Hi Everyone,
Someone asked me about this the other day so I thought I'd post it to the group. Would you want to having a TRAP "meeting" - could just be an opportunity to get together so we can all meet each other in person. Please let me know ASAP if this appeals to you (or if it doesn't) so I can put something together. If any of you would like to meet and have suggestions for something you might like to do together, please let me know that too.
Thanks, Andrea.

hello there =))
well, this is my first post, so tell me what i should improve on for writing reviews next time =) this is ruth by the way, but most people just call me "woofy" online, as well as at school alot.

well.. here goes:

Armageddon’s Children Terry Brooks pages: 371

Plot: This book has 2 plots actually, one from each of the two series that the author has decided to put together in this book, the two series being 1) the Shannara series, and 2) the Word and the Void series. So I guess I’ll divide the plot sector into 2.

1) Word and the Void

The plot here is that two knights of the Word (instead of the usual 1 in all his OTHER night of the Word books,) are, in opposite areas in the US, fighting REALLY hard to save the children and parents in the compounds. While they are trying to do this, there are demons everywhere, trying to take all the children and all the strong people hostage, so that they could be changed into demons, and be used to kill others. The demons are part of the Void. Anyways, the two knight of the Words try to save others, but the male knight of the Word (Logan Tom) has to find a boy born with magic, one who is related to the main characters in the other Word of the Void series, and the female knight of the Word (Angel Perez) has to try to save as many people as possible, and to find the elves of another world, but both (Angel AND Logan) had to stay safe from the demons. For the whole of this part of the story, that is what they do, and, after a time, both Angel and Logan Tom meet, and work together to save all of human kind that are still left.


2) Shannara

In this part of the story, the “Chosen” elves (yes this series is COMEPLETLY different from the other series) are to serve the Ellcrys, which is a tree that served to keep the demons out. Angel Perez (from the plot above) is to help the elves (2 in particular,) find the legendary elf stone that has not been seen for a long time, and put the Ellcrys into it, and therefore keeping the whole tree safe without having to uproot the tree at all. Angel, along with the elves, have to find the elf stones before the demons can kill the elf country, and the elves get wiped out of existence.

not gonna spoil the ending.. but then again, there isn't really an ending at all

Thoughts: this book and this author is really good…

Rating: I’d give it a 9/10, which is really high, because I don’t actually give 10’s cause nothing’s perfect =)

Genre: fiction/fantasy

Recommended for people who like the author, and also people who adventure and fantasy books mixed with bad guys and good guys =))

total: 3 hours

...did i miss anything?
-woofy

shopaholic and sister
by sophie kinsella
355 pages
5/5

ok, this the the last book (so far..) and i loved it! a bit unrealistic, though. read it and you'll see. but this one, though it was weird, it had a good message. it was the most "touching", i should say.

so, becky bloomwood is back.not that she ever left, but you know. i mean, becky brandon. in shopaholic ties the knot, she married luke brandon (a bit of a fiasco, their wedding). they are on their round the world honeymoon, which they planned to be for a year. ten months have past. becky is picking up a little something here and there. well, a big something. no. big somethings. like the hand carved dining table with ten chairs (ten?) and um.. oya the other table also with ten chairs. and the twenty silk dressing gowns from hong kong (SUCH a bargain) and the... the huge wooden girraffes from malawi that her husband forbade her to buy. not to mention a real angel handbag. 2000 euros.

they decide to go home a little early, (two months) cuz becky wants to surprise everyone. but she's the one surprised when she gets home. first of all, her parents are acting all weird. well then, at least she has suze (her best friend) oh, but then suze has this new best friend who is better that becky at just about everything. and well, two truvkloads of the souvenirs becky bought on their honeymoon is piled into the apartment.

but then her parents give her a huge surprise! becky has a long lost sister! (long story) she dreams up what shes gonna look like, when they can give eachother makovers, maybe they could shop together and giggle while sharing their secrets. turns out, jessica (the sister) is nothing like that. she hates shopping. she hates spending. she's all save save save. "oh, did you know you could save eighty pence just by doing this? and that?" and not only that, but her marriage is in tatters (thinks becky).

i think the message that this book gave out was that, no friend can replace an old friend; it's just not the same. and also, it shows that you dont have to be blood related to be sisters. or... brothers maybe. and, understanding eachother lets you learn more, even if youre totally not interested.

would have been 48 hours
can be published in newsletter

--Jessica--

Song of Sampo Lake
William Durbin
210 pages

Historical fiction - 1900
(First 35 or so pages)
Matti Ojala and his family are Finnish immigrants to Minnesota in America. At first, they settle near a mine, where Matti, his older brother Timo, Father, and his uncle Wilho work dangerous 10-hour shifts underground to save up some money to homestead (verb) . Tragically, Wilho is killed in a mining accident, so Matti’s father decides to file their homestead claim right away.
Homestead - any dwelling with its land and buildings where a family makes its home.
===
This is where the story really begins. The family's new homestead is in the wilderness, located beside Sampo Lake. They need to work very hard to build a new house, clear the land, and earn money to buy supplies. Even Matti's little sisters helped out.
Along the way, Matti proves himself to his father, who had generally favoured Timo more in the past. Not in a desperate kind of way though, of course.
===
Like most historical fiction novels, the setting is realistic, while the characters' personal struggles are made-up. Anybody grade 5+ will find this story relatively easy to read. "Coming-of-age" theme (about Matti) and a bit of insight on the life of a Finnish settler.

Rating 4/5

David
3; total 12 hours
Publishable in newsletter

Sheep By: Valerie Hobbs 115 pages
This book was really fascinating, especially if you're a person with a doggie loving sickness, like me. Anyways, this book talks about a border collie with tons of differernt names in his life, but his favourite name was Jack. Jack was born on a ranch with sheep....SHEEP!!!! His life is soon ruined by a horrible fire, in which he is sold to a pet store and then a little girl comes in and points at him! " I want HIM!!" she says, and then that is how his life as almost anything begins.....Sheep is named Sheep because ever since he was removed from his ranch, he dreams of herding sheep again. I thought this book was cute and probably the most adorable biography I've ever read. (You should also try "The Biography of a Dog")
READ IT!!!

A reader,
Shummer

P.S.: Sorry I've haven't written for so long. Too busy.

just something i found out a few minutes ago... i dont know if you guys know it. its just that i found out that there is going to be a fifth shopaholic book coming out in february! its called shopaholic and baby!! im so gonna read it..

and lol i was looking at the TRAP ad at the library a few days ago, and it was like "14-18" and i was like.. oopss... cuz i've just turned 13!! lol!! good thing nobodys agist! (age-ist,, like sexist, racist, agist? ok nvm.)

--Jessica--

shopaholic ties the knot
by sophie kinsella
328 pages
5/5

omg i loved this one! more than shopaholic takes manhattan! it just had something to it.. i dont know what.

her best friend, suze, is getting married. to tarquin, who is her cousin. before becky can start dreaming her own wedding, luke proposes! but the propblem is, her mom has been dreaming about this for years. becky is their only child, and she wants to host the best backyard wedding ever. but lukes mom, on the other hand, plans a huge pricey ceremony at a plaza, and everyone is talking about it. becky cant decide which one to go with. no one can help her, since she is the only one that knows. both luke's and becky's mothers have been organizing everything, and becky doesnt want to spoil anyone's hard work. but as the wedding gets closer and closer, becky still has no idea what to do. i mena, she cant have two weddings, can she?

if you havent read this, make sure you read the fisrt two first because they all link together. it will still be understandable is you only read this one, but just not as funny.

would have been 45 hours
can be published in newsletter

--Jessica--

hey everyone!!! i wrote a few poems for an assignment we had to do, and i thought i would use the poems i used last year, (friendship poems, lol) but then i started writing these and found out that i can write stuff other than happy and optimistic. enjoy!!

umm... no title. can you help me think of one?

my heart pounding;
pounding from fear.
my thoughts wincing;
knowing you're near.
i cannot see;
i cannot hear;
i cannot taste;
but can feel you here.
who you are,
i do not know.
my true emotions,
i will not show.
instead, i'll stand here,
staring at you.
your bloodshot eyes,
shall not see me through.

umm... no title again. ya.

who are you?
i've wondered for years.
thinking of you,
brings me to tears.
i can feel something,
hidden from me.
behind your thoughts,
which i cannot see.
i know you're afraid,
to show who you are.
beleive me, trust me,
its not all that hard.
because in the end,
you'll be proud of yourself.
i know you will be.
i've said so myself.

no hours!! but... um... would have been umm.. how many did i count before? oya 42.
thanks for reading!! plz give me any suggestions you have!! =)

--Jessica--

Best Friends For Never (a clique novel)
By: Lisi Harrison
Pages: 197

(Picking up from the first book…)The clique is back, and this time around, Massie plans to throw her school’s first boy/girl Halloween party. However, her parents would only allow this if she throws the party with Claire (a non-clique). Massie sees this as a chance to show the rest of the school she still got her cool and is still trendsetting. Claire sees this as a possibility to hanging out Massie and getting accepted. Dylan and Kristen (Massie’s clique friends) sees this as the perfect place to snag a new guy…but it seems like both girls like the same boy…uh-oh.
But things soon go out of hand when Massie and her clique friends decided to wear their inappropriate Halloween costumes to school…little did they know that because of what they did, Octavian Country Day School would go uniforms! After a Halloween night full of fun, the girls realized what they had done. With Massie’s brilliant idea, the principal changed the situation to a “design the uniform” contest. Massie decided to enter this contest with her clique friends. But Alicia, (Massie’s friend), has other plans, she has decided to work with Olivia (a non-clique) and above all, compete against Massie. With Alicia gone, Claire is in the picture (although she’s not considered “in” yet), and together, they designed their contest entry uniform. Who’s uniform is going to win? And will Claire finally be part of the Clique? Read on to find out!
Still a great book, and the girls are still as mean as ever. But Massie’s verbal comebacks are starting to get very monotonous…can’t help but think: that was so lame. But still can’t wait to read the third one! Oh yeah, and the idea of guys and boyfriends were mentioned more by the characters, but hey, it’s a teen girl book, so what do you expect, these type of books are never complete without a crush or two.
Rating: 8/10…I liked the first one more

s.t.e.p.h.i.e.
volunteer hours: 3 (total – 22 ½ )

Both Sides of Time
By: Caroline B.Cooney
210 pages

Fifiteen year old Annie Lockwood lives in the twentieth century. She is a romantic dreaming of the love and affection that her current boyfriend Sean just cant give her. When Annie steps into an ancient mansion that is soon to be torn down, she gets thrusted backwards into the year 1895. She arrives in the prescence of a handsome young man name Strat, who happened to be the hier to the owner of the marvelouse mansion.The young couple fall deeply in love, but back in the 1800's, love is not that easy. In the time of 1895, Annie gets involved in a murder case. In her own time, her parents are going through divorce. But what Annie is most concerned about is...how exactly can she love someone thats in a whole other centrury? How can she live in two completely different times? On both sides of time, Annie has interupted the lives of many people. She has to make a decision, stay with Strat whom shes totally in love with? or go back home where she belongs.

This book was terrific. I guess im just really interested in time travel AND romace so this was the perfect read. The author makes the romance between Annie and Strat seem so perfect and pure. Its really sad in the end how they cant be together. Its kinda interesting to read about a modern girl in the past, and how her manners, clothing, and values are so different from those of the 1800's. This novel was so romantic in a classic way, and full of twists and turns. There really isnt an ending to this book. You have to read the next in the series "Out of Time" to actually see what happened to Annie and Strat. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a good romantic novel. i'd give it 4/5...just because their not together in the end =)

Hours-3
Total-9

shopaholic takes manhattan
by sophie kinsella
325 pages
5/5

ok, so this is the second book. ( one of the ones i borrowed from my teacher!! yay! i was flipping the pages oh so slowly in fear i would wreck the book -- lol) i too, liked this one more than the first one. my teacher says this one's the best of all of them.
so for those of you who dont know, the book is about rebecca bloomwood - a shopaholic. she promises ot to spend much money, but she just cant resist buying things. she always makes up an excuse for everything she buys, like 'this is an investment, though' or stuff like that. which leads to debts every time.
she and her boyfriend, luke, are going on a little holiday to new york. but the trip turns to be a weekend full of lukes meetings; nothing romantic. lukes keeping something from becky, too. she can tell. beckys getting all these job interviews in new york, and theyre all promising she will be a big hit. and just when becky is so close to becoming a celebrity, something horrible screws up her life. her job, her relationship, everything.
i loved this book. but dont read this book unless youve read the first one. its not like a series of arthur chapter books, which require almost no background knowledge. lol

would have been 42 hours.
can be published in newsletter

4 days till my birthday! yay! wait... im only gonna be.. 1,2,3,4,5,... 13.. owell!
lol 13 years old was probably 4 years ago for some of you!!

--Jessica--

Two Moons in August
Martha Brooks
157 pages

Story is in present tense, blending in important flashbacks of significant events in the past.

On her fifteenth birthday, Sidonie Fallows lost her mother forever. Almost a year later, Sidonie, her sister Bobbi (real name Roberta), and her dad are still attempting to adjust to a new life, but things begin to change. Sidonie meets Kieran, a new boy who is coming to town to live with his mother. They become friends and help each other cope with their family troubles – Sidonie with her dead mother, Kieran with his alcoholic father. Meanwhile, Bobbi’s relationship with her new boyfriend Phil (a few years older than her) grows deeper, as the two try to work out their feelings for each other. Most of the action is focused on Sidonie, though.

This book’s main theme is family relationships. I like the characters because they all had their own unique personalities. Everything is realistic, even though the characters’ lives aren’t exactly what you would call ‘normal’.

Rating 4.5 / 5 (interesting)

David
3 for this one; 9 total
Publishable in newsletter

Here's another project you can help me with - we're trying to think up little slogans to promote our online databases to high school students (in case you aren't aware of the databases they are a service that the library subscribes to that allows us to provide access to to jounral articles, reference books, multimedia, etc - they are really cool and have tonnes of info on every subject you can think of. We're really interested in promoting them because we have a limited selection of books and we don't always have info on topics that teens are researching, so the databases are good alternatives.)
Anyway, we're trying to think of little catch-phases to advertise the service. Some of the features we're trying to emphasise would include:
- 24/7 access
- info on current events/issues that we may not have in the library
- reliable information, controlled content - more reliable than the internet
- fully searching capabilities so they're just as easy to use a google
If anyone has some suggestions, I'd love to hear them. And by the way - if you'd like to know more about the databases or receive some help using them, let me know and we can set up a training appointment.
Thanks.

Hi, you guys! No volunteer time for comments.

Interesting survey information. The other day on the news, there was a study about teens and computer usage.

It said teens under 13 spent less than 2 hours a day on the computer.
I think 14 year olds spent average of 3.2 hours a day on the computer.

The next stat just flipped me out. 15 year olds spend over 8 hours a day on the computer.
When are you guys sleeping?
Even if you started as soon as you came home, you would do nothing else, no clubs, extracurriculars, eating, etc.

I think this study is exaggerated. What do you think?

Catherine

Hi, this is my first Book Review. I really hope people enjoy this, or i would have read these books for nothing (not really).
I apologize if these books have already been reviewed, I am new after all.

Book: The Wars by Timothy Findley
218 pages

Genre: War.

This is the story of Robert Ross, a solemn 19 year old Canadian officer who went to World War One. He left everything after loosing everything....his sister and his dysfunctional family was deteriorating. Thus, he set off to Europe and found another hell.....one much worse than the one he left.

I found this book to be very dark....instead of glorifying war....it made it look very sadistic, the true intent and look of war. Simply a novel which makes war look extremely chaotic. Nothing less.

Main themes within this book would be displaying the horror of war, as well as Robert's loss of innocence. An effective novel at displaying the truth of war.

I really don't recommend this book for a leisure read, unless you like to engulf yourself in the sad, sick sadistic concepts of this book....I really don't recommend it.

PERFECT CPT NOVEL!!! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED FOR ENGLISH.

Volunteer Hours(Total) : 3hrs

Rating : 2/5

Aaron S.

This review can be published in the Teen Newsletter.

Hi everyone - I thought I'd put this question to the TRAP to see what your thoughts were. I'm working on developing some ideas for fun things we could do here in the library to celebrate Youth Week (it's usually the beginning of May). The theme we're exploring is "what's your passion?", and we'd really like to have some interactive displays and maybe some kind of performance here in the library. Does anyone have any suggestions about what might be cool?
For teen programming in particular, we love getting feedback from the "horse's mouth", so any suggestions you have would be great!
Thanks, Andrea.

Okay guys, I've got a fresh book for you here....I had to read it for an English CPT at school, and I must say, I actually enjoyed this one, which is exceptionally amazing considering it was, as I said, a book that had to be read for school....

Esther
Sharon E. McKay
314 pages

Esther is a Jewish girl who lives in France in the 1700's (sounds boring, I know, but just wait...it gets better). When she screws up with her family for the last time, she finds herself on her way, from one adventure to the next. These journeys eventually lead to her becoming the first Jew to step foot in New France (I'll spare you the details in fear of ruining the whole story).

Because rules were very different back then, the only way that Esther would be able to find work would be if she disguised herself as a boy. And she does so, and while the disguise works, there is one.....feminine issue....that always gets in the way.

Okay, that is all I will give away about this juicy book. At first, I wasn't too sure if i would want to read this book, seeing as it is set way back when, something that I usually am not interested in. But this one was different, and seeing as the era wasn't the main focus in the book, my interest was kept. She is constantly moving from place to place, and the whole story line was very relatable to today.

Rating: 5/5
(TOTAL COMMUNITY SERVICE: 24 HOURS)
*******CAN BE PUBLISHED IN NEWSLETTER**************

happy reading!!!*jenn_***:-)

Hello Groin! by Beth Goobie pages 278

The title tells you that this is no ordinary book.
I never like to put an age on a book but this book does deal with mature themes and situations as television advisories say.
The book revolves around one character who slowly realizes she is a lesbian.
It does deal with teenage sexuality and relationships.
I loved the book for the honesty but I felt it was unrealistic about the character coming out. Goobie might have done that on purpose but it was a little bit too much happily ever after.

Catherine

Recent Readings

Stop the Train

Historical novel based on people who move to a town to homestead and are devastated when the train refuses to stop in their town

Once by Morris Gleitzman

The story of a Jewish boy hidden by nuns who escapes to try and save his family. sad, sad book

Low by Brian Doyle

A book about a son and father who go on a vacation up in Northern Ontario, in simpler times.

The first two were great but the last one was okay. Surprisingly enough, the last one won many awards. It was not my cup of tea.

Catherine

The important discussion with no volunteer hours

I think you are the most important people in Markham. You are the future.

Mayor Scarpitti was elected last night as Markham's new mayor.

I want to know what you think is the most important issue for Markham's new government?

The other thing I want to know is what do you think is the most important issue to teens who live in Markham?

We are asking for the same information, in the branch.
In one month's time, all the results will be tabulated and forwarded to your new Mayor.

Get your friend's opinions and ideas.

Catherine

can you keep a secret?
by sophie kinsella
357 pages
9.5/10

i really enjoyed this book. there were lots of funny parts that i just had to show my friends (or whoever was sitting beside me at the time -- yes, i read in class...). i love how sophie kinsella writes. its not intense or anything, and it can be relatable. i told my language teacher i read confessions of a shopaholic, and she said she could lend me the second book, if i wanted to read it. OF COURSE I DO. ahem. anyways...

this book is about a girl named emma corrigan. her character seems much like becky from confessions of a shopaholic. ok. so she has all these secrets from everyone, like how its always her jamming the photocopier at work, how she weighs 128 pounds instead of 118 which is what her boyfriend thinks, and other stuff -- the type of secrets that dont ruin your life if their told, but totally humiliate you. all is safe until she meets a guy on the plane when shes coming back from a meeting. the plane had hit turbulance, and emma honestly thought the man sitting beside her was the last person she was ever going to see. so... she told him all her secrets. all her random little secrets that she just couldnt help spilling out. but the thing is, with a stranger, you probably tell them something but you never see them again. so thats what emma thought when getting off the plane. turns out, the guy on the plane was one of the guys who had founded the company emma works for. he comes to their office for a surprise visit, but boy is he surprised. the weird girl on the plane who had told him everything about her actually worked for him. so for the whole week, emma has to stand a huy who knows everything about her-- from how she really feels about her boyfriend, to her weight, and how she finds g - strings uncomfortable, but wears them anyway (yes, g - strings).

and if you think that it couldnt be any worse, it gets worse. i was reading all through math today, and the guy beside me was like "stop reading!" and i was like "no!" and later on, he leaned in, and he was like, "is it really that good?" but obviously i turn the book away from him -- i mean, its a sophie kinsella book. anything could be in it.

there was quite a lot of swearing in it -- but think about it. its sophie kinsella. gosh, the more i say kinsella, the more weird it sounds...
kinsella kinsella kinsella kinsella kinsella kinsella ...

would have been 39 hours
can be published in a teen newsletter
gosh! i cant get rid on the itallics!!!! ah!!

The Clique
By: Lisi Harrison
Pages: 222

This is the first book in the Clique series. Massie Block is the leader of the 7th grade most popular and exclusive clique at the Octavian County (all girl) School. Stylish brands and being rich are essential to surviving in the social scene. Claire Lyons is the new girl from Florida, because of money problems, her family had moved in to Massie’s guesthouse for the moment (since their fathers are friends). She is clearly not Clique material, but she strives to be accepted by Massie and her friends. As the story unravels, Claire was humiliated on several occasions by the Clique in her pursuit to be one of them. Finally, Claire couldn’t put up with the cruel treatment she’s been receiving, so she hatched up a scheme to win over the Clique…

(taken from the book): The Clique…the only thing harder than getting in is staying in.

Like the shopaholic series, tons of brand names were mentioned!!! But overall, I thought it was a great book, it shows how mean girls (yup, this book would only appeal to girls…sorry guys) can really get and what others would do to be popular. In our society today, I wonder if this scenario really does exist…at least maybe not to the point of designer wears is a “must”.
Rating: 8/10

s.t.e.p.h.i.e.

Volunteer hours: 3 (total – 19 ½)

Stargirl
Jerry Spinelli
... 1..86 pages?? (i forget where i put my book...)
4.5/5

yes, the book stephie wrote about. hm. why do i seem to be the only one reading books other people post about? ok, whatever. as i said, i bought this book a few years ago but never got to read the whole thing. i had read the same 50 pages over and over again. so this time, i picked up the book and actually read the whole thing. go me.

i loved this book! its about a new girl at a high school, named stargirl. shes quite different from the other people. she wears weird clothing, and doesnt make friends quickly. she plays her ukele in the cafeteria, and mysteriously knows everyones name and birthday. she was homeschooled up until the second year of high school.

the book was written from a boy named leo 's prospectlive. he likes satrgirl. he and his friend kevin along with some other kids, have a show called "Hot Seat". it goes on local cable at primetime. whoevers in the "hot seat" gets asked nosy questions.

this book was really interesting. it was a pretty quick read, too. it teaches you to be yourself, no matter what people think of you. stargirl tried to be "normal", in a part in the book, but she just realized and accepted that it wouldnt work.

would have been 36 hours.
review can be published in a teen newsletter

--Jessica--

The teens & research survey is ready to go!
Thanks in advance to those of you who've volunteered to help - if anyone else is interested, you can pick up the copies in the library, or let me know. I'll email you the survey so you can at least complete the information for me - it'll earn you an hour of credit!
Thanks. Andrea.

The Song of an Innocent Bystander
By Ian Bone
262 pages

The protagonist (yes, a fancy word) is a girl called Freda Opperman. The plot switches back and forth between two points in her life…

Past :::
9-year-old Freda walked into a fast-food restaurant just as a gunman, John O’Grady, pulled out his shotgun and began taking hostages. However, O’Grady wasn’t interested in ransom money. Instead, this revolutionary “educated” Freda and her fellow captives about the lies of the greedy corporate masters who sold mass produced junk food for profits, and intended them to go out and spread the word out to others. His audience just pretended to go along with what he said, but Freda didn’t seem to be pretending…

Present :::
Ten years have passed. The media depicted Freda as an innocent bystander in the incident, which resulted in two deaths at the end. However, they didn’t cover the entire story. Now, a reporter shows up with a request for an interview. And he seems to know what really happened during the 36-hour imprisonment…
=====
I found the story confusing at first, but eventually figured out what was going on. The action (or thinking) is very dramatic, full of constantly changing emotions. I recommend this book to readers who want a challenge, something to think really hard about.

Rating 4.5 / 5 (thought-provoking)

David
3+3 is 6, so total hours = 6
Publishable in newsletter

Little Treasures
by Sherry Chiger
115 pages

ok im not sure if this counts for hours, but i guess so. its not a novel. its a cute little book with a whole bunch of quotes, thoughts, and inspirations said by other people. what annoyed me was that a lot of them were "anonymous. oh well. there are different categories, such as friendship and self confidence. i got this book from... my sixth grade teacher (whoa) and as i said before, i hated reading back then. i rediscovered the book, right on my bookshelf-- surprising-- and decided to read it. i loved it. my favourutes were the friendship quotes.

would have been 33 volounteer hours
this review can be published in a teen newsletter

ps...
here are my favourites:

the best thing to hold onto in the world is eachother. - anonymous

kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. -mother teresa

a smile suceeds where a thousand words might fail. - anonymous

wherever you are, it is friends that make your world. - william james

a smile is never an ending but always a beautiful beginning- anonymous

a smile gently hugs the heart of the one who recieves it - anonymous

a ready smile and warm heart will unlock the door to friendship - anonymous

Hi, my name is David and this is my first post… I guess I joined this blog pretty late but better late than never =]. I’m 15 years old, in grade 10, and I like reading and doing other things like sports. My best subject in school is math for some reason, even though I find it repetitive and kind of lame 99% of the time. I don’t have much homework recently (unit 1 exams over), which means more time to read books and write reviews lol.

Here’s my first, hope you like it.

48 Shades of Brown
By Nick Earls
274 pages

Dan, a 16 year old boy going into his senior year of high school, moves to Australia to live with his 22 year old aunt Jacq and her second year university friend Naomi. Right away, Dan notices that his new environment is quite different from what he was used to at home. He has to adapt to adult life here and develop some new skills: doing household work (he was too lazy to do it back then), getting used to the taste of beer, mastering calculus, and talking to girls. A new problem arises when Dan falls for his housemate Naomi, who is two years older than him. He tries his hardest to impress Naomi and win her heart, but his ridiculous antics don’t really work. Of course, he learns from his mistakes and becomes a better person at the same time – that’s what this story is all about.

Anyways, I really like this story because it was very really extremely funny. I can also relate some of the events to myself, since I am also a teenager who’s growing up and learning about adult things. This book isn’t exactly for young children because there is some mature content in there. However, I highly recommend it to grade 8s and above because it is an excellent, entertaining comedy.

By the way, 48 Shades of Brown won Australia’s Children’s Book Council Book of the Year for Older Readers, which is another great reason for you to read it ^^.

Rating 5/5 (continuous laughter)

David
This one gives me 3, so total hours = 3
Publishable in newsletter.

Hi folks - I'm hoping to recruit some of you as volunteers to help me with a survey for a project I'm working on. I'm working on developing an information literacy programme at the library - basically I'm trying to develop a series of programmes and resources that will help to teach effective research strategies using the internet and the library's onlne databases. I'm trying to gather some information from teens about their research needs and current skills and I'm currently working on preparing a brief survey to try to address some these issues.
So, first of all, I'm going to post the survey on the TRAP blog and anyone who fills it out can get 1 hour of volunteer time (it shouldn't take you any more than ten minutes to fill out so it's a great deal - available only to TRAP volunteers!)
Also, would any of you be willing to help distribute the surveys to other teens - doesn't have to be anything formal, nor do I need a huge sample, but if you have any friends or siblings in high school that wouldn't mind answering a few questions, I would really appreciate your help in getting their input. There will be copies available at the Angus Glen branch, or if you prefer, I can email you the survey (but then you'd have to either print them out or forward the email and have your friends email me their responses). Again, I can give you volunteer credit for your effort, plus my great appreciation - let's say that I'll give you 1 hour credit for every 5 surveys you get for me. I'll post the survey soon, but if you're interesting in distributing them, just respond to this email in the comments.
Thanks, Andrea.

Coming Next Tuesday - A very important discussion

On Tuesday, we need your input on a very important issue.
There will be no volunteer hours for this discussion, just your opinion.
If you think your friends would also like to participate, anyone is welcome.
Can't wait until Tuesday! More details to follow.

Spiked and twenty pagents later

Twenty pagents later by Caroline Cooney

This is a typical Caroline Cooney read. It is well written with no real surprises.
It is an ugly duckling story and someone who wants to become a princess.
A little too much fluff for me. I generally like this behind the scenes stuff but I enjoyed the next book more.

Spiked by Sandra Glover

I am not sure if I have read two or three of her books already so forgive me.
The subject matter upset me greatly because unfortunately, I can see this being a reality.
This is not a new topic but one that is coming to the forefront again.
There is an end of year party in a bar but in addition, to their friends, the general public goes travelling through the crowd.
One girl ends up with a spiked drink and when one of her friends realizes something is not right, she ends up dealing with another drunk friend.
All the girls' friends lose track of her while the predator steps in, at the key moment.
The story is very good on so many levels. A definite read.

****The Government of Ontario is now allowing women to take their drinks to the bathroom when they are in bars and clubs. This will help to make women safe.

catherine

confessions of a shopaholic
by sophie kinsella
350 pages
4.75 / 5

i loved this book! i know my rating was a little specific, but thats how much i like the book. this is the kind of book you read during repetitive french presentations that nobody cares about (not even the teacher). it was really funny, but the humor didnt overpower the plot.

its about a girl named becky bloomwood. shes getting more and more letters from the bank, with numbers she just doesnt want to read. her excuses to the bank will work no more. shes owing everyone else money, too. she, obviously, is a major shopaholic. she always wants to buy her self something. just one somthing. thats not too much to ask for, is it? well, it is when youre in debt and you get kicked out from your dream job and your current job doesnt pay well... and youre owing the bank... in other words, in debt. lots of it. she tries saving money, and tries earning more. nothing works. what is there to do?

this was really fun to read. it wasnt serious, like candy. not to say it wasnt good. they were both really good.

would have been 30 volounteer hours
this review can be published in a teen newsletter

Candy
By Kevin Brooks
364 pages
5/5

awesome book. its about a guy named joe, and he speaks in first person. hm. come to think of it, i havent read books from boys' prespectives before. except for picture books. but not a surprise, i mean, the author is a guy. anyways. he meets a girl at a train station, named candy, and instantly falls in love with her. well, almost instantly, anyway. they start chatting away, and man, joe really likes this girl. but as he learns more and more about her, he finds out that candys life is a mixture of violence, drugs, and desperation. this isn't "a sweet little love story", as noted in the book. it was serious stuff. awesome, really. well, its weird saying that a book like this is awesome. i mean... the stuff is so serious. joe and candy get into heaps of danger, but they go through it together. candy has begged joe to leave, but he just cant stand letting her face all this alone.

i highly recommend this book. in fact, i think all teens should be required to read it. i was actually thinking that the author had done drugs before, and tried to give up. he explained everything so clearly, this whole thing was picturing in my mind. or maybe, it should be turned into a movie. yeaaahhhh thats more like it!!! the movie would be so... touching. but with all the violence and drugs, it would probably be rated R. but i would still run out and see it--- it would just be so awesome.

as i said, highly recommend. read it.

would have been 27 volounteer hours
this review can be published in a teen newsletter :)

Things you either hate or love
by brigid lowry
179 pages
4/5

this book was about a girl named georgia. she constantly thinks that she is fat. she dislikes how fat she is, and her best friend has major skin problems.
she is a huge fan of a band, 'natural affinity'. she desperately wants to go to their concert, and the ticket is 500 dollars. she tries to get a job but isnt accpected. then, she gets a job at a bakery, and after an incident, she is fired. on and on it goes. she's seriously crushing on a guy at her newest job, but he seems to go from girl to girl, every girl execpt georgia. she likes making the most random lists you can ever think of. she doesnt have a father and her mother is always in a miserable mood. the only person georgia can talk to is her grandfather, who she loves very much.

community service hours would have been's --- 24
(ooooooooooOOOOoooooo 24 hours = one whole day... cool)
***********************************this review can be published in a teen newsletter

Angels turn their backs
by margaret buffie
239 pages

this is one of the books catherine talked about.
it is about a girl named addy. she is fifteen years old, and gets major panic attacks whenever she is outside. she is afraid to go outside, and at first her mom doesnt understand. addy used to have a friend before she moved. she moved from a big house to a small, old apartment. she is trying to adjust to her new life. sometimes, she gets visions or dreams about things that she doesnt understand. there is also a scary parrot, victor, who can really mock peoples voices.
this story seemed real, even though i had never heard of anyone like addy before. i would give it 4/5.

community service hour would-have-been's--21
this review can be published in a teen newsletter