Archive for January, 2010

This new year has brought us a few new TV shows to compete with the already stellar lineup from the fall. I’ve already latched on to two new shows and look forward to adding a few more new ones, and a few old favorites as spring approaches.

Last week I watched The Deep End, a new ABC show about 5 recent law school graduates and their 1st positions at a firm (I like to call it a cross between Boston Public and Grey’s Anatomy), and today I caught up on the first episode of Caprica, the BSG (Battlestar Galactica, for those not in the know) prequel show, set some 50 years before.

What I read of the plot for Caprica intrigued me from the get-go: futuristic setting, very high-tech, drama, yet a family-centered plotline. Also, the show seems to be going in the direction that some of my new favorite YA sci-fi novels have gone–robotics and the creation of the humanoid robot. The arguments of the show, as also represented in some excellent YA novels, involve the human soul and the ethical implications of the creation of humanoid robots, transference of personality, data, perhaps even DNA from a human to an electronic creation, etc. After watching the first episode, I am even more intrigued to see where this show is going. I think that fans of The Adoration of Jenna Fox or the Skinned novels by Robin Wasserman would enjoy Caprica. And you definitely don’t have to have watched BSG to see this show (I myself have only seen a few episodes).

And who can forget one of my favorite shows of all time, LOST? The final season begins in February, and I am ever-anxious to see where it leads. I’ll be sure to write here and keep updating on these shows and many more (as some of our favorites–Glee, Gossip Girl–won’t be returning for a time) as the weeks go on!

I need manga recommendations. This is an area I’m mostly unfamiliar with, and would like to become more familiar with! I’ve read plenty of graphic novels, but manga is something else altogether. Currently I’m reading the Emma series by Kauro Mori and the Nana series by Ai Yazawa. Both for my YA class, and both awesome! Any other suggestions?

Every season of American Idol has one. This year it’s General Larry Platt, a 60-something year old veteran that came out to audition (uhhh, yeah, he’s way over the age limit) and graced us all with this wonderful song:

And this new sensation is OUT OF CONTROL! There is a Facebook page, and many, crazy remixes and covers. I hate to admit it, but I love it. Check out some of my favorites!

Hi everyone, if you aren’t living in a hole you’ve heard of the massive earthquake that hit Haiti this week, killing thousands, and leaving many more trapped, destroying families and homes and leaving a nation that was already impoverished on the brink of disaster. Please consider donating to the Red Cross’ effort in Haiti by texting HAITI to 90999. Doing so will charge you $10 on your next cell phone bill, and the money will go to the relief effort. Spread the word!

I’d like to remind all my readers to please subscribe to my RSS feed!

http://feeds.feedburner.com/bibliochic

It’s a very easy way to keep up with new posts, whatever RSS reader you use (personally I love Google Reader). Every new entry I create automatically appears in your reader, and you don’t have to do a thing! So subscribe today. Who knows, I may have some contests coming up in the future? It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for awhile now, so keep your eyes peeled!

Although my true love is for YA novels, I am also a big reader of many types of adult fiction, especially when it comes to the Stephanie Plum novels. Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum is one of my favorite fictional characters. She’s hilarious, and also relatable, but yet out of this world!

In the 15th installment of the Plum series, Stephanie is once again single (recently broken up with her on-again-off-again hottie boyfriend Joe Morelli) and still working for her cousin’s bail bonds office catching delinquents and your normal selection of crazies–a flasher and an old man that attacked his dentist, amongst others. Stephanie is once again recruited to work for Ranger, another notch on the bedpost of her past, as a somewhat undercover spy–someone’s been breaking into houses using Ranger’s company’s security devices, and Ranger thinks he has a traitor on the inside. The only person he can trust is Stephanie, and as a woman always in need of a few dollars, she agrees to take the job, despite the fact that it will bring her into close proximity to Ranger and his exceedingly gorgeous body and sly ways of getting Stephanie into bed with him.

Stephanie’s also dealing with Lula, her coworker/sidekick/friend/large and loud African-American woman, that recently witnessed the murder of a famous cooking show chef and is now at risk of being hit by the guys who did it. But what else is new when it comes to Stephanie Plum? It wouldn’t be the same if her car (or multiple) didn’t blow up, her apartment didn’t catch on fire, and if she didn’t get shot at a few times, right?

Honestly, Evanovich gets better with every novel. After 14, you’d think, hasn’t there been enough? HELL NO! I was reading this last night and literally laughing out loud almost the entire book. Lula is one the most hilariously crazy, insanely awesome characters I have ever read. What she says, does, eats, and um, releases from her body, will make you laugh until you cry. She really stole this novel and made it another great addition to the Plum family of books.

I can’t wait to find out more about the 16th book, and will be sure to share with my readers anything I should discover. If you haven’t check out the Stephanie Plum novels–these would be great even for older teens–the books have sex and foul language, but I think the comedy will appeal to many ages.

For More: Check out Evanovich’s web site where you can read excerpts of all of her books!

This semester I am taking a course entitled “Library Services for Young Adults.” Pretty much my dream class, you know? I’m very excited about it! In this class, I’ll be reading about 20 YA titles and writing about them. I thought I’d share my thoughts here as I read, in order to share these books with you, my awesome audience, and also help preserve my initial thoughts.

The first book I finished is The White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughren. I hadn’t heard of this book or author before selecting it for my class. The White Darkness was the 2008 Printz award winner, but the book was actually published several years ago. This is the type of book I haven’t read in quite some time–a mixture of adventure, realism, with a younger protagonist, and a lot of symbolism reaching out and grabbing the reader. The story reminds me of The Endless Steppe by Esther Hautzig with the extreme situations the characters are placed in, as well as the general flow and telling of the story. I also feel as if this book will remain as The Endless Steppe has: timeless and intriguing to generations today and in the future.

Now on to the plot: The story follows 14-year-old Sym, a young girl that lives in England with her mother and good friend of the family, Uncle Victor. Immediately, you are also introduced to another major player in Sym’s life, Titus Oates, someone that many would call her “imaginary friend.” Titus has been with Sym ever since her father died–but who is he? Titus was an explorer, a member of the British Navy, in the early 1900s, that helped to front an expedition to the South Pole. Unfortunately, he never made it to his destination, and he and his team died in Antarctica. Sym has had an obsession with Antarctica (“The Ice”) ever since she was young, an addiction fostered by her uncle and his own passion for that continent. As you can probably tell, Sym hasn’t had the easiest time of it growing up: she’s extremely shy, suffers from hearing loss, and also suffered a lack of love from her own father, who eventually died of a debilitating disease of the mind. She has few friends and rarely comes out of her shell of protection she’s built around her self.

In The White Darkness, Sym and Uncle Victor travel to Antarctica on her dream trip–all she’s ever wanted to do, all she’s ever planned for, all her world encompasses. While there, the real reason behind the trip enfolds, along with a great deal of deceit, suspense, adventure, danger, madness, fantasy, and a whole lot of ice and snow. Sym finds herself in the middle of the great ice continent with her uncle and several companions and begins to finally test the truths she’s always believed in. The ultimate goal: survival, but once your whole world has fallen and collapsed beneath you, what point is there to keep moving on? Sym finds herself, through the help of Titus, to be stronger and more resilient than she ever could have believed, and at the end of the book, she has a much brighter future in front of her.

This is a book that many audiences would enjoy, which is why I imagine it was selected for the Printz award. It is great for younger readers–despite a slight smattering of foul language, the book is clean and enticing for younger readers that enjoy adventure and suspense. Older readers will also enjoy the book, as they will be able to understand the underlying symbolism of “the white darkness” and the other beautifully haunting allegories McCaughren has staged throughout.

For More: Check out McCaughren’s personal web site!

DJ Earworm put together a mashup of the hottest pop songs of 2009–check out this awesome video!

I’ve just finished reading The Treasure Map of Boys by E. Lockhart this evening and wanted to share my thoughts on this awesome, unique, hilarious book. This book was published earlier this year and is the third in a series of books about Ruby Oliver, a teenager dealing with all sorts of relationship issues. In this book, Ruby is still in therapy with Dr. Z and is currently boyfriendless (or in the state of NoBoyfriend, as she likes to call it). In the last Ruby Oliver book, her therapist wanted her to construct a list of previous relationships, going all the way back to when she was a young child (and if you’ve read this, you know exactly what sort of problems this list caused!). Now, Ruby is constructing a treasure map, to help define and visualize her relationships with everyone around her (not just boys–but as you would see in the book, she makes it all about her relationships with the guys around her).

Ruby is the same as always, but perhaps finally a little bit wiser in this book. You can see her beginning to grow, despite setbacks including panic attacks and further damage to her reputation, as she finally begins to realize what she wants for her life, for her relationships, and for her future. Ruby is ever the complex character, and you’ll simultaneously want to hug her and throttle her. The reader may wonder why, why oh why, does she continue to think like that, or act like that, but Lockhart continues to weave a wonderful story for Ruby, that draws you into her complicated mind, and you can relate on a variety of levels (even as someone that hasn’t been a teenager for years now) .

A great book, and a great conclusion (I believe it’s the last for Ruby Oliver!) to this series of books. Lockhart really knows how to create a unique character with a unique story that stands out from the crowd

For More: Check out my thoughts on Lockhart’s other books The Boyfriend List and The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks.

The 2009 CYBILS (Children’s and Young Adult Bloggers Literary Awards) finalists have been announced! Here are the links for the YA, graphic novels, and poetry categories.

• Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction
• Graphic Novels (YA and Middle Grade)
• Non-Fiction (YA and Middle Grade)
• Poetry (YA and Middle Grade)
• Young Adult Fiction

A few of my favorites on the lists: Fire by Kristin Cashore, Sacred Scars by Kathleen Duey, North of Beautiful by Justina Chen, and Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. Who are your favorites?