The Tompkins Library is celebrating Teen Read Week during the week of October 13-19.

Teen Read Week™ is a national adolescent literacy initiative created by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). It began in 1998 and is held annually during the third week of October. Its purpose is to encourage teens to be regular readers and library users. (source: http://teenreadweek.ning.com/)

Stop by and check out our displays of YALSA’s Top 10 Books for Teens from the last several years. Then post a title of your favorite book on our recommendation wall!

Just pack up your TV and READ!

Here’s a look at what we (and the OTHS Faculty Book Club) are reading this weekend!

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics.

But Epics are no friend of man. With incredible gifts came the desire to rule. And to rule man you must crush his wills.

Nobody fights the Epics . . . nobody but the Reckoners. A shadowy group of ordinary humans, they spend their lives studying Epics, finding their weaknesses, and then assassinating them.

And David wants in. He wants Steelheart—the Epic who is said to be invincible. The Epic who killed David’s father. For years, like the Reckoners, David’s been studying, and planning—and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience.

He’s seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants revenge.

Copyright © 2013 Follett Library Resources, Inc.

 

For a sneak peek, check out the book trailer!

What are you reading this weekend? Post it to the blog!

Don’t look now, but lots and lots of Zombies (books, that is) have invaded the library! Stop by and check out one TODAY!

Have you ever wondered what to do with those old books that are worn and beginning to fall apart? Well, we have an idea for you! The library staff has been creating fall decor for the library using these old books. Again, and I stress, use ONLY books that are ready for disposal. 🙂

One of the decorations we made were book pumpkins. Even if you are NOT crafty, you can do this. I mean, if I can do it, you can, too! 🙂

Here’s how:

1. Choose your book wisely. Thick books are best for plump pumpkins.

2. Separate the cover from the pages.

3. Draw the shape of your pumpkin on the top page of the pages. Remember that the shape should only be one half of the intended shape.

4. Using scissors (or an exacto knife), cut on the shape a few pages at a time. Do NOT tear apart the spine. This will hold your finished product together.

5. Glue the sides of the spine together and fan out the pages.

6. Add sticks (for stems), ribbon, or paint to your pumpkins for added flair!

Star Wars Reads Day is an international event that celebrates reading and Star Wars. It was launched in 2012 by Lucasfilm and its publishing partners.

The Tompkins Library understands the importance of Star Wars in the lives of our students and staff. What better way to support literacy than to celebrate it with everyone’s love for the galaxy far, far away.

Besides a display and NEW books for students to check out, we also have a mural that students and staff are invited to share their favorite characters, spaceships, or quotes on.

 

Coach Mudd’s favorite quote is: “Do, or not do. There is no try.” ~Yoda

Our principal, Mr. Grisdale, and Associate Principal, Mr. Labay, are Star Wars fans, too!

Oh, and don’t forget about our Star Wars Reads Day contest! Students and staff can USE THE FORCE to guess how many origami yodas are in the jar. Winners will be announced next week.

The Falcon Book Club is reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak during the month of October. This is an incredibly thought provoking book and one that will stay with you for a long time.

It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery.

Set during World War II in Germany, Markus Zusak’s groundbreaking new novel is the story of Liesel Meminger, a foster girl living outside of Munich. Liesel scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement before he is marched to Dachau.

This is an unforgettable story about the ability of books to feed the soul.

Copyright © 2013 Follett Library Resources, Inc.

Sign up in the library and participate in our Instagram book club by using #falconbookclub. Book Club members will meet during either A or B lunch on Friday, November 1st to discuss the book.

Check out the Falcon Book Club Blog Page for more information.

Speed dating with books, that is! Falcon Freshmen have been in the library over the past week getting to know books. Each table contained a basket with a variety of books from a certain genre. Students spent 5 minutes at each table reading summaries of books, reading reviews, and reading the first few pages of the book before they decided whether they: 1. fell in love with the book, 2. just wanted to be friends, or 3. the book was just not their type.

 

 

The students really had fun with this concept. Here are some of our Falcon readers showing their sense of humor. 🙂

The Pitch Dark Days tour, which featured YA authors Madeleine Roux, Rae Carson, Sherry Thomas, Michelle Gagnon, and Mindy McGinnis, stopped by the Blue Willow Bookshop on Friday, September 27th for a discussion/book signing.

Katy ISD’s very own CRJH librarian, Erin Segreto, moderated the event. The crowd laughed along with the authors as they answered the interesting and intriguing questions composed by Erin.

Here is a pic of me and author, Madeleine Roux. Her new book, Asylum, sounds so creepy. I can’t wait to read it!

Another book I’m excited to start reading is Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis. Not only is Mindy an author, but she is also a librarian! Give it up for rock star librarians!!

There is nothing better than meeting 5 awesome authors than meeting 5 awesome authors with your librarian peeps (aka Erin Segreto & Kim Warwick)!

Although I didn’t purchase all their books during the visit, I have ordered them all for the library! Be on the lookout for these new and exciting books!

With so many Falcons reading City of Bones by Cassandra Clare for the book club this month, we have had lots of students asking, “What other books do you have like City of Bones?”

Well, here are some possibilities…

Image from the Huffington Post

Copyright © 2013 TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc.

In celebration of Banned Books Week next week, we are reading a couple of books that have recently been challenged/banned. Here’s a look at what we are reading this weekend!

 ttyl by Lauren Myracle

Chronicles, in “instant message” format, the day-to-day experiences, feelings, and plans of three friends, Zoe, Maddie, and Angela, as they begin tenth grade.

 

 

 

 

 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Charlie, a freshman in high school, explores the dilemmas of growing up through a collection of letters he sends to an unknown receiver.

 

Copyright © 2013 Follett Library Resources, Inc.

 

 

What are you reading this weekend? Post it to the blog!