The Joy of Books YouTube Video

Have you ever wondered what happens in a bookstore (or library for that matter) when the lights go down? Check out this wonderfully animated stop-motion YouTube video created by Type bookstore in Toronto.

2012 Printz Award Winner Announced

In libraryland there are a couple of awards that are given to teen books that make librarians sit up and notice. One of these is the Printz, which is awarded to a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature. Today, the 2012 winner was announced! And the winner is: Where Things Come Back, by John Corey Whaley. In addition, there were four Printz Honor books awarded to: Why We Broke Up, by Daniel Handler (art by Maira Kalman); Jasper Jones, by Craig Silvey; The Scorpio Races, by Maggie Stiefvater and The Returning, by Christine Hinwood (currently no copies at DMPL).  As always, if there is a book that appeals to you, click on the link to our catalog and place a request using your library card and PIN.

   

Check out the official book trailer for Where Things Come Back:

eBooks!

Did you get an eReader for the holidays? Did you know there are lots of great teen eBooks you can check out from the library? It’s easy! Click here to find your eReader. You will find instructions that will take you step-by-step through the process of getting a library eBook on your device. Click here to go straight to Wilbor eBooks and discover your next great read. Oh, and did I mention it’s all FREE?! Happy reading!

Things you will need:

• library card number
• pin number
• eReader
• computer (depending on your device)
• USB cable (depending on your device)

Franklin TAB Recommends…

Check out these picks made by the Franklin Avenue Library Teen Advisory Board. All items can be checked out at the Des Moines Public Library! Click on an image to make your request.

For more information about the Franklin TAB:

Win prizes in just seconds!

Join the teens at the Forest Avenue Library Tuesday, January 17th at 4:00 for a lightning-fast card game tournament! Players will redeem their game chips at the end of the tournament for prizes including books, sweets and more!

2011 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 13,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 5 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

Graceling, Fire and Bitterblue

We just finished Graceling here at the East Side book club, and generally liked the story, characters and thinking about that age-old question:

What would your super power be?

The reviews on the next book in the series, Fire, though were more mixed. Any other readers want to weigh in? Did you read both books and what did you think? Why were the books so different, and did you relate differently to the characters?

The third book in the Graceling universe, Bitterblue, is coming out in May and will return to the characters from Graceling.

Next up for the East Side book club: The Adoration of Jenna Fox.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Laini Taylor’s new book, Daughter of Smoke and Bone (the first in a trilogy), has been receiving rave reviews. Universal studios even bought the rights to turn it into a movie (though no date is set yet). So what is this book about, you ask? Well, here is an excerpt from Laini Taylor’s website:

“AROUND THE WORLD, black hands are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth is growing dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.”

This book has it all: angels; demons; mythology; boarding schools; artists; and more!

Daughter of Smoke and Bone has a series of book trailers; here’s another one:

It’s that time of year!

Are you looking for a great holiday romance to read this season? Here are a few of my favorites:

Click on the book covers above to be directed to our library catalog.

What are some of your favorite holiday reads? Favorite holiday movies?

Looking for a good book?

Did you know that that “Reads” link at the top of our teen blog will now take you to the wonderful DMPL wiki for reading recommendations? Our reading lists are now all conveniently linked to our catalog so you can easily see what books are available or make a request. We have read-alike lists, teen fiction genre lists, award books, and more! If you have any suggestions for new lists we can add, please contact the teen specialist at your DMPL location! Here are a few books from the Teen Best of 2011 from Kirkus reviews: