Reading as a teen = better job

A study involving 17,000 people shows that those who read books as teens get better jobs as adults.

Last book title in Hunger Games trilogy announced

The title of the last book in the series by Suzanne Collins, following The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, will be Mockingjay. It is due to be released on August 24, 2010, by Scholastic.

The Hunger Games wins the Battle!

I am very happy about this, so I thought I would share.

If you haven't read The Hunger Games yet, you should. You can get it here at the library.

Battle of the (Kids') Books update

It's down to two:The Hunger Games vs. The astonishing life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the nation, Volume II: The kingdom on the waves. The final Battle of the (Kids') Books judge is Lois Lowry and she will have her decision posted next week. Oh, the tension!

My pick, Graceling (which is on order for the library), was eliminated a while back, but my #2 pick was The Hunger Games so here's hoping it wins! These girls are hoping so too.

Fantastic Hunger Games video

Two girls made a music video (to the tune of a High School Musical 3 song) about how The Hunger Games should win the Battle of the (Kids') Books. Click on the image to watch it on the School Library Journal website.

Battle of the (Kids') Books

School Library Journal has begun a Battle of the (Kids') Books, with books set head-to-head for elimination. (You can look at the schedule here.) Judges are given two books and must decide which one comes out on top, and the judges are a mix of authors ranging from Anne Brashares to Chris Crutcher. They have a tough job, especially given the quality of the books chosen for the tournament.

Don't let the word "kids" in the tournament title scare you off - most of these books are for teens, not children.

The winner will be chosen in early May and I'm pulling for Graceling, which I tore through a couple of months ago and is now on order for the library. The Hunger Games (which hasn't been on the shelf since I got it in and handed it to someone I knew would love it, and she's been busy ever since getting her friends reading it) would be nice too.

Breaking Dawn cover

The cover for Breaking Dawn, the fourth book in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer, has just been released.

I'm not sure I like it - it has a computer-generated/artificial look to it that the previous books didn't have with the apple, flower and ribbon on the covers. I can't really put my finger on exactly what I dislike about it, though. Perhaps it just reminds me too much of Through the Looking Glass. :)

**You can read the first chapter of Breaking Dawn online.

Author Arthur C. Clarke has died

Prolific science-fiction author Arthur C. Clarke died earlier today at his home in Sri Lanka, at the age of 90. He was most famous for his novel 2001: A Space Odyssey which he wrote with Stanley Kubrick as the basis for the iconic film and which was based on one of Clarke's earlier short stories.

I spent most of my high school years reading Arthur C. Clarke's books, including the Odyssey books and (my favourites) his Rama books. He was my favourite author for a few years and I ended up reading 15 of his books - all the ones they had in the local public library. I can still remember the last sentence of his short story The Nine Billion Names of God even now, about 12 years after I read it.

Rest in peace, Sir Arthur.

Breaking Dawn to be released in summer

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer, the fourth book in her Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse series, will be released just after midnight on August 2nd, 2008. The cover art will not be released until the end of May. Read more at Stephenie Meyer's website.

Third book in Eragon series announced

It was recently anounced that Brisingr (meaning "fire") will be released on September 20th, 2008, following the publication of Eragon in 2003 and Eldest in 2005. All are written by Christopher Paolini, who was only 15 when he wrote the first draft of Eragon.

You can read more about the three books at http://www.alagaesia.com/.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard purchased by Amazon

Amazon.com has purchased Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling's hand-written and illustrated (by Rowling herself) book entitled The Tales of Beedle the Bard. It was sold for charity at Sotheby's in London and Amazon paid (wait for it...) over $4 million for it!

Luckily for those of us who couldn't afford to pay millions of dollars for this one-of-a-kind book ("seven-of-a-kind" if you want to be technical about it), Amazon has posted pictures, a video, and a review of one of the five "wizarding fairy tales" in the book HERE.

Win tickets to see JK Rowling in Toronto

From the Nova Scotia Library Association website:

JK Rowling Contest

October is Canadian Library Month! The Nova Scotia Library Association in partnership with Nova Scotia Public Libraries is celebrating Canadian Library Month with a wonderful opportunity for Nova Scotians.

Enter to win one of two prize packages to see JK Rowling in Toronto on October 23, 2007 at 10:00 am. She is coming to read from "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", take questions from her fans and sign copies of the book. This will be the only Canadian stop of her tour.

Attention: The contest will close at midnight on October 10th with the 2 winners being randomly drawn on October 12th and announced on the NSLA website by October 15th.

To enter each candidate must have a public library card. Get yours today!

Each prize package includes:
- A pair of tickets to the event, one for a chaperone and one for a young person between the ages of 9 and 15 years old at the time of the event.
- Airfare from Halifax to Toronto
- $ 300.00 spending money

As well, all those attending the event will receive a copy of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows".

Rules are:
1. The child who accompanies the adult must be between the age of nine (9) and fifteen (15) years old at the time of the event.
2. Winners must be residents of Nova Scotia.
3. Under no circumstances may tickets be traded, sold, bartered or exchanged; Tickets are non-transferable.
4. All tickets are General Admission and organizers reserve the right to reserve seats for targeted groups.
5. Not open to Regional Library staff or their children, or members of the NSLA Board of Directors.
6. Only one entry per young person will be accepted.

The Nova Scotia Library Association and its partners cannot be held responsible or liable for any expenses incurred if for any reason the event is cancelled, postponed or changed.

To enter each candidate must have a public library card. Get yours today!


CLICK HERE to enter the contest (you need a public library card - have it ready!).

Apparently, books really can save lives!

It so happens that Michael Auberry, a 12-year-old Boy Scout who was missing in the North Carolina wilderness for 4 days last week, read the book Hatchet by Gary Paulsen a few years ago, which his father believes helped him to survive.

Auberry said he took comfort that his son spent weeks a few years ago reading
the novel "Hatchet" by Gary Paulsen, a survival adventure story about a boy
stranded alone on a Canadian island after a plane crash.

"I think he's got some of that book on his mind," Auberry said. The book is required reading for students in Michael's school district.

Read the CNN news article.