9. Museum of Thieves by Lian Tanner, Narrated by Claudia Black (Listening Library, 2010)

AUDIO BOOK: FANTASY (ages 9-14)

Brief Description: Welcome to the horrifying city of Jewel. Here, the Blessed Guardians rule over the city with an iron fist, claiming to protect the citizens, but is there a more evil intent behind their "goodness?" Meet Goldie Roth, who is tethered by a silver guardchain to her parents until her separation day arrives on her 16th birthday - all kids are tethered in this manner for their "protection." But something goes wrong on her separation day, and she finds herself running away when a bomb has frightened the citizens of Jewel, and Goldie would lose her privilege of separating. She ends up in the Museum of Thieves, a strange place full of secrets that could destroy the city of Jewel; it is here that Goldie meets the four guardians and is trained by them to hone her thieving skills. These five characters must work together to combat the powers of the Blessed Guardians as they strive for their own, and ultimately their world's, survival.

Awards: None

Personal Opinion: What a strangely compelling tale! I found myself somewhat confused about this world, but that could be because of the stop and start audio experience. The museum is alive and moving, and it's at once terrible and comforting for Goldie. The characters were interesting as they were eccentric and clever. Underlying the charming story of Goldie's interaction with the Museum's guardians is a current of fear. The Blessed Guardians were quite a frightening lot, and I was reminded often of nuns and priests ruling with iron fists, adhering to the letter of the law in all circumstances. Goldie's transition, though, was wonderful. From being overprotected at the story's beginning to gaining her own independence, Goldie shows a remarkable courage to fight the powers of evil. The narrator was quite exceptional, but the screeching and yelling and shouting was just annoying. Still, she distinguished character's voices clearly and included wonderful sound effects to bring the story to life.

Programming: Kids imagine themselves as the maker of the guardchains in the City of Jewel and report on the merits of the position in a written format answering the questions: How do you see your job in the city? What do you think about the rules of tethering? What do you think of the city's rulers?

8. "Flipped" directed by Rob Reiner (Warner Home Video, 2010)

DVD (ages 10-14)

Brief Description: In this 1950’s coming of age story, two neighbors, Julie and Bryce, discover one another through a series of difficult situations including misrepresentations and deceit; despite this awkward beginning, they eventually find friendship.

Awards: Heartland Truly Moving Picture Award

Personal Opinion: This film had such potential, but it fell flat for me. It was difficult to come to like Bryce as he was shallow and deceitful. Julie was described as iridescent, and she did have qualities that showed this, but her personality fell short as well. I found myself rolling my eyes as one lie after another was revealed and the roller coaster ride of their relationship found me just wanting to depart the ride all together. The strongest character was Bryce’s dad who was harsh and cruel, and it seemed we were to feel sorry for him when we discovered that his regrets formed the background for his cruelty, but this just didn’t work. Bryce’s grandfather was beautifully drawn and charismatic; he was the only character I truly came to care about.

Programming Idea: It may work to include this film in a World War II unit, although the primary focus of the movie is relationship driven, but it does provide a nice setting for the time period.

7. Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life by Bryan O'Malley (Oni Press, 2004)

GRAPHIC NOVEL: (ages 13+)

Brief Description: 23-year-old Scott Pilgrim is dating a high-school girl named Knives Chau who’s 17. When he begins dreaming of a groovy roller blading girl, and then sees her "live" in the library and at a party, Scott begins his obsession with the elusive Ramona Flowers, Amazon.ca delivery girl. When he tries to introduce himself, he fumbles, and she rolls her eyes, so he orders from Amazon to get her to deliver. She does, and they eventually begin dating, sort of. Scott must fight all Ramona’s seven evil ex-boyfriends to actually earn the right to officially date her. This book illustrates the fight with the first ex at a gig in which Scott’s self-proclaimed crappy band is scheduled to play a set.

Awards: Doug Wright Award for Best Emerging Talent for Scott Pilgrim, nominated for three Harvey Awards (Best New Talent, Best Cartoonist and Best Graphic Album of Original Work)

Personal Opinion: Oddly, I enjoyed this fun though often irreverent story of Scott Pilgrim. The language is perfectly tuned to youth with its casual dialogue and realistic characterizations. I was puzzled by the fight scene with the first ex-boyfriend as it seemed like a different story with a shift in pacing. Still, I find myself interested to see what happens in the next installment. I liked Scott’s gay roommate Wallace Wells who offers a fun sense of humor, and the feisty fellow band member Kim Pine.

Programming Idea: Pair this book with a manga drawing class and book discussion as part of a manga and anime club.

6. Big Nate in a Class by Himself by Lincoln Peirce (Harper Collins, 2010)

BOOK: HUMOR (ages 8-12)

Brief Description: 6^th grader Nate Wright fully believes himself to be capable of greatness…sometime in the future, but the here and now is a different matter entirely. When he opens a fortune cookie and reads “Today you will surpass all others” he’s sure his time has come to show what he’s worth. The rest of the book recounts the day as Nate finds himself with detention after detention. In the end, Nate does, in fact, surpass all others, but not exactly in the way he expects.

Awards: Best Children's Books of the Year; 2011; Horn Book Fanfare, 2010; Children's Choice Book Award, 2011

Personal Opinion: Nate is a spinoff from the popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, and while it was entertaining, I didn’t find Nate nearly as funny or creatively drawn as Greg Heffley. The illustrations accompanying the story were great, and I’ll bet the ending will be supremely satisfying to 5^th and 6^th graders, but I just prefer the Diary series much more.

Programming Idea: I’d hold a special book club over the summer and would include this diary or illustrated story format for all the books; then I’d challenge the attendees to write their own similar story about school using images and text. Kids might also write a character comparison of Nate and Greg Heffley after reading both books.

5. Go with Grace by George Alexopoulos (TokyoPop, 2006)

GRAPHIC NOVEL (ages 13+)

Brief Description: Opening with two black pages and the written words: NO MORE, the depressing and cheerless stage is set as this graphic novel begins; the next illustrations show a girl slitting her wrist. Grace is a tragic figure crippled physically by an unknown disease. When she attempts physical exertion, she grows increasingly more ill and is ultimately bedridden. She begins to hallucinate and she "meets" a cute blond boy who visits with her and claims he is a ghost. He coaxes her from her room on several occasions, but this leads to hospitalization. Grace is surrounded by even more depression; her step father is cruel and heartless, her mother is dead, apparently from the same disease, and only her perky half-sister Ashley brings any light to this morosely dark tale. The ending features a mixed bag of delight and sadness.

Awards: None Found

Personal Opinion: I really disliked the alarming scene of suicide in the beginning, but continued to read in one sitting as I had to find out what would happen to Grace. This story had hints of the Demi Moore/Patrick Swayze “Ghost” to it, but it departed dramatically in that Grace was clearly suffering from major depressive disorder. For a while, her journal writing held her in the realms of reality, but when she began seeing Andy, the charming blond ghost, she literally left her room and ended up even more sick, and she left her sense of reality as well. Her abusive step-father was pretty over the top having a distinct disregard for Grace’s well-being. Her caring doctor attempted to work with the father to observe Grace and determine the cause of her problems, but he wouldn’t budge. Ultimately, Grace opts to “go with grace” in an unsatisfying ending. I sympathized with her sister Ashley who obviously loved and wanted to help her sister. Again, I was drawn into the story out of morbid curiosity, and I can’t say I was very happy about it! Other reviews touted this as a “romantic ghost story.” I just couldn’t get past Grace’s all-encompassing depression to see the romantic piece, although she did have moments of happiness with Andy.

Programming Idea: High school aged kids might discuss this book as part of a health unit on depression and other psychological disorders. I can’t see a direct application to the public library setting, and probably wouldn’t attempt to hand-sell the book except to those kids who enjoy graphic novels and/or tales of angst and hardship.

4. I Survived the Sinking of the Titanic, 1912 by Lauren Tarshis (Scholastic, 2010)

BOOK: HISTORICAL FICTION (ages 6-10)

Brief Description: In an engaging opening scene, the titanic is described as sinking, and10-year-old George Calder is frightened, hears screaming, and then there is darkness. Readers are then taken back to George’s 5^th day at sea. He continues to feel lucky to be aboard the Titanic with his wealthy aunt Daisy, but each day George finds himself in trouble because of his great ideas; on this day he vows to keep out of mischief! When he learns there might be a mummy in the cargo hold, he sets out on an adventure only to find a robber who takes his knife and turns it on George. At that moment, the ship lurches as it hits the infamous iceberg. George scrambles on deck to see fellow passengers throwing snowballs made from the iceberg. Readers experience great angst as the ship continues to sink. Ultimately, there is a happy ending for George and his family and friends, but the author reminds readers that this wasn’t the case for the 1, 517 people who didn’t survive this disaster.

Awards: None

Personal Opinion: I was surprised by how well developed the characters were in this transitional level historical account of the Titanic disaster. In short space, Tarshis defines them beautifully and draws the reader into their lives; I found myself routing for them as the suspenseful actions unfolded. Being a children’s story, there is a happy ending, but I thought the author’s inclusion of more facts about the disaster were well done at the story’s end.

Programming Idea: This would be a great book to include in the study of the Titanic or other world events in the early 1900’s. Kids might be encouraged to write their own historical fiction story using other disastrous events in history.