Jake Black - A. J. Butcher (SPY HIGH Series)

Jake Black attended Ceveraux College, more commonly known as Spy High. But when he gets kicked out for breaking the "no killing the terrorists" policy, he finds himself in a darker league, the Black Ops Division, where it doesn't matter what you do, as long as you get the job done. But when his friends from Spy High get suspicious of his wherabouts, and his first mission is not as easy as he expected, things turn to absolute mayhem. This book was really dragging along, and the chapters are soooo lengthy, i didn't make it past chapter 5 before i gave up. I'm sure it would have been a good book, but when you have to force yourself to read a book, it isn't worth it.

Canadian Lifesaving Manual

if anybody is taking swimming lessons (bronze star, medallion, cross, etc), you'll know which book i'm talking about. It's a manual by the Lifesaving Society, and it's a great book for anybody interested in being a lifeguard or an instructor. It teaches the first aid treatment (both illness and injury), first aid rescue process, the lifesaving priorities (airway, breathing, circulation), other specialized lifesaving skills, and just generally stuff essential for being water smart/safe.

Recently, i heard that many parents are starting to invest in swimming lessons for their kids since drowning is one of the highest cause of death rates. and i think that's a good idea because knowing how to swim can either mean life or death in a water related emergency.

s.t.e.p.h.i.e

Love, cajun style

this book is first and foremost a romance novel by Diane Les Becquets. It is about the summer of Lucy in her sleepy southern town. Everyday seems to be the same: hanging out with her 2 best friends and riding around on her bike. But things start to change as the summer wore on; her friends start falling into love, her mom starts being attracted to another man, her own mixed affections for her new dramma teacher, and the arrival of Dewey (a boy unlike anybody she known)...just a lot of love-dovey stuff going on. This book was okay, didn't hate it, but didn't like it either.

Sri Lanka

Yesterdy (Thursday), thousands of Tamil people from all over Canada has went to Ottawa to the Parliament to kind of protest for the Canadian government to help, to get involve in what is happening in sri lanka. Many innocent children, adults have been killed in Sri lanka for no reason. Last 61 girls have died in sri lanka because an army has led a bomb. At front of the parliament thousands of Tamil shouted that they want justice, but none of the polticians came out and talked anything except for one person, don't remember who it was. No english tv stations came to videotape and show to the public what a big thing is happening in canada. Its OK if no one came to talk at the time of protest but they could have made announcents later after everything has finished that they will have a conference, they will talk about this issue in the parliametn but nothing that sort happened. Today morning i was watching the news the reporters talked about Afghanistan violence, but they didn't mention anything and even a 2,3 sentences about what happened in Ottawa, or what has has been happening in Sri Lanka, in the town where most of my relatives live and in other towns the people in the town are not allowed to come out of their house, if they do and if they sri lankan army sees them they will get shot, time to time the army allows people to come out and go to stores, but only for some time. imagine how we will feel if we were in their shoes. My grandmother is sick she has diabetes and it is really high now, and nobody lives with her to take care of her; also she can't go to the hospital because she is not allowed to go outside. My mom was crying about how her mother is unlucky that she doesn't have any help, and how sick my grandma is . All this and even more stuff are happening at sri lanka but the canadian govt is not doing anything not even talking about it in the news, if something like this happens in USA, it will make it to the top stories. What peeople at Ottawa did seems useless, it seems like they just wasted time and enegy thinking that the canadian govt will do something. Just as we are humans here wanting to live with big dreams thats how much people in sri lanka would like to live and study and get good jobs, just how much parents love their children in here thats how much the parents in sri lanka loves them too; they don't want their children to live right in front of their eyes. Canada needs to make a move. WE ARE ALL HUMANS, DOESN'T MATTER WHERE WE LIVE, cANADA SHOULD HELP SR I LANKA WITH THIS TERRORISM. Lets all hope that this will be the last violence in sri lanka.

Mary Queen of Scots

In this realistic novel, Mary has been the queen of Scotland since childhood and now lives in France. In her future she will be crowned queen of France as well, but she must live with the French royalty till that time. Ahe has four Laidies in waiting (who are also her best friends) named Mary, and they all enjoy hunting and hawking. During this time, Mary meets the new castle astrologer, and her predicts for her a grim future with blood, and also a lifetime of happiness. This confuses Mary greatly, and when one of her Mary's falls under ice while skating and almost dies, she feels terrified. From al the confusion, she falls ill and delirious. When she awakened to her proper state, she realized that she no longer wants to marry the king of France to be, but to go back to scotland with her four Mary's.

Teen survey - Your Thoughts

91% of teens prefer to still talk to their parents versus using technology

34% wish parents would not get so mad at them

Kids wished their parents would spend more time with them and stop working so much

74% of moms think their kids will talk to them about anything but 50% of kids say differently


50% of teens concerned about their looks and 38% about their weight

Boys and girls were almost equally concerned about good grades which surprised me

you control choices for restaurants, food, vacations and home entertainment

kids don't think their parents know they do online or where they have been

73% said they are happy

79% were happy at school, last year due to friends

Catherine

No more American Cartoons in Primetime, in China

To encourage the Japanese animation industry, all American cartoons like the Simpson's will not be shown on televison during the hours of 5-8.

What do you think/

Catherine

World Trade Center - Movie Review

Hi!

I went to see the movie, World Trade Center, this afternoon.

It was a bit different that I thought. the story focused on the day from the point of view, of the people who worked in the Port Authority of New York. It focused on two central characters and the time immediately thereafter.

I went with my husband and we thought it was okay but not Stone's usual style.

Someone had raised the issue was this disrespectful, not at all..

If you go, let me know what you think.

Catherine

the life history of a star- kelly easton

once i finished the book, i didn't really wanna believe it was over, so i immediately flipped to the middle and read it again. kind of. after a page, i felt silly.
this book is about a 14 year old girl named kristin folger(coffeeeee...) ahem and she doesn't feel like she belongs on earth. the whole book is kristen's journal, but there's still dialogue in it. kristin has two brothers, one she was so close to and another who was skinny, freckly, and zitty. anyways, her body keeps changing, and she can barely keep up. she's really like a tomboy, but her mom doesn't like it. also, there's a ghost in the attic everyone needs to love and used to love. no one wants to talk about it. this journal takes place in the time around the vietnam war.
kristin learns who the ghost is and was all along, and survives often painful life lessons, and learns the truth about what just happens in life, things you can't control. sad things turn up suddenly, her friends turn weird, but she accepts the truth and goes "all the way to the stars and back again."

Answers to music trivia.

It was close. the Winner was Jen 26 with the most answers right.
Congratulations Jen!
1. Nelly Furtado
2. Justin to Kelly; Kelly Clarkson
3. Daniel Powter
4. Rock Star INXS: JD Fortune
5. Celine Dion
6. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Dani California
7. Shakira
8. Dixie Chicks; George Bush
9. Neat Narles Barkley, not Charles Barkley started as a download
10. Pink
11. My daughter wanted me to say that if you buy a candy bar and give $1.20. It costs 1.15 what do you get. She wanted you to say a nickelback. Ha! Ha! Ha! and she says I am corny.
They are touring with Bon Jovi.
12. FIve for FIghting
13. Beyonce - Her and Jay-Z are hot.
14. Bon Jovi
15. the Killers
16. Paris Hilton - She tried to get into one of the Hilton Hotels and they had no room, even for her.
17. K.T> Tunstall, Suddenly I see - theme from So You Think You Can Dance
18. Melissa O'Neill - Speechless
19. Stabilo - Flawed Design
20. Chrisitina Aguillera

Final draw deadlines

Final challenge: next Wednesday at closing

Children's book challenge: same

Family Vacation Challenge: same

Overall entries, next Wednesday.

I know this is a few days longer than we said but Andrea and I are off this weekend.

I usually answer your blog comments on my days off so this will not be a problem.

I want to apologize to our prize winners. I put your prizes in a courier box, for the other branches. During the school year, they are opened daily. Due to the volume of books with the children's reading club and staff vacations, they are behind going through the boxes.

The next winners will have a special marking on the outside of the box so blog winners can get their prizes faster.

Also, next week when Andrea is back, we will get going with Trap.

catherine

Something Girl

Hey!
This book is by Beth Goobie. Sophie, a girl is in trouble. After stealing and being late home, her father hit her and bruises turn up. Sophie thinks that it's her fault that he hits her. Stupid, no good nothing.... The night that followed, she was hit so severely, the she had to go to the hospital. Will she turn him in? Anyways, she would hate it to have to live in the group homes......
I thought that this book is a good book and I learned that even though you are stupid, useless, being hit (abused) is wrong.
Read it. It's a good book!

-Shummer

Rating:***/5 (105 pages)

Around the world with books - final challenge

Try this simple challenge for a prize. Email answers to teens@markham.library.on.ca
Closing, next Wednesday night. Good luck.

1. What Paris museum has a sidewalk devoted to the DaVinci Code? Check out the museum’s website.

2. If I were Queen of England, I would be crowned, here. This the location of one of the SAS books. Name the book.

3. This book set in Germany is not about the evening. Name the book.

4. Name the book where one of the main characters packed her jeans and went to
Greece.

5. I am not the Queen of Genovia but rather _________________________.
Name the book.

6. The World Aids Conference is being held in Toronto, this week. In this book, which takes place in Africa, the grandmother raises her grandchildren because of aids. Name the book.

7. In this story, a girl likes climbing trees in Guatamela. Name the book.
This is a giveaway.

8. Grace becomes Emily in Alaska. Name the book.

9. Set in Texas, it is Rory’s mom’s name on Gilmore Girls. Name the book
About Zoe.

10. I am not green, in the big apple, New York City, I am a different colour. Name the book.

11. This well known talk show host has her show in the Windy City, Chicago.
Name her or her book.

12. Unlike Nelly who wants to turn off the lights, this book set in Canada, has
____________________________.

13. Angus Glen Farm is near the library. The other day, I saw cows across the road. What book about a cowboy caused some discussion on the blog.

14. One children's book was named as a favourite. Which one do we all love?

15. It is a beautiful night. I am not looking at the sun or the stars but rather . . . .
Name the book.

Catherine

music trivia winner - hopefully tonight

I am working, tonight so hopefully, I can go through it then.

Catherine

How

Hi
How you announce the final draw? Is it on Aug. 19 or after it.
-Shummer

Draw

May I please know when will the winners for the family vacations, and children's post will be announced?

Thanks

Charting The Time of Your Life- Your Birthday- And the Power it hold for You Every Day

In this book there is a snapshot of each and every day in a year. So if you are born on March 11, there is a little passage where it talks about your character, and there is other dates too. I like this book since this is specific to someone's birthdate, so if you are born on dec.24, nov 21, or any other days of the year, there is a small passage about you.

If you would like me to post what it says about your birthdate, leave a comment and i will be happy to type on the blog.

Give advice to bloggers going into your grade

Mina, gave some great tips on studying and reviewing material.

Now I want you to give your best tip to someone starting the grade you were in last year! If you also have a tip for someone starting your grade, share that as well.

Catherine

1. I have a mom tip. Lay everything out the night before. I know how boring, but I still do that now. This makes things so much easier if you are running late or have unexpected surprises in the morning.

2. If you regularly, carry a snack, pack more than one day's worth. If you are washing carrots for one day, wash them for two and then you have a bonus for the next day. I also find that if I have something prepared, I don't eat junk food.
One organized soul I know, packs all the things she can on Sunday, ready for the week. I will never be that good but I admire this person for their organization.

Will you take gym, music, art in high school/

I have to be honest, my daughter dropped gym because she wanted to take other credits.

My son was good in music but also dropped music for the same reason. He did take gym.

In mapping out your credits, do you think you might drop one of these subjects?

This came out of a discussion with other parents who were upset to see their kids no longer taking arts and phys ed courses because of time limitations. We were all very concerned because our kids, boys especially were not getting the physical activity that we thought they should.

Also, if you are in a semestered school, you might not take gym or math for an entire year!
Your thoughts,

Catherine

Obesity worldwide, even in poor countries

On the news today, they talked about the worldwide increase in obesity.

The other alarming information that came out of the report was not only that so many people are obese but it is now happening in even the poorest countries.

what could governments do to help this problem?

Catherine

World Aids Conference

Have any of you watched some of the television coverage, this week?

It is great to see, the progress that is being made.

What do you think? Should the government being doing more or should they leave it to private foundations and individuals?

Catherine

the earth, my butt, and other big round things

this book was pretty funny, and relatable to just about every girl at some rate. virginia shreves, has a larger than average boody. she only fits into ugly plus size clothing. she loves snacking. she doesn't feel like she's a true shreves; her older siblings anais and byron are goodlooking, slender, and popular. her mom is a gym freak and a successful adolescent psycologist, and eats like lettuce and water. her dad, however, likes snacking but is attracted to thin women. virginia obeys the "fat girl code of conduct", whatever she does. her best friend, shannon, moved to walla walla washington. froggy welsh the fourth finally gets his hand in her shirt, but she fears he'll look underneath.
"delete virginia, and the shreves are a picture perfect family... until a phone call changes everything"

i liked this book because it was truly realistic. her imperfections make her a charming character who everyone should be able to relate to. there was a bit of swearing in this book, but that too was acceptable in the certain situations. there are some parts where you need to be, uh, mature. i like how the book ended.

sorceress

this is another awesome book by Celia Rees and the sequel to witch child. it is about the rest of Mary's journey this time with the natives. it tells about her family and diseases that the natives struggled with. then the war bettween the Europeans and many of the native tribes trying to get thier own land to live in again.

Kristina the Girl King

This fatual novel is written in the form of a diary with fictional twists added. when Kristina was born, her father had presumed she was a boy and announced her to be the King when shegrew up. when he came to find that she was a girl, he said that she should be king anyway and have the treatment of a prince till that time. The only problem is that if she was to get married, she would not be able to have first hand at ruling her kingdom. But everyone is putting great pressures on her. Her mother betrayed their country and has been sent to a castle out of country, where she mopes about the death of her husband, and calls on Kristina all the time. Kristina feels that listening to the mournings of her mother a planning for a marrige are useless compared to sword fighting an riding a horse astride rather than side saddeling, so she decideds to ignore everyone and do as she pleases.

witch child

this a is great book by Celia Rees and is technically historical fiction. it is about a girl who thinks she is an orphan and lives with her grandmother who is soon convicted by the towns people for being a witch. her grandmother is then hung and a lady comes and takes her away. the lady says that it would be safer if she were in "the new world"(north America).she travels with another village which gladly accepts her. she then delivers a baby who wasn't expected to live safely. she is then suspected of being a witch. she soon learns that the people in "the new world" are no different from the people from the people in the place she left. this book tells about her struggles hiding her true identity.

Shelter Dogs

Hey!
I'm an animal lover (all except for insects), so this book is about dogs who have been unloved for years and then finding a home of love. This book is by Peg Kehret. Zorro, the Great Dane, (the champion nobody wanted) tracker, the movie star, Kirby, the one word of life, Joey, the service dog, Danny the the friendly dog, Tyler, the blind dog, Ivan, the fire hero and Bridgette, the seizure-alert dog. All these beloved stories of dogs who where first unloved and no one cared for. The life that followed would be different than their unloved life.
I thought this book was great! Each story was different in every way that made it interesting.
Read it!!

-Shummer

Rating:*****/5 (135 pages)

Final Trivia Quiz on way

Hi!

I am writing the final trivia quiz. I need just a few more questions.

It is easy.

Catherine

Vote for my Favourite Books that I have Read-Mina

I have read many books during this summers. I almost liked each and every book that i read, here are three of the favourite books.
Mood Indigo by Allen, Charlotte Vale, 1941-, 284 pages
- This book was really good. From the beginning to the end the book was full of suspense. Even the title of the book is unique and mystifying. The title and the genre of the book are the two things that mad me interested in the book.This book is full of suspense. The book is a great book, and I would definitely recommend it to many other teens to read it and especially to teens that love mystery, suspense genres and to teens that wants to be a detective or a mystery author. After I started reading the book I couldn’t put it down without finishing it.The author wrote in a way that she knows it will attract mystery lovers. I really enjoyed reading the book.
The First Stone by Don Aker,1955, 228 pages
- The begining of the book was a little boring but ita actually got more and more interesting as book continued on. In the book the author used a technique called "page-turner. What i mean by page-turner is that in one paragraph or a page the author expressed the feelings of one character (Reef) and what is happening to them in one and in the next page or paragraph he expressed the feelings and what is happening to the other main character (Leeza). This page turner style of writing created suspense in the book because at some times the author at an interesting part skipped over to the other character. I like it when there is supense in the book, it also makes me not to put the book down. ALso the writing style will help readers understand better of what the character is thinking. Also the book has some valuable lessons that we can all learn suhc as how one bad thing that we can do can affect others' lives. I would reccomend this book to someone who wants to read a book with a little suspense, and don' want to read a book that has a ending where "they happily ever after."
Chanda's Secrets, 193 pages- This book made me realize many of the issues around the world. Some of the issues that this book made me to realize are poverty, and HIV/AIDS. Also this book made me to realize how fortunate i am. It also made me to appreciate the stuff that I have access to such as free education, water, and other stuff that are big to those people who live in developing countries. I would definately reccomend all teens to read no matter their likes in reading cause this book will teach people some stuff, and this story will touch the readers' heart cause this is a true story of a woman living in South Africa.

ashlee simpson irony

i was just flipping through an old issue of teen people (april 2005!) and the library, and i happened to come along a page with celeb quotes. there was one from ashlee simpson:

"i felt like my nose was too big. i was always like, 'i'm going to get a nose job one day' and i'm so glad i didn't. i love my nose... it has character"

and guess what? a year later, she DOES get a nose job AND changes her whole style! jen and i were once chatting, well blogging, about how much ashlee simpson has changed, and i just so happened to see this quote, which makes me think even weirder of ashlee simpson.i used to really like her, and then she switched personalities. she's not really like the rocker kinda girl she used to be.

Making Choices

This is a book about a teenage a girl who has chose to give birth a baby instead of choosing to abortion it.After giving birth to the baby Nikki choses give away her baby and some other people adopts her baby. SHe is really mad at the guy who made her to come to this stage, but however TJ the guy who made her pregnant doesn't know that Nikki has became pregnant. In order avoid any fun making by the students in her school Nikki moves school and move in with her grandparents adn goes to a school beside go back to the old place to visit her mom. OVer there Nikki makes a new boyfriend name Chad but they soon break up. Later Nikki goes out with Jeff. When Nikki is starting to feel that she has been forgetting her past, she meets TJ in convenience store, and Chad comes back into Nikki's life. All this stuff happening to Nikki, how she overcome all these stuff is what the story is alll.

If you want to keep the blog going during the school year, read this post

I noticed a couple posts ago that some of you were asking about the possibility of keeping the blog running throughout the year. I'm starting a new programme that you may be interested in - The Teen Readers Advisory Panel (yes, that's TRAP for short...). Basically, the TRAP will be a group of volunteers that will provided me with their reviews of teen CDs, DVDs and of course books, which I will use for reading lists, displays in the library and on the new Teen Webpage that we're developing. A blog would be used by the TRAP volunteers to record their reviews, and of course members would have to register to join. So far, these are the details:
- ages 12-18 are welcome to join
- each member must provide at least one review a month
- volunteers can earn community service hours (I'll probably devise a point system whereby each review will be worth X volunteer hours, etc)
- reviews should be 100 words MAX

If anyone is interested in being a part of this, please email me at acecch@markham.library.on.ca.
Thanks, Andrea.

We Need Your Feedback

Hi Everyone,
Now that the Summer Reading Programme is getting close to winding down, I'd like to ask each of you to please give us some feedback. Your comments will help us make changes and improve the programme for next year. Please answer the following questions by posting a comment, or if you want to provide your feeback confidentially, email your responses to us at teens@markham.library.on.ca.

Thanks to everyone for participating - I hope you enjoyed the programme.
Andrea

Teen Summer Reading Programme Evaluation

1. Overall, did you like this programme?
2. What did you like best about this programme?
3. What did you like least?
4. Did you like the blog format? If not, what would you recommend instead?
5. What changes would you recommend if we ran this programme again?
6. Did you borrow any library materials as a result of this programme?
7. Would you recommend this programme to others?
8. Would you participate in the Teen Summer Reading Programme again?

Beauty Queen

Hello!
This book is by Linda Glovach. Sam, a girl whom used to be good, is pressured about her mom's boyfriend (Reed) always drinking together. Reed beats up her mom when he's drunk while her mom passes out. They live on her mom's money which is running out. Now money desperate Sam finds a better job for more money than washing dishes. She joins the Web, a nude dancing place. Sam shows off some moves and she's accepted. All that she needs to do is to take off her top around men. She goes to take a sip of her mom's booze in the washroom, and finds a fellow dancer taking herion with a needle. She asks for some and she feels beautiful. Out the washroom she goes, and off goes the top. She makes $408 for dancing topless... As she gets popular, the creepy men come. Once a guy called her nasty names and tried to touch her. he came over and stuck his face down her....
Read it to find out!
I thought this book taught me about not to take this certain job. I thought this book would be better if her job wasn't nude dancing.

-Shummer

Rating:***/5
(this book ends like all teen drug abusers end) 169 pages

Finding Grace - Alyssa Brugman

Rachel, a recent high-school graduate, thinks she knows everything. When she accepts a job taking care of Grace, a woman who is brain-dead, she sees that there is always more to learn. Through the novel, she discovers Grace, love, life, and the every-important lesson of never giving up on people. This was a fairly interesting book, although it may not appeal to all readers. Overall, i would rate it 3/5.

How is a Book Made?

In this book there is enough amount of detail to know how a book is made. I did know some of the stuff in the book but i know it in a vague detail, this book made some stuff clear. I learned how paper is made, how glue is made. I learned that color books are made from yellow, blue, red, black, from these colors all the other colors are made. I borrowed this book thinking that it will interesting to know how book is made since i at least read once a day and it was intersting to find out some info about how a book is made. In making a book there is a lot of different people involved and a lot of mony i guess for the publsiher. When i think who makes a book i mostly think of the author, editor, and maybe the publisher but the author and the editor are only part of about 2 stages of the boook production. There are other people involved in the production such as designer, printer, ink makers and others.

The Mystery Library-Fortune Telling by Stuart A. Kallen

In this book there are stuff about astrology. There are astrology related stuff in different cultures such as oalm reading which we have in my culture, the I Ching which is from the Chiniese culture and other stuff. The thing that i learned a lot from reading the book is the palm reading. I got to knoe what the lines in a hand are for, but some of the lines in my hand do't match and some lines i don't have. Then i learned that some lines don't appear after years. I belive in these stuff.

Where Did They Go? by Alexandra Behr

In this short book there are a small stories of some of the unsolved mysteries, and what people think would have happened. Here is a story that is in the book, In bost there is a museum where crooks dressed up as cops tied up the guards, and stole paintings that are worth as much as $500 million. "It was the biggest art heist in U.S. history. The case remains unsolved. SOme people think that and IRish terrorist group stole the artwork to sell for money, and or a man in prison planned the robbery. He has yet to confeess." This book wasn't as interesting as other mysery relate books that i have read.

Dectective Stories!!-Chosen by Philip Pullman

In here there are a lot of interesting, fascinating mystery stories solved by some of the detectives that we all would probably know such as Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Craig and some others. There are stories written by Issac Asimov, Italo calvino, Agatha Christie, Ellery Queen, and others. Here is a "puzzle written by a professor of mathematical logic." ALl the clues you will need to solve for the following case is below and thats all the clues you will need to solve the question at the bottom.

An enormous amount of loot had been stolen from a store. The criminal (or criminals) took the heist away in a car. These well-known criminals A,B,C were brought in Scotland Yard for questioning. The following facts were ascertained:

(1) No one other than A,B,C was involved in the robbery.
(2) C never pulls a job without using A ( and possibly others) as an accomplice.
(3) B does not know how to drive.

Is A INNOCENT or GUILTY?

You guys can try to answer the question and can post ur answer on the comment section of this post. Trying to answer this question can really be confusing and also writing and explanation for your answer is also confusing.
I will post the answer that is in the book soon!
Good Luck!!

Cliffs Quick Review-French

If anyone is continuing on taking French and has forgot some of the basic stuff in French and would like to learn more grammar stuff in French, this book is really good. I am continuing to take French for the rest of my high school year; so i borrowed this book at the library to review some of the stuff in French so i that be little prepared for school. The book is written in English. Some of the reviews are on pronouncing French such as Liaisons, vowels, daily tools such as greetings,salutions, numbers, days and dates, time, Articles such as definite articles, indefinite articles, partive articles, nouns such as gender of nouns, pronouns and a lot mooore stuff.

Au revoir!