Book Review (and giveaway!): Twenty Boy Summer

Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler. (Grades 9+)

Summary from the ARC (try as I might, I couldn't write a better one):

"According to her best friend Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy every day, there's a pretty good chance that Anna will find her first summer romance. Anna lightheartedly agrees to the game, but there's something she hasn't told Frankie - she's already had that kind of romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago."

Okay, Twenty Boy Summer had me at hello. It starts with Anna finally getting together with Matt after she's pined after him for years. And Sarah Ockler just captured that flying, giddy first-love feeling so perfectly that I was immediately absorbed in the story. I instantly cared about the characters. And I felt a hole in my own heart after Matt's unexpected death left Anna breathless.

And can you imagine how terrible it would be to not only lose your first love, but to have to keep that first love a secret from your best friend?

The book's not perfect - I felt it dragged in a few places and while I really heart the cover, I actually don't care for the title. Maybe it's me, but Twenty Boy Summer sounds like it's going to be a fluffy chick lit and the book is actually more serious than that. It really reminded me of Sarah Dessen and Elizabeth Scott, so I'd heartily recommend it to fans of those authors.

And here's where I gush about the cover a little bit. I couldn't tell this until I actually had the book in my hand, but that heart on the cover is not made up of torn up paper or something like I'd thought. It's made up of pieces of sea glass. Which is so perfect for the book and so beautiful to boot. A+ for cover design!

Annnnnd the lovely people at Little, Brown have provided me a couple of copies of the ARC to giveaway to two lucky readers!

Leave a comment to be entered. Please include your email address if it's not readily available in your profile or on your blog.

Bonus entries for each time you link to this contest (please leave a separate comment for each entry).

And a bonus entry if you'll recommend a great CD to me (I am in a music rut). I like a great variety of music and favorites include Ben Folds, Ingrid Michaelson, and Barenaked Ladies. (Please leave a separate comment with your recommendation).

The contest will run through the end of June and I'll draw two winners on July 1. Contest is open to anyone anywhere.

This is definitely a great one for your summer reading list, so I hope you'll enter!

Help Me Help You: Wrapping it Up

I got so many great suggestions for Help Me Help You that I couldn't let them languish in the comments. So, wrapping up this feature, I have suggestions from librarians throughout the interwebs. (And I apologize for this taking so very long... life just got crazy for a little bit!)

Help Me Help You: What ELSE Librarians Want You to Know About the Library

There are age restrictions on programs for a reason. Planning programs is a lot of work. Implementing programs takes knowledge and a lot of energy. Programs get exponentially harder when the kids attending do not have the necessary fine motor skills or attention spans for the activities planned. The age restriction also might be for the simple reason that many fifth graders won't want to come to a program with first graders. If a program is listed for kids in 3rd-5th grade, please respect our rules and don't try to sign up your first-grade child.

You can request that we buy materials. We do our best to anticipate and fulfill the needs of our patrons, but sometimes things fall through the cracks. We overlook a book or a movie or a CD. Let us know! We can't buy everything, but we'll certainly do our best and it never hurts to ask.

Spaces designated for children and teens are just that. If you want to use the computers, tables, or study areas, we'd appreciate it if you'd use them in the adult areas, especially during after-school, weekend, and summer hours. We create special areas for teens and kids so that they will want to hang out and use those areas. While adults are certainly welcome to use the collections, teens and kids need their own space.

Parents/cargeivers, we want you to participate in storytime!! Your kids will get so much more out of storytime if you're doing the songs and rhymes along with us. Get up and dance! And when we're reading books, model good listening behavior. Your kids will emulate you (and you just might enjoy the stories). How can you expect your kids to be engaged in storytime if you're not engaged?

Some topics might not have a book written about them. And, on a related note, some topics might not have any internet info on them. Someone has to write books, articles, and web pages, you know. We try our best to find whatever information you are looking for, but sometimes it just doesn't exist. There are some other things to try, though, if you're looking for a topic that doesn't have any books written about it. Maybe there's a broader book that would contain some information about your specific topic (ex. a book about fish that might have a chapter or an entry on the humuhumunukunukuapua'a). Maybe there's a magazine article in an electronic database or a reliable website. And don't forget the trusty encyclopedia!

We may be able to request a book from another library. If you don't see the book you want, ask us about it. We might be able to get it from another branch or through interlibrary loan. This could take a couple of days or weeks, so planning ahead is your friend!

It is not our job to police your child's internet use. Some libraries may have filters on the children's computers, but if you're really concerned about what your child is accessing on the computer, you need to be there to oversee it. Likewise with what books your child is checking out. My job is to find the books and information I am asked for; it is not to decide what's appropriate reading/viewing material for each child. And what one parent considers acceptable might be objectionable to another child.

And that wraps up my Help Me Help You feature. Thanks, everyone, for your comments! I hope these posts have been helpful (as well as giving librarians a place to vent a little bit and know that we've all experienced similar frustrations!). If you have any more suggestions, feel free to add them in the comments.

Thanks for reading and be sure and check out the other parts:

Part 1: Research and Reference

Part 2: Storytime

Part 3: Library Logistics

Part 4: What Librarians Wish Teachers Knew About the Library

48HBC Wrap-Up

Annnnd I'm spent.

Total time spent reading/blogging: 20.5 hours
Total # of books finished: 5
Total $ of pages read: 1528

I've made it to 20.5 hours and I'm calling it quits. I didn't separate out time spent reading, blogging, and social networking, but this is what the weekend looked like for me:

Saturday:

7:00am - Time officially starts

4:45pm - I get home from Cincinnati and begin reading. (2.5 hours)

7:15-8:00p - Take a break for dinner.

8:00p-9:45p - Reading/blogging (1.75 hours)

9:45-10:15p - Break

10:15-11:00p - Reading (.75 hours)

11:00p - Fall asleep.

Sunday:

7:30a - Wake up

7:50a-1:50 - Reading/blogging (6 hours)

1:50-2:45 - Break

2:45-6:15 - Reading/blogging (3.5 hours)

6:15-6:50 - Break for dinner

6:50p-12:30a - Reading/blogging (5.5 hours)

So, counting the time it's taking me to make this post, I've made it to 20.5 hours.

In that time, I've finished 5 books and read parts of 2 additional books.

Books read:

Mothstorm by Philip Reeve

Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork

Kaleidoscope Eyes by Jen Bryant

I also read 66 pages of The Comet's Curse and 111 pages of The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate, which I am really enjoying. I'd love to keep going, but I don't think I can keep my eyes open for much longer.

My total number of pages read is 1528.

I hit both my goals this year, which were to read for at least 20 hours and finish at least 5 books. I was also able to visit a lot of blogs and leave encouraging comments (so important!) and I really appreciated the encouragement to Tweet and socialize.

I think for next year, I might set a mini-challenge for myself to visit and comment on a certain number of or percentage of participating blogs. The sense of community this year was great and I know that comments and tweets from everyone kept me going! Plus, visiting blogs and talking to people about the Challenge made a nice break when I just couldn't read for a minute longer.

This year might have been easier with a couch... I alternated between my one comfy chair and the floor and (towards the end) my bed. My new couch should be delivered June 19, so hopefully I'll have it for next year... ;) (Jeez, am I already thinking about next year? What is wrong with me?)

And, since I fear I'm now rambling incoherently, I'll stop this wrap-up post and go to bed. MANY thanks to MotherReader for hosting this challenge - it's an event I look forward to! (And now I'm looking forward to getting my copy of The Sims 3 this week and not even thinking about reading unless I want to... ;)

Great job, everyone. And if you're still finishing up, READ READ READ! You can do it! Keep up the good work!

48HBC: Mothstorm

Mothstorm: The Horror From Beyond Uranus Georgium Sidus! by Philip Reeve, illustrated by David Wyatt. (Grades 4-8.)

Art and Myrtle are back in this third book of the Larklight series. It's the Christmas holiday and the Mumby family is just about to relax and enjoy their Christmas dinner when visitors arrive with a very strange photo and word of a distress signal from the planet Georgium Sidus (only improper people call it Uranus!). So, off they go on another rip-roaring Victorian space travel adventure! And, as usual, the fate of the universe hangs in the balance.

I've quite enjoyed all three of the Larklight books, although I must confess that I've found each one of them a little bit longer than would be ideal. They're action-packed and funny in an extremely well-crafted alternate world.

And one thing that occurred to me as I was reading this tonight is...

(I don't think this spoils anything, but I'll give you a spoiler alert just in case. If you haven't read them and want to, you might want to skip the next paragraph!)

...that the books are children's fantasy stories with protagonists that are not orphans. Mr. Reeve has crafted many believable and creative ways for the kids to take over the action without killing off the parents. Writers take note: this is how it's done!

Highly recommended for fans of fantasy-adventure.

And as for the 48-Hour Book Challenge, I'm closing in on my goal. I hope to stay awake long enough to finish another book! We'll see....

So far:

Total time spent reading/blogging: 18 hours
Books finished: 5 (woohoo!)
Pages finished: 1418*

*I did start The Comet's Curse and read 66 pages before putting it down. It just wasn't keeping my interest enough for this late in the game. I think it's due back at the library, but I may pick it up at some point in the future. Has anyone read it that wants to weigh in?

48 Hour Book Challenge: Checking In

If I'm doing my math correctly, it's been about 33 hours since my official start time. So that means I have 15 hours to go until my deadline and I need to read/blog for 8 of those hours in order to make my 20-hour goal.

Sounds like it's time to check in! It's been almost 24 hours since I got back into town and really started reading and in that time I've read/blogged for just about 12 hours.

So far I've read 4 books:

Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez
If I Stay by Gayle Forman
Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork
Kaleidoscope Eyes by Jen Bryant

So, it looks like I'm going to make my in-my-head goal of finishing at least 5 books.

And on that notes, I guess I'd better get back to the reading! See you in a few hours!

48HBC: Confetti Girl

Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez. (Grades 4-7.)
Reviewed from ARC provided by Little, Brown.

(This is a 2009 Cybils nominee and this review reflects only my personal opinion of the book, not necessarily the opinion of the panel!)

"Apolonia 'Lina' Flores is a sock enthusiast, a volleyball player, a science lover, and a girl who's just looking for answers. Even though her house is crammed full of books (her dad's a bibliophile), she's having trouble figuring out some very big questions, like why her dad seems to care more about books than about her, why her best friend's divorced mom is obsessed with making cascarones (hollowed eggshells filled with colorful confetti), and, most of all, why her mom died last year. Like colors in a cascarone, Lina's life is a rainbow of people, interests, and unexpected changes."

That's the jacket copy since my brain is too fried to write my own summary.

I picked this one up because I had heard Diana Lopez called a "Latina Judy Blume". I couldn't agree more (and that's a compliment because Judy Blume's been one of my favorite authors since I was about nine).

Still grieving her mom, Lina's dealing with an absent father, a crush on a boy, and navigating that tricky territory of middle school. I loved all the details of Lina's Mexican-American community in Corpus Christi, Texas (and HOORAY for a book about Latino kids where race isn't an issue). Lina's got a lot to deal with, but the tone of the book is upbeat and I was regularly chuckling out loud.

I'd consider this an essential purchase that'll appeal to middle-grade girls, Latina or otherwise. I wouldn't hesitate to hand it to any fan of Just as Long as We're Together, Are You There, God, It's Me Margaret, Shug, and others of that girly-coming-of-age ilk.

Um, and the cover has really cute socks!

Total reading/blogging time: Just over 12 hours
Books read: 4
Pages read: 965

48HBC: If I Stay

If I Stay by Gayle Forman. (Grades 8+)

It snowed in Oregon that winter morning. Mia celebrated the day off from school; it was a day off from everything, really. Her cello was at school, so she couldn't practice. Her parents stayed home from work and the family decided to visit some friends.

On the way there, a truck ran into their car. Mia's parents were killed instantly. Her brother, well, she wasn't sure what happened to her brother. And Mia found herself standing outside her broken body and facing a decision: should she stay or should she go?

As Mia's watching herself go through surgery, watching streams of friends and relatives come to be with her in the ICU, she remembers things about her life. She recalls things she did with her family, how she met her best friend, and when she went on her first date with her boyfriend Adam. And she has to figure out if she can face living without her parents or if maybe the best thing for all involved would be for her to let go.

This is a beautiful little book. The characters felt so real and multidimensional. There's a lot of music in the book. Mia's parents are punk rockers and she plays the classical cello so well that she auditioned for Julliard. I loved reading about Mia's relationship with Adam. It unfolded so organically that it felt really realistic. It wasn't boy meets girl, they kiss, and it's happily ever after. Things took awhile to develop. They had problems that they had to work out. It's one of the most realistic relationships I've seen in a book in a long time.

And ohhh, it's sad. Parts of this book are so touching, I won't tell you how many times I heared up (it was more than a handful). It's definitely character-based, touchy-feely, and kind of quiet in a way. I don't know that it will necessarily be everyone's cup of tea. But if you're looking for a touching book to curl up with for awhile, you can't go wrong here.

Total time spent reading/blogging: 9.5 hours
Books finished: 3
Pages read: 771

And now for something a little lighter, I think...

48HBC: Marcelo in the Real World

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork. (Grades 9+)

17-year old Marcelo has his future planned out. He'll work training horses this summer at his school, a special school for kids with disabilities. In the fall, he'll return to Paterson for his senior year and then go to college to study nursing. But Marcelo's dad has other plans for him. Arturo would like Marcelo to join "the real world" by working at his law firm for the summer and attending a typical high school in the fall. They make a deal. If Marcelo gets through the summer working at the law firm, adapting to new situations and following the rules of the real world, then Marcelo can choose what school he attends in the fall. But the real world is more complicated, beautiful, and frightening than Marcelo could ever have imagined.

WHY did I wait so long to pick up this book??? Seriously, I have owned it for months and somehow I always put something else in front of it. *kicks self* I knew I would love it and I did love it.

It took me a little while to warm up to Marcelo. His voice is very precise, very literal. I was a little confused in the beginning because he calls his parents by their first names. But after a couple of chapters, I got used to Marcelo's unique way of talking and I just loved everything. Working at the law firm, Marcelo gets involved in a conundrum that would be hard for anyone (neuro-typical or not) to sort out. He really has a trial by fire when he's asked to join the real world. So besides the fact that it's a beautifully-written novel about a kid on the autism spectrum, it's also just a beautifully-written coming-of-age story about a teenager who's figuring out what it means to love, to consider consequences, and to do the right thing.

This would be a great crossover book for your adult friends who don't know (yet) that they like YA books.

And now, I'm back to read, read, reading...

Total time spent reading/blogging: about 6.5 hours
Books finished: 2
Pages read: 575

I think next up is going to be If I Stay and then maybe something middle grade like Strawberry Hill or Confetti Girl.

48 Hour Book Challenge Update

I've read about 4.25 hours tonight and I'm exhausted from last night's shenanigans, so I might be heading to bed shortly. I'll try to stay up and read a little longer, but no promises. I'm halfway through Marcelo in the Real World and LOVING IT (as I knew I would. Why did I wait so long to pick it up???).

S'ok. I'll get some rest and read like a demon all day tomorrow until I can't keep my eyes open anymore. Luckily, I'm working Monday evening, so I can stay up as late as I want on Sunday and sleep in before my shift. :)

Time spent reading/blogging: 4.25 hours
Books finished: 1.5
Pages: Um.. like 410? ish?

48HBC: Kaleidoscope Eyes

Kaleidoscope Eyes by Jen Bryant. (Grades 5-8.)

It's the summer of 1968 and Lyza has realized that her mother, who left two years ago, is never coming home. Her personal tragedies pale in comparison, though, to the families who have lost sons and brothers to the Vietnam War. In the midst of all this, Lyza's grandfather dies and leaves behind a mystery for her to solve. It's an honest-to-goodness treasure hunt and Lyza, along with her best friends Malcolm and Carolann, will spend the summer of 1968 searching. But even if they find the treasure, it won't bring Lyza's mother back or protect family members from the devastating war.

I was excited to read this one because I so enjoyed Jen Bryant's previous novel in verse, Ringside 1925. In Kaleidoscope Eyes Ms. Bryant's created a lush portrayal of small-town New Jersey in 1968. It's a vibrant time, a time of confusion and rebellion and passion and fear, and I think that really comes across in the book. Quotes from songs of the time (protest and otherwise) add to the scenery.

But I have mixed feelings about novels in verse and this one didn't work so well for me. I enjoyed the parts of the story that were longer prose (for example, letters sent home from Vietnam) more than the actual poems. I enjoyed the characters, for the most part, and the setting, but I just feel like I would have enjoyed the story more if it had been prose.

That said, it's part adventure and part coming-of-age and a richly detailed portrayal of the 1960s. I'd hand it to any kid interested in that tumultuous time period.

Oh, and I do have to mention the author's note, which provided information about towns and places mentioned in the book as well as Janis Joplin, Captain Kidd, and others. It made my heart skip with glee. :)

Time spent reading/blogging: 2 hours
Books read: 1
Pages read: 263