TeenScene @ WPL

10 Unexpected Things You Can Check Out at the Library

Posted on April 29th, 2013 by Becky.
Categories: All posts.

BEHOLD THE POWER OF YOUR LIBRARY CARD!

You know you can get books and movies and music, but did you know about these?

Here are 10 Unexpected Things You Can Check Out at the Westerville Public Library!

Hope there is something on this list you didn’t know and are excited to try!

1) Book baskets (or whatever you want to put in them!).

2) Bike locks (for bikes parked at the library).

3) Blu-rays.

4) Playaway Audiobooks and Playaway Views.

5) Artwork & art prints.

6) Kill A Watt EZ energy meter kits.

7) Nook e-readers (some restrictions apply).

Laptops (in-house only; some restrictions apply).

9) Videogames (in-house only).

10) Book Discussion Kits for kids & adults.

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2013 Teens’ Top Ten Nominees Announced!

Posted on April 20th, 2013 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

The 28 titles that are nominees for The Young Adult Library Association’s  Teen’s Top Ten award have been announced. I am really excited because I haven’t read most of them yet–YEAH SUMMER READING!!! That is the fun…now that the nominees are announced we have all summer to read the books and then voting for the top ten will begin in August.

Why should you care about this? I’ll tell ya why–because this award is chosen BY teens FOR teens…not by your teachers or your auntie…these are the books that matter to you. So, speak up!I can’t vote on these—but you can!*

Here are the nominees…reserve your copy today!

*ASSUMING that the “YOU” who is reading this is, in fact, a teenager and NOT an alien life form masquerading as a teen human in order to spend your Earth days eating chips and playing video games…or an actual human adult.

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Astrological Readers’ Advisory: Books for Aries

Posted on April 3rd, 2013 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

Are you an Aries? Do you know any Aries? If you are an Aries or you know an Aries, I don’t need to tell you about this powerful astrological sign. But what should an Aries be reading?

Running from March 21 to April 19, people born under this sign of the Ram are known to be powerful personalities. Often seen as passionate, romantic, powerful, impulsive and firey! The HATE anything boring, ambiguous or mundane. SO–what exactly do these firey busy-bodies like to read? Scroll on down for a heaping helping of Aries reads right in time for your birthday Aries!

OMG! Margo may be an Aries! She is wild and unpredictable and after a wild midnight adventure with mild mannered Q--Margo is missing! Q is obsessed with her and the clues he is sure she left him about what she is doing and where she has gone.

Everyone has a wild friend, but what if hanging out with your wild friend could get you ARRESTED!? Julie wants to be cool and doesn't want her wild child best friend to ditch her but can Julie stand the pressure of living outside the law?

As a player in NERVE, an anonymous game of dares broadcast live online, high-schooler Vee is unhappy to be watched constantly but finds it exhilarating to be paired with handsome Ian taking ever riskier dares--until the stakes become too high.

Aries are often good leaders...this story finds Cassie relocating to New Salem, pursuing a romance with Adam, and assuming joint leadership over an elite coven of witches whose loyalty is tested as Cassie prepares to confront a latest evil force.

Talk about a Aries style power struggle!! In a small town on the coast of California, everyone over the age of fourteen suddenly disappears, setting up a battle between the remaining town residents and the students from a local private school, as well as those who have "The Power" and are able to perform supernatural feats and those who do not.

The dark side of an Aries...controlling and power hungry: In Omaha, Nebraska, twelve-year-old Oliver Watson has everyone convinced that he is extremely stupid and lazy, but he is actually a very wealthy, evil genius, and when he decides to run for seventh-grade class president, nothing will stand in his way.

You know what else Aries are know for? They inspire people to be better and DO better! American-educated Jordanian Luma Mufleh founds a youth soccer team comprised of children from Liberia, Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Balkan states, and elsewhere in the refugee settlement town of Clarkston, Georgia, bringing the children together to discover their common bonds as they adjust to life in a new homeland.

Finally--Aries are wildly romantic and passionate about their beliefs. When passions collide--then the fireworks begin: The crumbling friendship between writer Lita and entrepreneurial Adam is compromised by unexpected jealousies over each other's romantic entanglements, stolen blog posts and a premature offer to sell a new self-help book

All right–do you agree? Any books to add to Aries’ reading list? Give me a shout back in the comments.
Till next time, stay firey!

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Teen Challenge Accepted; Pizza Approved

Posted on March 27th, 2013 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

Our 2013 Teen Challenge is under way! This month’s book was all about the poetry of life and words…Ellen Hopkin’s dramatic teen novel in verse, Tilt. We dissected the book and made our own poems and of course ate our way through a few pizzas for book club energy. We sent Ellen Hopkins some pictures of our meeting and she wrote back! WOW!

Our teens have read 3/12 of our book challenges and have made those books come to life at our monthly book club meeting…

In January we read Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children and even got some feedback from the book’s author about our awesomely peculiar collages!!

In February we read John Green’s bestseller tear-jerker The Fault in our Stars, then we dried our tears with pizza and made some book swag…

Next month’s book and meeting explores the dark world of Frankenstein…are you UP FOR THE CHALLENGE?

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Full Steam Ahead! Books and Programs for Steampunk Fans

Posted on March 12th, 2013 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts, Art & Craftiness.

The new book shelf in the teen room looks awesome these days–full of alternate history and steampunk machinery. New to steampunk? I like Wikipedia’s explanation:

 Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction that typically features steam-powered machinery,^[1] especially in a setting inspired by industrialized Western civilization during the 19th century. Therefore, steampunk works are often set in an alternate history of the 19th century’s British Victorian era or American “Wild West”, in a post-apocalyptic future during which steam power has regained mainstream use, or in a fantasy world that similarly employs steam power.

Often fast-paced and fun, Steampunk gets a lot of attention…so give it a go! Check out our latest additions or browse our favorite steampunk novels from our catalog or through our Steampunk Explore guide. Want to look the part? Join us next week for our  Cosplay: It’s Easier than you Think! program where we will be crafting steampunk goggles!

Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger. Fans of Gail Carriger’s Parasol Protectorate will be thrilled to know that she has a new series out–in the first book, readers enter  an alternate England of 1851, spirited fourteen-year-old Sophronia is enrolled in a finishing school where, she is suprised to learn, lessons include not only the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but also diversion, deceit, and espionage.  Gail even has a super neat web site about the book at a special website dedicated to The Finishing School Series. Click on the image for more how-tos…

Legacy of the Clockwork Key by Kristen Bailey

A orphaned sixteen-year-old servant in Victorian England finds love while unraveling the secrets of a mysterious society of inventors and their most dangerous creation.

The Lazarus Machine by Paul Crilley

In an alternate 1899 London, seventeen-year-old Sebastian Tweed searches for his kidnapped father, uncovering both a horrific technological secret and a political conspiracy that could destroy the British Empire.

The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress

Cora, Nellie, and Michiko, teenaged assistants to three powerful men in Edwardian London, meet by chance at a ball that ends with the discovery of a murdered man, leading the three to work together to solve this and related crimes without drawing undue attention to themselves.

The manual of aeronautics : an illustrated guide to the Leviathan series by written by Scott Westerfeld

Illustrations and text provide detailed looks at the machines, uniforms, creatures, and characters of the Leviathan book series

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Dry Your Nerdfighter Tears with Pizza at This Month’s Teen Book Challenge

Posted on February 19th, 2013 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

What do John Green, Anne Frank, Nerdfighteria and Saltwater pizza have to do with this month’s teen book challenge? Plenty! We’re reading The Fault in our Stars by John Green – it has had months of buzz and months on the best seller list and it is also a stone cold tear jerker….we love it! So get the book and come to the meeting. We’ll dry our saltwater tears with pizza.

And like they say in John Green’s hometown – Don’t Forget to Be Awesome.

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AR Book Find is Here!

Posted on February 5th, 2013 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts, Books, Homework Help.

Does your school require you to read at a certain AR Level?

Are you tired of trying to track down books that are at your level and are interesting and WPL owns them AND they are available to check out?

It is so much work to find the perfect book, it can bring on a full panda rage.

Yeah, we feel your frustration…but get ready, friends, your life is about to change.

Introducing the brand new Accelerated Reader Search brought to you by your friends at the Westerville Public Library.

Start your search.

Then enter your AR Range and interest level:

Then use our tags to find subjects and genres that you enjoy…

And then limit by availability to show what you can take home with you today.

We are pretty excited about this so give it a whirl and let us know what you think – BUT WAIT, THAT’S NOT ALL!

Act now and we’ll throw in the helpful smiling face of your local librarian who would love to show you how this nifty AR Search works, how to pick out great books that you’ll love and much, much more. This special offer will not expire!

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Books = Pizza

Posted on January 22nd, 2013 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

We are reading a book a month for the Teen Book Challenge.  Read with us…you don’t have to read every book, but if you want to read a bit and come to some fun hang outs, you’ll win an invitation to the book challenge party at the end of the year. Plus you’ll get to hang out with Mickie and Becky. Win. Win.

Next meeting is 1/23 @ 3:30pm. Be there.

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We DOUBLE DOG DARE you….

Posted on December 19th, 2012 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

Are you ready for the 2013 Teen Challenge?

Each month of 2013 we will challenge you to read a book with us. Then get together with us for FOOD (yeah I said food) and fun as we bring the book to life. If you meet the monthly challenge of reading with us, you will also receive a badge of honor. Collect enough badges by the end of the year and you will earn an invitation to the Teen Challenge Bash!

So let me recap this:

Food + Book + You = Fun

Are you excited yet? You should be.

January’s Book:

A horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Old freaky pictures? Check. Abandoned mansions? Check. Secrets? Check.
Danger? Double check!

Sign up, get your copy of the book and meet us at the rendezvous point…the library on January 23 at 3:30.

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12-12-12 Books to Blow your Mind

Posted on December 12th, 2012 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

You KNEW this post was coming, didn’t you? I couldn’t let this mind-blowing date pass us by with out wrangling it into a book post so here ya go…you’re welcome.

The twelve days of Christmas, it is 12-12-12 and here are your requisite 12 crazy books that have nothing to do with the holidays but are my picks to get you through those annoying lovely family get togethers…enjoy!

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Give the Gift of Technology: Great Apps and Digital Books for Teens

Posted on December 4th, 2012 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

Looking for something to give the teen who has everything? Sneaking a new tablet into your teen’s stocking and want to load it up with some fun stuff so she can dive right in on Christmas morning? Need some way to clue your parents in to what you’d like to have as a gift? LOOK NO FURTHER! This blog post is for you.

Santa Mickie will pull gift ideas for every teen out of her big red sack–Ho Ho Ho! Want even more great suggestions? Visit School Library Journal’s Top Ten Apps list of 2012.

For the Book Worm:

YALSA Teen Book Finder- FREE for Apple

Find the best books and media for teens, as selected by library staff and educators across the United States!

For the Nerdfighter:

DFTBA: Hank and John’s Awesome Adventure- $1.99 for Apple

Play John or Hank Green as you battle the minions of World Suck. which have invaded the land of Nerdfighteria. Play through 8 levels of platforming awesomeness, from the video game level, to the Evil Baby Orphanage, to the Internet itself.

For the Gamer Geek:

The Oregon Trail- .99 cents for Apple and Android

An oldie, but goodie--this game lets you pack up your wagon and MANIFEST DESTINY as you travel West into the American Frontier. Did you pack enough nails? Will Mary die of dysentery?

The Dragon Slayer- FREE for Apple and Android

The Dragon Slayers are hunting once again and you have answered the call. Dragon Slayer is a visually spectacular, magic-based combat game

For the Artist Geek:

Wreck this App- $4.99 for Apple and Android

Based on the book, Wreck this app encourages kids to create outside the page. Doodle, deface and deconstruct all in the name of making something new!

For the Puzzle Geek:

Polymer- $1.99 for Apple

Polymer is a strategic shape-creating game that combines the logic of Rubik’s Cube, the sliding mechanism of Chuzzle, and the creativity of Lego.

For the Internet Geek:

Echograph- $1.99 for Apple

For the Science Geek:

The Science of Reality-$13.99 for Apple, Nook and Kindle

The ultimate digital book experience from Richard Dawkins, one of the world’s greatest scientists. How do we know what is true? Explore the magic of natural science with clips, interactive demonstrations and beautiful animation and photography.

For the Big Ideas Geek:

Ted Books FREE (with in app purchases) for Apple and Android

TED Books are short original electronic books produced every two weeks by TED Conferences. Like the best TEDTalks, they're personal and provocative, and designed to spread great ideas. TED Books are typically under 20,000 words — long enough to unleash a powerful narrative, but short enough to be read in a single sitting.

For the Hipster Geek:

Stachetastic $.99–3.99 for Apple and Android

With this easy to use photo editor, you can take a new picture or select one from your photo library and instantly add a mustache or beard from a selection of sweet facial hair.

For the Manga Geek:

Viz Manga FREE (with in app purchases) for Android and Apple

You now have the greatest manga from Japan at your fingertips, at long last in a convenient, downloadable format for your device.

For the Comics Geek:

Dark Horse Comics FREE (with in app purchases) for Apple and Android

Have your favorite Dark Horse comics at your fingertips - anytime, anywhere! Read free digital comics along with hundreds of your Dark Horse favorites starting at 99 cents.

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Holiday .GIF Giving Storytelling Contest for Teens

Posted on November 30th, 2012 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

Have you ever used .gifs? GIFS or Graphic Interchange Formats are little repeating image files that make a few still images look a little like a movie! They are sometimes interesting and artistic…

and sometimes ridiculous and silly…

But I think they are really fun! That brings me to our challenge. I offer you…the Holiday .GIF Giving Storytelling Challenge. I challenge you to re-tell your favorite holiday story using GIFS to accent the story telling...like this example that I made where I retell Olive the Other Reindeer by Vivian Walsh. Do you like how I made with the funny?

Ok. So here is how it works…

1. Pick your story–something simple is always better, but you do what you want. Here are some ideas to get you started.
2. Retell the story…you can be serious or funny. It is your story! Type your story out–if you have a Tumblr or you blog somewhere you can type it out there. if you don’t, no worries! You can type it in a Word doc and send it to me or come into the library and you can type it out on one of our computers.
3. Choose your GIFs–you can start by googling a term that you want to find. For example, for the GIF above, I searched for “Thank you gif” and it sent me to a Tumblr page with a bunch to choose from. You can also search for GIFs at GifSoup and Gifbase or Tumblr.
4. Keep it appropriate and no bad words!

Now Friends---Auntie Muriel reminds you to be careful when searching for things on the interwebs...you don't want to look at gross stuff so keep your searches clean! You may also want to get an OK from your adult if that is appropriate.

After you find the .GIFs you like, copy the URL for it and put it in your story. Just like you grab a URL for a picture to send to a friend or post to Facebook–if you can do that you can do this. Want a tutorial for how to do that? Check this one out. Still not sure? E-mail me (mstiers@westervillelibrary.org)  or stop into the library to see me and I’ll help you out!

Happy GIF giving!

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“Sure we have a copy of the Hunger Games available!” Said…

Posted on November 29th, 2012 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

….NO librarian ever. Until now!

Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (that means Reserve it!)

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Stories from the Mall–Just in Time for Black Friday!

Posted on November 21st, 2012 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

Are you going shopping before dawn tomorrow? Me either! At least I am an adult and don’t have to go if I don’t want to. Or maybe you are DYING to go and no one will let you…

Well if you are stuck waiting in the car or can’t wait to get your driver’s license so you can take yourself next year, here are some books all about the joy, the terror and the suspense of that American icon…the suburban shopping mall.

The good, the bad, the mall.

In a futuristic alternative school set in a shopping mall where video game-playing students are observed and used by corporate sponsors for market research, Katey "Kid" Dade struggles to figure out where she fits in and whether she even wants to.

When high school junior Tessa Reynolds falls into a coma after getting hit in the head during gym class, she experiences heaven as the mall where her parents work, and she revisits key events from her life, causing her to reevaluate herself and how she wants to live.

After a virus destroys most of the world's adult population, a group of children are delighted to discover a colony of adult survivors in a Florida shopping mall but soon find that they are not as friendly as they appear.

While working at the mall, organizing a school fundraiser, and trying to prove that her best friend's boyfriend is seeing another girl, high-school student Charlotte's best intentions always seem to backfire.

Teens Shay, Marco, Lexi, and Ryan, quarantined in a shopping mall when a biological bomb goes off in an air duct, learn that in an emergency people change, and not always for the better, as many become sick and supplies run low.

Happy shopping day!

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Peace, Love and Pass the Cranberry Sauce: Thanksgiving Books for Every Taste

Posted on November 15th, 2012 by Mickie.
Categories: All posts.

Do you love the holiday or hate? It doesn’t matter–we’ve got a book for that!

Want to warm you heart with stories of good people and helping hands? Look no further--read on and store up all the warm fuzzies that the holidays bring!

Hate the holiday and all that touchy-feely junk? Here is a twisted story about a detective who gets psychic impressions from everything he eats....did I mention that he solves murders? Yeah...guess how he gets clues. *shivers*

Do you feel like an alien during the holidays? Are you sure that your family is a bunch of weirdos? This book is kinda like that--it is the flock's first turkey! What can go wrong?

Are you worried about what is going on with your school friends while you are off on break? So do the girls at Waverly...drama and turkey--enough for seconds!

Mmmmm....more Thanksgiving drama than a football game in overtime!

Speaking of football---can't get enough of the couch and the game is over? Here are some short stories about that favorite Thanksgiving day past time!

Vegetarian? No turkeys were harmed in this book--in fact, this turkey stirs up a Lakota indian reservation by its presence and changes a few lives. Gobble Gobble!

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