Library Ninja: Book List
New YA Books Coming Soon
Better put a hold on these excellent books, coming soon to a library near you!
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Topics:
Book List
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Modern Myths and Retold Legends Book List
Everybody loves legends and myths, and teen fiction is full of these tales starring mythical creatures or gods or powerful magic. These books are reimaginings or modernizations of classic stories, creatures, and people that you've learned about all your life! If you want to read about life in a goddess boot camp or what it would be like to be a modern day siren living in New York, then check out these excellent books:
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Book List
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YALSA's Teens' Top Ten Nominations
Every year, 16 school and public libraries are selected to serve as a Teens' Top Ten nominating group. All nominations are made by teens ages 12-18 and they select their favorite young adult books from the previous year. Nominations are announced on Support Teen Literature Day, the Thursday of National Library Week.
Voting begins in August and the winners will be announced during Teen Read Week in October.
So, start reading!
Here is a video, courtesy of YALSA, highlighting this year's nominations:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=zPgBooghc5E
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Books For Younger Kids That You'll Like Too!
So maybe you've seen your kid brother or sister reading these books. The covers look cool. You might have been intrigued, but you probably thought they were reading some children's book and then you started playing Halo and forgot all about it. Well I'm here to remind you of these awesome books! Check them out, even if they're in the children's section. We'll never tell!
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Topics:
Book List
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Free Audiobook Downloads
The Summer 2013 SYNC List has now been posted!
SYNC is a program provided by Audiofile, the magazine for audiobook lovers, that provides free audiobook downloads every summer. Each week SYNC provides two free downloads: one modern young adult title and one classic title.
SYNC runs from May 30-August 21.
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Audiobooks, Book List
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Excellent New(ish) Fantasy Novels
You guys know I'm obsessed with Fantasy books, so here are some new titles at the library! Remember, some of these are sequels so make sure to pick up the first book if you need to.
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Awesome Authors, Book List
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The Ninja Reviews...Keeping the Castle by Patrice Kindl
Options for women in 19th century England were fairly limited, which is the case for young Althea Crawley. Althea knows to secure her family's future, and the future of her crumbling castle estate, she must marry a man who is rich. Very rich. Especially since her wealthy live-in stepsisters have no interest in providing money for upkeep of the dilapidated structure.
Knowing she bears the burden to support her widowed mother and four-year-old brother motivates Althea to look past the many scruples of her suitors as long as they have money. But luck is with her when the handsome and very suitable Lord Boring comes to town. Though Althea tries repeatedly to put herself in the eye-line of Lord Boring, she often finds herself instead in the company of Lord Boring's outspoken and ungenteel friend Mr. Fredericks. The banter between the two is witty and often a sarcastic laugh at the expense of one another.
Readers will quickly see that, in the world of historical romance, this book leaves little in the way of surprise. If you've ever read or seen anything based on the works of Jane Austen, then you could probably recite the plot of the book before you even open it. However, Kindl's writing is excellent and witty, creating interesting characters and painting a vivid picture of Lesser Hoo, Yorkshire.
Mr. Fredericks is the obvious Mr. Darcy to Althea's Elizabeth Bennet (you knew a Pride and Prejudice reference was coming). And although it took me a little while to warm to Althea, I believe she turned out to be a clever and progressively opinionated heroine, having to take an intense look at her own opinions of the genteel versus those in "trade". Althea is hardly one to simper and whine, but instead she does the best with what she has.
Though a little predictable, I recommend this book to fans of historical romance. This book is on the 2013 Lone Star list.
Similar books you might enjoy:
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Topics:
Lone Star Books, Book List
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YA Political Thriller Fantasy Book List
Court intrigue. Backstabbing political advisors. Enemies sleeping down the hall. Even though political thriller may not sound that thrilling to you, I find that these kinds of books set in a fantasy world can be extremely exciting! Lately I feel like it's all I read. If you haven't already, I encourage you to give them a try!
Added by awesome coworkers:
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Book List
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Jenny's books to look forward to in 2013
As total book nerds, the Library Ninjas are always looking forward to the next great book to be published. Today I'm giving you my list of awesome books that will be published in 2013 (not in any particular order). Not all have released covers. Enjoy!
Solstice by PJ Hoover (June 2013) - Mrs. Hoover is a great supporter of the Ninja blog, but is also a fantastic writer. This dystopic + mythology YA novel promises romance, adventure, and plenty of messes created by the Gods!
Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd (January 2013) - An interesting take about the daughter of Dr. Moreau. Sounds exciting and a little horrific! Part of a trilogy. Inspired by H.G. Wells' classic The Island of Doctor Moreau.
Vengeance Bound by Justina Ireland (April 2013) - About a girl whose mind houses the Furies...how awesome is that!? Cory tries to keep the bloodlust of the Furies in her head at bay. By day she lives a normal life but by night she tracks down people that the Furies sends her way and bring justice upon them.
Thousand Words by Jennifer Brown (May 2013) - I love how Jennifer Brown writes such realistic stories about the struggles of teenagers. In this story, Ashleigh's boyfriend Kaleb is about to leave for college. Afraid that he will break up with her, she snaps a nude picture of herself with her phone and sends it to him. When they go through a bad breakup, suddenly everyone has seen the picture and a scandal ensues.
Penryn and the End of Days book 2 (? 2013) - This untitled book is being eagerly awaited by author Susan Ee's numerous fans! Both Ninja Amy and I fell in love with the first book, Angelfall.
Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys (Feb 2013) - Murder and mayhem in the streets of New Orleans in 1950! Josie is trying to escape her life as the daughter of a prostitute, but ends up getting tangled up in a murder investigation that will challenge her to her very core.
Black Ice by Andrew Lane (Jan 2013) - The third installment of the excellent Young Sherlock Holmes series. When Sherlocks' brother Mycroft is accused of murder, it's up to Sherlock and his American tutor Amyus Crowe to find the true killer and save Mycroft!
City of a Thousand Dolls by Miriam Forster (Feb 2013) - An origial fantasty about Nisha, a girl abandoned at the City of a Thousand Dolls, a place for orphan girls to learn skills as musicians, healers, and maybe even assassins. When girls around Nisha start to die, she must delve deep into the secrets of her home and put herself in grave danger.
Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black (Sept 2013) - When the vampire population surges, quarantined cities are established where vampires and humans can coexist...sort of.
Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality by Elizabeth Eulberg (March 2013) - A hilarious book about a girl sick of being overlooked by her sister MacKenzie (a pageant girl), her mother (pageant-obsessed), and her longtime crush. Lexi means to show them all that girls with great personalities are awesome!
The Milk of Birds by Sylvia Whitman (Apr 2013) - A story of two unlikely penpals who become friends despite the distance between them. Nawra is a displaced citizen of Darfur, Sudan who begins to write letters to her American donor, K.C. Both girls struggle with their own lives and situations, but begin to change each other as they open up about their lives.
Battle Magic by Tamora Pierce (Oct 2013) - I will read just about anything by Tamora Pierce! This book returns to the world of the Winding Circle (the Emelanese Universe) and is the third book in the Circle Reforged series. Check out the Circle of Magic series and The Circle Opens series to find out more about the Emelanese Universe!
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Topics:
Awesome Authors, Book List
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Amanda's Top 5 of 2012
This year I read an epic 100 books, a record I have never before achieved. Picking my top five is kind of difficult task, but not as hard as you would think. Many of the books I read were pretty good, but only a few were really good.
5. The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens
This book is going to be a classic fantasy for sure. I listened to the book as read by Jim Dale, the voice actor that read the Harry Potter books and narrated for the television show Pushing Daisies. Three orphaned children come into possession of a magical book called The Emerald Atlas that can transport a person to the time and place of a photograph. The siblings go back in time and save a town from an evil sorceress. It was a great adventure!
4. Insignia by S. J. Kincaid
Imagine you are a boy whose only strength is video games, but, boy, are you good at them. Now imagine that the government wants to give you an awesome life at their military academy, fighting a war in video game-esque simulations. This is Tom’s reality and he has a hard time turning down that offer. He soon finds out that when you get your ‘upgrades’ at the academy, serious mind control worries arise. Even though this book sounds a bit like the classic Ender’s Game, it has its own unique story to tell and evokes different worldly concerns. Tom is a brave and vigilant character you can route for.
3. Blood Red Road by Moira Young
I loved the world that Young created in this book. It’s a post-apocalyptic, old west kind of setting. When a girl’s father is murdered and her brother kidnapped, she starts on a journey that takes her further from home than she has ever been. This book is packed with exciting adventure. There’s wind sailing, cage fighting, and human sacrifice. What more could a reader ask for?
2. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
This book came out back in 2006, but I just now got around to reading it. Death narrates the tale of a young girl as she navigates life in Nazi Germany. The language in this book is beautiful in this book! Luscious turns of phrases will make you laugh, cry, and wish you could write like that.
1. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Similarly, this book came out way back in 1997. Many people my age read this when they were a teenager, but I missed the boat. With the movie coming out, I decided to read it. This book is mind-blowingly awesome. If only I HAD read this when I was a teenager. I felt like I identified with Charlie, the main character. This is by far the best book that I read in 2012.
Written by Amanda P.
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