Jefferson County Public Library Logo

Teen Blog Archive
Home >Teen Blog Archive

JCPL Teens

APRIL 30, 2012
Movie Monday - How I Live Now

Another teen book is being made into a movie! How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff is the story of Daisy, a 15 year old from New York city who goes to live with her aunt and cousins in rural England to escape her stepmother. Soon after she gets there, war breaks out and tears apart her new family.

The movie is scheduled to come out in 2013, but no specific date yet. Saoirse Ronan is going to star. You may know her from The Lovely Bones. If not, you will soon know her from the movie version of The Host (Stephenie Meyer's non-Twilight book).

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 29, 2012
Lakewood Teen Time

Do you need a place to hide small objects? Do you want to hide a candy bar from your sibling?  Need a place to stash those incriminating notes you just got from your friend in history class? Join us at the Lakewood Teen Time to build a book safe and share what you are currently reading.  All supplies will be provided.

Lakewood Teen Time
Wednesday, May 2nd
4:00 P.M. - Lakewood Teen Room

Lakewood Teen Times meet the 1st Wednesday of each month from 4-5 in the Lakewood Teen Room. 

 

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Arra, Lakewood Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 28, 2012
Science Saturday - Why a Curveball Curves.

It was believed that a curveball was an optical illusion until 1852 when German Physicist Gustav Magnus demonstrated a spinning object will experience a sideways force.  This principle is called the Magnus Effect. When a ball moves through air it creates a wake which will slow the forward motion of the ball.  With a spin the wake is deflected sideways and as a result the ball is pushed sideways.  The Magnus force is in direct proportion to the rate of spin and speed of the ball.  Faster speeds and faster spin will make a greater curve.  Air density will also affect the curve.  Curve balls at Coors Field in Denver will curve less than those thrown at the lower altitude stadium of Wrigley Field in Chicago. 

Want to know more sports science?  Check out the book Why a Curveball Curves: The Incredible Science of Sports edited by Frank Vizard.

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Arra, Lakewood Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 27, 2012
Freedom of Speech or Inappropriate?

So you've seen the I Heart Boobies bracelets, right? The idea behind the campaign is to help teens be aware of, and comfortable with talking about, breast cancer. Here's the site.

Two middle school students wore the bracelets to school after the school had banned them. They were suspended. Now they're suing the school district because they say their freedom of speech was violated. The school district says that the message has a sexual connotation and is inappropriate for a school environment. A federal appeals court is considering the case right now.

What do you think? Should they have been suspended? Should they have worn the bracelets despite the ban on them? Or should they be allowed to wear them? Check out more information on the issue here.

And find information about all sorts of debatable topics in JCPL's Opposing Viewpoints in Context database.

 

 

 

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Chandra, Belmar Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 26, 2012
Stressssssssing?

puppy

I just ran across an article about a law school bringing in puppies for students to play with during finals week, in an effort to help the students de-stress in between study sessions.

A puppy I’m not responsible for but get to play with? Count me in! And animals are used in lots of ways to help people cope. Like in The Outside of a Horse where working with horses helps a man recover from post-traumatic stress after he returns from Iraq. If you could choose anything you wanted to help you relax, what would it be?
 

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Chandra, Belmar Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 25, 2012
Adult Paranormal Books for Teens

I love paranormal series and whether they are shelved in the adult or teen sections, matters not to me. Some of the adult series that I think teens might like are:

Hollows

Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison

Rachel Morgan, a witch and bounty hunter, works in "the Hollows" of Cincinnati where vampires rule the darkness. There are 10 Hollows novels to read!

 

Greywalker Novels

 Greywalker by Kat Richardson

PI Harper Blaine is left for dead by a savage assault. When she awakes in the hospital, she discovers that she can move between the human world and one of vampires and ghosts, magic and witches, necromancers and sinister artifacts. There are six Greywalker novels.

Kitty Norville Series

Kitty and the Midnight Hour by Carrie Vaughn

 When Kitty Norville, a DJ for a Denver radio station and a secret werewolf, accidentally launches a late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged, she becomes the target of a werewolf hunter and several homicidal undead. Nine Kitty books are out.

Mercy Thompson Novels

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

 Mercy Thompson's life is not exactly normal. Her next-door neighbor is a werewolf. Her former boss is a gremlin. And she's fixing a VW bus for a vampire. But then, Mercy isn't exactly normal herself. There are six Mercy Thompson novels.

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Pam, Standley Lake Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 24, 2012
Read This! - The Vinyl Princess by Yvonne Prinz

 

Allie has a secret identity as The Vinyl Princess, author of both a brand-new zine and blog. She is poised to have it all: love, music, and blog- until her vinyl store gets robbed at gunpoint. Have you ever made someone a playlist? I LOVED this book, it made me search out some music I hadn’t ever listened to!

Add a comment
(2 comments)
posted by Amy, Edgewater Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 23, 2012
Movie Monday - The Hobbit

The Hobbit is coming!
If you are a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien, don't miss this one! The movie is set to come out December 14, 2012

Add a comment
(2 comments)
posted by Rene, Evergreen Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 22, 2012
Green Reads

It's Earth Day! Yes, of course you should be spending the day outside picking up trash and planting trees and loving Earth, but you can still spend the evening relaxing with one of these environmentally friendly reads:

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen: Roy, who is new to his small Florida community, becomes involved in another boy's attempt to save a colony of burrowing owls from a proposed construction site. This book is funny and full of mischief, two of my favorite things!
 

The Carbon Diaries 2015 by Saci Lloyd: In 2015, when England becomes the first nation to introduce carbon dioxide rationing in a drastic bid to combat climate change, sixteen-year-old Laura documents the first year of rationing as her family spirals out of control.
 
Empty by Suzanne Weyn: Just ten years in the future oil supplies run out and global warming leads to devastating storms. High school classmates Tom, Niki, Gwen, Hector, and Brock realize that the world as they know it is ending and lead the way to a more environmentally-friendly society.

Wolves, boys, and other things that might kill me by Kristen Chandler: Two teenagers become close as the citizens of their town fight over the packs of wolves that have been reintroduced into the nearby Yellowstone National Park.

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 21, 2012
Science Saturday - Gardening Makes You Happy

Did you know digging in the dirt can may you happier?  Mycobaterium vaccae is a bacteria commonly found in dirt.  This bacteria can cause an increase of serotonin to be released in your brain.  Not only will gardening make you happier it may also make you smarter.  So in honor of Earth Day, (which is tomorrow!) get outside, enjoy the weather, dig in the dirt and consider it a learning experience!

Want to know more?  Take a look at our environmental databases and our Earth Day resources.

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Arra, Lakewood Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 20, 2012
Apples to Apples at Columbine

We're going to be holding a massive Apples to Apples competition for teens on Tuesday, April 24 at the Columbine Library. Come join us at 4pm in the Columbine meeting room.

Never played Apples to Apples? It's a word game and it's really fun! Each round there is an adjective card, such as "Scary" or "Hilarious." Each player puts down a noun card to fit that word and the judge for the round picks the winner. You always get really funny answers and it's great to see what other judges pick. And, it's great when they pick your word because then you win! Hope to see you there!

Columbine Library
Tuesday, April 24th
4pm

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 19, 2012
Belmar Teen Time - April

Earbud bling! 

Stop by next Wednesday, April 25, 6 pm and bring your own headphones or get a free pair to decorate with beads, paint, and friendship bracelet stuff.

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Chandra, Belmar Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 18, 2012
Want to Blog?

Teens: Do you want to be a part of the Crazy Readerz Blog? If you have something you want to blog about send your blog post to teens@jeffcolibrary.org Here are a few tips to keep in mind:

1. Keep your post short. Usually one or two paragraphs is perfect.

2. Write about books, movies, music, websites, events, or whatever else you can think of!

3. Remember to keep your language and the content of your post appropriate for all readers.

4. Keep in mind we may edit your post if necessary.

We look forward to hearing what you have to say!

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 17, 2012
Read This! - Bewitching by Alex Flinn

Did you read Beastly, the retelling of Beauty and the Beast that was turned into a movie last year? Bewitching is the latest book by Alex Flinn and it's just as good. This one is told from the perspective of Kendra, the witch who turned Kyle into a beast. Kendra recounts the last 300 years of her life as a witch, explaining what really happened in the stories we now know as Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, and The Little Mermaid. Even though this book features some of the same characters as Beastly, you won't be missing anything if you start with Bewitching. If you like re-told fairy tales you won't want to miss this one!

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 16, 2012
Movie Monday - Now is Good

The book Before I Die by Jenny Downham is going to be turned into a movie, renamed Now is Good. It will star Dakota Fanning as Tessa and Jeremy Irvine from War Horse as her neighbor, Adam. It looks like it's supposed to come out on May 25 in the UK, but no word yet on the US release date. Let's hope it's soon!

Before I Die is the story of sixteen year old Tessa who was diagnosed with leukemia four years earlier. She knows she doesn't have much time left, and she makes a list of the 10 things she wants to do before she goes. Very intense!

Add a comment
(1 comment)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 15, 2012
Introducing Briana!

Meet Briana, the new teen librarian at Evergreen: 

Favorite teen book: I love anything by John Green, and I also love dystopian books – M.T. Anderson’s Feed and (of course) The Hunger Games. My favorite teen(ish) read from the last year was Jo Ann Beard’s In Zanesville.

 

Favorite TV shows: I love Mad Men, True Blood, and The Amazing Race. I’m also going through Downton Abbey withdrawal right now.

Favorite movies: My movie tastes are all over the board - some of my all-time favorites are Pride and Prejudice, Dear Frankie, An Education, Fargo, and Goodfellas.

Favorite music: Mumford & Sons, Florence & the Machine, Adele

Favorite sport to watch: football – but only if I’m watching with someone who can explain what I’m seeing.

Favorite sport to do: hiking, yoga, bowling (bowling is a sport, right?)

Favorite food to make: I love to bake and I make pretty good soups and stews.

Favorite food: I used to work at a German restaurant, and it left me with an affinity for bratwurst, potato pancakes, and apple strudel.

Places I have lived: I’ve lived in Colorado all my life – I’m a fourth-generation native

Places I have traveled: Iceland, Italy, Austria, France, Ireland and the UK

Where I want to go next: I’d travel almost anywhere – preferably somewhere warm!

Pets: A 10-month-old lab mix named Aspen

Add a comment
(1 comment)
posted by Briana, Evergreen Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 13, 2012
Free stuff to do around town

Looking for an inexpensive date? A place to take your aunt when she visits this summer? 

You can check out a museum pass with your Jeffco library card. Take a look at some of the places you can visit for free.

 

Dinosaur Ridge

Hike around to see real dinosaur remains still in the mountains or walk through an indoor museum featuring dinosaurs that have been found in the area.

 

 Hudson Gardens

A botanic wonderland filled with themed gardens, this would be an awesome place for a second date or a day of photography. I want to go and test out all my Hipstamatic settings!

Foothills Art Center

In downtown Golden, the FAC features traveling exhibits. There's currently a Chihuly exhibit. Dale Chihuly creates glass sculptures that are kind of like looking at clouds. Some remind me of jellyfish, others fire, and some can't even be described.

 
MCA Denver

Right now, you can take home a live carrier pigeon and release it to fly back to the museum! Thinking About Flying is one of many exhibits at MCA.

 

 

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Chandra, Belmar Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 12, 2012
3D photo making at Belmar

March's Teen Time at Belmar was 3D photo making. Here are some of the results.

Sami
Sami
Joseph
Joseph
Jay
Jay
Kenzie
Kenzie

Try making your own! Get a camera, set the size to the smallest image size you can, then take one photo, move the camera just a few inches to your right, and take another. Upload both of them to make3Dphotos.com.

If you send your photo to me to feature in this post, I'll send you a free pair of 3D glasses! Just send your image, along with your name and which branch you want your specs to go to, to chandra.jones@jeffcolibrary.org.

 Look like fun? Check out Belmar's Teen Time, the last Wednesday of each month at 6 pm!

Add a comment
(2 comments)
posted by Chandra, Belmar Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 11, 2012
Job Hunting?

 It’s time to start looking, businesses are already hiring for summer. A great place to look for websites that post jobs and anything else you need to create a resume and cinch the interview is Quintessential Careers – Summer, Camp and Seasonal Jobs for Teens.

 It has everything you need to know plus links to my top 4 job searching websites:

 Jeffco Youth Works

Snag a Job 

Cool Works 

Simply Hired

If you need ideas for starting your own business, try one of the following books:

Beyond the Lemonade Stand by Bill Rancic

Start It Up: The Complete Teen Business Guide to Turning Your Passions into Pay by Kenrya Rankin

The New Totally Awesome Business Book for Kids by Arthur Berg Bochner

Quick Ca$h for Teens : Be Your Own Boss and Make Big Bucks by Peter G. Bielagus

Also, the Young Americans Center for Personal Financial Education has the latest information you need to help you start and finance your own business!

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Pam, Standley Lake Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 10, 2012
Read This! - Uprising by Margaret Peterson Haddix

  

When Bella was 19, her two best friends died in a massive fire. Their lives, along with hundreds of others, could have been spared, if only the factory door wasn't locked by the greedy factory owner. Now an old woman, Bella explains what went wrong to the factor owner’s guilt-ridden daughter.

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Chandra, Belmar Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 9, 2012
Movie Monday - Ender's Game cast!

 The cast of Ender's Game has been selected. Check out this slideshow of actors and who they'll play. My favorite is Moises Arias as Bonzo -- he played an annoying but ultimately nice kid in Hannah Montana. I want to see if he can pull off ruthless.

What do you think? Good choices? Bad choices? Who would you rather see?

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Chandra, Belmar Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 7, 2012
Science Saturday - Science Reads

I like to think that if I hadn't been a teen librarian I might have been a scientist, so I love finding books that help me imagine my alternate life! Here are some of my favorite science reads.

Deadly by Julie Chibbaro: I never read historical fiction, but this one reads more like a forensic mystery and I was hooked from the first page! In the early nineteen-hundreds, Prudence Galewski leaves school to take a job assisting in an investigation into the spread of typhoid fever. This book made me think about how amazing it must have been to be a scientist in a time when germs were a relatively new concept.
 

Virals by Kathy Reichs: Tory Brennan is the leader of a band of teenage science-lovers who live on an island off the coast of South Carolina. When the group rescues a dog caged for medical testing, they are exposed to an experimental strain of canine parvovirus that changes their lives forever. This book is science fiction, but it makes the science part really cool and easy to understand. If you like this one, check out the sequel, Seizure, which involves a pirate treasure!

The Christopher Killer: A Forensic Mystery by Alane Ferguson: Seventeen-year-old Cameryn Mahoney works as an assistant to her father, who is a coroner. She uses her knowledge of forensic medicine to try to catch the the person who killed a friend, but also manages to put herself in terrible danger. This book is a little gruesome at times, but if you have the stomach for it, it reads like an episode of CSI. 

What other great science books have you found?

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 6, 2012
Angry Birds are coming to Evergreen and Standley Lake!

Angry Birds at the library! Join us for Teen Time - we'll make our own Angry Birds and test their powers by launching them at stacked cups. All supplies will be provided.

Evergreen Library
Wednesday, April 11
4 pm

Standley Lake Library
Saturday, April 21
2 pm

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Briana, Evergreen Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 5, 2012
Shout Out for YAromance.com!

At the Colorado Teen Literature Conference last weekend, I met an awesome group of young teens who blog and tweet about everything YA romance – books, movies, anime, songs and more. I love the site’s ENERGY! It is done by teen for teens and it is super FUN! Check it out!

Add a comment
(3 comments)
posted by Pam, Standley Lake Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 4, 2012
Script Frenzy Writing Event

THIS IS THE MONTH! April is THE month for you to write that amazing movie or play script you’ve had lurking in the back of your mind since you saw that guy with the yoyos and the porcupine on the bus last year… Yes! It is time to get writing!

 Script Frenzy is a non-profit effort to encourage writers to get to it! First you join the website to have access to writing tips, great links to free writing software (Celtx rocks!), and forums for literary discussions and sharing. Then you write ONE HUNDRED PAGES between April 1st and April 31st… (Okay, so we’re a tiny bit late on this, but it was just brought to my attention by one of my teens here at Arvada – Thanks, Awesome Teen! – )

 Need some basic writing tips? Try our Teens Homework Help -- there a couple of great links: Elements of Style (by William Strunk, Jr.) and Online Writing Lab - Grammar, Punctuation, and Spelling.

 And HEY, if you decide to do this, post a notice here so we can root for you, too!

Add a comment
(2 comments)
posted by Tana, Arvada Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 3, 2012
Read This! - Ashfall by Mike Mullin

After the eruption of the Yellowstone super-volcano destroys his city and its surroundings, fifteen-year-old Alex must journey from Cedar Falls, Iowa, to Illinois to find his parents and sister, trying to survive in a transformed landscape and a new society in which all the old rules of living have vanished.

I liked this because I enjoy the generally depressing genre of Dystopian fiction. (It must make me feel better on some level to imagine that, YES; things could be SO MUCH WORSE!)

So, if you’re like me, you’ll like this one because I’m pretty sure there is nothing more depressing than standing under a gloomy sun eating corn you dug out from under three feet of volcanic ash. Oh, and the cannibals and creepy FEMA subcontractors were alarming, too.

 Having said that, this book is actually really interesting; lots of problems to solve, people to save, societies to recreate… It’s good. Really!

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Tana, Arvada Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 2, 2012
Teen Time - Lakewood Library

 

Origami!  Join us in the teen room at Lakewood Library on Wednesday, April 4th for origami Teen Time.  We will be making origami and discussing what we are currently reading.  All supplies will be provided.

Lakewood Teen Time meets the first Wednesday of every month from 4-5.

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Arra, Lakewood Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 2, 2012
Movie Monday: Beautiful Creatures

Good news! Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl is going to be turned into a movie. In a small South Carolina town, where it seems little has changed since the Civil War, sixteen-year-old Ethan is powerfully drawn to Lena, a new classmate with whom he shares a psychic connection and whose family hides a dark secret that may be revealed on her sixteenth birthday. Relative newcomers Jack O’Connell and Alice Englert are starring, and the movie will also feature Viola Davis from The Help and Emmy Rossum from The Day After Tomorrow. The release is scheduled for February 1, 2013. Not sure I can wait that long!

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Jessie, Columbine Library

------------------------------------------------------

APRIL 1, 2012
New Books in April

Check out these new teen books coming in April

Fame Game by Lauren Conrad

Fear by Michael Grant. (Gone Series, #5)

 

 

Black Heart by Holly Black.  (Curse Workers Series, #3)

Insurgent by Veronica Roth (Divergent Series #2)

Taken at Dusk by C.C. Hunter (Shadow Falls Series #3)

Last Echo by Kimberly Derting (Body Finder Series #3)

The Selection by Kiera Cass

 

 

Add a comment
(0 comments)
posted by Arra, Lakewood Library

------------------------------------------------------

Subscribe via RSS
Search

Categories