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Grimm, Most Wanted
Most Wanted: November 2012
06.11.12 | Permalink | Comment?

Here are the top 10 requested and borrowed young adult items at Wellington City Libraries. Numbers 2 to 10, although they’ve ganged up in pairs, have still got a ways to go to topple Robert Muchamore, spy king, from his perch.

1. Guardian Angel, Robert Muchamore [no change]
2. Reached, Ally Condy (on order) [up 3]
2. Finale, Becca Fitzpatrick (on order) [up 5]
4. 1D: One Direction: Forever Young [up 2]
4. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins [down 1]
6. The Rise of Nine, Pitacus Lore [down 2]
6. Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins [up 1]
8. One Shot Kill, Robert Muchamore [new]
8. Clockwork Princess, Cassandra Clare [new]
10. Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins [down 8]
Books, Grimm, Most Wanted
Most Wanted: October 2012
04.10.12 | Permalink | Comment?

Here are the top 10 requested and borrowed young adult items at Wellington City Libraries! You can also keep an eye on interesting upcoming releases here.

1. Guardian Angel, Robert Muchamore [no change]
2. Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins [no change]
3. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins [no change]
4. The Rise of Nine, Pitacus Lore [no change]
5. Reached, Ally Condy (on order) [up 2]
6. 1D: One Direction: Forever Young [up 4]
7. Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins [down 2]
8. Finale, Becca Fitzpatrick (on order) [down 1]
9. City of Lost Souls, Cassandra Clare [down 3]
10. Days of Blood and Starlight, Laini Taylor (on order) [new]
Books, Grimm, Most Wanted
Most Wanted: September 2012
04.09.12 | Permalink | Comment?

There is a new most-wanted book this month: Robert Muchamore’s CHERUB books are always über popular, and now there’s CHERUB series 2! Other new books to watch out for include The Rise of Nine, the next instalment in the Lorien Legacies sci fi series, and Finale, which promises to be the end to the Hush, Hush series by Becca Fitzpatrick. Series are the winners!

1. Guardian Angel, Robert Muchamore [new]
2. Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins [no change]
3. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins [down 2]
4. The Rise of Nine, Pitacus Lore [new]
5. Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins [down 2]
6. City of Lost Souls, Cassandra Clare [down 2]
7. Reached, Ally Condy (on order) [up 1]
7. Finale, Becca Fitzpatrick (on order) [new]
9. Insurgent, Veronica Roth [down 3]
10. 1D: One Direction: Forever Young [down 1]
Books, Grimm, New
New Books
24.08.12 | Permalink | Comment?

More, as promised!

POD, Stephen Wallenfels (297 pages) – a POD is a sort of alien flying thing that destroys (”zaps” says the back cover, a little playfully) people who venture out of their houses. Josh and his father are trapped in their house, slowly running out of food. Megs is – a little more tenuously – trapped in a multi storey car park, with “dangerous security staff” lurking in the hotel next door. What’s more dangerous? The PODs, or the humans left?

First sentence: The screeching wakes me.

Dust Girl, Sarah Zettel (292 pages) – the first of the American Fairy trilogy. It’s 1935 and dust storms are tormenting Kansas. This is bad for Callie, whose mother insists on staying in Slow Run, waiting for Callie’s father (who is never coming back). When Callie’s mother also disappears in a violent storm, Callie befriends Jack, and they hitch rides on trains (hobo-style) to California. But! Callie is about to learn that the supernatural world is alive and well, and is looking for her (and indeed, she might be one of them).

First sentence: Once upon a time, I was a girl called Callie.

Reunited, Hilary Westman Graham (325 pages) – Alice, Summer and Tiernan used to be best friends, and best fans of the group Level3. But the band split up, and so did they. A few years later, at the end of high school, Level3 announces a one-time-only reunion concert. So Alice, Summer and Tiernan go on a road trip together to the concert, but will they be able to reestablish their friendship?

First sentence: “Is the blindfold really necessary?” Alice asked her parents.

Welcome, Caller, This is Chloe, Shelley Coriell (299 pages) – Chloe is super popular at school, until her best friend suddenly goes cold on her and turns her into a social outcast. So Chloe joins the school radio station - which is so not cool, but necessary - where she becomes the host of a call-in show, with mixed (and possibly romantic?) results.

First sentence: I loved being a burrito.

This is so not happening, Kieran Scott (315 pages) – This is the conclusion to the trilogy that began with She’s So Dead to Us and continued with He’s So Not Worth It. Ally and Jake being their senior year together together, but a bit shakily. Then life gets complicated and seems to be pulling them apart: as high school ends will they end too, or stick together?

First sentence: “Chloe’s pregnant?” Jake blurted, pushing himself up off the ground.

Bullet Boys, Ally Kennen (320 pages) – “Alex, Levi and Max follow the young soldiers from the local army camp on the moor. But harmless rivalry develops into something far more incendiary. When the boys discover a cache of buried weapons near the training grounds, deadly forces are brought into play.” (catalogue)

First sentence: Alex never killed hares.

A Breath of Eyre, Eve Marie Mont (342 pages) – Emma lives partly in the real world and partly in the imaginary world of the books she reads and the stories she makes up in her head. When reading an old copy of Jane Eyre during a lightning storm, Emma suddenly finds herself catapulted into Jane’s shoes: and the brooding gaze of Mr Rochester… (You could try it with one of our not-so-old copies of Jane Eyre.)

First sentence: There was no possibility of taking a swim that day.
Books, Grimm, Most Wanted
Most Wanted: August 2012
01.08.12 | Permalink | Comment?

This month’s most wanted titles include the usual suspects, and life as One Direction is fascinating!

New to the most wanted list is Between the Lines, by new mother and daughter writing partnership Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer.

1. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins [no change]
2. Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins [no change]
3. Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins [no change]
4. City of Lost Souls, Cassandra Clare [no change]
5. Rapture, Lauren Kate (on order) [up 1]
6. Insurgent, Veronica Roth [down 1]
7. Dare to Dream: Life as One Direction [new]
8. Reached, Ally Condy (on order) [no change]
9. 1D: One Direction: Forever Young [up 1]
10. Between the Lines, Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer [new]
Miss Moneypenny, Music
K-Pop
19.07.12 | Permalink | 2 Comments

Here are some songs by a few Korean bands. Korean pop is called K-pop! (Also Japanese pop is called J-pop!) It is marked by catchy songs, incredible dancing, and hyper-fashion.

Do you like it? Should the library buy some of their CDs for the teen section? Thanks for your comments below (or on our Facebook page)!

This first group is Super Junior, and the song is called Sexy, Free, and Single. It was only released a week or so ago, so is very new and fresh. Super Junior has about nine or ten members! (I can’t count higher than six.) If you like it you will probably love their older song, Mr. Simple.

Aaand the next track is by SHINee. It is called Lucifer and you know what, it has the best dancing ever. Prove me wrong! It’s a couple of years old, though, but they’ve a newer song, Sherlock, which is also comes highly recommended (by me and some other people).

Another new song is No Mercy, by B.A.P. Click to watch! They are also a (large) boyband with great hair. I don’t know if I like this song as much as the others. Thoughts?

Finally! Here’s AAA’s No Cry No More. It is J-pop, okay.

So don’t forget to comment here or on our Facebook if you have any suggestions.
Grimm, Most Wanted
Most Wanted: July 2012
06.07.12 | Permalink | Comment?

This month sees not much change in the most requested items: the queue for The Hunger Games is now only about three months long (!), and lots of people are keen to read all about One Direction (see also Dare to Dream).

1. The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins [no change]
2. Catching Fire, Suzanne Collins [no change]
3. Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins [no change]
4. City of Lost Souls, Cassandra Clare [no change]
5. Insurgent, Veronica Roth [no change]
6. Rapture, Lauren Kate (on order) [up 1]
7. Fear, Michael Grant [down 1]
8. Reached, Ally Condy (on order) [up 1]
9. Inheritance, Christopher Paolini [up 1]
10. 1D: One Direction: Forever Young [new]
Books, Grimm, New
New Books
11.05.12 | Permalink | Comment?

This week’s selection is brought to you by heart shaped things, sunglasses, and a whole lot of love.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Benjamin Alire Saenz (359 pages) – Dante and Ari are opposites (the cover tells me in detail), so opposite that in fact they probably shouldn’t attract, but they do! “In breathtaking prose, American Book Award winner Benjamin Alires Saenz captures those moments that make a boy a man as he explores loyalty and trust, friendship and love” (cover!).

First sentence: One summer night I fell asleep, hoping the world would be different when I woke.

Love? Maybe, Heather Hepler (267 pages) – a Valentine’s Day story! Piper’s birthday is Valentine’s Day, which may be one of the reasons why she’s a bit cynical about the whole thing. But when her one best friend suffers a broken heart two weeks before the BIG DAY, she agrees to get involved in a plot to restore said heart, even if it means going on a date herself. All of a sudden everything is warm and fuzzy for Piper: her heart shaped lollies are a hit (see cover), she has a popular boyfriend, and someone’s leaving secret gifts in her locker.

First sentence: Claire tells me it’s romantic that my birthday is on Valentine’s Day, but then she thinks it’s romantic when Stuart remembers to say excuse me after he burps.

The Darlings in Love, Melissa Kantor (311 pages) – The Darlings are three best friends, Victoria, Natalya and Jane (as seen in The Darlings are Forever), and they fall in love! This could lead to happiness, or heartbreak, or both! (Preferrably in reverse order.)

First sentence: Natalya pulled her dark blue winter jacket more tightly around her, shivering in the sharp January wind as she waited for the light to change.

The Disenchantments, Nina LaCour (307 pages) – Colby and Bev are in a band – The Disenchantments – and the plan is to graduate and tour Europe. But Bev disenchants The Disenchantments when she announces she’s ditching them to go off on her own travels. So plans must change, and the band swaps Europe for the Pacific Northwest, and the future becomes much less certain.

First sentence: Bev says when she’s onstage she feels the world holding its breath for her.

Love & Haight, Susan Carlton (176 pages) – In 1971 Chloe and MJ have a plan to travel to San Francisco to spend the Christmas/New Year break with Chloe’s hippy aunt. Chloe has a second plan, involving her secret, unwanted pregnancy. Reviewers say this book is an interesting historical account of 1970s San Francisco, hippy culture, and some of the serious social issues of the time.

First sentences: The view was wrong. That’s what Chloe kept thinking.

Glimmer, Phoebe Kitandis (347 pages) – Oo. Marshal and Elyse wake up one day “tangled in each other’s arms” but also with amnesia. They have no idea how they came to be in Summer Falls, a resort town, but they do know that something’s amiss: the town’s people are “happy zombies” with no memory of unpleasant things, even though there are indeed unpleasant things in Summer Falls…

First sentence: I come to life with a gasp in the darkness.

The Story of Us, Deb Caletti (389 pages) – “After jilting two previous fiances, Cricket’s mother is finally marrying the right man, but as wedding attendees arrive for a week of festivities, complications arise for Cricket involving her own love life, her beloved dog Jupiter, and her mother’s reluctance to marry.” (catalogue)

First sentence: I found out something about myself as all those boxes piled up: I hated change.

Dragonswood, Janet Lee Carey (403 pages) – When the king dies, Wilde Island is thrown into turmoil as the royal witch hunter goes on, well, a witch-hunting rampage, determined to root out an young women with “fire in their hearts and sparks in their soul”. This is unfortunate for Tess, who wants the things in life that fire and sparks give (i.e. not just a husband and house). She’s accused of witchery and forced to run to Dragonswood, to take refuge with an “enigmatic huntsman”, who sounds interesting.

First sentences: I am seven years old. My father takes me to a witch burning.

The Mephisto Covenant, Trinity Faegen (434 pages) – “Jax, a son of Hell, and Sasha, a descendent of Eve, unexpectedly find love, but Sasha must sacrifice the purity of her soul to save him while he struggles to keep her safe from his brother Eryx, whose mission is to take over Hell and abolish humanity’s free will.” (catalogue)

First sentence: “Your father’s ring is gone! That slime, Alex, took it – I know he did.”

Bewitching, Alex Flinn (338 pages) – in which we read about Kendra, who was responsible for the Beast becoming Beastly in Beastly. Kendra is an immortal, who finds that her interfering in human life sometimes makes problems worse rather than better. So, when she comes across Emma, a modern-day plain step-sister, can she stop herself from getting involved?

First sentence: If you read fairy tales, and who doesn’t, you might believe there are witches all over the place – witches baking children into gingerbread, making princesses sleep hundreds of years, even turning normal teenage boys into hideous beasts to teach them a lesson.
Music, Synthesiser Patel
MCA: A memoriam in video
10.05.12 | Permalink | Comment?

I’d like to take a quick break from all the New Zealand Music Month posting to refect on the sad news this week that rapper Adam “MCA” Yauch of the Beastie Boys passed away aged just 47.

In a career spanning almost 30 years The Beastie Boys had one of the most distinctive, energetic and creative voices in popular music. They released 8 studio albums, all of which are available on our catalogue, along with several compilations and EPs. A good starting point is the excellent, two disc best of The sounds of science (complete with exhaustive and hilarious liner notes) and last year’s Hot sauce committee. part two.

Although the albums are all great, the best (in my opinion) document of their work are the music videos, often directed by MCA under the pseudonym Nathaniel Hornblower. So what better way to celebrate Yauch’s life than a video retrospective …

Shadrach (1989)

So What Cha Want (1992)

Intergalactic (1998)

Don’t play no game that I can’t win (2011)

Great artist, huge loss.
Music, NZ Music Month, Raewyn
New Zealand Music we like: Raewyn
07.05.12 | Permalink | Comment?

Little stranger, by Annah Mac

“We saw Annah in Taupo opening for The Little River Band and The Doobie Brothers. She and her band were great and really got people in the mood for the rest of the day. I particularly like ‘Girl in stilettos (Pohutukawa trees)’. This has a fun beat and when you see the guy live, playing it on the keyboard, he is really funny. They are all so young and he looks about 15!”

~ Raewyn

Annah Mac’s Facebook page is here.