Monday, December 22, 2014

TV Show Read-A-Likes & More!


Looking for TV Show Read-A-Likes?  Here you go!

Help me generate more Read-A-Likes!
Fill out the Google Forms below and I'll post the new lists soon.

Classics to Modern YA
TV Show Read-A-Likes
Fairytale Redux
Sports Reads

Saturday, October 11, 2014

13 Giveaways for the 13 Days of Halloween

Some people have Spring Cleaning, I have Fall Weeding!  It's time for me to clear some items from my vastly overloaded bookshelves and I can't think of a better way to do it than by giving the books to fellow readers!

Starting at 12:00am on October 19, 2014 I'm hosting a 24 hour giveaway for each of the 13 Days of Halloween.
To enter click on the '13 Days of Halloween' tab above or click here.

The titles for giveaway are as follows:

OCTOBER 19, 2014 - Day 1 of 13 Giveaway
ARC of Insanity
by Susan Vaught
Followers
by Anna Davies
ARC of The Devil's Intern
by Donna Hosie
The Unfed
by Kirsty McKay
OCTOBER 20, 2014 - Day 2 of 13 Giveaway
ARC of Salt & Storm
by Kendall Kulper
Nameless
by Lili St. Crow
Endless Knight
by Kresley Cole
OCTOBER 21, 2014 - Day 3 of 13 Giveaway
Sleep No More
by Aprilynne Pike
Far from You
by Tess Sharpe
OCTOBER 22, 2014 - Day 4 of 13 Giveaway
The Worlds We Make
by Megan Crewe
Divided We Fall
by Trent Reedy
OCTOBER 23, 2014 - Day 5 of 13 Giveaway
The Brokenhearted
by Amelia Kahaney
Dangerous Creatures by
Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
OCTOBER 24, 2014 - Day 6 of 13 Giveaway
No One Else Can Have You
by Kathleen Hale
Illusion
by Sherrilyn Kenyon
OCTOBER 25, 2014 - Day 7 of 13 Giveaway
Solstice
by P.J. Hoover
The Mephisto Kiss
by Trinity Faegen
OCTOBER 26, 2014 - Day 8 of 13 Giveaway
Gasp
by Lisa McMann
The Body in the Woods
by April Henry
Liv, Forever
by Amy Talkington
OCTOBER 27, 2014 - Day 9 of 13 Giveaway
Falling Kingdoms
by Morgan Rhodes
Scarlet
by Marissa Meyer
OCTOBER 28, 2014 - Day 10 of 13 Giveaway
Far Far Away
by Tom McNeal
The Eye of Minds
by James Dashner
OCTOBER 29, 2014 - Day 11 of 13 Giveaway
Ruin and Rising
by Leigh Bardugo
Dreams of Gods and Monsters
by Laini Taylor
OCTOBER 30, 2014 - Day 12 of 13 Giveaway
Unbreakable
by Kami Garcia
**AUTOGRAPHED**
Stung
by Bethany Wiggins
Paper Valentine
by Brenna Yovanoff
OCTOBER 31, 2014 - Day 13 of 13 Giveaway
Grasshopper Jungle
by Andrew Smith
**AUTOGRAPHED**
Scowler
by Daniel Kraus

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

2 ARC Giveaway!


Follow the instructions below for a chance to win ARCs by two powerhouse YA Authors.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Monday, August 18, 2014

Giveaway: 'The Tyrant's Daughter' by J.C. Carleson


Follow the instructions below for a chance to win J.C. Carleson's YA novel 
which received starred reviews from both Kirkus and Publisher's weekly.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Wednesday, August 6, 2014

ARC Giveaway!

Win a copy of 'Salt & Storm' by Kendall Kulper!


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Special thanks to Little Brown Young Readers for the ARC!

Monday, July 28, 2014

12 Anticipated Titles

There are several books coming out in the next few months 
that I CAN'T WAIT to get my hands on!





What books can't you wait to read?

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Lunanshee's Yearly Program Planning Guide for New YA Librarians

YA LIBRARIAN RULE THE FIRST:
DON'T FREAK OUT!

How do you prevent the freak out? Planning.

As I prepare to leave my current job, I've spent a good amount of time making sure to leave copious notes for the YA Librarian who will follow me.  One of the documents I've created is what I'm calling the YA YEARLY PLANNING CALENDAR OF GLORY.  This calendar (more of an outline, really) details the illusive when of organizing year-round teen programming at a busy public library.  Since this seems like a document that many new YA Librarians could benefit from, I've decided to share it with the world.

Clearly some of the programs/dates on this YA YEARLY PLANNING CALENDAR OF GLORY may not apply to your branch but, if you are a new YA Librarian, I hope this gives you a starting point for your annual planning.
Cheers!

YA YEARLY PLANNING CALENDAR OF GLORY

JANUARY
Local school district winter holidays - do you need programs?
AARP Tax Aid Starts = becomes VERY difficult to find a room for Teen Programs
Start thinking about Summer Programming Ideas
Black History Month Program planning & room reservation (Black History Month = February)
Teen Tech Week program planning & room reservation
Place YA Book Order

FEBRUARY
Black History Month - African American Read-In can be a great program (http://www.ncte.org/action/aari)
AARP Tax Aid = VERY difficult to find a room for Teen Programs
Plan Asian Pacific Heritage Month program & book a room (Asian Pacific Heritage Month = May)
Teen Tech Week promo
National Poetry Month program planning & room reservation
Add titles to YA Book Order

MARCH
Teen Tech Week
AARP Tax Aid = VERY difficult to find a room for Teen Programs
Plan out Summer Program details and begin creating flyers/posters etc
Place YA Book Order
National Poetry Month program promo
If you are planning to do a Holi Water War during summer make sure to get the Holi powder now!

APRIL
National Poetry Month.
Send in SRP materials to be printed for May promo (plan on taking some to school in the area).
Add titles to YA Book Order

MAY
Asian Pacific Heritage Month
Start gathering supplies for SRP
Place YA  Book Order
Plan SAT practice tests for the next school year (KAPLAN/Princeton Review)

JUNE
Summer Reading Starts – take a breath and say a prayer. :)

JULY
Summer Reading – you’re halfway there!
Plan Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept/Oct) program & room reservation
Place YA Book Order

AUGUST
Summer Reading Ends – compile stats, get teen feedback
Decide if you want to do a Scream-In - if so, then start planning & looking for teen volunteers
Plan Teen Read Week & book a room
Add titles to YA Book Order

SEPTEMBER
Hispanic Heritage Month = September 15 to October 15
Scream-In Promo (if applicable)
Teen Read Week promo
Place YA Book Order

OCTOBER
Teen Read Week
Scream-In – usually planned for the weekend before Halloween depending on how the holiday falls.
Book a couple rooms for Holiday events during local schools Winter Break
Add titles to YA Book Order

NOVEMBER
Think about Black History Month (February) program possibilities. If African American Read-In is happening, this can count as your program.
Place YA Book Order

DECEMBER
Holiday Programs so parents can do some holiday shopping (movie & coco day, craft, games etc). Usually run these during the schools’ Winter Break
Add titles to YA Book Order
Start thinking about Teen Tech Week (March) & book a room

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Top Ten Tuesday: Kimberly’s Favorite TV Shows


Top Ten Tuesday is the weekly meme hosted by the excellent blog The Broke and the Bookish. For various reasons, I haven’t had a chance to post one of these in a few weeks, but I couldn’t resist this week’s topic: television! I adore TV. I watch a lot of TV every week during the regular season, pick up shows during summer, and then marathon shows throughout the year. I just really, really love watching TV.


1) Brooklyn Nine-Nine – I didn’t start watching this show until after it won the Golden Globe, but once I did, I was hooked. It’s refreshingly funny, imminently quotable, and overwhelmingly positive. “The Party” was one of the best comedic episodes I’ve watched in a long time. I’m pretty sure I watched it 3 times in one week, it was just that funny.

2) Criminal Minds – I have watched this show from the very beginning and, 9 seasons later, it continues to be a favorite. There have been some bumpy moments along the way (the overextended Prentiss storyline, for one) but nothing that could keep me from watching. That being said, I am extremely disappointed in the Jennifer Love Hewitt casting news from a few weeks ago. Criminal Minds thrives on its ensemble cast, and I think bringing in someone who is used to be being the star (and can’t really act) might ruin the show. At least I’ll have 9 perfect seasons to rewatch! (I’m actually already rewatching, but I’ve stalled on the season 5 Foyet episode. So sad!)

3) Doctor Who – I hesitated about putting this show on the list because the hipster in me has recently begun to feel Over It. It’s too popular now. Everyone and their mother seems to be dressed like the Doctor or a Dalek or the TARDIS at conventions. Matt Smith made the show too accessible to the youngsters. But, I still love the show regardless. I’ve loved the show since I watched all the reruns of the 4th Doctor on PBS in the 1980s, and I’ll probably continue to love it despite the oversaturation.

4) Elementary – Confession time: I think this show is better than Sherlock. There, I said it! That is an unpopular opinion, I know, but I stick by it. It is perfectly cast, consistently well-written, and manages to give depth and interest to all the characters while still maintaining focus on Sherlock. And if I had even half the poise and style Joan Watson has, I would be a star.

5) Game of Thrones – Ugh, this show. I love it so, but it constantly hurts me. I try not to get attached to characters, but I just can’t help it! And then they die! Or leave forever! And I shed tears because I’m one of those crazies who still hasn’t read the books and so is surprised by character death. Sigh.

6) Grimm – If you couldn’t tell by this list, I love procedural crime dramas. I don’t watch (or read) a lot of paranormal, but this show brings the supernatural to my favorite procedural format. It’s perfect!

7) Person of Interest – I started watching this show for Jim Caviezel, and stayed because it’s smart and addictive. I do miss the more procedural approach it took in the first two seasons, but I love the fun new character dynamics from season three.

8) Psych – This show just ended this season, but I already miss it. Psych is the one show I watched on a regular basis that didn’t take itself seriously. It was silly and irreverent and the actors always looked like they were having a blast filming it. Plus, the musical episode was epic!

9) Stargate: Atlantis – Man, I loved this show. This is the show that started my obsession with sci fi conventions, brought me back into the world of sci fi TV, and introduced me to fandom friends. I have many feelings about this show, and not all of them are positive (I never finished the last season, so all-consuming was my hatred for Keller), but I will always love it for how it changed my life.

10) Teen Wolf – This is my current favorite TV show. It has problems, yes, but I can overlook all of those for the sheer pleasure it is to watch the show. Call it my guilty pleasure show. The one I watch because the men are pretty and the plots are bonkers and the suspense just might give me a heart attack.

Honorable Mentions:
1) NCIS – If it weren't for the travesty that was the last season and the introduction of the infuriating Ellie Bishop, this one might have been in top ten.
2) Veronica Mars – Proud Kickstarter backer here! Season 3 of the TV show wasn't that great, but the first season was perfection and the movie was everything I needed in my life. Veronica & Logan forever!
3) Call the Midwife – This is the show that replaced Downton Abbey in my heart. All the drama, but with no Lady Mary horning in on all the screentime!
4) Big Bang Theory – I mainly watch this show in syndication when I’m at my parents’ house, so I’m probably a season or two behind. It still makes me laugh, though, even when I've seen the episode a million times.
5) Battlestar Galactica – This was the smartest show on television. It featured a stellar ensemble cast, precise and careful plotting, and a unique way of tackling important social issues.