7.29.2014

Dungeons and Dragons


"I won Dungeons and Dragons, and it was advanced!" - Pierce Hawthorne

Dungeons and Dragons game


Local Dungeonmaster Matt Brinn leads a session of battling, puzzle-solving, and monster-slaying. Beginners welcome!

Saturday, August 9
Children's Story & Craft Room, Upper Level

Grades 6 - 8
12PM - 1:30PM

Grades 7 - 12
2PM - 4PM




7.28.2014

Staff Pick: Ash by Malinda Lo


Cinderella retold...

In the wake of her father's death, Ash is left at the mercy of her cruel stepmother. Consumed with grief, her only joy comes by the light of the dying hearth fire, rereading the fairy tales her mother once told her. In her dreams, someday the fairies will steal her away, as they are said to do. When she meets the dark and dangerous fairy Sidhean, she believes that her wish may be granted.

The day that Ash meets Kaisa, the King's Huntress, her heart begins to change. Instead of chasing fairies, Ash learns to hunt with Kaisa. Though their friendship is as delicate as a new bloom, it reawakens Ash's capacity for love-and her desire to live. But Sidhean has already claimed Ash for his own, and she must make a choice between fairy tale dreams and true love.

Entrancing, empowering, and romantic, Ash is about the connection between life and love, and solitude and death, where transformation can come from even the deepest grief.

Pick it: if you're into classic fairy tales, but never really understood the big deal about the various Princes Charming. I loved the concept of the Huntress and the character herself was fantastic - I wish the Ash prequel Huntress were about Kaisa. 

Skip it: if you can't stand another fairy tale retelling. Give me something original, you cry!

Pair with: Lament by Maggie Stiefvater - not a fairy tale but plenty of fairies. 

7.25.2014

Teen Lock-in: Big Kid Story Time

#FridayFact: Story Time is not just for little kids. 

A Modern Village School- Education in Cambridgeshire, England, UK, 1944 D23630


Come live out your secret From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler fantasies and join us in the library past closing time (until 8 o'clock!) for classic kid snacks, old-school board games, a blanket fort contest, and more. 

Friday, August 1, 4:45 - 8PM
Open to grades 8-12 with a permission slip.
Children's Library, Upper Level

7.21.2014

Staff Pick: Cress by Marissa Meyer

Cress by Marissa Meyer
From goodreads.com:

In this third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army. 

Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl imprisoned on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice. 

When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.


Pick it: for a book that mashes up your favorite fairy tales with some dystopian sci-fi. 

Skip it: if you want more crowns and gowns in your YA fairytales.

Pair with: another twisted fairy tale, Beastly by Alex Flinn - or check out the first two books in the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder and Scarlet.

Reviewed by: Deena

7.14.2014

Staff Pick: The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
From goodreads:

Tana lives in a world where walled cities called Coldtowns exist. In them, quarantined monsters and humans mingle in a decadently bloody mix of predator and prey. The only problem is, once you pass through Coldtown’s gates, you can never leave.

One morning, after a perfectly ordinary party, Tana wakes up surrounded by corpses. The only other survivors of this massacre are her exasperatingly endearing ex-boyfriend, infected and on the edge, and a mysterious boy burdened with a terrible secret. Shaken and determined, Tana enters a race against the clock to save the three of them the only way she knows how: by going straight to the wicked, opulent heart of Coldtown itself.

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown is a wholly original story of rage and revenge, of guilt and horror, and of love and loathing from bestselling and acclaimed author Holly Black.


Pick itif you’re looking for a book that mixes paranormal romance with a touch of dystopia. Tana is definitely not a main character who shies away from danger or bad decisions - maybe she's just your type of girl.

Skip itif you’ve had enough bloodsuckers to last you for the next few years.

Pair with: Diabolical by Cynthia Leitich Smith for an even more heightened paranormal drama set in New England.

Reviewed by: Deena

7.11.2014

Join Us for Teen Open Mic Night on July 17


We know you're a star. Your stuffed animals think your comedy routine is hilarious. Your writing journal is ready for you to branch out into slam poetry. The hairbrush you've been using as a microphone is secretly convinced you should try out for The Voice (however, it does want you to consider a song other than "Let It Go"). Showcase your stuff at our Teen Open Mic Night! 

If you're not in the performing mood, join us in the audience to see some amazing local talent. Performer sign-up begins at 6:00, show begins at 6:30.

Open to grades 7-12.
 Thursday, July 17
6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

 Java City Cafe Outdoor Patio
No Registration Required

7.10.2014

Divergent Day - July 16


Feeling brave? Peaceful? Selfless? Honest? Intelligent? A tricky mix? 

Find your faction!  Join us on Wednesday, July 16 for some outdoor fun inspired by the bestselling Divergent series. 

Open to grades 7 - 12. 
Friendship Grove

7.07.2014

Staff Pick: Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein
From goodreads

While flying an Allied fighter plane from Paris to England, American ATA pilot and amateur poet, Rose Justice, is captured by the Nazis and sent to Ravensbrück, the notorious women's concentration camp. Trapped in horrific circumstances, Rose finds hope in the impossible through the loyalty, bravery and friendship of her fellow prisoners. But will that be enough to endure the fate that's in store for her?

Elizabeth Wein, author of the critically-acclaimed and best-selling Code Name Verity, delivers another stunning WWII thriller. The unforgettable story of Rose Justice is forged from heart-wrenching courage, resolve, and the slim, bright chance of survival.


Pick it: for an incredible story of female friendship in the face of one of history's most devastating tragedies. I was really moved by the way Wein entwined historical facts into this story of an unlikely prisoner.

Skip it: if you prefer your fiction a little more modern.

Pair with: Wein's Code Name Verity for more female-driven WWII stories. 

Reviewed by: Deena