Twitter or Blogging? What a beautiful mess....

I'm not new to the whole social media network.  It's just that I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the redundancy that can potentially happen when you have so many different networks you're using.  Of course, Youtube and Schooltube hold exclusively video, so it just makes sense that's where I put my book trailers.  But then there's the ubiquitous task of what I put on my blog versus what I post on Twitter.  Right now all of my book reviews are on my blog, but should I also post links to my Twitter account?  And technology...most of the cool things I find online and share are found on my Twitter account, but do I post them on my blog?

This is the conundrum.  Finding two very distinct platforms, I feel like I should treat them like sisters - give each of them loving attention while understanding the different personalities they are.  They both have some of the same friends, but they also have different friends they play with (friends = followers).  I ask myself, "If I find the same information on Twitter, why should I follow on Blogger...or vice versa.  It's that ugly redundant head poking it's way into the twisted wires of technology.

 So, for now, I have decided to keep them separated.  I know how cramped it can be when sisters begin to share a room.  Believe me, I had to share with TWO! : )

So, if you want to follow my posts on  Twitter, please do!  I just posted two fabulously amazing sites a few minutes ago on twitter (@yabooksandmore).  And if you like what I post on Blogger, I sure do appreciate ya'll!!  Any every now and again, I'll have to just post the same thing on both.  I already do this in tandem with my book trailers.  So check it out and follow if you'd like.

 It could be too much YABAM (YABooksAndMore)  ....WOW!!  That sounds like a PERFECT onomatopoeia word!!  ie, I need a trailer/book review to put in a booktalk...YABAM!!!  hahahaha!!  Testing days make me giddy at the end of the day, forgive my punchiness :)
See you online!

Genre displays - Part tres

here are the rest of my genres I have in the library:
  link:  http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5187533/Novels_in_Verse



 link:  http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5187661/Real_Life_Reads


link:  http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5187705/Classic_and_Adult_Fiction

The List by Siobhan Vivian

Scholastic 2012
When eight girls woke up the week before homecoming they didn't know how much their lives would be altered.  Oh, most of them knew about the tradition, but didn't think it would happen to them.  There were too many to choose from.  But when they walked into school that morning, they found the list plastered everywhere with their names on it.
What is the List?  Two names from each class - the prettiest and the ugliest posted for everyone to see.  It's a make or break situation for the girls all for different reasons.  People think the prettiest have it the easiest and no one wants to be the ugliest, but there it is in black and white for all the world to see.

Freshmen:
Abby Warner (who has to compete with her lackluster scholarly sister...she's only too happy to be voted prettiest)
Danielle Demarco (swimmer extraordinaire who's hurt by the nickname the list gives her, but knows she has the support of her boyfriend...)

Sophomores:
Lauren Finn (her first year in school after being home-schooled.  She may look and act awkward but being the prettiest will definitely help her fit in)
Candace Kinkaid (upset with the fact that she's the ugliest, she can't believe people would think that of her since she actually is the prettiest - and loves to let people know it)

Juniors:
Sarah Singer (she's the emo girl who likes to be left alone, proving her tough image by smoking and dressing radically)
Bridget Honeycutt (she has tried all summer to be perfect because of one little comment, but the weight is coming off and it feels good.  Only two more sizes and she'll be perfect...)

Seniors:
Jennifer Briggis (the only person in the entire history of the List to make it four times in a row as the ugliest!)
Margo Gable (the senior who has it all - the friends, the looks, the parties...a shoo-in for homecoming queen)

Slowly but surely, the metamorphosis begins in all of these girls' lives, both good and bad.  Little do they know they've been specifically chosen this year to make or break them.  But why? Who is behind the List?

Vivian takes a slice of life of high school girls, along with their drama, personal demons, and relationships to create eight unique characters that the reader will identify with.  That is what makes this a beauty of a girl read book.  The central plot is separated between all eight, with their own voices and stories told in alternating chapters, which will make readers polish this off quickly if only to find out what happens next and how ultimately, the girls lives being to intertwine.

Why Does the World Need Librarians?

Dead to You by Lisa McMann

New York:  Simon Pulse, 2012

It's been nine long years since it happened, but he came back.  Ethan remembers the bits and pieces about the abduction, but what he's most concerned about is that his "mother" abandoned him.  Not that it matters anymore...he found his way back to his real home, with Mama, Dad, Blake and the newbie, little Gracie. 

It's been a tough road though.  Ethan is still caught up with his other world and with Ellen, who abducted him when he was seven years old.  Why did she do it?  Why did she abandon him later?  It didn't matter how he was raised, where he lived.  He knew his belonged.  He's not so sure with his now family.  The new parents, his true parents, are taking their time to let him sort it all out, but Ethan still wants to protect Ellen.  Protect the bad, distrust the good...he doesn't understand it himself.

Slowly and with time, he begins to breathe easier.  He doesn't remember much, but he feels the love his parents and little sister show him.  And the one person who helps him through it the most?  His old childhood friend, Cami.  It certainly isn't Blake, his brother.  Blake truly believes Ethan isn't his real brother. Their relationship isn't peanut butter and jelly.  It's more like pushes, shoves, and avoidance. 

But then the revelation of Ethan's past comes back full force...

This is one of those kinds of books that someone will pick up and want to read all in one sitting.  The short chapters help with the fluidity of the plot itself, but McMann continues to tease the reader about Ethan's past, just enough so that the pages continue to turn.  The reader sees Ethan's character develop from the shy, unsure kid who isn't used to normality slowly blossom into the realization that he's now part of that culture, but it's his dark side that continues to plague him in his relationships, his anxiety, and his present and future.  If you're a savvy reader, look for the placement of the denouement....a hint to what happens with this book.  My parting words after finishing this book?  "Oh, man!!  That did NOT just happen!"  Recommended. 

Beneath a Meth Moon by Jacqueline Woodson

Laurel remembers the past...the day the hurricane came in and took her mom and grandmother.  After two years of deciding what to do with their lives, Laurel's father has moved them far away.  Now she's land-bound by green fields instead of the green of the water, and Laurel doesn't think she'll ever by happy. That quickly changes.

In fact, she makes friends right off the bat (easy to do in a small town)and becomes involved in cheerleading in her new hometown.  It's small, but life seems to be taking a turn for the better.  Laurel still sees water waves and her mother in her dreams, but her days are getting better.  In fact, one night they get infinitely better when she meets T-Boom, captain of the basketball team.

He told her he had dreams for their future.  He told her he'd be wealthy and independent.  He told her she was the most beautiful girl in the world.  He told her she should try chasing the moon.  And she believed everything he told her.

Now, she's sitting on a cold street in pain.  Her bones hurt, her teeth hurt, her skin itches.  She needs another hit.  Nothing else matters.  Her life took another turn....is it too late?

Woodson takes a tale of emotional pain, misplaced trust, and methanphetamines and weaves a tale of hope, loss, love, and survival with near poetic quality.  The reader watches Laurel's descent and can only hope she sees the salvation the other characters see within her reach.  There is a distinct undertone of faith and religion, woven throughout the novel but without overpowering the storyline itself.  In fact, it adds to the unique culture of small towns and they way the people in small towns react to adversity when it comes to their children and safety.  It was refreshing to read about the subject of drug abuse and the worlds teens live in without the underlying grittiness seen in other novels with the same plot.  This is one that can be placed at junior high or high school and is a fast read.  Very Recommended.

Creative Signage

First of all, I have to say that librarians are creative, forward-thinking, and imaginative.  This is the case for Sofia D'Arcy, a middle school librarian from  Houston ISD.  She created signage from old weeded books...so for those of us wanting signage but not wanting to spend a lot of cash, there is a solution thanks to brilliant minds in the library world!

And she also provided instructions as well:
• I traced the letters on the back of the book (hint: be sure to keep at least part of the binding intact as in the “o” and the “c”)


• I cut them out using a jigsaw, but I’ve since added a scroll saw to the mix. I used a drill to get to the middle sections. I sanded the rough edges. If you decide to use a Dremel or other rotary device be aware that since it spins really fast you can burn the edges if you aren’t careful. I used a Black and Decker Mouse.

• After I made the shelf from two pieces of pine, I placed the letters and marked where I wanted the braces to go. I screwed those in and glued the letters to the braces. I screwed three picture hanger things to it to hang. If you are interested in seeing the back, just let me know and I’ll take a picture to send to you.

• Two things to consider: thinner books are easier to cut and take a look at the book without the cover.