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This morning (1.23.17) the American Library Association announced the winners of the Youth Media Awards for 2017! Check out the full list here. One of the honor books chosen for the Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written for young adults was The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry.

Think Library, Teens, Reviews
January 23, 2017
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Sherlock has finally returned to television, so what better time to read a new interpretation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic sleuth? A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro, posits that Holmes and Watson each had families and children who followed in their famous ancestors footsteps all the way to modern times.

Think Library, Teens, Reviews , Adventure, Crime, Mystery
January 17, 2017
Book Club Kits

Want to start a book club? Looking for new titles for your existing club? We have a unique collection just for you! Book club kits are available for a 6-week checkout period. Kits contain 10 copies of a title, discussion questions, and enrichment materials.

Even More Staff Picks
January 13, 2017
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I have always felt a strong connection to trees; I love them in all seasons and am fascinated by their intricacies, their shapes, varieties of bark, leaves and shapes, the patterns they make interplaying with light.

This biography of a forest, so to speak, fills you in on a forester’s own passion for trees. He uses the language of a nature lover and also that of a scientist to describe the myriad connections trees have to each other in a healthy forest.

A connection that made him refuse to bring huge modern machinery into a forest and only use horses and saws when a tree needed cutting, an amazing evolution for a trained forester.

Reviews, Think Library , Nonfiction
January 10, 2017
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Whether you're looking to simplify your life by living with less stuff, build a sustainable home, eat a sustainable diet or create with sustainable materials there's something for everyone on this list. Sustainability- the avoidance of the depletion of natural resources in order to maintain an ecological balance- can improve your life, while improving the lives of everyone by responsibly using the resources needed to live our lives.

Nature and the Environment
January 10, 2017

The wave of best-of-2016 lists on the internet has subsided, leaving recommendations for book lovers of all reading interests to wade through and enjoy. You’ve probably seen a number of this year’s must-read lists in the usual places (Recommended Reads for 2016 by Library Staff, anyone?); here’s a “list of lists” from sources you may not have considered.

Reviews
January 9, 2017
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A dark fantasy that heralds the start of a thrilling new series, Monstress Vol. 1: Awakening by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda is a stunningly beautiful graphic novel that tells a heartrending and epic story. The story utilizes a mix of Asian mythologies and ancient Egyptian motifs to create a rich and layered world that Takeda’s art brings to beautiful life.

Think Library, Teens, Reviews , Adventure, Fantasy, Graphic Novels & Manga, Horror, Magic, Mystery
December 31, 2016
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Bera the One-Headed Troll by Eric Orchard is a fun and beautiful graphic novel that will appeal to children who enjoy humor, fantasy, and adventure. Told in a whimsical artistic style utilizing varying shades of brown and black, this story focuses on the impact one person can have through kindness as well as the transformative power of adventure.

Kids , Adventure, Fantasy, Graphic Novels & Manga
December 31, 2016
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Pip Bartlett’s Guide to Magical Creatures by Jackson Pearce and Maggie Stiefvater is a charming and silly story set in a world where magical creatures are part of everyday life. Our heroine, the aforementioned Pip Bartlett, is completely capable of talking with and taking care of magical creatures - it’s people she has problems with.

Kids , Fantasy, Animals
December 21, 2016
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Confession: I’m not much of an audio book junkie. In fact, I seldom listen to one unless it is the only copy of a book available, but Joan Walker’s funny and poignant rendition of this Scandinavian novel entranced me.

I couldn’t wait to get back to the poor, out of the way Swedish town of Borg--football crazy and poor--where most of the inhabitants were racing to sell their homes and leave after the 2008 financial crises.

How did a middle-aged wife who had not worked outside the home or travelled anywhere end up in Borg?

Well, first her husband of four decades began an affair with a much younger woman. So Britt-Marie decided to leave him. When she went to the employment agency, there were no jobs, so she returned the next day and cooked for the young lady who worked there a lovely salmon dinner. Britt was nothing if not persistent.

Reviews, Think Library , Fiction
December 19, 2016
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If you liked Stranger Things, read Paper Girls by Brian Vaughan. Vaughan, author of Saga, utilizes many of the same elements as Stranger Things: independent children, other worlds, absent parents (seriously, where are the parents?), and otherworldly monsters. The story begins as several twelve year-old paper girls bike their evening route on Halloween, 1988. What starts as a normal shift grows stranger and more supernatural by the hour.

Think Library, Teens, Reviews , Sci-Fi, Suspense
December 16, 2016
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Star Wars Darth Vader: Vol. 1 by Kieron Gillen fills in a necessary gap in the Star Wars canon, and could help fill the time before Star Wars: Rogue One arrives in theaters. Gillen’s Vader is trying to learn the identity of the young pilot who destroyed the Death Star, as well as regain the favor of Emperor Palpatine after failing to stop the Rebel Alliance. As Vader goes on these dual missions, he is forced to hire agents who can act as his public face.

Think Library, Teens, Reviews , Adventure, Graphic Novels & Manga, Sci-Fi
December 14, 2016
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Nobody Likes a Goblin by Ben Hatke is a funny fantasy story that flips the classic hero dynamic on its head. Hatke tells the story of a goblin in a dungeon who enjoys a pleasant life counting treasure and spending time with the Skeleton King, when a band of ‘heroes’ barge into the dungeon, pillage his treasure and take his friend.

Kids , Adventure, Fantasy, Picture Book
December 14, 2016
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Gidwitz tackles a slice of medieval history in the style of The Canterbury Tales and much of the book is narrated by various individuals being interviewed in a local inn. This story follows a young peasant girl with prophetic visions, a young monk with supernatural strength, and a young Jewish villager who can heal any wound (as well as the aforementioned Holy Dog).

Kids , Adventure, Friendship, History
December 14, 2016
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Everyone knows that monsters are scary, but what scares a monster? Bubbles that’s what! Rubin’s picture book humorously depicts monsters dealing with their own problems when the bubbles invade. One monster, after a bad bubble experience, is convinced all bubbles are scary and out to get all monsters.

Kids , Horror, Picture Book
December 14, 2016