• Reviews

    The Iron Trial

    I’m still battling a wicked cold/flu thing that forced me to spend time relaxing this weekend, which allowed me to get a lot of reading done!  And boy, did it feel great!  I finished The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare and read all of I am Malala:…

  • Reviews

    My Not-Best List

    It’s been a particularly busy year for me – I bought a house in April, adopted a dog in August and in addition to working full-time, being an 2014 Emerging Leader for ALA and working with other committees as well.  That being said, I didn’t get the chance to read…

  • Lifestyle

    Boys Books vs. Girls Books

    I just read this article, “‘Where Are All The Boy Books?’ You’re Buying Them” that was posted last Monday by Kelly Jensen on Book Riot.  It takes a look at the 2014 Top-Selling Children’s and Young Adult books on Amazon and found that there are a number of “boy” books…

  • Lifestyle

    Bibliotherapy for Teens

    Over the past month or so, there has been a lot of talk about bibliotherapy for teens, specifically in an article published in School Library Journal, dealing with “tough” topics including depression, eating disorders, OCD, PTSD and more.  It’s a wonderful way to connect kids to realistic characters that are dealing with these…

  • Lifestyle

    National Book Award Finalists

    It’s getting close to the time of year when the “Best of the Best” lists come out for just about everything – including books!  The National Book Award just posted it’s finalists in its four areas Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, and Young People’s Literature.  As per usual, I’m really only interested…

  • Lifestyle

    Cybils Nominations

    Nominate your favorite books published between October 16, 2013 and October 15, 2014 in the following categories: Young Adult Non-fiction Young Adult Speculative Fiction Young Adult Fiction Poetry Book Apps Middle Grade Fiction Elementary/Middle Grade Speculative Fiction Elementary/Middle Grade Non-fiction Fiction Picture Books Graphics Easy Reader/Short Chapter Books for the…

  • Reviews

    Shiver Me Timbers…

    It’s International Talk Like a Pirate Day!  And with that being said, here’s my (condensed) list of must-read pirate books!  I could have gone on forever, but I’ll hold back and list only ten. Dirty Joe the Pirate: A Tue Story by Bill Harley You can’t go wrong when it…

  • Lifestyle

    "Important Life Lessons We Learned From Children's Books"

    When people ask what I do for a living, many people respond with, “Have you read _________?” And that’s where I say, “If it’s an adult book, probably not.  I read mostly children’s books.”  And unless the person I’m conversing with is a teacher or works with children, they often…

  • Reviews

    Book Review: The Selection

    Looking for a quick read?  The Selection is the perfect choice.  A chick-lit, YA book, I read the whole thing in almost one sitting as it was a quick and very easy read.  America Singer wants very little in her young life, to continue singing and playing instruments and the…

  • Activities

    David Lubar Author Visit

    Last night, children’s and young adult author, David Lubar came to visit our library where 75 excited patrons got the chance to hear him talk about how he became a writer, great tips for beginning writers, asked some wonderful questions and got books signed by the author himself.  This was…