Books on Screen

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Logan Lerman and Ezra Miller shine in this adaptation of Stephen Chbosky's novel. Logan takes us through Charlie's journey from awkward self-contained kid to fully defined adolescent. And Ezra really captures Patrick's irrepressible nature. This is one of those books that people tend to love wholeheartedly and if you're anything like me, that makes watching a movie adaptation a little bit frightening. If that describe you, give this movie a chance. It really does the book justice.

Guest review - Fractured and Shattered

In July, Elizabeth Murphy shared her review of Slated. She joins us again today to review the sequels, Fractured and Shattered.

Title: Fractured and Shattered
Author: Teri Terry
Genre: youth fiction
Similar books: The Program by Suzanne Young
                     Uglies by Scott Westerfield
Rating:

Kyla, with a happy ending

Summary: In Fractured, Kyla recovers some of her memories. She is not sure what is what and continues her quest to find out who she is. Also, her friend Ben had removed his wrist device and she has no idea if he even survived. Kyla joins the terrorists and helps them prepare to go after the Lorders who control who gets slated.
In Shattered, the plot becomes very iffy. Kyla isn't sure who she is or who to trust -- she is being used by some of the terrorists and her psych doctor seems to be a part of the Lorder system. She continues to try and find out who her parents were. She seems to be protected by the system. Her dreams continue and bring back memories of her past.
Your opinion: These books continued to hold my interest. Kyla had all kinds of close call adventures, but all was resolved in the end -- almost too neatly. I had a little trouble with why she seemed to be so attached to Ben. I hadn't thought it was that serious a relationship in book 1. There were some very surprising developments regarding Kyla's "real" mother. I did love some of the technology presented, such as the "environmentally friendly high speed train" and the coded footsteps to the right train.

Book review - Words and Their Meanings

Title: Words and Their Meanings
Author: Kate Bassett
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: Being Henry David by Cal Armistead
                     The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen by Susan Nielsen
Rating: 

Heart-breaking and lovely

Summary: It's been one year since Anna's beloved Uncle Joe died. In one year her family has completely fallen apart. Her parents think it's time for her to move on but Anna doesn't know how. Secrets and guilt weigh her down. Matters worsen when she discovers a note Joe wrote before he died - a note that indicates that the uncle she idolized may not have been such a good person.
My Opinion: What a heart-breaking look at grief and secrets. You've got this family that has completely fallen apart. They are giving up things that they love. Anna is so weighed down with guilt that she is barely living. The events immediately following the one year anniversary force them to confront their secrets and emotions. All of this pain and fear and loss is wrapped up in levels of beauty. Beautiful actions and beautifully written prose. It's a book that you could read several times as continually pick up new gems in the writing. Read it for plot. Read it for beauty.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley.

Playing with marbles

A year ago I bought a bag of marbles for a craft. After using a couple, the rest of the bag has just sat on a shelf ever since. So, when I got out my clay the other day I thought I'd experiment with the marbles. I'm pretty pleased with the result.

Marble snails

Acorn pendants

 

My summer faces

As part of our summer reading program this year the head of our youth department, Keli, decided to set the kids a challenge. We wanted them to read a total of 1500 books over the course of the program (a small improvement on last year's 1400ish). As they reached various milestones along the way we wore assorted costumes as a reward. Here's what my summer looked like costume-wise.

Red Day - 100 books

Sports/College Day - 250 books

Cape Day - 500 books

Hat Day - 750 books

Clash Day - 1000 books

Crazy Hair Day - 1250 books

And the biggie:

Mad Scientist Day - 1500 books

Book review - Zac and Mia

Title: Zac and Mia
Author: A.J. Betts
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick
                     Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King
Rating: 

Unput-down-able

Summary: Zac has been in isolation after a bone marrow transplant for a month. With only his mother for company he's going a little stir crazy. Then he gets a new neighbor on the oncology ward. Mia is newly diagnosed and angry. After only a handful of Facebook conversations (which never seem to end well) Zac is sent home to continue his recovery. He expects to move on with his life and never see Mia again, though he can't help but wonder how she is doing. Then one day, her life going wrong, Mia tracks Zac down.
My Opinion: Firstly, this book is bound to be compared to The Fault in Our Stars. It's inevitable. Both books are about kids with cancer and their romantic connections. My recommendation is, put that out of your mind. Forget John Green while you are reading this and appreciate it on it's own merit. You have these two fantastic characters. Zac is very rational. He believes in statistics and hard science. Mia is emotional. Every response she gives is guttural and instinctual. Their approaches to their illnesses are different. Zac sees it as a trial to get through, Mia as something to fight in every moment. It is more than these things too. It's a story about choosing hope, choosing to fight for every moment. Already an award winner in it's native Australia, I imagine it won't be long before Zac and Mia gets a lot of attention here in the States as well.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley.

Graphic Novel Spotlight: Tomboy

Tomboy: a graphic memoir by Liz Prince

This is, to my mind, the graphic novel for teens who feel marginalized or out of place. Liz is a self-described tomboy. From an early age she refuses to wear dresses, skirts, or anything "girly". She prefers toys that are favored by boys. Her role models are all male. She is quickly ostracized in elementary school and finds herself questioning her own identity. 
This is the story of a girl who doesn't fit into a traditional societal definition. She defies gender norms but still defines herself as female. She simply wants to define womanhood for herself. And that ultimate realization, that you can still be a woman even if you don't act in a socially traditional manner, is what makes this graphic novel stand out to me. Liz Prince has this way of explaining her ideas without becoming preachy, leading us to her realizations, that felt like a conversation with a friend instead of a lecture. Plus, this memoir is equal parts funny and meaningful. You will laugh and you might just cry a little.

Personally, I went through phases like this myself. My favorite outfit in the second grade was my Peter Pan costume.