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Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2020) Nominees Round Up, August 22 Edition

Published August 22, 2019

Click here to see all of the current Great Graphic Novels nominees along with more information about the list and past years’ selections.

They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, and Steven Scott, illustrated by Harmony Becker
Top Shelf Productions
Publication Date: July 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1603094504

Before he was Sulu on the starship Enterprise, boldly going where no one has gone before, George Takei was a little boy struggling to understand why his family was packing up to go live in a horse stable. In 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered the detainment of every person of Japanese descent on the West Coast and imprisoned 120,000 people in camps for years under armed guard. Takei and his family were sent to the Santa Anita Racetrack, then to Camp Rohwer in Arkansas, and finally the notorious Tule Lake camp for “disloyals.” Readers see history in clear, concise, compelling context and follow Takei on his journey from childhood ignorance to righteous anger and awareness to a life of dedicated activism.

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Amazing Audiobooks (#AA2020) Nominees Round Up, August 21 Edition

Published August 21, 2019

Click here to see all of the current Amazing Audiobooks nominees along with more information about the list and past years’ selections.

The Truths We Hold by Kamala Harris; Narrated by Robin Miles
Listening Library
Publication Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 9780593103777 

Senator Kamala Harris writes about her childhood in California and growing up as the bi-racial daughter of two activist parents. Her mother’s immigration from India and her father’s Jamaican heritage play a role in how young Kamala sees community, equality, and justice. From working as an Assistant District Attorney to becoming a US Senator, Harris explains how she has tried to “be at the table” where decisions are made in order to create change for social justice.

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Best Fiction for Young Adults (#BFYA2020) Nominees Round Up, August 16 Edition

Published August 16, 2019

Click here to see all of the current Best Fiction for Young Adults nominees along with more information about the list and past years’ selections.

When the Ground is Hard by Malla Nunn
G.P. Putnam’s Sons / Penguin Publishing Group
Publication Date: June 4, 2019
ISBN: 978-0525515579 

Swaziland in 1965 is a difficult place with defined social hierarchies. Adele knows this, just as she knows that her white father has another white family, that he pays her full tuition at Keziah Christian Academy, and that he loves his second mixed race family more. It isn’t much, but that makes her better than Lottie whose relatives are from a tribe and don’t pay Lottie’s tuition. Adele’s world is shaken to the core when she is ousted from her insulated clique and is forced to room with Lottie.  In such close proximity, Adele finds herself rethinking her assumptions and priorities.

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Great Graphic Novels (#GGN2020) Nominees Round Up, August 15 Edition

Published August 15, 2019

Click here to see all of the current Great Graphic Novels nominees along with more information about the list and past years’ selections.

Daytime Shooting Star, vol. 1 by Mika Yamamori
Viz Media
Publication Date: July 2019
978-1974706679

When Suzume’s parents move to Bangladesh for work, she is sent to live with her uncle in Tokyo. Having grown up in a small town where she knows everyone, Suzume is overwhelmed by the crowds and frustrated that no one can help give her directions to her uncle’s home. Then, like one other time in her life, she sees a daytime shooting star and faints. She is helped by a handsome young man who turns out to be her uncle’s friend… and her homeroom teacher Mr. Shishio. As Suzume struggles to make new friends, Mr. Shishio provides advice and guidance, and she develops a crush on him. She also befriends Mamura, a cute, well-liked but shy boy in her class, which causes jealousy among her classmates.

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Voting Open for 2019 Teens’ Top Ten

Published August 15, 2019

Teens' Top TenVoting is open now through October 15. Teens aged 12-18 can vote for up to three titles from the 25 nominees. The voting page showcases all nominee book covers and summaries and gives teens the opportunity to leave comments about their favorite titles. A video featuring the nominated books can be found on the Teens’ Top Ten site.

Every April, the Teens’ Top Ten nominees are posted on the Thursday of National Library Week, and readers vote online August 15 through October 15.

Happy voting!

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Amazing Audiobooks (#AA2020) Nominees Round Up, August 14 Edition

Published August 14, 2019

Click here to see all of the current Amazing Audiobooks nominees along with more information about the list and past years’ selections.

We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia; narrated by Kyla Garcia
HarperCollins and Blackstone Audio
Publication Date: February 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1982610630

We Set the Dark on Fire, by Tehlor Kay Mejia, focuses on two women who have been bitter rivals, but now have entered the same man’s house to serve him.  As the political tensions between classes rise and the personal tensions between the two females grow, listeners don’t know if the women will choose the resistance, the status quo, or each other.

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Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers (#QP2020) Nominees Round Up, August 13 Edition

Published August 13, 2019

Click here to see all of the current Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers nominees along with more information about the list and past years’ selections.

Red Scrolls of MagicThe Red Scrolls of Magic by Cassandra Clare and Wesley Chu
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: April 9th 2019
ISBN: 978-1481495080

All warlock Magnus Bane wanted to do is take his new boyfriend on a European vacation.  But he and Alec encounter demons at every turn, and are tasked with finding the leader of a cult that may or may not have been started by Magnus himself centuries earlier.  Their harrowing adventures turn out to be better than any vacation they could have planned.

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Teen-Friendly Horror Movies That Won’t Make Parents Scream in Outrage

Published August 12, 2019

Teens and horror movies go together like peanut butter and jelly. It is one of the biggest reasons why the majority of horror films strive to get a PG-13 rating to secure their primary demographic. Despite this link, many parents hate how dark/sexual/illicit-substance-using these movies tend to be. I would argue these features really contribute to their appeal even though teens may not admit to it though.

My personal history with horror is tumultuous at best. After viewing a specific part of Poltergeist at the age of 8 when flipping through TV channels one summer night, I became a certified coward. That mentality reigned over my teen years. I finally started opening my mind to the possibility of enjoying horror in my twenties. I am so incredibly grateful that I did; and like any late-age convert, I’ve really become a “high brow” horror fan (engrossing story lines, good production value, awesome acting). This fact means that I have some good picks for horror movies which teen patrons will love and that won’t have parents coming in the next day to file a complaint.

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Best Fiction for Young Adults (#BFYA2020) Nominees Round Up, August 9 Edition

Published August 9, 2019

Click here to see all of the current Best Fiction for Young Adults nominees along with more information about the list and past years’ selections.

The Art of Breaking Things by Laura Sibson
Viking / Penguin Random House
Publication Date: June 18, 2019
ISBN: 978-0451481115 

Skye Murray has a reputation for being a party girl who will get with just about anyone–except Ben–the guy she REALLY likes. What no one knows is that her drug and alcohol use are helping her forget a secret about her mother’s fiancé and her fears about what he might do to her little sister.

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