Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Book Report: Beautiful Creatures


Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles, #1)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Disclaimer: Yes, I finally read the first book in this series. I fully realize that I am a negligent librarian for not reading it sooner. Now, let's move on.

There were a few details that I truly enjoyed about this book but they all seemed to fizzle out over the course... I loved the Southern Gothic setting and the atmosphere the authors created, but I found myself more than once being frustrated by character inconsistencies and plot weirdness. Yes, I know it's a book about the supernatural (trust me, my belief if very easily suspended), but some actions just didn't match up with those previous. Ya know? Also, and this is completely personal, but I cringed every time Ethan called Lena "L" for short. Those nicknames belong in the realm of Gossip Girl and just about nowhere else. Every time he said it, it made me like him less. That said, I found their romance subtle and interesting. And I really loved the character that is Ridley. Everyone loves a bad girl with a lollipop.

I STILL think this will make a striking film, so I'm excited for the movie to come out. Preview looks awe-some. Personally, I'm not going to rush out and read the next book, but I can see where this would have much appeal to those who love stories in which creatures, magic and spirits walk among us. Do you like the Twilight franchise? You will probably really dig this series.


Monday, November 19, 2012

Happy Trails

Traveling this week for the Thanksgiving break? Visiting relatives far-away in December? When you're a teen, these trips can be, well, a little boring. May I suggest you pick up an audiobook for the road? Get lost in an awesome book with an amazing narrator? (Jim Dale, the narrator of all Harry Potter audiobooks as well as one of the titles I suggest below [The Night Circus], well... let's just say I could listen to that man read the phone book or the nutritional label on a Twinkie and still be completely enthralled.)

Twinkies

Whether you're playing a disc in your car stereo or listening to your iPod on a long flight, audiobooks are THE BEST (in this librarian's humble opinion). Here are just a few YA audio titles that I've really loved lately:

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline* (dystopian video game awesomeness)
Hold Me Closer Necromancer by Lish McBride (hilarious paranormal cleverness)
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern* (magic in our world a la later, darker Harry Potter)
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater (magic in our world + all-boy boarding school = yay)
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater (a thrilling horse book... but the horses live in the ocean and eat whatever raw flesh they can get their teeth on)
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak (fascinating WWII historical fiction, narrated by Death himself)

Intrigued a bit? Remember that you can pick up a physical audiobook here at the library, OR you can download free audiobooks for your iPod or MP3 player at OWWL2go. You don't even have to come to the library to download audiobooks from OWWL2go - all you need is your PLS library card and (compatible) device of choice. You can listen to audio samples on OWWL2go, and check items out from home or as far away as Kalamazoo. Plus, that little owl with the headphones is just so dang cute:

*You'll find these titles filed under "Adult Fiction", but they're both Alex Award winners, indicating "adult books with teen appeal"

-Kelley, (your) Teen Services Librarian