest Page

The Library is going to the Dogs!

Dogs...
Dogs...
Dogs!
There are dogs all over the library.

Fake dogs of course.
Mrs. Chipman has chosen to decorate the library with dogs this year.

Did you know that we also have a lot of dog books in the library?
As in 500 books that are dog related.
Come in and take a look around and see if any of them interest you.

Here are just a few to take a look at...

Love that Dog by Sharon Creech.

Love That Dog is the story of Jack, his dog, his teacher, and words. The story develops through Jack’s responses to his teacher, Miss Stretchberry, over the course of a school year. At first, his responses are short and cranky: “I don’t want to” and “I tried. Can’t do it. Brain’s empty.” But as his teacher feeds him inspiration, Jack finds that he has a lot to say and he finds ways to say it. Jack becomes especially fond of a poem by Walter Dean Myers titled “Love That Boy,” and it is this poem that gives Jack a way to tell the story of his beloved dog, Sky.
Booktalk

A Dog's Life by Ann M. Martin

Squirrel and her brother Bone begin their lives in a toolshed behind someone's summer house. Their mother nurtures them and teaches them the many skills they will need to survive as stray dogs. But when their mother is taken from them suddenly and too soon, the puppies are forced to make their own way in the world, facing humans both gentle and brutal, busy highways, other animals, and the changing seasons. When Bone and Squirrel become separated, Squirrel must fend for herself, and in the process makes two friends who in very different ways define her fate

BookTalk

Everything for a Dog by Ann M. Martin

Bone is a stray dog, all alone in the world, looking for a safe place to call home. Charlie is devastated by the death of his older brother, but at least he has his brother’s dog to comfort him.  All Henry wants is a dog of his own, and even when his best friend moves away, his parents still won’t let him have one. Bone, Charlie, and Henry don’t know each other, but their lives are about to connect in a very surprising way. Because dogs, and dog lovers, have a way of finding each other . . .
Booktalk

How I Nicky Flynn Finally Get a Life (and a Dog) by Art Corriveau

Nicky Flynn’s life just got a whole lot harder. His parents are going through a messy divorce, and as a result he’s starting a new life, in a new city, in a new school. Now his mom has brought home Reggie, an eighty-pound German shepherd fresh from the animal shelter, who used to be a seeing-eye dog. At first Nick isn’t sure about this canine intrusion—it’s just another in a series of difficult changes. Soon, however, Nick is on the path to finding out why a seeing-eye dog would be left at an animal shelter, and along the way discovers that Reggie is a true friend that Nick can rely on. But when he tries to reconnect with his dad, Nick puts everything on the line, including the life of his new best friend.
booktalk

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

When Thomas wakes up in the life, the only thing he can remember is his first name. 
His memory is blank. 
But he is not alone. 
When the lift's doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade- a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls. 

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why or how they got to the Glade. 
All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them has opened. 
Every night, they are are closed tight. 
And every 30 days, a new boy is delivered in the lift. 

Thomas was expected. 
But the next day, a girl is sent up-the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. 
And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. 
Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried in his mind. 

Book 1 of the Maze Runner series. 
Be sure to continue the story with Book 2- The Scorch Trials and Book 3- The Death Cure. 

Video Book Talk
Author Website and video

Movie Trailer
Movie Trailer 2

The Land Remembers: The Story of a Farm and its People by Ben Logan

This classic American memoir is about a farm and its people, of a boyhood on a southwestern Wisconsin hilltop world in the 1930s. Ben Logan grew up on Seldom Seen Farm in Southwest Wisconsin with his three brothers, father, mother, and hired hand Lyle—“the fifth Logan boy.” The boys discussed and argued and joked over the events around their farm, marked the seasons by the demands of the land, tested each other and themselves, and grew up learning timeless lessons. This paperback edition features Logan's never-before-published afterword that traces the Logan land to an earlier time, bringing the story full circle to the farm and its people.

Article 

286 pages

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Uglies is set in a world in which everyone has an operation when they turn sixteen, making them supermodel beautiful. Big eyes, full lips, no one fat or skinny. You might think this is a good thing, but it’s not. Especially if you’re one of the Smokies, a bunch of radical teens who’ve decided they want to keep their own faces. (How anti-social of them.)

Uglies is a trilogy-plus-one, with Extras being a “companion novel” and told from a different point of view. Uglies (Uglies, #1), Pretties (Uglies, #2), Specials (Uglies, #3), Extras (Uglies, #4).

Video Booktalk

425 pages

Lexile 770

Stuff YA Readers Say

Video

The Here and Now by Ann Brashares

An unforgettable epic romantic thriller about a girl from the future who might be able to save the world . . . if she lets go of the one thing she’s found to hold on to.
Follow the rules. Remember what happened. Never fall in love.

This is the story of seventeen-year-old Prenna James, who immigrated to New York when she was twelve. Except Prenna didn’t come from a different country. She came from a different time—a future where a mosquito-borne illness has mutated into a pandemic, killing millions and leaving the world in ruins. 

Prenna and the others who escaped to the present day must follow a strict set of rules: never reveal where they’re from, never interfere with history, and never, ever be intimate with anyone outside their community. Prenna does as she’s told, believing she can help prevent the plague that will one day ravage the earth. 

But everything changes when Prenna falls for Ethan Jarves. 

242 pages
Lexile HL 670

Book trailer
Author Interview

Levianthan by Scott Westerfeld

It is the cusp of World War I. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ genetically fabricated animals as their weaponry. Their Leviathan is a whale airship, and the most masterful beast in the British fleet.

Aleksandar Ferdinand, a Clanker, and Deryn Sharp, a Darwinist, are on opposite sides of the war. But their paths cross in the most unexpected way, taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure….One that will change both their lives forever.

440 pages
Lexile 790

Video Book Talk

Zane and the Hurricane: A Story of Katrina by Rodman Philbrick

Zane Dupree is a charismatic 12-year-old boy of mixed race visiting a relative in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina hits. Unexpectedly separated from all family, Zane and his dog experience the terror of Katrina's wind, rain, and horrific flooding. Facing death, they are rescued from an attic air vent by a kind, elderly musician and a scrappy young girl--both African American. The chaos that ensues as storm water drowns the city, shelter and food vanish, and police contribute to a dangerous, frightening atmosphere, creates a page-turning tale that completely engrosses the reader. Based on the facts of the worst hurricane disaster in U.S. history, Philbrick includes the lawlessness and lack of government support during the disaster as well as the generosity and courage of those who risked their lives and safety to help others. Here is an unforgettable novel of heroism in the face of truly challenging circumstances.

Video Book Talk 
192 pages

Lexile- 860L