notes on books, teaching, and tech from your friendly neighborhood librarian
Shadow and Bone, by Leigh Bardugo
Fantasy
First line: “The servants called them malenchki, little ghosts, because they were the smallest and the youngest, and because they haunted the Duke’s house like giggling phantoms, darting in and out of rooms, hiding in cupboards to eavesdrop, sneaking into the kitchen to steal the last of the summer peaches.” Continue reading “Book of the Week: Shadow and Bone, by Leigh Bardugo”
The Boy Who Dared, by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Historical fiction
First line: “It’s morning. In a cell on the ground floor, the light shifts dark shapes into a small stool, a scrawny table, and a bed made of wooden boards with no mattress or blanket. On that bed, a thin, huddled figure, Helmuth, a boy of seventeen, lies awake. Shivering. Trembling. It’s a Tuesday. The executioner works on Tuesdays.” Continue reading “Book of the Week: The Boy Who Dared, by Susan Campbell Bartoletti”
Picture Me Gone, by Meg Rosoff
Mystery
First line: “The first Mila was a dog. A Bedlington terrier. It helps if you know these things.â€
Booktalk: 12-year-old Mila was named after her grandfather’s dog, who died 80 years ago, and sometimes she thinks that she has some dog-like traits. For example: she has a good sense of where she is, and where she’s going. She can sense people’s feelings. She is determined. She notices small details. And she’s very, very good at following a trail. Continue reading “Book of the Week: Picture Me Gone, by Meg Rosoff”
The Glass Sentence, by S.E. Grove
Fantasy/Adventure
First line: “It happened long ago, when I was only a child.”
Booktalk: 90 years ago, the Great Disruption threw the entire world into disarray. Europe was plunged back in time to the Dark Ages and cut off from the rest of the world. The United States was broken into pieces, with the East Coast in the 19th century, and the west spanning from prehistoric times to the far future. Some countries are stuck in the Ice Age, while others have glittering cities with three-hundred-story buildings and flying vehicles.
Sophia lives in 19th-century Boston with her uncle, the most famous mapmaker in New Occident. Maps in Sophia’s world – the world after the Great Disruption – don’t just show you the land, though – they can show you memories. Maps can be made of paper, or glass, or onions, or an entire lake. Maps might even have the power to rewrite history – and if Sophia wants to save her long-lost parents, she’ll have to figure out how to do it.
Similar titles: Leviathan (Scott Westerfeld), The Emerald Atlas (John Stephens), The Castle Behind Thorns (Merrie Haskell)
How to Say Goodbye in Robot, by Natalie Standiford
Realistic fiction
Booktalk: Meet Bea and Jonah – a.k.a. Robot Girl and Ghost Boy.
Bea’s mom called her Robot Girl because she didn’t cry when her gerbil – whom she’d named after a famous Nazi – died. But of course Bea doesn’t get too attached to things – she’s never lived in one place for more than a year. Continue reading “Book of the Week: How to Say Goodbye in Robot, by Natalie Standiford”
In the Shadows, by Kiersten White and Jim Di Bartolo
Fantasy/Graphic novel
First line: “The world swayed beneath Cora.”
Booktalk: This book contains two connected stories. Continue reading “Book of the Week: In the Shadows, by Kiersten White and Jim Di Bartolo”
Far Far Away, by Tom McNeal
Fantasy
First line: “What follows is the strange and fateful tale of a boy, a girl, and a ghost.”
Booktalk: We all think we know fairy tales. Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, Sleeping Beauty – there’s a bad guy and a princess and they all live happily ever after. At least they do in the Disney versions. Continue reading “Book of the Week: Far Far Away, by Tom McNeal”
Finnikin of the Rock, by Melina Marchetta
Fantasy
First line: “A long time ago, in the spring before the five days of the unspeakable, Finnikin of the Rock dreamed that he was to sacrifice a pound of flesh to save the royal house of Lumatere.” Continue reading “Book of the Week: Finnikin of the Rock, by Melina Marchetta”
So, in case you’re wondering, Mockingjay totally destroyed me. (I mean, in a good way. But still.) I finished the book last Tuesday (it’s possible that my roommate and I both bought the e-book at midnight, and then read it until work, then bought it in hardcover and read the rest on the way home) and have been more-or-less unable to accomplish anything since then. We discussed it at book club last night, and some of my library school pals have arranged a conference call (not kidding) to talk about it again next week, and I get to talk about it constantly with my co-workers and our fabulous t(w)een patrons, so…maybe at some point I’ll be productive again. But probably not for a while.
Plus, the library’s been closed for a couple weeks. We’re open again and back on our feet, but we will be playing catch-up for a while.
Upcoming programs for the fall: back-to-school party (in two weeks – maybe I should get on that); a program about fantasy books, which no one here reads, but I’m still determined to increase circ because come on, who doesn’t like dragons; a Wimpy Kid release party (and why is Jeff Kinney suddenly being so vague about whether or not this is the last book in the series?); and lots of fun things for the tweens: gaming, crafts, book club (we’re reading Gregor for October – I’m so excited), and a murder mystery party. We loved solving the Sammy Keyes mystery, so that should be a lot of fun.
Maybe I should plan those.
…or I’ll go think about Mockingjay some more.
So this has been a hot topic for a while now, and after (an embarrassing number of) hours spent considering the question, I have decided who should play the main characters in the Hunger Games movie. Since there are a lot of pictures, you’ll have to click through.
P.S. I definitely can’t wait 12 more days for this book, and I am super bummed that there were no ARCs this year.
Continue reading “Casting for the Hunger Games movie, obviously”