Teen Day Spa and Escapism Books

In case you weren't one of the 20+ teens in the teen day spa program yesterday learning about facials, nail soaks, body scrubs, and smoothies that you make with things from your kitchen, I thought I'd give you a glimpse of what you missed. We gave facials with natural products (egg whites, honey, oatmeal, chocolate--not all together), nail goodies (the honey hand scrub left my hands so soft!), and yummy smoothies. Besides having to get over the idea that putting egg whites on your face can be a good thing and honey, while sticky, actually leaves your skin smooth and soft, the teens were great troopers practicing facial recipes, manicure tips, and drinking yummy smoothies. I hope they put the booklet of recipes to good use the next time their girlfriends all sleepover. The booklet that each teen received not only had the recipes to do at home, but also a booklist of fun reads to help aid in escaping from reality for a bit. Since I can't share the facials, I can share some of the great titles on the list.

I'd Tell You I Love You, but Then I'd Have to Kill You by Ally Carter

Cammie is a Gallagher Girl--a student at the prestigious Gallagher Academy. On the outside, Gallagher Academy looks like a private boarding school, but on the inside it's really a school to train spies. On a class outing for her surveillance class, she is supposed to find evidence of what her teacher drank without his knowledge or being caught by anyone else. As she grabs the bottle of Dr. Pepper out of the trashcan, she realizes that she's been caught--by a local boy. As she soon discovers, she may know a lot about being a spy, but being a regular teenage girl is a lot more work.

All-American Girl by Meg Cabot
One of my favorites by the Queen of Chick Lit. Samantha Madison was skipping art class and hanging out at the music store instead when lo and behold, the President of the United States pops in next door for a cookie. As she's watching, she realizes that the guy next to her has a gun. Without thinking, she shouts "Gun!" and jumps on the would-be assassin, saving the President's life, breaking her arm, and realizing that her parents are going to find out that she was skipping art class. Thus begins, All-American Girl. As Samantha navigates the media and press she becomes a teen icon and Teen Ambassador to the United Nations. Hilarious, yet serious in how she takes on her role as Ambassador, Samantha is a great character to spend time with.

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman
Vince has a complicated life--his dad's "vending machine" business (AKA a mafia boss) is always getting in the way. Example: He plays football and when he has the ball no one will tackle him. Great, if you want an unfair win. Not so great, when you just want to play the game. His brother is getting into the family business as well and causes Vince's date to be cut short when he takes a girl to the beach and pops the trunk to get a blanket and finds instead an unconscious body. No second date with that girl! At a party he meets Kendra, a girl whom he bonds with over getting hair lice together. As they fall in love Vince realizes that Kendra's dad works for the FBI. And worse, he's the agent assigned to try to bring down Vince's family.

Flavor of the Week by Tucker Shaw

Cyril is a great cook--he wants to be a chef and is preparing his recipes for his entrance exams to the Culinary Institute. Cyril is good friends with Rose and would like to be even more. Cyril's best friend is Nick and he's interested in Rose too. Nick convinces Cyril to help him woo Rose by cooking his culinary creations and letting Nick take the credit. A modern day retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac, but instead of words to woo the lady, it's cooking. A what good cooking it is! It makes me want to try Cyril's recipes, which are conveniently included at the end of each chapter.

There you have a snippet of fun-filled books to enjoy while escaping reality for a bit. See you all tomorrow!

Summer Reading

Have you signed up for the Summer Reading Program yet? "I Can't Survive Without Books! Teen Summer Reading Program is in its second week. You can sign up, keep track of your time reading, write book reviews, find out about programs, all online! You just come into the library to get your prizes (and books and come to programs too!) Just for reading you can win candy, dogtag keychain, stuff from Sonic, Harkins Movie Theatre, and Chipotle Restaurant, and a free book. All kinds of reading counts--not just what us adults think is "good." Anything you are reading--just keep track of the time. Listening to a book counts as well! So pick up those graphic novels, magazines, audiobooks, fiction and nonfiction books and get READING!

I am currently sitting in my Anime Afternoon program watching Tsubasa and I started thinking about my goal of having a blog post each day that one of the teen librarians is working. No, I'm not going to be posting from home, but I want to give as many different reading choices I can to as many readers as possible.

Today I want to highlight the fantabulous manga series, Tsubasa RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE. I have a special place in my heart for Tsubasa since it has so many different characters from the CLAMP universe. For those uninitiated, it reads like an action adventure fantasy series. But those readers, who have devoured all that CLAMP created, will be able to recognize many characters and places from their various creations. It's the ultimate crossover manga masterpiece.

Tsubasa follows the adventures of Syaoran, Sakura, Fai, and Kurogane as they travel various worlds searching for the missing feathers that contain bits of Princess Sakura's soul and her memories. It's a new adventure for each feather, but the relationships between the four are ever growing and changing. It's a delight of a series since it has a little bit of every genre available. There are historical worlds, science fiction worlds, fantasy worlds. There's action, drama, humor, and romance. So much to offer in addition to the spectacular artwork that is in the recognizably CLAMP manga style.

I hope you all enjoy it! Next week in Anime Afternoons we're watching Evangelion 1.11 You are (not) alone. Hope to see you there!

And if you haven't signed up for the teen reading program--what are you waiting for? Sign up today

It's official. Summer has begun. So in honor of the rising temperatures and the start of Summer Reading, here is a small sampling of summer-themed teen books. Feel free to eat a Popsicle while you read these; just don't drip Popsicle on your library books.

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

Every summer has been the same, until Belly's (yes that's her name) sixteenth year. Suddenly the boys who have been "pals" notice her in a different way.

Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

Best friends, Anna and Frankie, conspire to find a boy for Anna's first kiss on a summer vacation in California.

Frozen Rodeo by Catherine Clark

To pay her car insurance, Peggy has a summer job in a convenience store with hilarious results.

And for those of you who like a bit darker of tales...

Twisted Summer by Willo Davis Roberts

Cici spends her summer trying to prove her childhood friend's innocence against a charge of murder and find out who is really responsible.

Acceleration by Graham McNamee

Working in the lost and found department of the Toronto Transit Authority, Duncan finds the journal of a person about to become a serial killer.