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Recommended for Teens

Ink

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Ink by Alice Broadway
Format: Book, Audiobook
Who it’s for: Teens, Adults

Imagine a world where your life story is tattooed on your skin. Leora lives in such a world. In Saintstone, where she lives, all the citizens mark their bodies with their accomplishments. They are marked even at young age. Your name, your occupation, your family tree, your medical history, any great achievement you’ve earned, any crimes you’ve committed, all in ink for the world to see. No one in Saintstone has secrets. Or so Leora thinks. When her father dies, his skin is flayed and turned into a book, as is tradition. His book will be “read” at a “weighing of the soul” ceremony, where it will be determined whether he has lived a life worth remembering, and his book will be returned to his family, to be kept on a shelf with the rest of their ancestors, or he will be forgotten, and his book will be burned. Leora is confident her father was a good man, but there’s a terrible rumor going around that his book has been edited, and that he, and whoever altered his life story, committed a horrible crime, possibly colluding with the “blanks”—people outside of Saintstone who do not tattoo their bodies, who’s life stories are hidden from view. Ink by Alice Broadway, and its sequels Spark and Scar, are original and intriguing stories about family, friendship, rebellion, and redemption. Find Ink in our catalog.

A Winter’s Promise

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Series Title: The Mirror Visitor by Christelle Dabos
First Book: A Winter’s Promise
Who it’s for: Teens, Adults

Meet Ophelia. She’s petite with voluminous, brown curly hair and a mouse of a voice. When she fumbles and drops her rectangular glasses, which she is apt to do, the world becomes one big blur.  She wears gloves. If not, she would be able to read the history of every item and person that she touches. She can also pass through mirrors from one room to another. She wears a tri-colored scarf that is more a pet than an accessory. It wraps itself around her leg or her neck and flaps like a cat’s tail. She’s from the land of Anima.

Ophelia is engaged to Thorn who is exceedingly tall, skinny, and blonde with two facial scars and a severe mien. Thorn is from the land of Pole. Like Ophelia, he’s not thrilled about their arranged marriage, but what else can they do? Ophelia would be banished if she rejects this marriage contract. And Thorn would never overcome the infamy of his illegitimate birth. When Thorn and Ophelia marry, they will each gain some of each other’s abilities. From the Dragon clan, Thorn is able to claw and squeeze the air out of people telepathically. He is a Chronicler too, able to remember everything from birth. He needs Ophelia’s ability to read objects to interpret the ancient book of Farouk, the spirit god of Pole. Unfortunately, Pole is rife with cut-throat clans such as the Mirages, Nihilists, and the Web who will stop at nothing to court the favor of Farouk. Thorn wants to protect Ophelia. And Ophelia wants to help Thorn. What will happen next??

If  you are drawn to fantasy tales with unique characters and a fast-paced plot, then the Mirror Visitor series is for you!

House of Salt and Sorrows

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 House of Salt and SorrowsHouse of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig
Publication Date: August 6, 2019
Format: Book
Who it’s for:  Teens, Adults

House of Salt and Sorrows is a retelling of the German fairy tale, The Twelve Dancing Princesses with a little bit of influence from Edgar Allan Poe’s poem, Annabell Lee.  Annaleigh is one of twelve sisters in the Thaumas family living in a kingdom by the sea.  One by one her sisters tragically die.  Each death appears to be accidental but the kingdom starts to whisper that the family is cursed.  Suddenly, Annaleigh is one of seven remaining sisters and she is second in line to inherit the kingdom.

Annaleigh’s stepmother is determined they are no longer going to mourn and they must celebrate that she is pregnant with a boy.  They decide to have a ball and new dancing shoes are ordered for the girls.  The ball is a failure as no one wants to dance with the “cursed” sisters.  Disappointed and lonely they find a doorway to other kingdoms where they can dance the night away with people that don’t know who they are.  After attending a few of these magical balls, Annaleigh starts to have disturbing visions and begins to question if her sisters’ deaths were accidental or were they murder.

Meanwhile, Annaleigh meets a mysterious stranger on the docks who seems to have a romantic interest in her.  And, her childhood friend, Fisher, returns to attend the ball.  Fisher and Annaleigh have always just been friends, but it seems that he might want more than just friendship.  However, Annaleigh needs to solve the mystery surrounding her sisters’ deaths and figure out why she is having ghostly visions before she can decide on her romantic future.

This a great Gothic tale with lots of creepy atmosphere.  If you are familiar with Poe’s poem and a fan of fairy tale retellings, you will like this one.  Another one of my favorite fairy tale retellings also happens to be based on The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier.

Find House of Salt and Sorrows in the catalog.

Shazam!

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Watch the Movie, Read the Book!
Movie: Shazam!  Starring: Zachary Levi
Book: Shazam! (New 52) by Geoff Johns

The movie was marketed as “Big meets superheroes.”  I think that is a perfect summary of the movie.

“The movie follows Billy Batson, a troubled 14-year-old boy living in foster homes in Philadelphia. After running away for the 23rd time, Billy moves into a foster home with the Vazquez family and their 5 foster kids. One day Billy Batson gets on a subway car and he finds himself transported to a different realm. An ancient wizard gives him the power to turn into an adult superhero by uttering the word Shazam! Billy and his new foster brother, Freddy Freeman, have lots of fun learning how to use his superhero powers.” – New Line Cinema

“Shazam has been in publication at DC Comics 40+ years. The movie is based very heavily upon the 2012 New 52 era reboot of Shazam! Writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank reimagined the character’s entire world. There are also some big differences between the movie and the book. Much of the harder edge in The New 52 story is gone and instead the zany ridiculousness of the character’s Golden Age is present.” – ScreenRant.com

I decided to watch the movie because of the trailers, Zachary Levi, and good reviews from friends who had seen it. I was not disappointed. I really, really, hope they make a sequel. Shazam! was as advertised – a fun superhero movie that the whole family can enjoy. As in any superhero origin movie there was a lot of explaining, things happening in the past, characters introduced with no real depth (saving it for the sequel!), and a training montage. I LOVE montages. The one for Shazam explored his powers as a superhero and what a teenage boy would do if he could turn into an adult at will. Almost the whole family can enjoy this light fare. Although the villain is not that scary, he does kill people. In addition, the 7 deadly sins are represented in the flesh as demons. They are vicious and scary looking. Depending on the child, I would recommend this for ages 10+.

As with every superhero of DC comics, there are many Shazam books – from the old comics to present day, the children’s Billy Batson and the magic of Shazam! series, and kid’s early reader books. I only read the graphic novel the movie is based on (via hoopla because the book was checked out!) . (I prefer to read non-superhero graphic novels but really enjoy movies based off of superhero comics.)

The graphic novel was a quick read.  As stated before, there are major difference in the comic and the movie but also a lot of the same story. Differences like there are two villains in the comics but only one in the movie and the 7 deadly sins are imprisoned in people not statues. The comic cleared up some questions that movie reviewers pointed out. For example – why Billy Batson is chosen and why the villain needed Shazam’s power. Depending on the child, I would recommend the comic to ages 7+. I think the killing and 7 deadly sins are less scary visually than in the movie.

The experience on my iPad in the hoopla app was different but nice.  Last time I read a comic as an eBook it was on my 1rst generation Kindle Fire (which I miss greatly.). The viewing experience on hoopla is similar. It shows you one panel at a time or zooms into different parts of a larger panel/page of the comic like my Fire did. Although it does not show you the full page first and then the separate panel like my Fire. The hoopla app may have that capability but I did not search for it. The best parts about reading a comic as eBook is you always read the panels in the correct order, the words are bigger, and you can zoom. I am still requesting the graphic novel in hardback so I can peruse the pics in the regular way.

I hope you enjoy Shazam! in all its formats. Click to see all the Shazam!’s the library offers.

 

Dungeons and Dragons

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Image result for dungeons and dragonsDungeons and Dragons by Wizards of the Coast, (Created by Gary Gygax)
Format: Nonfiction
Who it’s for: Everyone

This is less of a review of a book as it is a review of a resource. The Player’s Handbook, along with the Dungeon Master’s Guide and the Monster Manual, make up the core books needed to play the popular tabletop game Dungeons and Dragons. D&D has recently been popularized by live series such as Critical Role and the Adventure Zone, featuring live games and intriguing personalities, and both of these have spawned graphic novels that we happen to carry. So what do you need to play outside of these core books? Some dice, a few friends (anywhere from 2 to 5 is recommended,) and a bit of creativity. You can also purchase maps, figurines, and other knick-knacks to spice the game up, in fact we have a 3D printer waiting to be used if you want to make some of your own!

Ever wanted to write your own story? You can! Featuring your friends as the main characters you can craft an adventure of any kind. You can be a warrior with a haunted past, a wizard seeking the lore of a long vanished civilization, a bard who has a penchant for finding trouble, or anything that you can possibly imagine. You can solve a murder, fight a dragon, or save the kingdom from the plots of an evil noble. Any story you can think of you can play! The library gives you a chance to try out something you may have only heard about before, a game that has spawned hundreds of novels, shows, and more. Celebrities from Vin Diesel and Joe Magnellio to Stephen Colbert and the Big Show are all avid fans of the game. I myself have run a number of games and continue to play it weekly. It’s been a passion of mine and has lead me to making a number of friends I’d have never met without it. We also have a number of authors with series influenced by their adventures or even officially affiliated, such as R.A Salvatore, Junot Diaz, and George R.R Martin (have you heard of Game of Thrones?) The game turned cultural phenomenon has been around for over 40 years now, and is now sitting on a shelf near you!

The Sleeper and the Spindle

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The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman, Illustrated by Chris Riddell
Format: Book
Who its for: Teens

A thrillingly reimagined fairy tale from the truly magical combination of author Neil Gaiman and illustrator Chris Riddell – weaving together a sort-of Snow White and an almost Sleeping Beauty with a thread of dark magic, which will hold readers spellbound from start to finish.

The Sleeper and the Spindle is a up-to-date outlook on female heroism smooshed into the plot of a classic princess double-feature, though you won’t find a white knight or Prince Charming in this fairy tale.  Gaiman tells the story of warrior queen who travels to a faraway land armed with a sword and three dwarfs, on a mission to rid the people of a curse and save the princess locked in a tower.   This retelling is just as dark, magical, and twisted as this reader wanted it to be.  Riddell’s stunning black, white, and gold illustrations alone are worth a gander.

My only complaint – it’s too short.  Find it in the catalog.