Poetry Slam & More

Can’t get enough poetry? Come to the library’s Teen Poetry Slam on Tuesday, April 28 at 6:30 PM. Show off your talent by performing an original work – read a poem, sing or rap a song, or bring and play an instrument. Then, listen to pieces written by your peers.

Unlike a traditional slam, this is not a competition. Poets of all skill levels, from amateur to professional, are welcome! This free slam is open to young adults, ages 12-18, and no audition or registration is required.

Not sure how to write a poem for the slam? Try this link for poetry writing tips: http://www.poetrymagic.co.uk/approaches.html

Think poems are boring? The links below may change your mind. In honor of National Poetry Month, I’ve picked out two websites that make poetry addictive!

Poetry 180: A Poem a Day for American High School Students
http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/p180-list.html
Looking for a distraction from your homework? On this website, there’s a whole school year’s worth of distractions! When essays, math problems, and studying get to be too much, take a poem break. There’s one poem for every school day minus the first and last day of school. And these aren’t stereotypical poems about flowers and rocks – works like “The Death of Santa Claus” and “Hate Poem” are pieces that even the most reluctant poetry readers will actually want to read.

Favorite Poem Project
http://www.favoritepoem.org/videos.html
It’s like the poetry version of reality TV! Watch videos of Americans of all ages reciting their favorite poems and explaining how those poems connect to their own lives.

~Marissa

Looking for spring vacation fun?

Look no further! Watch a free movie at the library! On Tuesday, April 14 at 6 PM, teens, ages 13-18, can watch Hancock on the big screen in the meeting room for FREE. In this film, Will Smith stars as John Hancock, a superhero who is more like an antihero – people hate him because he causes destruction whenever he saves lives.

Only teens who are at least 13 years old will be admitted to this PG-13 movie. Free snacks will be served. No registration is required.

~ Marissa

Free Viewing of Juno for Teens!

Why spend $9 on a ticket at a movie theater when you could see a movie on the big screen for FREE?

On Tuesday, March 10 at 6 PM, the library will show Juno to young adults ages 13-18 onthe big screen in the meeting room. What will happen when Juno, a quirky high school student, discovers that she is pregnant with her best friend’s baby? Find out in this movie starring Ellen Page and Michael Cera.

Because this comedy/drama is rated PG-13, no one under the age of 13 will be admitted. No registration is required for this free program. Snacks will be served.

~Marissa

Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black

A brave girl with special talents. A handsome supernatural hero. A risky plan to stop brutal murderers with magical powers. Does this sound familiar?

In many ways, Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black is reminiscent of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series. In both, there’s magic, danger, and romance, and the basic components of the stories are similar. However, in Tithe, the heroine has more serious problems than Bella’s clumsiness, and the hero, with his mysterious allegiances, is far more complex than Edward.

In this novel, sixteen-year-old Kaye’s life is not easy. She has never lived in the same place for long, and since her family is often short on cash, she had to drop out of high school in order to work at a Chinese restaurant. Her mom is a struggling rocker whose latest boyfriend tries to murder her. And now, to top it all off, Kaye’s just discovered that she is a fairy.

When a group of fairies convince Kaye to help them gain their freedom from the rule of the evil Unseelie court, life becomes even more confusing, dangerous, and frightening. Then there are complications: Kaye starts to fall for the mysterious Roiben, a dark knight, about whom it is rumored “He as likely to be kind as to kill you.”

Despite its similarities to Twilight, the combination of the haunting and the beautiful make Tithe a standout novel that will likely leave readers wanting more. (And if that’s the case for you, you’re in luck: there are two sequels, called Valiant and Ironside.)

~Marissa

A duct tape rose by any other name would smell as sweet…

Stumped about what to give that special someone for Valentine’s Day?

Or are you determined to un-celebrate Valentine’s Day and instead give your awesome single self a treat?

Either way, come to the Duct Tape Rose Workshop on Tuesday, February 10 at 6:30 PM. Making a rose out of duct tape is easy and fun – and the result lasts a lot longer, and is a lot cooler, than a real rose. Anyone who is 12-18 years old is welcome to attend this free program, but registration is required so visit or call the reference desk to sign up.

~ Marissa

YA Writers’ Workshop Tells about Amanda’s Unfortunate Day

Today’s three blog entries are the collaborative short stories that we wrote during the YA Writers’ Workshop yesterday. We wrote them sort of like a game of telephone, where everyone gets a turn at contributing, so the stories have different fonts according to the different authors. All stories are by Amanda, Lisa, and Marissa.

If you enjoy writing, keep checking this blog for information about a possible poetry slam in April. Next month, we’ll be making duct tape roses in honor of Valentine’s Day!

One of our stories:

Amanda saw her bestest friend in the whole wide world during period one at school. So, she was bursting with excitement all day long!

Amanda was so bubbly after seeing her friend that her teacher made her sit in the hall for disrupting the class. A group of girls walked by and laughed at her, so Amanda decided she needed to do something to restore her good reputation.

As Amanda walked up to the girls, she noticed that she had toilet paper stuck to her shoes. Were the girls laughing at her because she had to sit in the hall or because of the toilet paper?

She was so embarrassed, so she ran to the bathroom and came back out with more toilet paper stuck to here and now even Mr. O. was laughing at her!

Just as Amanda was turning as red as a tomato, the cutest boy in school walked by. He turned, looked at Amanda’s red face, at the laughing girls, and at Mr. O., and then at Amanda’s shoes. Amanda gulped. One of the laughing girls sidled up to the boy, ready to make fun of Amanda’s predicament. But on her way, the girl tripped over the toilet paper trailing behind Amanda’s shoe! Now everyone laughed at the girl, and the boy smiled at Amanda and picked up the toilet paper from under her shoe.

By this time, no one was laughing at Amanda. They were now laughing at the other girl who fell flat on her face. Amanda and the boy walked away and went to the cafeteria to enjoy their lunched together.

Story by: Amanda, Lisa, and Marissa

A not-so-typical schoolday by the YA Writers’ Workshop

The school buses came an hour early this morning, while all of the teenagers were still sleeping, so everyone missed the bus.

Since they missed the bus, the teenagers decided to go sled riding at Peter & Paul. The girls walked on one side of the road, while the boys walked on the other side. They all ended up at the hill 5 minutes later.

It started raining and everyone was upset, so they all went home and drank coconut coffee and then went back to bed and after that, everyone went on “AIM” (online) and chatted.

Everyone was in one huge chatroom and just when the class clown was telling a really hilarious story about the cafeteria monitor, the one kid whose mom drove him to school got onto a computer in the library, entered the chatroom, and told everyone that there was a going to be a surprise concert by Kelly Clarkson in the auditorium during 7^th period! (She was friends with their music teacher.) And now, everyone would miss it!

The teens were very upset when they found out they would miss the concert. Luckily, one of the girls’ mom was very nice enough to offer to bring the kids to school and explain to the principal what happened. The principal agreed that the Kelly Clarkson concert was a once in a lifetime chance and he would allow them to attend. The teens high-fived each other and took their seats at the concert.

They all enjoyed the concert and then Kelly got up close and personal with the kids and they all too pics with her! It was fantabulous!

Story by: Amanda, Lisa, and Marissa

‘American Idol’ according to the YA Writers’ Workshop

Today is the first day of American Idol. The show is on for 2 hours and it’s going to be a lot of fun.

A half hour through the show, a guy in a white suit walks in and starts singing “I Shot the Sheriff.” And Simon criticizes him, so there is a big fight on set.

Ryan Seacrest is able to break up the fight, but Paula faints  because she is so nervous that Ryan will get hurt. The producers can’t believe their bad luck – they decided to do a live show tonight, and they lost the commercial reel. They can’t cut away from the disaster on screen.

So as Paula lays on the floor, the audience begins to “boo” the stage and throw food. Paula becomes conscious and realizes she is covered in spaghetti and meatballs. She is steaming smoke out of her ears and heads towards the crowd.

Paula starts to crack up and says, “It’s ok,” and they now can go into a commercial…

Because of Paula’s good humor in an embarrassing situation, the show was saved! While she was laughing at her new spaghetti wig, there was time for the producers to find the commercial reel. After the show was over, the producers were paid millions for the chance to use the footage on a blooper show. They gave some of the millions to Paula so she could clean the sauce out of her hair.

Story by: Amanda, Lisa, and Marissa

Writing can be fun – come to see how!

Did you forget to sign up for the library’s creative writing class? I have good news! The Writers’ Workshop has been rescheduled due to inclement weather. The workshop will now be held on Tuesday, January 13 at 6 PM. The program will start in the teen section (past the artwork on the main floor). You no longer have to register, so as long as you are between the ages of 12 and 18, join us and bring a friend along to this free event!

~Marissa

Are you a creative writer?

If you love to write – or if you would like to write but aren’t sure how – the library’s Writers’ Workshop at 6 PM on Wednesday, January 7 can help! Workshop attendees will participate in activities that make creative writing easy, imaginative, and fun. We will write first sentences that are sure to draw in readers, and we will write very short stories together that will explain plot organization while making you laugh.

During recent conferences, I learned the writing tips that will be included in this program from Beckie Weinheimer, author of Converting Kate, and Alex Flinn, author of several YA novels, including Breathing Underwater. Both authors have been honored by YALSA – the Young Adult Library Services Association – for their writing.

Interested in participating? Registration is required so visit or call the library to sign up, even if it’s the afternoon of the program. You can also register by emailing me at Marissa {at} biblio.org

Happy New Year!

~Marissa