Teen Art Games 2 PM May 4th at Cedar Mill Library

 Come celebrate Free Comic Book Day with us by competing in some friendly drawing games at the Cedar Mill Library at 2 PM, May 4th.  There will be drawing, cartooning, storytelling and more.  For teens ages 11-18.  Free event.  There may even be some free comics available.  Hope to see some of you there.

Teen Book Review: Different Girl

Different Girl by Gordon Dalquist tells the science fiction story of Veronika and 3 other girls who all live together on an island.  They have two adults who take care of them, Isobel and Robert.  As the book goes along, you can tell that there is a something very different about the 4 girls even though they seem to lead a regular life, they take a walk in the morning, help with lunch and go to school.  Later on, a girl named Mary washes ashore on the island, the lone survivor of a recent shipwreck.  Mary’s arrival spurs the girls to  question who they are and why they are on the island.

Personally, I didn’t really like this book, but it was interesting to read and put together the pieces for myself.  Because of this, I think it’s well written in that sense, but it was boring for me.  This book is appropriate for pretty much anyone in middle or high school and it seems like it is the first in a series.

-Gayatri

Teen Book Review: Cloak Society

The Cloak Society by Jeramey Kraatz is an amazing and exciting book.  It’s about a young boy named Alex Knight, who has telekinetic powers and spends his life learning to fight and harness his power.  Superhero, you say?  He fights them.  Alex is part of the Cloak Society, an elite and awesome group of supervillains.

This book turns things upside down, because the heroes are the villains and the villains are the heroes.  You start to think, maybe all those villains you’ve read about are actually the good guys.  Who’s to say who is good vs. who is bad?  Is it the person who say they are right, or is it who is cleverer with his words?

Alex goes on a mission with his peers, the Beta team.  While carrying out the mission, he unconsciously saves the life of a young Ranger of Justice, an enemy.  In doing so, he starts a chain reaction that will change his life forever.

I love this book because it is full of action and is somewhat realistic.  Alex is just like a regular teen trying to find his place in the world even if he does have superpowers.  This book is for ages 10 and up and especially people who like fantasy and superheroes (or villains).

-Steven

New science and technology nonfiction for teens at Cedar Mill

We have added several books for teens related to computers and science recently.  Take a look below and see if anything strikes your interest.

Computers

• Create Your Own Blog by Tris Hussey
• Protecting Your Internet Identity by Ted Claypoole
• iPhone Game Development for Teens by Clayton Crooks
• How Computers Work by Ron White
• Super Scratch Programming Adventure: learn to program by making cool games

Science

• Their Skeletons Speak: Kennewick Man and the Paleoamerican world
• Faces from the Past: forgotten people of North America by James Deem
• So you created a wormhole (this one’s more on the humor side rather than science).

Business biographies:

• Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg by Hasday
• Twitter: Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone & Evan Williams
• Google Founders: Larry Page and Sergey Brin

Teen Book Review: Anything But Ordinary

Anything but Ordinary by Lara Avery is the story of 17 year old diver, Bryce, who falls into a coma after hitting her head.  She is in the coma for five long years, missing high school graduation, Olympic trials, and college.  When she wakes up, strange things begin to happen to her.  She vividly remembers events that took lace while she was asleep, events she shouldn’t be able to remember.  She tries to make everything go back to normal – workout routines with her dad, hanging out with her best friend – but she begins to realize that the world she fell asleep in is not the same one in which she wakes up.  This one is for readers 12 and up.

Teen Book Review: Just One Day

Just One Day by Gayle Forman is a melodramatic love story between a college freshman named Allyson and a Dutch actor named Willem.  Allyson is described as a “good girl” who is obediant to her parents.  But meeting Willem exposes her to a different world, and she learns how to live on the edge.  Then, just as soon as she meets him, he disappears.  All of a sudden, Allyson is only focused on finding Willem, who she fell in love with.  Rather than an ordinary sappy romance novel, Just One Day is bittersweet and tells a story about growing up and moving on.  This one is for older teens (14 and up).

-Sophia

Teen Movie Night Saturday Feb 23rd at Bethany Library

This Saturday at 6 PM at the Bethany Library, we’ll be showing the popular movie based on Suzanne Collins’ popular dystopian series.  Expect trivia, snacks and prizes at our teen movie night screening.  How well do you know the books and the movie?  You’ll need that knowledge to compete in our trivia challenge.  The movie is PG-13.  Event is for grades 6-12.