BCLS Teens Only

Breaking Dawn: A Preview

2008-05-30T09:08:00.003-05:00

Entertainment Weekly has a preview of the first chapter of Breaking Dawn, the upcoming book in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series. It will be in bookstores on August 2 and in the library soon after. Happy reading!

Twilight: The Teaser for the Movie

2008-05-07T11:16:00.004-05:00

The movie of Stephenie Meyer's novel Twilight will be released in December. The teaser trailer for the movie has been released. Watch it below.

What do you think?

Have you read Tantalize?

2008-04-22T12:06:00.003-05:00

Here's the trailer for Cynthia Leitich Smith's newest novel, Tantalize.

Her blog is a great place for aspiring writers to find loads of information, and her website is terrific as well.

Enjoy!

ALA Book Awards

2008-01-15T11:03:00.000-06:00

The American Library Association announced their award winners yesterday. You can find them all listed on our Award Winners page, but here are some of them.

Printz Award

Newbery Award

Coretta Scott King Author Award

Pura Belpré Narrative Award

Happy Reading!

Review: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

2007-10-01T14:58:00.000-05:00

Sherman Alexie is one of my favorite authors. So, when I saw that he had written a novel for teens, I couldn’t wait to read it. I finished it today and am amazed at how wonderful the book is.

In many cases, adult novelists who decide to write a book for teens end up having one of two problems. Either the books are too adult for teens or too child-like for teens. Alexie’s book has no such problems.

The story is about a young Spokane Indian boy named Arnold Spirit, but everyone on the reservation calls him Junior. He decides, if he is to have any sort of future, he needs to go to school in the local white farming community. So, early in his freshman year of high school, he transfers and becomes the only Indian kid in his new all-white school.

Junior has lots to deal with after he makes this change – his best friend thinks he’s been betrayed, his new school has a completely different set of unwritten rules Junior has to learn, his sister decides to get married and move to Montana, and he has a semi-girlfriend whose father hates him.

The story is told in Junior’s first-person narrative with his cartoon sketches sprinkled throughout. While this story is very angry, touching on subjects such as poverty, death and teen angst (including rough language), it is also very funny. There is a terrific scene involving the science teacher, Junior, another student and information about petrified wood that made me laugh out loud. And the cartoons, drawn by Ellen Forney, are especially humorous.

I highly recommend this book. It is one of the best teen novels I’ve read in a long time.

National Chicken Month

2007-09-26T08:32:00.000-05:00

Did you know September is National Chicken Month? So, try some chicken recipes or just learn more about our favorite fowl.

Or, if you want to see something very odd, check this out.

Enjoy!

Well, That Won't Work

2007-09-26T08:24:00.000-05:00

Ever thought of some invention that couldn't possibly work? Perhaps you've got an entry in The Museum of Unworkable Devices. I especially enjoy the gallery of 3-D images.

Enjoy!

Ramadan

2007-09-19T08:54:00.000-05:00

The Islamic holiday Ramadan began September 13 and continues through October 11. A month of fasting and prayer, Ramadan is celebrated annually.

For more information, visit the sites for the Islamic Society of Greater Houston and the Masjid El-Farouq.

¡Bienvenidos a la mes de Hispanic Heritage!

2007-09-19T08:28:00.000-05:00

September 15 kicked off National Hispanic Heritage Month. An estimated 44 million people in United States identify themselves as Hispanic, including these famous people. About 8 million Hispanics live in Texas.

The library has lots of books featuring Hispanic characters or based on Hispanic folktales. And if you want to read award-winning books by Hispanic authors and illustrators, we have those, too!

¡Adios!

Arrr! It Be a Pirate's Day

2007-09-19T08:14:00.001-05:00

Today is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. So, it's a good day to study your pirate lingo and learn your pirate name (mine? Captain Mary Bonney). You could even listen to some pirate music to get yourself in the spirit.

Arrr! What are ye waitin' fer?

How Bionic Are You?

2007-08-24T16:26:00.000-05:00

NBC has launched a site to determine how bionic you are. I only got 40% and, therefore, failed miserably. Oh, well.

How did you do?

HSM 2

2007-08-20T09:55:00.001-05:00

High School Musical 2 premiered Friday night. How many of you watched it? What did you think?

More Goofy Fun

2007-08-16T09:19:00.000-05:00

This just makes me giggle.

Enjoy!

30th Anniversary

2007-08-16T08:33:00.000-05:00

Today is the 30th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death, or not. The King of Rock 'n' Roll died in 1977 at Graceland, his home in Memphis. Fans are gathered in over 100-degree heat to mourn the singer.

Elvis is an icon, and so is Graceland. His mansion is now a National Historic Site.

Don't Try This At Home

2007-08-15T08:29:00.000-05:00

I mentioned in a previous post that you could find some weird stuff online. Well, here's another site that is both weird and wonderful. I love this site. I love the music, the artsy camera angle (inside the microwave!). And I love what they decided to try. I think my favorite is the marshmallows - take that Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man!

Enjoy! But please don't try this at home.

Duran Duran

2007-08-10T08:04:00.000-05:00

Today, amazingly enough, is National Duran Duran Appreciation Day. For more information on one of the top groups of the 1980s, check out their entry in Wikipedia or visit the official fan site. You can listen to their music and see the video for "Hungry Like the Wolf."

Enjoy!

Hiroshima & Nagasaki

2007-08-06T14:44:00.000-05:00

Today is the 62nd anniversary of the atomic bomb being dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. On August 9, 1945, another bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.

Both cities have been involved in peace movements since their bombings.

You can see old newsreel footage of the bombing of Hiroshima. The Library of Congress has a letter from FDR to Robert Oppenheimer thanking him for his secret atomic research that led to the creation of the atomic bomb.

Tonight, HBO will air the documentary White Light, Black Rain: The Destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at 6:30 p.m.

Did you know ...

2007-08-06T14:42:00.000-05:00

Computers can read your mind? Can you figure out how this site works?

Coast Guard Day

2007-08-06T14:32:00.000-05:00

Saturday was Coast Guard Day for the 217-year-old organization. The Coast Guard has volunteers who help, and of course, you can join or attend the academy.

This video is of Coast Guard rescues in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. And this video is a commercial, but it's funny and shows up when you do a YouTube search for coast guard.

Author Interview

2007-08-03T08:40:00.000-05:00

Entertainment Weekly has an interview with Stephanie Meyer. She's the author of the vampire novels Twilight and New Moon. Here's the description of Twilight:

When seventeen-year-old Bella leaves Phoenix to live with her father in Forks, Washington, she meets an exquisitely handsome boy at school for whom she feels an overwhelming attraction and who she comes to realize is not wholly human.

We have copies of both books in the library, and they're all checked out. But you can request them, and we'll let you know when it's available.

Enjoy!

When I Snap My Fingers

2007-08-02T08:44:00.000-05:00

Today is Hypnosis Day. You can find out about hypnosis here or at the library. And, this site explains how hypnosis works.

Enjoy!

Games and More Games

2007-08-02T08:11:00.000-05:00

If you like playing online games, here are some you might try.

Presidential Pong - it's like the original Pong game, only you and your computer opponent are current presidential hopefuls
Darfur Is Dying - a game that allows you to put yourself in the place of a Darfur refugee and forage for water or survive in the refugee camp. While it seems kind of trite to be sitting at a computer playing a game about genocide, you are reminded of just what a nightmare life in Darfur is.

There are more games available at Persuasive Games.

Learn Japanese

2007-08-01T09:37:00.000-05:00

Konnichi wa! August is Learn Japanese Month, and we've got a few sites for you to do just that.

Free Japanese Lessons
Nihongo o Narau Learn Japanese
Learn to Speak Japanese Online
Japanese Language

The library also has books and sound recordings to help you learn Japanese.

Happy learning! Sayonara!

Free Audiobooks

2007-07-31T10:20:00.000-05:00

Do you prefer to listen to books rather than read them? Then, this site is perfect for you. It's the Audiobook Podcast Collection - some are available ast mp3s while others are only available through iTunes. They're all free, though, so you can listen all of them without paying a penny. Most of them are older titles like The Call of the Wild or The Metamorphosis. The site also includes a list of other podcast sites on the Internet.

And, of course, you can always check out the BCLS Podcasts.

Happy listening!

Attention Incoming Seniors!

2007-07-31T10:07:00.000-05:00

For those of you who are getting ready to start your senior year in high school next month, you're probably also getting ready to apply to colleges and universities. In addition to using our College & University page, you might try Campus Explorer. This site allows you to search for colleges based on field of study, degree type or location. You can get information about the students and admissions requirements for specific schools, as well. Here's the information about The University of Texas at Austin.