The Start of Challenges

Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh and Eleventh Stack are celebrating Black History Month by highlighting books, music and movies by African American Artists. We also have a ton of great events and programs for children, teens and adults. You can view all of our Black History Month posts here.

This is the first year I decided to participate in Book Riot’s Read Harder challenge. There are so many options for challenges throughout the year, but in my opinion, a good challenge is one that makes you explore new interests and read outside your comfort zone, to learn and appreciate something new. This is what Book Riot’s challenge seemed to do for me. (Although I have also found Pop Sugar’s Reading Challenge fun in the past. You’ll see that some of the challenge parts overlap.)

I started reading Tears of a Tiger by Sharon M. Draper for the challenge “read the first book in a series by a person of color.” The book is the first in the Hazelwood High trilogy.

As I’m writing this blog post, I haven’t completed reading the book, but I’m already drawn in and saddened by it. It is not an easy book to read. The main character, Andy, makes some bad choices, and the book is about how he chooses to deal with them. However, the book isn’t written from just his view point. The story includes family and friends’ view points as well and in a variety of formats, from school assignments to journal entries. So far, the book is fabulously written but heart wrenching, so pick it up with caution.

Do you have other series by a person of color that you’ve enjoyed?

-Abbey

Spizzerinctum!

I have a not-really-secret fondness for outdated teen romance novels – the older and cheesier, the better. My most recent find, dredged up with the help of NoveList, is Wedding in the Family by Rosumand du Jardin. Since I’m pretty sure that you’ve never heard of her either, here’s a little background information from Contemporary Authors.

Although author Rosamond du Jardin wrote several novels for adults, she was best known for her novels for teenagers, all of which have gone through numerous printings. Critics consistently praised her ability to write about the teenage years with humor and understanding. Most of her books have been published in other countries, including Japan, Italy, Holland, and Sweden.

Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2009. (accessed 08/24/15)

Will darling Midge ever find true love? Well, probably.

In addition to her teen fiction, she wrote short stories for women’s magazines like Cosmopolitan, Red Book, and Good Housekeeping, and contributed to a variety of radio serials. She attended public school in Chicago, married a bookstore owner, had three children, “played gold and bridge, bowled, and liked to read and hew.” (Well, that’s what Contemporary Authors says. I’m hoping there are some typos in there.)

Anyway, let’s explore the world of Rosamund Du Jardin. It’s a magical place where all skillets are copper-clad, all curtains are crisp and white, no one worries about skin cancer, and young people are full of spizzerinctum.

The book starts off with a bang, with the wedding of Midge’s sister Tobey. Here’s what happens when Midge is introduced to best man Johnnie Randall, a southern charmer who apparently doesn’t care that Midge is only fifteen, while he’s like, at least 23. Reading it just makes you feel icky (page 48).

I think I need to take a shower now.

Don’t worry too much – with the help of her wise older sister, Midge realizes that Johnnie isn’t the man for her (whew), Learns A Valuable Lesson, and Grows Up A Little.

The morning before the wedding, the bridal party sets out to decorate the soon-to-be newlyweds’ car. But they have to find it first, because newlywed-car-hiding is apparently a thing in Midge’s hometown. Good thing they have spizzerinctum (page 70) and hamburgers to keep them going. (And yes, they find the car.)

Suz! Sox! Brose!

The wedding goes off perfectly (it’s super romantic, and we learn that All Good Boys Want To Get Married), but the book’s only half over. Fortunately, that’s just enough time to take a family vacation!

Midge and company set out for a month at the lake, where (surprise) Midge is confronted by two vastly different suitors. But after the aborted Johnnie Randall affair, has Midge finally learned her lesson about love?

Well, duh. Of course she has. This book was written in 1958, after all.

Overall, Wedding in the Family is an unintentionally amusing and fairly (but not painfully) monotonous read. If nothing else, it’s a great romp through the world of 1950s teenager cliches. You’ll see:

• double dates
• a soda fountain
• fashion and hairstyles galore
• repeated use of the word “golly”
• punches thrown in defense of a lady
• a lad with a lawn mowing business
• an utterance of the phrase “ever so much”
• a family vacation
• summer romance
• a distressing lack of telephones
• excessive tanning
• dishonestly bleached hair
• a midsummer dance
• and more!

Keep your ponytails high and bouncy,

– Amy

The Waiting Game

Recently I picked up The Name of the Star thanks to Abbey’s post, The Ripper. I managed to devour this book in less than 24 hours and then spent the rest of the weekend counting down the minutes until I was back at work and could grab the second book in the Shades of London series, The Madness Underneath. I was hooked with the suspenseful story and relationships. Rory, an American High School student, travels to London to attend boarding school. While there she becomes embroiled in a series of murders that are mimicking the original 1880s murders attributed to Jack the Ripper and she ends up with protection from a special police unit. This book scared the living bajesus out of me. I was reading it in my MIL’s basement while we were visiting and I had to trick my husband into turning on all the lights for me so it wasn’t so dark. (I even sent my five year old up the stairs in front of me. I win parenting.) Then I had scary dreams! No kidding.

When I got back to work I immediately went for the second book in the series and managed to finish it that night. This was a bone-headed move, not because I scared myself again but because The Madness Underneath ends with a gigantic cliff hanger, and by gigantic I really mean soul-crushing. Worst of all the third in the series isn’t scheduled to come out until Septemberish 2014.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? SEPTEMBER? I am sitting here still waiting for spring and this book is talking about FALL?!?! Not cool. But at least I was lucky enough to have that information; when book two was originally published last year author Maureen Johnson hadn’t put out ANY indication of when the third book might be available. So now all I can do is sit. AND WAIT. Well I have also spent an embarrassing amount of time on Goodreads and other like forums talking to Shades of London fans (who are all at LEAST a decade or more younger than me).

I think this is unfair. I mean I am one of those people who also had to wait for all the Harry Potter books to come out too…these kids today can just come to the library and check out the whole series in one go if they want to. Also … get off my lawn.

Oh well. If anyone wants to form a ‘waiting for publication’ support group you know where to find me.

-Grumpy Nat

Déjà Vu All Over Again

First, I must apologize. I should have let you all know about this a long time ago. But hindsight is 20/20 and there’s no time like the present. (You can insert here any other belated/late and time related clichés that come to mind.)

This Saturday, November 16th at 11:00am will be the second meeting of our newest book group. The Déjà Vu Book Club will be discussing Judy Blume’s coming-of-age classic, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.

The book is a tale about a young girl trying to find her place in her new school, her circle of friends, her religious beliefs and within herself. Margaret is at that age where she knows what’s to come and just can’t wait for it to get here. (Periods, boobs, boys, kissing – you know, the usual stuff!) Yet, she also would like things to stay the same. Her sounding board for all of her adolescent conundrums is her own personal God. While her extended family wants her to choose a religion, she finds it difficult because she just doesn’t feel His presence in those houses of worship the way she does when they’re alone.

Besides waxing nostalgic over this pre-teen female rite-of-passage book, we’ll be sure to discuss a bit of the “controversy” surrounding the re-writing of portions of the book by Ms. Blume, to bring certain details into the more modern age. As an aside, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret is one of Judy Blume’s most challenged books.

The Déjà Vu Book Club is for people of all ages who are interested in reading, or re-reading, children’s and young adult classics. Come with your best friends, your daughter or son, or by yourself to meet other people who love and have fond memories of the same books you do.

We’ll also be deciding what titles to read next year at this Saturday meeting. If you have a favorite title from your childhood or teenage years that you’d like to read again and discuss, we’d love to know what it is!

So, if you’ve ever read Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, either the original or revised version, please come and talk about it with us on Saturday morning. And for those of you who may not have read it yet, please do! We have copies available at the library. You can check it out today and be done by tomorrow. It’s a slim book and a quick read, I promise.

Also, tomorrow morning there will be doughnuts!

-Melissa M.

What I Did (Read) on My Winter Vacation

I just emerged from two weeks of hibernation to rejoin productive society. In other words, I’ve been on vacation. I participated in the usual family holiday festivities, sure, albeit fewer than most others did due to the small size of my clan. To be honest, I was actively trying to keep this vacation relaxed and low-key. I felt I needed it and deserved it. My promise to myself was to spend as much time reading as I possibly could. And read I did. I may not have made as huge a dent in my To-Read pile as I might have hoped, but over the course of 15 days, I read 6 books. Considering that I currently average about 1½ books per month, I was pretty thrilled with those results. I was also thrilled that I read books from several genres. Reading outside my usual categories was one of my goals for 2012, one that I will continue to explore in 2013.

So here’s a run-down of what I read on my winter holiday break (in the order read):

Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier — The second book in a trilogy about a time-traveling teen who is now a reluctant member of a secret society that goes back generations in her family. I read the first book (Ruby Red) earlier this year and couldn’t wait for this one to come out in October. There’s mystery, a sinister villain from the past, fencing and a convoluted romance (of course). The only problem is now I’m stuck waiting for the last volume to come out in fall of 2013. Sigh. This series was originally published in Germany and has been since translated into several languages.

Lou! #1- Secret Diary by Julien Neel — This graphic novel tells the story of a tween and her single mom. You get to follow along as they survive adopting a stray cat, a visit from Memaw, video game addiction, love and each other! The self-deprecating humor and colorful panels make the story a stand-out. I can’t wait to see about getting my hands on numbers 2-4. (Update: I read volumes 2 & 3 last night and they were just as funny and cute as the first one!)

Driving the Saudis: A Chauffeur’s Tale of the World’s Richest Princesses (Plus Their Servants, Nannies, and One Royal Hairdresser) by Jayne Amelia Larson — If you’ve read the subtitle, you’ve pretty much read this book. You’re going to get exactly what you expect, stories about the uber-rich spending like there’s no tomorrow. Only, there is a tomorrow and they spend just as much money that day too. What is also included, that you may not expect, is the opportunity to get to know the people who take care of these wealthy Saudis. Their servants and caretakers are real people, with real feelings, and hopes and dreams that they, all too realistically, know won’t come true. To sum up: the princesses are spoiled (not necessarily their fault) and the author, as well as the rest of their domestic help, was overworked.

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters — This more recent, and possibly last, of the Amelia Peabody mystery series finds her archeological family in the Holy Land instead of their beloved Egypt. Amelia’s son, nicknamed Ramses, and his brother from another mother, David, are kidnapped (as usual). Amelia uses her wits to deduce what’s happened to them and her pointy parasol to prod the story along. Her dashing and boisterous husband, Emerson, uses his massive countenance and forceful personality to orchestrate the rescue of Ramses and David.

White Jacket Required: A Culinary Coming-of-Age Story by Jenna Weber — Just when you thought there couldn’t possibly be another cooking-blog-turned-book, here it is! Jenna always wanted to be a writer and the idea of combining her love of cooking and writing into a career led her to culinary school. Her journey, from making the decision to attend school, through graduation and entrance into the world of work, is interesting. You come to understand that the culinary arts are not as simple as they may appear and no one’s career path is smooth and straight. We all have bumps and roadblocks to make life interesting, and hopefully worthwhile.

Dirty Secret: A Daughter Comes Clean About Her Mother’s Compulsive Hoarding by Jessie Sholl — I’ll admit it. I’m kind of fascinated by the television shows about hoarding. Well actually, more than kind of. It’s like the proverbial train wreck that you can’t look away from. I am always shocked by the living conditions of these people, some more than others, and I am always rooting for them to get it together so they can pitch the stuff, mental as well as physical, that’s keeping them a prisoner in their own home. This book approaches hoarding from a slightly different point of view. You get to see how this mental illness specifically affects the child of the afflicted. Jessie finally comes to the realization that she has to “divorce” herself from her mother’s house. Accepting that she cannot change her mother, however, doesn’t mean Jessie loves her any less.

“What’s Melissa going to read next?” you may ask. The answer is I’m reading the book for the Mystery Book Group which is meeting on Friday, January 18th at 1pm in the Teen Meeting Space on the First Floor. Our current theme is Middle East Mysteries and the book for January is Belshazzar’s Daughter by Barbara Nadel. All are welcome!

Happy Snuggly Winter Reading!
-Melissa M.

Teens (sometimes) Get the Best Books

For the past few summers, the fine folks at NPR have asked their readers to contribute to themed Best 100 book lists. This year they tackled the wide world of YA novels. As one of those grown up types who still loves the heck out of teen literature, I enjoyed poring over (and judging) the list. For the most part, the list is a very fair mix of genres, ranging from classics (A Separate Peace, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Catcher in the Rye are all represented) to some of the best writers working today, with just a few “No, seriously?” entries. (I’m looking at you, Hush, Hush…)

John Green was a name I expected to see on the list a few times, but he might be the only non-series author on the list to have almost every one of his books represented. If anyone is a big deal in the realistic fiction game, it’s this guy. He’s been putting consistently good stuff since his 2005 debut, Looking For Alaska (a Printz winner). Green’s newest book, number four on the list, The Fault in Our Stars is holding strong as one of my favorites from this past year. (Bonus: he signed all 150,000 copies of the first printing.) More to check out: An Abundance of Katherines, Paper Towns, and Will Grayson, Will Grayson.

Sarah Dessen – who is coming to the library in January as a speaker in the Black, White, and Read All Over series –  is another realistic fiction writer with a fair bit of real estate on the list. Just Listen, The Truth About Forever, Along for the Ride, and This Lullaby were voted in and are all excellent choices. Like Green, Dessen has cracked the formula for balancing heart-breaking issues with humor and wit. More to check out: Dreamland, Keeping the Moon, Lock and Key, Someone Like You, and That Summer.

I was really excited to see the Anne of Green Gables series present among the selection of classics. Along with Little Women (sadly missing from the list), L.M. Montgomery’s books were a big part of my reading development as a young person. A girl could do a lot worse than to look to smart and independent Anne Shirley as a role model. Also, Gilbert Blythe is totally crush-worthy.

Did some of your favorites make the cut? Any you would add?

– Jess

books beyond the ages

Every once in a while, I get to work at the desk in our amazing Teen Department here at the Main library. While I enjoy the energy of our teen customers and the creative atmosphere of the department, especially their stacks murals

 

the best part is that I always leave with a stack of books to read! Here are some of my favorites:

• Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan: A simple love story that takes place in a high school where the star quarterback is also the prom queen.
• Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging, by Louise Rennison: With a title like that, you know it’s got to be good! This one is in my too-much-fun-to-be-missed category. Start with the glossary in the back of the book. Later on in the series, there’s a scene involving false eyelashes that made me laugh so hard I cried.
• The Wee Free Men, by Terry Pratchett: Funny and wise, raucus little blue men; a girl who must discover the power within. A winning combination.
• Eva, by Peter Dickinson: I read this many years ago, but it still sticks with me. I love any science fiction that asks what it means to be human.

Fortunately, I’m not alone in my love of teen books. My colleagues shared the following with me, adding to my list of must-reads!

• Staying Fat For Sarah Byrnes, by Chris Crutcher
• The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things, by Carolyn Mackler
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower, by Stephen Chbosky
• Weetzie Bat, by Francesca Lia Block

If you’re an adult who won’t read “young adult” books because you think you outgrew them long ago, I beg you to reconsider! You could read a favorite “adult” author’s contribution to the teen bookshelves. Isabel Allende, James Patterson, and Sherman Alexie have all written books for teens. Or you can join the rest of Allegheny County for the One Book, One Community program in April to read The Giver, by Lois Lowry. Just try one! There’s no shame in it!  After all, we’re all human.

-Kaarin

p.s. While I’m recommending books written for younger age groups, I must throw in two childrens’ titles I read recently:

• Wabi Sabi, by Mark Reibstein, with art by Ed Young: A gorgeous and poetic understanding of beauty.
• Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed, by Mo Willems: A lesson in tolerance.