rating: 3 of 5 stars Well, “Fat Kid Rules the World” still remains my favorite K.L. Going book thus far, but this one was pretty good. Liam wasn’t particularly likable to me, but the premise of his character is pretty amusing: a guy who screws everything up because he’s too “perfect.” Well, in the social context of high school, at least. He’s the heartbreaker, the athlete, the fashionista, the rich boy, the teenage Adonis… Mr. Popularity. But he screws up one time too many for his CEO father and is shipped off to live in a dingy trailer with Aunt Pete, his outcast gay glam-rock DJ uncle. The fact that Liam has to try to be unpopular and studious in his new school (and screws that up miserably, too) in order to please his disappointed father is so laughably ridiculous. He tries wearing crappy clothes, making friends with the nerds, joining AV, etc, and yet the cheerleaders are still fawning over him and the jocks are still saving a space for him at the lunch table.
With a supermodel for a mother, you start thinking that maybe this poor guy is genetically predisposed for this grueling chore of hot babes, friends, parties, etc etc. Oh, the humanity. But surprise! Liam is a decent guy inside who just once wants to do something right in the eyes of his father. He also has a profound love/talent for fashion and style, leading one to believe that there is more in store for him (and not what you’d expect for a straight popular guy) after the glories of high school. Aunt Pete and his motley band of friends are there along the way to help Liam realize that he is not defined by how others define him.
I read a lot of YA fiction, and while I often delight in deserved comeuppance against the Normies and Jocks as a former (present?) nerd, it gets old. And Liam doesn’t necessarily deserve it. He’s naturally handsome and has great social skills, so he’s popular. No mystery there. But we get to see beyond the stereotypes, and we get to see him take the messy, unconventional steps of putting together the pieces of who he really wants to be.
rating: 3 of 5 stars So very Neil Gaiman, but fun for the middle-grade kids. “Cemetary Gates” by the Smiths would be the perfect soundtrack…Poppy and sweet, with macabre and Victorian undertones. Nobody (Bod) Owens has been raised by loving ghosts in a crumbling graveyard. As he grows, he begins to piece together the mystery of his past. However, this is where the book is sorely lacking. The characters and setting are rich and fun, but the underlying story and motives are totally undeveloped. Upon finishing, I had many unanswered questions, but I enjoyed the ride, so I guess I can’t complain too much. I’m sure kids (even those pesky boys) would have fun with it, and it has much more mainstream appeal than some of the other recent Newbery Award winners that kids often find boring. Oh well…After being impressed with the visual magic of “Coraline”, I think that this could potentially be an awesome movie, at the very least, and hopefully inspire some of those young reluctant readers to pick up a darn book.
rating: 2 of 5 stars
A surreal and maddening book. I read this book while home sick one day, and the next day I was telling a friend about how weird and unsettled I felt upon reading it, how I felt transported into a skewed view of reality. “So maybe it was a good book, then?”, she suggested. Yes and no. The author really does draw you into Aslaug’s unconventional world view, filled with Nordic and pagan mythology and theology, native Maine herbology and wildlife, and the scars of psychological abuse and isolation. But the story is way out there, joining together an improbable chain of events that transpire between an isolated family, interspersed with court transcriptions as we piece together why Aslaug is being put on trial for murder.
I stuck with it due to the various starred reviews and ALA & YALSA recognition, but I really didn’t feel pulled in until about 1/3 of the way through, after which I felt compelled to finish it despite my feelings of uneasiness while reading. It’s one of those books that I think teens would either love or hate, and unfortunately, I would expect the latter in most cases.
I’m a bit late in the game for this one, but I really enjoyed The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I read this in one day…Before work, during my lunch hour, at the gym, and then under the covers. I couldn’t put it down! Best book I’ve read since Little Brother.
This is a grim, sci-fi Battle Royale-esque tale of teens battling it out to the death in a televised reality show, all in a gristly display of a corrupt government’s power. Katniss is a smart, capable girl living in impoverished District 12 of Panem, a post-American country where the Capitol reigns supreme and the residents of the 12 districts must toil to provide the commodities for the Capitol’s endless consumption. After her little sister’s name gets pulled in the “reaping”, Katniss steps up and volunteers in her place. She must now compete in the annual Hunger Games, which pits 24 teens (two from each district) against one another in a race for survival until one emerges triumphantly, all while the residents of Panem watch every detail. Can Katniss beat the game and stay alive? Read and find out!
The story is so compelling and action-packed. I luckily avoided reading much hype about this book beforehand, so I was overjoyed to see “End of Book One” at the exciting conclusion of the book. Can’t wait for BOOK 2!!! Oh my, I hope there will be an ARC at ALA this summer…
One of my small claims to YA Librarian fame within my library system is the teen Battle of the Bands program I created last year. The ‘08 theme for Teen Tech Week was “Tune In @ Your Library”, so some of my colleagues and I held a planning meeting to put together some possible system-wide programs. Someone suggested a “Rock Band” (as in, the video game) Battle of the Bands. We agreed that this would be lots of fun, but then it hit me…How about a REAL Battle of the Bands? As in, real teens rocking out? I knew that other libraries, community centers, radio stations, etc. have done this type of thing, but I began to think about how we could incorporate Teen Tech Week into it.
I thought about the ways that teens are using technology to self-promote their music, find out about new bands, share their playlists, etc. So how about an online Battle of the Bands hosted by the library, where teen bands could post and share their music online (with the help of librarians, if needed), and voters could choose who they wanted to see at a live concert finale?
With the help of some great colleagues and community partners, it all came together successfully! We had 16 bands compete in our online voting round, and around 1700 votes were cast. Based on ages provided, they were primarily teens voting for their fellow teens. The five finalists rocked an awesome live event in front of an audience of 300 and a panel of judges, with prizes including professional studio recording time and music gear gift certificates. Local media covered the event, and overall the program was a smash hit!
Thanks to support from my library’s administration, helpful colleagues, and some more help from community partners, we are now offering this as an annual program for our teens in conjunction with Teen Tech Week. The theme this year, “Press Play @ Your Library”, was another great musical tie-in. Around 1900 votes were cast this year for our 15 contestants during the online voting round in February, and we celebrated our 2nd annual Battle of the Bands finale last weekend for a packed crowd with a fresh new crop of local teen talent!
Music is a personal passion of mine, and it makes me so happy to combine it with my love for libraries and serving teens. I played in a garage band called “Lily Liver” with my friends when I was 13. We played school festivals and backyard parties, and I’d like to think that we would’ve been excited to rock the library.
You can check out more photos from the 1st and 2nd annual Battle of the Bands on our Flickr page.
Welcome to my little ol’ blog. I’m a Young Adult Librarian, among other things! I love what I do, and I will try to use this space to write reviews, post links of note, record my experiences at conferences, share my thoughts, and all that other good librarian stuff.
King of the Screwups by K.L. Going
