Waiting on Wednesday (21)

"Waiting on Wednesday" is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Here's what I'm waiting on this week:
Misguided Angel (Blue Bloods #5)
by Melissa de la Cruz
To be Released: October 26, 2010

Summary from Baker and Taylor:
"After inheriting the dark Van Alen Legacy, Schuyler fled to Florence--with her forbidden love, Jack. Now the two of them must embark on the mission Schuyler was destined to complete: to find and protect the seven gates that guard earth from Lucifer, lord of the Silverbloods.

As the Blue Blood enclave weakens yet further, fate leads Schuyler closer to a terrifying crossroads--and a choice that will determine the destiny of all vampires."

I find it hard not to squee when I think of the Blue Bloods series. I've loved it since the first book. There have been a few valleys and peaks, but that's how it is with all series. I cannot wait to get my hands on this one! I just know it's going to be fantastic.

If you haven't read any of the Blue Bloods books yet and you're a vampire story fan, I suggest you head to the library immediately to get them. It's a very well-thought-out story and I recommend it to literally anyone who asks me for vamp stuff. Go read... now. :)

Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George

Title: Princess of Glass
Author: Jessica Day George
ISBN: 9781599904788
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Page #: 257
Source: From My Library

Summary:
"Having once been cursed to dance every night with her sisters, Princess Poppy has vowed never again to put on a pair of dancing slippers. Which is why she's reluctant to participate in the royal exchange program that her father and some of their neighbor kings have cooked up.

Life in far-off Breton isn't so bad, not when there's money to be won playing cards and a handsome prince promising friendship... and maybe something more. But when a hapless servant named Eleanora enters the picture and sets her sights on the prince, too, which girl will win his heart? And who is behind the magnificent gowns and slippers that the penniless Eleanora has been wearing to the balls? Only Princess Poppy can see through the magic that holds the rest of the kingdom in its spell. And having fought against one curse before, she's just the girl to take on another!

Ball gowns, cinders, enchanted glass slippers - and with a little luck, maybe a happily-ever-after, too - all play a role in Jessica Day George's romantic and action-packed story."
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First Lines:

"'Perfect,' the Corley said, lips stretched wide in a smile. She took a shallow pan of molten glass and set it in the air over her head. 'Yes, everything will be perfect this time.'"
Page 1
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Review:

I have said this before, but I'll say it again: I am (and probably forever will be) a huge fan of Jessica Day George. I have read several of her YA novels and officially loved it all. I think all of it is the retold fairy tale - or retold myth. And every single one of them is done beautifully.

Princess of Glass is a companion to the earlier Princess of the Midnight Ball. The first one was the tale of the dancing princesses... this one is Cinderella. This book is told from several perspectives, but the main one is Princess Poppy from the first tale. She is the character that ties the two stories together, but has a whole new adventure and story to tell.

I was hoping for a little bit more action in the end - more of a ka-boom! But it really worked out well, so I wasn't too disappointed. This book is written so beautifully, it makes me wish I lived during that time. Well, sort of. But the whole concept of balls and suitors and dancing and more... it's just really enticing. Wouldn't it be great if that's all we had to worry about?! :)

If you're into historical fiction, I'd recommend this one to you as well. It's not really historical at all, but it has the feel of being set in a time period. It's not exactly accurate or anything (at least to my knowledge), but it's very much worth your time to read.

I've been handing Princess of the Midnight Ball to tons of my teens - and they've loved it, too. So you should all give it a try. I think you can read this one without reading the first one, but I'm recommending them both. Hopefully you won't be too confused if you don't.

Check out the author's website. I'm keeping my eyes glued to it in hopes of another book with these characters!
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Other Blog Reviews:

The Hiding Spot
Pretty Wonderland
The Neverending Shelf
Leilani Loves Books
Readspace
YA Literature Lover
Challenging the Bookworm Blog

kimmie66 by Aaron Alexovich

Title: kimmie66
Author: Aaron Alexovich
ISBN: 9781401203733
Publisher: Minx
Page #: 148
Source: From My Library

Summary:
"Telly Kade is pretty much your typical 23rd century teen. She's got impossible hair, misfit friends, a big sloppy brother... and a pair of VR goggles that lets her live among the vampires - online, at least. She's also got a problem: a suicide note from her best friend, Kimmie66. But if Kimmie is really dead, why is she still being seen all over the 'net? Ghost, prank, or something much, much creepier? To find out, Telly will have to dig through every dark corner of the internet and uncover the truth behind the mysterious life and death of the girl she thought she knew best."
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First Lines:

"Hullo... My name is Telly... I'm 14 years aged... full of bounce... And it is time to PAR-TAY!!
Nah, just kidding. I'm not really a big party-person. Aren't you relieved??"
Pages 6-8
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Review:

After reading this book, I remember why I loved the Minx publications. I have no idea why they stopped... ah well. kimmie66 can only be described as a science fiction graphic mystery. Intriguing, huh?

I've read several graphics lately and none are even close to this one. Not only is it set hundreds of years in the future, most of the story takes place outside of reality. Namely, virtual reality... but not quite how we see virtual reality today. It's more like places to socialize and such instead of just playing games. Anyway, it took me a minute to really grasp what was going on - but the story is so cute and explains it all for you up front. I like that sometimes where the main character is chatting with the reader.

Especially when the main character is a cute little goth girl :). It's all about her going on a search for her friend that she thinks may not have fully committed suicide like the note she left. There's lots of strange characters - as you can imagine in a virtual reality world. This makes for some really great art... though it is very dark at times (and sometimes you're really not sure what's going on).

I think those that are into futuristic stories will really dig the worlds in this book. I'll be handing this book to any of my teens interested in more graphic novels that have that modern, goth twist. I know plenty of people who will love it. I'd say go find this one :).

But all in all, it's a fast and interesting story. Kinda packs a punch in such a small package. See? This is why Minx needs to come back. I've read and loved many of their publications. Anyway, I didn't find a website for the author of this one, so you'll have to settle on other reviews:
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Other Blog Reviews:

Avid Book Reader
The Boston Bibliophile
The Manga Curmudgeon
Comics Worth Reading

Tweet Heart by Elizabeth Rudnick

Title: Tweet Heart (a novel in e-mails, blogs, and tweets)
Author: Elizabeth Rudnick
ISBN: 9781423135289
Publisher: Hyperion
Page #: 264
Source: From My Library

Summary:
"Claire is a #hopelessromantic.

Lottie is determined to set up her BFF with Mr. Perfect.

Will wants his #secretcrush to finally notice him.

Bennett is a man with a plan.

Claire can't believe it when her dream guy starts following her on Twitter. She thought he would never notice her, and suddenly he seems to understand her better than almost anyone.

But the Twitterverse can be a confusing place, especially when friends act differently online than they do in person. Things get even more complicated when Claire realizes she's falling for someone else - the last person she would have expected..."
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First Lines:

"LotsOlove is now following ClaireRBear
Thursday, March 11, 9:02am

LotsOlove@ClaireRBear Welcome to Twitter, Bear! Let the boy-stalking (ahem, following!) begin."
Page 1
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Review:

Can I just say that writing out that little first line was really complicated?!? I can't imagine writing the whole book that way. But more power to the author! It would drive me batty, but you would probably get used to tags and such. To be clear, that's not a complaint about the book! In fact, I don't have any complaints about the book.

This is one of those really fun love stories that takes no time at all to know what's going to happen. That's sooo refreshingly nice. I'm also really partial to books written in text/email/blog/twitter formats. It makes me feel like I'm just reading all of my updates! It's also really very easy to read and get into. I know others may have problems with the format, but I'm a fan.

One thing that I specifically enjoyed about the Twitter format is the icons that are connected with each of the accounts. I had the exact picture of most of the character - which gave me even more of a clue as to what was going on. Uhm, and I have to admit that I may have teared up a little bit at the end of the book. Perhaps because it's just so adorably wonderful :).

I was a bit proud of myself for getting all of the cultural references. There are times that I think I'm getting too old for this stuff, but really I was right there. So... *pats self on back*... good job. This book also made me wish I were more involved in Twitter. I mean, I have an account. More specifically, I have two. But the thing is that I never find the time to update them. Or perhaps I don't have the things to say. Or I have things to say but didn't write them down... or didn't think they were worthy. I guess it's also that I don't have friends that use Twitter... so it almost seems worthless for me.

Anyway, that was a little off topic. I did have fun with this book and I would definitely pick up another book from this author. And check out her website here. So much fun and I plan on recommending it to all of my romance loving teens.
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Other Blog Reviews:

The Book Scout
/-LA FEMME READERS -/
Ten Cent Notes
One More Page
A Good Addiction
Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf

Library Chatter (2)

I know my last "Library Chatter" was craft-related, but summer time is really craft-heavy... so I've got another one to share with you. We have done this program once before and both times it has been a lot of fun - for the kids and for us.

Bubble Wrap Fashion Show

Grades 7-12 (but younger kids could do it, too)

This summer we decided to repeat one of our previous programs because it was so successful. Bubble Wrap Fashion is the next big thing, I can just feel it :).

The Library provided the bubble wrap (we used the large rolls from office supply stores - comes in various sizes) and colorful duct tape (which I got from Michael's). It's an expensive program, but we got some funding from Teen Read Week stuff last year and summer reading grants this year. So, expensive, but it's pretty worth it.

We just let the kids go at it. We said they had to create something to wear - we didn't care what that was. They were required to wear something under it... don't wanna get sued or whatever. We had them sign up in teams because creating something on yourself is really difficult. For those solos, we had volunteers on standby to give them help.

We took pictures of the whole thing, but my release forms didn't cover my blog, so they're either headless or their backs. Sorry about that. :). But here are some of the designs they came up with:

We did give away prizes and awards for participating. They did such a great job and we were blown away with their creativity.

If you were making a bubble wrap outfit, what would you make??