Wires and Nerve picks up after the events of Winter (and Cinder, Scarlett, and Cress) so STOP RIGHT NOW if you haven't read those books. Actually, what's wrong with you? Go read those! They're so good! Start with Cinder, you're welcome.

Iko, the android who loves pretty clothes and shoes is also a butt kicking secret agent. She's been sent to Earth to round up the remaining rogue mutant soldiers from Luna and send them home to face justice, but every once in awhile one of them will slip away from her. Cinder tells her not to worry, but Iko can't help but feel like she's failing by not getting every single soldier safely away from Earth. Now it seems like she might be right, these soldiers are coming together in a way that threatens everyone Iko loves. Read more about Wires and Nerve Vol. 1 by Marissa Meyer

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.

The Passion of Dolssa is historical fiction set in 13th century Provence, following the Albigensian Crusade. There is an uneasy peace and the church has now turned it's eye to rooting out the last remaining vestiges of heresy in the region. Dolssa de Stigata is a young woman with deep religious convictions and a very close, personal relationship with Jesus. For this she is considered a heretic and sentenced to death by burning. Read more about The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry

Two winners were chosen to go on to the VOYA (Voices of Youth Advocates) Teen Poetry Contest from MCPL. Congratulations to Melanie Muniz and Huangzewen Qian!

Happily Ever Afters and Toys

Melanie Muniz

Age 17

We have reached the time between adulthood and innocence

We are expected to trade our

Dolls for dollars

Trains and Teddy Bears for time-keeps

Sand Castles for Swords

We still do Halloween except now it’s every day that we go around saying lies about who and what we are

We still steal cookies from the cookie jar, despite the swelling sickness

As a boy runs away, for he doesn’t want to play a girl comes up and tags him anyway, even though he told her “No means No.”

We play quiet as a mouse but even a mouse squeaks when it can't take the silence

Things will get better they say but they never do, for with every good that comes along, a bad comes along too Read more about VOYA Teen Poetry Contest

Calling all artists! It's Inktober, which means it's time to challenge yourself to complete one ink drawing every day for the month of October. This is a great time to improve your drawing skills or to start a new habit. You never know if you might be the next Raina Telgemeier, Lucy Knisley, or Gene Luen Yang. The Ground Floor has drawing pencils, inking pens, and drawing paper. Stop by and create!

Need some inspiration? Try one of these amazing graphic novels! Happy Inktober!

El Deafo, Cece Bell

The Dumbest Idea Ever, Jimmy Gownley

At thirteen, Jimmy was popular, at the top of his class, and the leading scorer on his basketball team. But all that changed when chicken pox forced him to miss the championship game. Things went from bad to worse when he got pneumonia and missed even more school. Before Jimmy knew it, his grades were sinking and nothing seemed to be going right.

How did Jimmy turn things around, get back on top at school, and land a date with the cutest girl in class?

Relish, Lucy Knisley

Lucy Knisley loves food. The daughter of a chef and a gourmet, this talented young cartoonist comes by her obsession honestly. In her forthright, thoughtful, and funny memoir, Lucy traces key episodes in her life thus far, framed by what she was eating at the time and lessons learned about food, cooking, and life. Each chapter is bookended with an illustrated recipe-- many of them treasured family dishes, and a few of them Lucy's original inventions.

Tomboy, Liz Prince

Eschewing female stereotypes throughout her early years and failing to gain acceptance on the boys' baseball team, Liz learns to embrace her own views on gender as she comes of age, in an anecdotal graphic novel memoir.

Nimona, Noelle Stevenson

Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics aren't the heroes everyone thinks they are. But as small acts of mischief escalate into a vicious battle, Lord Blackheart realizes that Nimona's powers are as murky and mysterious as her past. And her unpredictable wild side might be more dangerous than he is willing to admit.

Ghosts, Raina Telgemeier

Catrina and her family have moved to the coast of Northern California for the sake of her little sister, Maya, who has cystic fibrosis--and Cat is even less happy about the move when she is told that her new town is inhabited by ghosts, and Maya sets her heart on meeting one.

Boxers and Saints, Gene Luen Yang

In China in 1898 bands of foreign missionaries and soldiers roam the countryside, bullying and robbing Chinese peasants. Little Bao has had enough: harnessing the powers of ancient Chinese gods, he recruits an army of Boxers--commoners trained in kung fu who fight to free China from "foreign devils."