TSCPL | Teens

Chess at the Library

2009-11-06T15:18:09+00:00

Chess players have been participating in tournaments for over three years in David J's Place. Patrons may not notice the tournament because of the quiet chess players deep in thought. With our new chess program, teens are able to test their skills against adults.TSCPL employee, Robert and volunteer, David, oversee players giving advice and making sure the participants are playing according to the rules. Zavier was our chess champion for October.

Homeless Teens

2009-11-05T16:05:50+00:00

November is National Youth Homeless Awareness Month, and it's time to think about this growing problem. The recession is causing more families to lose their homes and putting more kids and teens onto the streets. Read more about the causes of youth homelessness in this article. You can help homeless teens in Topeka by volunteering at the Topeka Rescue Mission or participating in the Topeka Rescue Run.

Some YA books that address the issue of homelessness are:

Tyrell by Coe Booth- Fifteen-year-old Tyrell, who is living in a Bronx homeless shelter with his spaced-out mother and his younger brother, tries to avoid temptation so he does not end up in jail like his father.

Stormy Fall by Betty Barclift- In the midst of an effort by the wealthy to keep a house adjacent to their church from becoming a homeless shelter, a theft is blamed on a homeless friend of Katie Barnes, whose own poverty is still keeping her from being accepted by many classmates.

Pitch Black by Youme Landowne- After meeting on a subway platform in New York City, Landowne and Horton share a conversation about art and life while riding uptown and downtown. Youme listens carefully as Anthony tells his story of living on the streets after being abandoned by his adoptive family.

photo courtesy of standupforkids.org

When you wish upon a Jinn

2009-11-02T18:32:28+00:00

As You Wish by Jackson Pearce

Viola is invisible. Ok, not really, but she sure feels invisible when she sees all of the popular people at her school having fun together. Since her ex-boyfriend realized that he was gay and dumped her, heartbroken Viola feels like she doesn’t fit in anywhere. She spends most of her time sadly wishing that she was happy again and really belonged. To her shock, all of her wishing attracts a magical wish-granting jinn. He must stay on earth until he grants her three wishes, but Viola is terrified that she will wish for the wrong thing and refused to decide. Jinn is horrified to be trapped on earth while waiting for Viola to wish, but things change as they start to spend more time together.

The chapters are told in Viola and Jinn’s alternating points of view, which makes it fun for the reader to see their romance grow. As You Wish also has some unique side characters that added a lot to the story, like Viola’s concerned ex-boyfriend and her less than ideal crush. I enjoyed the quiet reflection as Viola grows into more confident person and starts to open herself up to the world. The realistic exploration of her character and the angsty portrayal of high school made this seem like a Sarah Dessen book that has been crashed by a magical visitor.

Swoon

2009-10-28T18:15:42+00:00

Swoon by Nina Malkin

A fall from an ancient ash tree started it all. Dice’s preppy cousin, Pen, has different colored eyes and a new visitor in her body when gets up from the ground under the tree. Dice finds out that her cousin has been possessed by a ghost from another century who is bent on revenge. The ghost, Sinclair Youngblood Powers, wants to punish the town of Swoon, Connecticut for hanging him more than 200 years before. Sinclair, or Sin, lives up to his nickname and the town goes wild when he unleashes their wildest impulses. Dice tries to get rid of him, but finds herself drawn to him instead and accidently gives him human form. Now she must stop his lustful rampage while dealing with issues from her past and trying to decide if it’s love or hate that Sin makes her feel.

It took me some time to get used to the language in this book. Malkin uses a mix of quirky phrases that reminded me of the way that the teens talk in Juno, pop culture references, and SAT-level words. This can make the events of the book hard to follow, but definitely gives it a distinct mood. I would recommend Swoon to mature teens only because there is a lot of drug use and many “Sin” ful situations.

Check out the book trailer for Swoon:

Teens Top Ten Winner

2009-10-23T13:56:43+00:00

The votes are in, and the winner of the 2009 Teens Top Ten is…

Paper Towns by John Green

One month before graduating from his Central Florida high school, Quentin "Q" Jacobsen basks in the predictable boringness of his life until the beautiful and exciting Margo Roth Spiegelman, Q's neighbor and classmate, takes him on a midnight adventure and then mysteriously disappears.

Watch the video announcement with WWE stars the Bella twins and John Green here.

Here's the complete list of winners:

Paper Towns by John Green
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
Identical by Ellen Hopkins
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Wake by Lisa McMann
Untamed by P.C. and Kristin Cast
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Teen Read Week Cover Challenge

2009-10-20T18:01:30+00:00

We're celebrating Teen Read Week with a contest. Here's your chance to prove your teen book knowledge and win a great prize! Guess the title and author of each book below from the sections of the book covers. Email your answers to YA@tscpl.org by Sunday, October 25 at midnight. The person with the most correct answers will win the awesome books The Dangerous Days of Daniel X and Daniel X: Watch the Skies by James Patterson.

This contest is open to teens who live in Shawnee County. If more that one person correctly identifies all of the covers, a winner will be drawn randomly.

More about the prize: These sci-fi books by James Patterson will blow your mind!

The Dangerous Days of Daniel X- Fifteen-year-old Daniel has followed in his parents' footsteps as the Alien Hunter, exterminating beings on The List of Alien Outlaws on Terra Firma, but when he faces his first of the top ten outlaws, the very existence Earth and another planet are at stake.

Daniel X: Watch the Skies- LIGHTS All's quiet in the small town of Holliswood. Television sets, computers, and portable devices are aglow in every home, classroom, and store. Yet not all is perfect. Evil is lurking, just out of sight, behind the screen. CAMERA Residing in this sleepy town is a villain with more ambition than the world can withstand. Twisted beyond reason, he is dead set on throwing Holliswood into chaos and documenting the destruction of every person in it, including Daniel X. EXTERMINATION The only person who can stop this made-for-TV tyrant, Daniel must use his extraordinary power to save the town. But this devilish director has assembled an all-star team of his own creation and vows to stage the most spectacular finale the world has ever seen. Can Daniel X stop this deranged outlaw—or will he find himself on the cutting room floor?

Read Beyond Reality

2009-10-18T12:51:16+00:00

Teen Read week is October 18-24 and the theme is Read Beyond Reality @ Your Library! This is the time to celebrate books that are out of this world, from crazy fantasies to nonfiction that expands your mind. Enter the Teen Read Week Cover Challenge here for a chance to win free books! The winners of the Teens Top Ten that you voted for here will also be announced this week.

Reading is a great way to imagine wild possibilities and explore new worlds! Check out these books that take place in alternate realities:

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Candor by Pam Bachorz

Feed by M. T. Anderson

2009.10.03 Teen Advisory Board

2009-10-16T20:13:37+00:00

T-shirt status –Kristin passed her version of what the T-shirt should look like. She had contacted The Team Sporting Goods, Inc. and got a price quote. For the purchase of 10 T-shirts $178.66. (1 color design full front $48.00; 1 color design full back $48.00; screen set-up fee $10.00. Navy 50/50 T-shirt $5.95; tax 13.16) There was discussion, if the library would help pay for them. Jean will inquire with PR.
Posters and other items about school functions. Members are encouraged to bring information/poster about events such as plays to post in The Edge. Sidenote- THS will be putting on Greece and our very own Kristin will be the lead.
New members –there are several membership slots open. Each member present took an application to give to a friend or acquaintance. It was recommended that an effort to bring diversity to the Board would be good.
Friday night movies; the Board brainstormed about movies that teens would like and even like seeing multiple times. Classics: Wizard of Oz; Alice in Wonderland; More current: Notebook; The Day After; The Knowing; Jumper; Hancock
Open Mic Night – BIG SUCCESS (60+) Next dates: October 28 and November 18. Performers are required to register.
Budget cuts will affect food at TAB meetings - December is the last month. It was asked if the Board could bring their own cookies. Answer is no, all food must come from the café. It will also affect programs that have expense attached such as Second Life going. Because of the budget crunch, members are skeptical the library will support the T-shirts
New programs in planning stage
Health & nutrition targeting teens. Partnering with nutritionist and physical therapist.
Rights of Passage Party or (Coming of Age Party.) Staff is considering an invitational “party” to introduce youth turning 12 to The Edge. Staff hopes the Board will be instrumental in making the “party” a success by being present and hosting. Members could choose which month/party they would act as hosts. The purpose is to help the 12-year-old learn about The Edge, its features, its rules and make them comfortable when coming to The Edge by themselves or with a friend. In addition if would help the staff recognize the newbies. Thoughts are the Party would coincide with the publication of ConnectNow. An example would be everyone turning 12, in December or January would be invited on a specific date/time near the end of December or first of January. Maybe free popcorn.
HEAR is an organization that is made up of multiple organizations which support or are advocates for teens. Last year HEAR had booths once a month at Highland Park. The booths had information for the teens about how the particular organization assists teens. This year HEAR is expanding to THS & Topeka West. The first THS & Topeka West venture will be November 11 at 7:30 and November 13 at 9:30 respectively. Board member from THS said Wednesdays are “late start” days. The recommended to get more students to stop by the booths for it to be after school with set-up 2:30 pm. Helping man the booths are ways for the board members to support TSCPL in their respective schools.
Teen Read Week October 18-24, 2009
March 2, author Sharon Draper will be guest of TSCPL and Highland Park. Area schools that are interested in have students attend should contact. Gayle Lolley, glolley@tscpl.org or 580-4565.
Teen Tech Week March 7-13, 2010
November meeting November 7 in the Edge. Guest speaker – William Beteta, Executive Director of Heartland Visioning. Members are encouraged to bring friends to learning how teens opinions can influence the future of Topeka.
Present: Kristin, Paige, Colton Colleen, Brian, Jenna, and Natosha. Staff/Jean (minutes taken by Jenna)

2009/09/05 Teen Advisory Board

2009-10-15T21:11:28+00:00

Met in the café for snacks and beverages before going to Room 202-Anton Present: Paige, Colleen, Kristin, Brian, Colton

Fall Reading- We talked about the Book a Trip! theme and looked at the programs in connectnow.
International books to profile- Around the World in 80 Days, Harry Potter, Narnia, Peter Pan, A Long Way Gone, Into the Wild
Teen Read Week Oct 19- voted on top teen books poll and looked through the nominated titles that were checked in.
Open Mic Night
Read part of Letter from a Senior
Passed out flyers to share with friends and distribute at schools
Facebook
Note vs. message vs. event- TAB thinks that creating events is the best way to advertise on facebook. (unfortunately it’s also the most labor intensive)
Favorite apps- We discussed what they like to do on facebook- Mafia Wars, Farmtown, Bejeweled Blitz, Honesty Box
Print vs. type
We discussed the handout/questionnaire that Kristin created and speculated the future of print journalism in an increasingly digital world. Most of the group prefers print.
Misc
Looked at Kristin’s t-shirt design. She will research the cost and places to print t-shirts in Topeka for the next meeting.
Colleen will be the photographer for Cosplay
We took a tour of new exhibit in the gallery with Trish.
New David J’s arrangement is a success. The group liked the way it was more open and accessible.

2009/08/01 Teen Advisory Board

2009-10-15T20:22:25+00:00

Minutes taken by Sawyer Met in the café for snacks and beverages before going to Room 202-AntonVP- Paige opened the meeting.Present: Paige, Colleen, Hunter, Lucas, Victor, Sawyer

Jean – SRP report: reviewed the various summer reading programs successes; Grand Prize winners were Kelsey a 7th grade girl from Shawnee Heights Middle School and Mike a 9th grader from Hayden HIgh School. Each won a $50 gift certificate from Best Buy; Writer’s group will continue as an ongoing program with Lisa Brien as Library staff.

Brainstorming about inexpensive programming possibilities. Call of duty tournament; Twilight party; Harry Potter night; John Green party; Danceoff; Board Games only night; Flash light—laser tag, viewing college basketball – NCAA / tournament; Sports Bar – not MWOTV more like ping pong; Kyler perform; Tye die t-shirts; Digital T-shirt contest.