Visit me at my new blog, Mel's Books and Info for my latest reviews and information.  Thanks for dropping by!

In Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver, Grace and Sam found each other.  Now, in Linger, they must fight to be together. For Grace, this means defying her parents and keeping a very dangerous secret about her own well-being. For Sam, this means grappling with his werewolf past . . . and figuring out a way to survive into the future. Add into the mix a new wolf named Cole, whose own past has the potential to destroy the whole pack.  And Isabelle, who already lost her brother to the wolves . . . and is nonetheless drawn to Cole.

At turns harrowing and euphoric, Linger is a spellbinding love story that explores both sides of love -- the light and the dark, the warm and the cold -- in a way you will never forget.

Comes out in stores everywhere July 20th. Pre-order here.

Enter to win an advanced review copies of LINGER, Sisters Red, The Dead-Tossed Waves, and The Replacement on Maggie's blog.

Sir Thursday by Garth Nix

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
This series does get better as you go on, and seemingly deeper too. You have to wonder about the Will's motivations and the motivations of other characters surrounding Arthur. You are not sure if they have his best interest at heart. So many of the denizens would use him for their own purposes. I like that Leaf had a bigger role, and that the chapters alternated the perspectives between her and Arthur. Starting Lady Friday today!

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I have been reading more of the Hunger Games and am finding it addictive in a disturbing kind of way. It is like watching a train wreck. I keep asking myself why the citizens wouldn't try to change what was going on--it is so barbaric, but on the other hand that author does a good job of making you understand why they don't. The citizens of Central City, living their privileged lives, are comfortable and brainwashed, while the citizens of the districts are so beaten down they don't have any fight left. I can't wait to find out how it ends.

I need to finish it, but this one might be a possibility for the school visit too. It is new and interesting. It might appeal to fans of series like Uglies and some of the others. I will definitely have to keep it in mind.

Where does time go? I can't seem to find enough time for anything lately. Sometimes I think I would rather sleep than eat--I can't remember my last goodnight's sleep. I guess that is the price of having a baby.

On to books. I am looking for a good book to read an excerpt from for one of the local schools reading day. Not sure what I would choose, but I am leaning towards either Alcatraz or Lightning Thief. Both are action packed and would hold reader's attention. I could also try Skulduggery Pleasant, but I am not sure what passage I would read there.

I haven't had time to read anything since I finished this weekend. I will keep trying though.

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicky Myron

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
Dewey is a book that is about more than a library that has a cat. It is about a community that has a library. It shows us the effect a library can have on a community, and how they can help a community through tough times. It demonstrates that helping one person at a time, touching one life can touch a whole community. This book shows us how a library can be appreciated and valued and be a center for the community. Dewey's greatest accomplishment is demonstrating how a library can change and strengthen a community. For the first HCR book, we looked for something that would relate to life in Kokomo, a farming community. Here you have that, a farming community, changing, facing tough times as businesses come and go, making the best of its situation, and its library. At the core it is a book about relationships; relationships between a cat and a community, a library and a community, a staff and a library, a parent and a child, and any other kind of family. Too bad this wasn't around when we chose our first HCR book.

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I am still in the process of learning what I can about blogging. I am trying to incorportate my Goodreads.com info into my blog (with some success). Some items haven't been turning out the way I expected, but I am still learning.

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Okay this one is fun for its sarcastic nature. I plays with the librarian stereotype (horn rimmed glasses and buns included). I don't know how interesting it would be to non-librarians because I find myself getting tired of the main character's attitude and the way the narrator constantly breaks into the story. It is a fun read. Recommend it to teens who like adventure stories and sarcasm. Some violence. First in possible series.

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I have recently joined Goodreads.com based on the recommendation of one of my coworkers. I noticed that when I post a review it offers me a chance to add the review to my blog, so here is my first attempt. I hope you enjoy!


Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
We have had a ton of requests for Vampire fiction of any sort lately. I am looking for new ones to recommend and so I am attempting to read more vamp fiction.

I have to say that I liked this one--it was funny and a little different. I must say the one problem I had was with a vampire named Bill--it just doesn't seem like a very vampirish name. That aside, it was a fun book to read. I just wish I could see the HBO series based on the book--it would be interesting to see how they portray the book.

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Just returned fromt the CYPD conference and did learn a few thing--okay maybe learn is the wrong word. I got some new ideas. Some ideas for programming and ideas for maybe learing more about blogging and other web 2.0 technologies. I will have to see about using them--I am not as tech savvy as I would like to be and admit when it comes to these that I have a lot to learn. Guess it is time to start.