To ensure our emails reach your inbox, add SLJTeen@email.schoollibraryjournal.com to your address book.

September 1st, 2010

In this Issue
Banned Books Week 2010, September 25-October 2 Teen Librarians "Dyeing" to Support Teen Readers Music and Game Reviews by Young Adults It's Never Too Late to Get Buzzed The Debut—Heidi Durrow, The Girl Who Fell From the Sky Celebrate National Library Card Month	Biddeford Book Ninjas—Book Reviews by Young Adults Huge is Huge You'll Go Gaga Over This Giveaway! Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge What Teen Health & Wellness Did This Summer

What are you planning to do this month to energize your library, your teens, and yourself? Did you ever think about changing your hair color? Or playing dress-up? Read on to hear what your colleagues are doing to shake things up and shine the spotlight on young adult services.–Dodie Ownes, editor

IN THIS ISSUE

Banned Books Week 2010, September 25-October 2
Banned Books Week has a long list of impressive sponsors, including the American Booksellers Association, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, the American Library Association, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Association of American Publishers, and the National Association of College Stores. The event is even endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. But that won't mean much if libraries don't educate their customers about the importance of free and open access to information. more » » »
Teen Librarians "Dyeing" to Support Teen Readers
Early this summer, Jefferson County (CO) Public Library's (JCPL) young adult librarians issued a challenge to their teen readers. If kids helped the library meet its summer reading club goals, then staffers would dye their hair whatever color their young adult patrons chose. On August 24, JCPL's young adult librarians started the day with (mostly) naturally colored hair and ended up looking like the rock stars they are, with blue, green, mauve, and purple hair.more » » »
Music and Game Reviews by Young Adults
One thing I love about having teen reviews of music and games in SLJTeen is that I'm constantly being introduced to new media. Though I was never a big Boyz II Men fan, I think I could get into playing some tracks from Mike Posner's new album, 31 Minutes to Takeoff, especially on cleaning days when I need a little energy kick to keep me going. And I can just imagine the crazy uniforms I'd like to design for my fantasy college football team in NCAA Football 11—who says stripes and paisley don't work well together? more » » »
It's Never Too Late to Get Buzzed
If you didn’t have the chance to attend the August 19 Teen Book Buzz, the first of our two fall webcasts featuring young adult titles, don’t despair. We have it ready for you to view, any time you’d like, on-demand! You’ll be treated to a list of fabulous titles that are sure to keep your young adult readers busy through to next spring. more » » »

The Debut

The Debut—Heidi Durrow, The Girl Who Fell From the Sky
The Girl Who Fell from the Sky (Algonquin, January 2010), Heidi Durrow's first novel, is a spare, elegant, and complex realization of Rachel's youth, through her own voice and from the vantage points of several people who were once or ultimately become important in her life. Rachel and Jamie lived in the same Chicago apartment building during a time when traumatic events changed the courses of both their lives. But they don't meet until years later, in Oregon, where each has come to live in the aftermath of Rachel's loss of immediate family. LaRonne and Drew are stable, African-American adults who touch and are touched by these troubled youth, while Rachel's parents, already gone from her life when the story opens, have important details to offer both to the other characters and the reader that are essential to understanding the truths behind appearances.more » » »

Jen 2.0—Technology for Today

Celebrate National Library Card Month
One of my library's goals is to increase the number of cardholders. It's probably one of your goals, too, and National Library Card Month in September is the best time to do something fun that will bring in the hoards. But what can you do that's fun and low cost? Our social media librarian, Lisa Waite Bunker, came up with an awesome idea. And you can do it, too! more » » »

Biddeford Book Ninjas

Biddeford Book Ninjas—Book Reviews by Young Adults
If you haven't heard the scuttlebutt on Ellen Hopkins being "uninvited" to the Humble ISD Teen Lit Festival in Texas, you can read up on it here. Our reviewer calls Fallout, Hopkins's most recent title, "an excellent conclusion to a powerful series dealing with important issues." Which is exactly why the author should be available and accessible to teens, don't you think? more » » »

Media Mania: Book Tie-ins to High-Interest Movies, TV Shows, and More

Huge is Huge
The finale to this much-watched teen drama series has just aired, leaving fans at loose ends during the show's Monday night timeslot. Based on Sasha Paley's young adult novel of the same title (S&S, 2007), Huge premiered on ABC Family on June 28, 2010, to an audience of 2.5 million and kept viewers riveted throughout the summer. more » » »

Seen and Heard

You'll Go Gaga Over This Giveaway!
If you haven't heard of Lady Gaga, then you haven't turned on the radio or TV or opened a magazine in the past year. Let's face it, not only have you heard of her, but you know that your teens can't get enough of her! Now, thanks to Poker Face, a fantastic bio by journalist Maureen Callahan, they can impress their friends with in-depth knowledge of Lady G's superior style and rollercoaster ride to fame. more » » »
Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge
The Siemens Foundation, Discovery Education, and the National Science Teachers Association are teaming up again to encourage students and teachers nationwide to improve their communities by becoming "Agents of Change." more » » »
What Teen Health & Wellness Did This Summer
Clearly, there were no lazy days at Teen Health & Wellness this summer! Here are just a few of the new features that the online database, which was created by Rosen Publishing, has added for teens, educators, and librarians. more » » »

You are receiving this email because you have requested either a newsletter or a magazine from Media Source Inc.

You are currently registered to receive Library Journal enewsletters at #EmailAddr#.
Unsubscribe | Manage Your eNewsletters | Privacy policy

If this eNewsletter was forwarded to you, please go to our eNewsletter subscription page to sign up for your own copy.

Begin or renew your Library Journal magazine subscription