Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010

The hustle and bustle of the holidays are over, the inventory is complete, in another week or two I should have everything completed that I didn’t have time to touch over the past two months. Whew! Soon I will be able to get back to what I love most, reading! Not that I ever stopped completely. I don’t think that’s possible. Reading is like breathing to me. I feel like I haven’t gotten through nearly as many books as I hoped by year’s end, but I have great expectations for this year!

I did manage to complete two young adult novels which did not disappoint. If you are as big a fan of Ellen Hopkins as I am, you probably finished Tricks months ago. What did you think? She never disappoints, does she? She isn’t afraid to tackle the tough subjects and she doesn’t tiptoe around the real issues. Her writing style is brilliant and amazes me with each and every addition. How can I possibly wait until September for the final chapter in the Crank trilogy??

The other new series I discovered is the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Have you read it? Oh, you must!! I couldn’t put it down! I’m looking forward to finding out what happens next with Catching Fire.

Many of our local favorites published new books recently, too. Victoria Houston joined us for her annual visit last month with the tenth, but thankfully not the last, book in the Loon Lake Mystery Series, Dead Renegade. Nelda Johnson Liebig completed the fourth book in the Carrie series, Carrie and the Homestead, and was generous enough to sign a few copies for us. Unfortunately she will be moving on to other adventures so this is the last planned for this series. Torture at the Back Forty is still a best seller and another true crime with local ties, The Monfils Conspiracy has been getting a lot of press.

Lately I have been reading a few intriguing titles to be released next month. Sorry, you will have to wait for my opinions on those.

What about you?

Have you read anything exciting over the holidays or that you are looking forward to now that things have quieted down?

No, You Can't Read That!

Not long ago a mother and daughter were browsing through the teen book club shelf where the daughter, who must have been 15 or 16, found something that caught her interest. After reading the back of Story of a Girl she handed it to her mother who promptly said "No!" and placed it back on the shelf.

Tomorrow begins Banned Books Week and my opinion on banning books has always been that only a parent has the right to decide what their children may read – not teachers or librarians, booksellers or other parents. I have heard many stories from fellow booksellers about irate parents who marched their teenager back into the bookstore to return a recently purchased book they didn’t approve of. The booksellers got an earful for selling such a book to the impressionable angel they view their child to be. If a child is old enough to walk into a bookstore alone, choose a book, pay for it and leave, the parent obviously feels he/she is old enough to make her/his own decisions. How can that parent honestly be upset at the bookseller for not doing the parent’s job for them? Who are we to decide what your child is capable of handling?

Back to the parent that wouldn’t allow her high school student read Story of a Girl, which is about a thirteen year old who was caught having sex with an older boy by her father and how that affected her life. This parent has every right to make this decision for her daughter. Obviously I believe this story is suitable for someone of her age since I allowed our teen book club to choose it. In fact, they choose many books this particular parent does not approve of. However, I think they make wonderful choices. After reading Crank a long discussion ensued about teen drug use and these kids were very open and honest. Not a discussion most would have with their parents or teachers.

There was a conversation between booksellers about which books to recommend to boys to get them to read more. One bookseller stated she simply has to place a book into his hands and whisper, “your mother wouldn’t approve”. Of course, the comment was made in jest, but it does prove a point.

Celebrate your freedom to read this week by picking up one of the

top 100 challenged books in 2000-2007

Brag!

What a month! Last week we helped our local library, Farnsworth Public Library , celebrate National Library Week . Librarian Wendy read three stories, including one of my personal favorites, Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney and one of hers, Wake Up, It’s Spring by Lisa Campbell Ernst. A percentage of all sales during this special preschool story time was then donated back to the library. It definitely made for a lively Friday morning in the bookstore!

Last week was also the first National Poem in Your Pocket Day since April is National Poetry Month . Of course this is incorporated into our teen writing club. This month each member will be writing their own poem to read aloud at the next meeting. The teen book club also chose Crank by Ellen Hopkins, which is written in verse, as their next pick.
This week wraps up TurnOff Week . Were you able to catch up on some of your reading instead of sitting in front of the TV or computer? Maybe you were out enjoying the beautiful weather that finally showed up for a short visit. Or were you busy riding your bike or picking up litter to celebrate Earth Day ?

This is a week to brag.

What great things did you accomplish this month to support your library or help the environment?