East Liberty’s Teen Book Club: What will we read next??

Once a month, since the fall, a small group of teens has been meeting at East Liberty to discuss books.  As the book discussion facilitator, I think you should think about joining us.

You never know what will come up in a book discussion.  So far we’ve read Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi, Panther Baby by Jamal Joseph, and a smattering of  poetry, including some of Anne Sexton’s takes on Grimm’s Fairy Tales in her Transformations.  

   

We’ve talked about whether the American Dream is essentially depressing, how the world might look in 10-20 years time, the politics of the late 60s in America and why there’s not a Black Panther Party today, community service, and the difference between “bird sitting on a branch” poetry and poetry you might want to read.

Books are a great place to start from if you want to end up talking about anything and everything.

Next month we will be reading Ready Player One by Ernest Cline.  This is a story of a puzzle quest in an immersive online world, called OASIS, coded and put together by a reclusive computer genius obsessed with the culture of the 1980s.  Whoever solves his puzzle – by successfully collecting 3 keys– will inherit a giant fortune.  Five years after the announcement of the puzzle, and the genius’s death, the first key is found by a teenager in Oklahoma City.  And the race is on.

So put your copy on hold today and discuss with us on Saturday, March 16th at 2 pm.  80s music and snacks provided.

-Tessa, CLP – East Liberty.

Journey to the Pacific Northwest

Over Christmas, I will be heading back to the Pacific Northwest, where I spent the first twenty-something years of my life.  Yes, I’m excited to see friends and family.  But there’s just something about that ol’ PNW that you can’t find anywhere else.  The dreary, wet, somber, gray weather of winter, surrounded by old growth forests and mountain peaks that you know are there, even if you can’t quite see them through the gloom.

A colleague, upon hearing that I grew up in the Northwest, asked me what it was like to grow up in the land of serial killers.  While that’s not exactly fair, I’ve compiled a list of books set in Washington (state) that may give you a sense of why it’s an appealing location for serial killers, vampires, time travellers, sinister doppelgangers, ghosts, and just plain regular folks like you and me.  Happy reading!

An Unexpected Journey Begins!

It has been a long wait, but The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey movie is finally being released next weekend.  The Hobbit has always been one of my favorite books and I loved the LOTR movies by Peter Jackson.  I already checked out our copy of the book to read next week before I see the movie.  If you are looking for things to do before the movie is released, the Carnegie Library has a TON of options for you!

Some ways you canYou can read the book by JRR Tolkien, watch the Lord of the Rings movies, or attend the Night in Wilderland: Hobbit Movie Anticipation Party at the Main Library next Thursday at 8:30!

You can also watch the trailer for the new movie by clicking on the image below:

Jim-CLP Sheraden

Teen Influences: The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

Hi! My name is Noori, and I am going to be a senior at The Ellis School.  I live near the middle of nowhere, my taste in music is a tad on the eccentric side, I love photography, I’m absolutely obsessed with the 1920′s, I love to read poetry and also really wish that I had the talent actually write some, I love shopping, and I do not have any pets, though I would love to have a cat! I have always loved to read, & I read as many different types of books as possible, although my favorites are mostly classics.  One of my favorite authors, F. Scott Fitzgerald, once said, ““That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you’re not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.”, and I could not agree more.  Reading is more than a hobby for me – it is a passion.  It’s endless entertainment, and it is always engaging. 

English wasn’t always my favorite subject.  Honestly, I recall absolutely hating it until 9^th grade. At my school, English was never really a grammar based class.  It was always more of a literature class.  I think people eventually come upon something (in my case it was a book) which initially pulls them into a subject. I mean, I did always read a lot, even when I was little, but I did not enjoy reading classic literature.  Honestly, what kid in middle school really does? I think that my love for literature and, in turn, my love for English class can all be brought back to one initial book that lured me in.

The summer before 9^th grade, we had to read The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger.  For people who have not read it, the novel covers two days in the life of Holden Caulfield, a tall and skinny, anxious and depressed teenager who flunks out of boarding school.  Salinger’s Holden Caulfield is so relatable for teenagers, probably because he is one himself. Like one of my favorite Fitzgerald quotes above states of literature, the novel left me feeling both engaged and connected with the dialogue and characters. As Holden wanders through New York City, utterly lost while still so cocky in his attitude towards others, I saw someone who I could relate to.  Though the average teenager, myself included, does not feel nearly as mentally unstable as Holden probably is, one does feel a bit of reassurance in Holden’s nihilistic attitude.  Clichés present adolescence as a time of “finding oneself” – most teenagers would more likely agree that it is a time of being lost. Arguably, these two things may be the same, but there is a difference in the outlook, a difference in perspective. Being a teenager means feeling sort of lost, and through Holden Caulfield, one realizes that though he/she may feel lost, he/she is not alone.  Reading a book is like taking a trip through someone else’s mind.  Through this, we find similarities and we have the ability to see differences in the ways in which people think.  I think that this makes reading a very vital activity, because through reading, one acquires a better understanding of both him or herself and people in general.  Reading makes us more understanding of people, their emotions, situations, behavior, etc., and, in turn, we become more empathetic.

The Catcher in the Rye led me to a revelation that literature is not always stuffy.  I guess it was a sort of literary awakening!  I realized that literature isn’t just about old dead people doing boring things a long time ago – it is interesting and relevant. Literature does not mean always reading books like Pride and Prejudice and Jane Eyre, where everything clearly seems like it occurred a long time ago.  That being said, I’m not saying that either of those two novels is any less credible.  They are just harder to relate to initially – at least they were for me.  The Catcher in the Rye acted as a sort of gateway to more classic literature for me.  After reading this book, I began to enjoy English class.  I loved discussing it, because I felt like I really understood the book’s meaning and its purpose.  In the words of Holden, English class no longer felt “phony” to me – I finally felt like I could have a connection to the books that I read.  Soon after, I began reading more and more, and I began to love all of it.  I graduated from The Catcher in the Rye to books like Lolita, Crime and Punishment, Wuthering Heights, Tess of the d’Urbervilles, and almost every book that  F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway have ever written.  The Catcher in the Rye introduced me into a literature in a way that made all of those books that we hear about, that sound so pretentious, distant, and scary, relatable and real. Now I know that I want to major in English Literature in college, and I owe it to this one book for developing my interest and passion. That begin said, I think that The Catcher in the Rye is a book that everyone should read.  Even if you don’t normally read much and you feel like reading doesn’t really interest you, I strongly recommend giving it a chance! You never know how one relatively small book could impact you.

Teen Review: Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

My name is Clara, and I am 14 years old. I go to Science And Technology Academy and I am in the 10th grade. In my spare time when I’m not reading a good book, I dance in competions, do cheerleading, and play sports.

Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

Hello fellow readers! I just finished reading Perfect by Ellen Hopkins, and I wanted to tell you how great the book is! The book is all about the struggles that teens in everyday life face, with trying to please their parents, trying to fit in, and mostly tring to be perfect in the eyes of others.  In the story, four high school seniors struggle with trying to be perfect and the problems they encounter from these struggles.   The poetry in the book only make the book easier and more fun to read, and lets you veiw the characters through different eyes. I would recomend this book to anyone who likes reading edgy teen books, and wouldn’t mind opening their eyes to something new.

Memorable Memoirs

I am nosy and I love learning about the lives of others—partly because it makes me feel more normal.  Reading about other people is one of the more socially acceptable ways to learn about the idiosyncrasies and sordid histories of real people.  Generally, I can’t get behind biographies, autobiographies, let alone any other type of nonfiction.  But stick a well-written memoir in my hands, and I’m hooked from beginning to end.

Because memoirs are artistic retellings of a life, they are more narrative and have more of a story structure than other nonfiction genres.  According to Wikipedia, “Memoirs are structured differently from formal autobiographies (which tend to encompass the writer’s entire life span), focusing rather on the development of his or her personality…  [The memoir] is therefore more focused and flexible than the traditional arc of birth to old age as found in an autobiography.”

Here are a few engaging memoirs, highly recommended,  to use as an escape away from this heat wave into someone else’s life.  You can also find a wonderful list of memoirs on our Teen page.

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

This book documents the author’s childhood with an alcoholic father and unattentive mother. Under these circumstances, Walls and her siblings were forced to fend for themselves, providing their own food, shelter and clothing–even if it meant picking through dumpsters.

The Pregnancy Project by Gaby Rodriguez

In this book, Rodriguez shares her experience growing up in the shadow of low expectations, reveals how she was able to fake her own pregnancy, and reveals all that she learned from the experience. Stereotypes, and how one girl found the strength to come out from the shadow of low expectations to forge a bright future for herself.

America’s Boy: A Memoir by Wade Rouse

Born in 1965 into a small town in the heartland of America, Wade Rouse didn’t quite fit in. He struggles with his own identity through the loss of a brother and the traumas of being different.

Breaking Night by Liz Murray

The memoir of a young woman who at age 15 was living on the streets but survived to make it to Harvard.

Teen Review: Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

My name is Jayne. I’m fourteen. I go to CAPA for Visual Arts, but I love to write so much more. Creative writing has been apart of my life for so long now; I feel lost without it. I’m obsessed with everything British, Beatles, Tim Burton movies, and Harry Potter. Oh and cats! I hope you love what I review and I hope you comment and tell me what I could do better. Anyway, thanks for reading!

Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

Struck was a difficult read and it wasn’t because of the writing. The writing was terrific. It was Bosworth’s premise. Struck was about a girl named Mia Price. She lives in Los Angeles with her brother, Parker, and their mother. They moved to Los Angeles because Mia is a lightning addict. That’s right, a lightning addict. She feeds on being struck by lightning, hence the title. Tragedy strikes in LA and an earthquake takes out most of Downtown La. All skyscrapers are taken down, except for one. The Tower.

At school, Mia and Parker are being talked to about a man called Rance Ridley. He has his own show, The Hour of Light. He is to be known as the Prophet. He is telling all of Los Angeles that God will make a storm that will be even worse than the earthquake. Then there are the Seekers, who is run by Mia’s English teacher. Don’t forget Katrina, the goth girl who is also a leader. She catches Mia in the girls’ bathroom trying to be recruited by Rachel, now a follower of the Prophet.

Then a mysterious child named Jeremy (who’s a teenager) is the Clark Kent in this story. He may be a nerd, but he may be a super hero underneath. He claims to know Mia and how she has been affected by lightning in the other cities she’s lived in before LA.

The reason why I found this difficult to read was because it kept referencing the apocalyptic cliches. For instance, “God will save you if you sell your soul to him.” I am not the type of person who can take a lot of that banter and all, but if you like that type of thing, you’ll love this book.

Teen Review: Tempest by Julie Cross

My name is Jenna. I go to a high school where I’m part of the marching band and the cheerleading squad. I’m pretty busy, but I always find time to read. I’m also very creative and I like doing little crafts out of random things I find.

Tempest by Julie Cross

Jackson seems like a normal guy on the outside. He is a college student, volunteers, and has a wonderful girlfriend. But in reality, he is holding a very interesting secret. He can time travel, or rather, perform time jumps. He can go back and forth to different years, without any consequences except sickness.

The present year, otherwise known as the home base year, is 2009. The only person that knows about Jackson’s time traveling is his best friend, Adam. Adam and Jackson perform experiments to try and fully grasp how powerful this time traveling is.

When visiting his girlfriend, Holly, at her college dorm room, strange men bombarded the two and Holly was fatally shot. On instinct, Jackson time jumped. This time, he couldn’t get back to 2009.

Jackson ended up in 2007, two years before meeting Holly, and now he doesn’t know how to get back to 2009 or what is going to happen to Holly.

With nothing else to do, Jackson starts to search for answers. He finds out a whole different side of his father that he never knew, and he decides that he wants to meet the 2007 Holly and Adam. Jackson opens up a whole new level of dark secrets about his abilities, and once he learns about them, he can’t go back.

This novel was interesting and the main character Jackson was extremely lovable and readers will admire him for all of his brave decisions. The time travel talk could get confusing at times, but the time travel that Julie Cross invented is very interesting and unique. This novel is a page-turner… a very suspenseful and gripping story.

From Blogs to Books

Around  the library, all my colleagues seem to want to talk about are eBooks.  “Will eBooks replace printed materials?  If so, what will the future of libraries look like?  Are we librarians doomed?!?”  Not so, says I.  The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh is currently expanding our collection of popular teen eBooks and making them available to download and check out on a variety of eReaders.  But this is not a blog post about eBooks, this a blog post about blog posts.  Despite all of the hand wringing and doom and gloom, I want to shed light on a curious phenomena in our digital world which is that many of the web’s most popular blogs are transforming themselves from digital to analog.  PUBLISHERS ARE PRINTING WORDS AND PICTURES THAT ORIGINATED ONLINE ONTO PAGES MADE FROM PAPER AND BINDING THEM TOGETHER INTO SOMETHING WE CALL BOOKS!  Librarians of the world rejoice!  Here are a few of my favorites:

5 Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (And Other Useful Guides)

Awkward Family Photos

Crap at my Parents’ House

Damn You Autocorrect!: Awesomely Embarrassing Text Messages You Didn’t Mean to Send

Fail Nation: A Visual Romp Through the World of Epic Fails

Hipster Puppies

Hungover Owls

I am Maru

I Can Has Cheezburger: A LOLcat Collekshun

People of Wal-Mart: Shop and Awe

Stuff on my Cat: the Book

Texts from Last Night: All the Texts No One Remembers Sending

When Parents Text: So Much Said… So Little Understood

And maybe- just maybe- one day you’ll pick up a copy of CLPTeensburgh: the Book!

New Teen Book Club at CLP Main

From Emily Carlin's Flickr Stream

I love to read and discuss books- that’s why I became a librarian!  Strangely though, I’ve always been reluctant to join a book club.  I find that the hardest part about committing to one is being required to read a specific book- the same one as everyone else!  Maybe I have a problem with authority, but I just don’t like being told what to read and I bet you don’t either.  That’s why I’ve started a different kind of book club.  The days of having to read the same title as everyone else in order to participate are over, my friends!  CLP Main- Teen is modeling a new kind of book club for teens.  Here’s how it works:

• Every month the discussion will focus on a different theme.
• Try to bring a book you’ve read and enjoyed that relates to the theme.
• Meet other teens who love reading and learn about their favorite books.

So, now you have no excuses.  Participation is as simple as showing up.  In fact, come by even if you don’t have a book in mind to talk about.  Share a little about a great movie you saw or an article you read on the subject.  And by the time you leave, you’ll have a whole list of new titles you’ll want to check out.

Fourth Tuesday of Every Month
4:oo pm to 5 pm
CLP Main- Teen
4400 Forbes Ave.
For more information or to register, contact teensmain@carnegielibrary.org or 412.622.5526

Themes for upcoming book clubs include:
February 28: African American Voices
March 27: Sports, Games, and Gaming
April 24: Poetry and Novels in Verse

Don’t know what to read?  Ask a librarian for a suggestion or check out CLP’s monthly, featured books lists.