In My Mailbox - Week of May 6

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. Check out the post to see what others received in their mailbox.

Received from Sourcebooks Publishers

( I won a TLA Package!)

  

Mira's Diary: Lost in Paris - Marissa Moss

Real Mermaids Don't Hold Their Breath - Helene Boudreau

 

While He was Away - Karen Schreck

Horrid Harry and the Zombie Vampire - Francesca Simon

 

Jason Steed: Revenge - Mark Cooper 

Anastasia Forever - Joy Preble

Purchased

  

Struck - Jennifer Bosworth

Unitl I Die - Amy Plum

One for the Murphys - Lynda Mullaly Hunt

12 Things to do Before You Crash and Burn

12 Things to do Before You Crash and Burn - James Proimos

James "Hercules" Martino's father died. He doesn't miss him. His father, the bestselling self-help author, was an ass.

Herc has been sent to stay with his uncle during the summer. His Uncle Anthony has given Herc a list of 12 things to do.

1. Choose a mission.
2. Find the best pizza joint in town.
3. Clean out the garage.
4. Muck the stalls at Riverbend Farm.
5. Read a complete book under a tree.
6. Go to a place of worship and pray.
7. Go on seven job interviews.
8. Spent the day thinking big thoughts. Write them down.
9. Eat a meal with a stranger.
                                                         10. Make your uncle something.
                                                         11. Recite a poem at Blake's Coffee Shop Midnight Poetry Reading.
                                                         12. Complete your mission

UnWholly - Neal Shusterman

UnWholly - Neal  Shusterman
Sequel to Unwind 

Unwinding has become a big business. Parts Pirates want to expand on Unwinding. Parts are sold on the black market. AWOLs are not allowed and will be hunted. 

Scientists are using unwinding as a way to create. Cam was created from unwound parts. Everything about him came from someone else. He "remembers" a girl staring out the window of the orphanage and knows that he has to find her.


Connor, Risa, and Lev have returned after escaping the explosion at Happy Jack Harvest Camp. 

Connor now runs things at the Graveyard. Risa is still there working as a medic. Both of them are coming to terms with injuries they sustained at Happy Jack's.

The Graveyard is being watched. Connor and his Whollies are in danger with few places to turn.



Release Date: August 28, 2012
Received from Publisher @ TLA: Simon and Shuster

Spirit of Texas Library Programming

The Spirit of Texas

The Spirit of Texas Reading Program Middle School 

Featured Author : Andrea White

Windows on the World Programming

(Check out the Future Gadgets program. Yours truly designed it.)

The Spirit of Texas Reading Program High School

Featured Author : Cynthia Leitich Smith

Tantalize Series Programming

YART SPOT
(Young Adult Round Table Spirit of Texas)

YART SPOT

YART SPOT is directory of authors and illustrators in Texas. Visit the website to search for authors in your area. Information includes: price per visit, skype, location, etc.

This is all still a work in progress. If you have any suggestions, let us know.

TLA 2012

I survived my 1st Texas Library Association Conference. Where's my badge/button/t-shirt?

I'm being very serious. There were 6 of us from my school district that travel the 8 hours 

(Google maps said it would only take 6 hours) to Houston. We had a minivan. I was driving. 

I enjoy driving...most of the time. 

 I'll get to that in a minute.

I enjoyed many free meals provided by Scholastic, EBSCO, and Capstone. 

Thank you for allowing me to eat my weight in pineapple!   

Sessions --- Well, I did make it to some. 4 counts as some. Right? 

(2 of which were mandatory for SPOT)

(I'm not making this sound any better for me, am I?)

I had a wonderful dinner with many fabulous authors. None of whom I spoke with. I was awestruck. 

(I was lucky enough to get the Poe t-shirt)

Back to the driving. A minivan. 6 women. 6 suitcases. 12 LARGE bags of books. 4 boxes of shoes. 

8 hours.

 Can't wait until Ft.Worth 2013!!

In My Mailbox - Week of April 8

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. Check out the post to see what others received in their mailbox.

Received from Publishers

The Vicious Deep (ARC) - Zoraida Cordova
Revived (ARC) - Cat Patrick

The Boy Recession (ARC) - Flynn Meaney

Waiting on Wednesday (40)

Waiting on Wednesday spotlights upcoming releases that everyone's excited about.

Created by Jill at Breaking the Spine

Reunited - Hilary Weisman Graham

1 Concert
2,000 Miles
3 Ex-Best Friends


Alice, Summer, and Tiernan are ex-best friends.


Back in middle school, the three girls were inseparable. They were also the number one fans of the rock band Level3.


But when the band broke up, so did their friendship. Summer ran with the popular crowd, Tiernan was a rebellious wild-child, and Alice spent high school with her nose buried in books.


Now, just as the girls are about the graduate, Level3 announces a one-time-only reunion show.


Even though the concert's 2,000 miles away, Alice buys three tickets on an impulse.  And as it turns out, Summer and Tiernan have their own reasons to get out of town. Good thing Alice's graduation gift (a pea-green 1976 VW camper van known as the Pea Pod) is just the vehicle to get them there. 


But on the long drive cross-country, the girls hot more than a few bumps in the road. Will their friendship get an encore or is the show really over?


Release date: June 12, 2012

Waiting on Wednesday (39)

"Waiting on" Wednesday spotlights upcoming releases that everyone's excited about. 

Created by Jill at Breaking the Spine

The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls - Claire Legrand

Victoria hates nonsense. There is no need for it when your life is perfect. The only smudge on her pristine life is her best friend Lawrence. He is a disaster-- lazy and dreamy, shirt always untucked, obsessed with his silly piano. Victoria often wonders why she ever bothered being his friend.  (Lawrence does, too.)


But then Lawrence goes missing. And he's not the only one. Victoria soon discovers that Mrs. Cavendish's children's home is not what it appears to be. Kids go in but come out...different, or they don't come out at all. 


If anyone can sort this out, it's Victoria, even if it means getting a little messy. - From Goodreads


Release Date: August 28, 2012

Grave Mercy - Robin LaFevers

Grave Mercy - Robin LaFevers
His Fair Assassin #1

At the age of seventeen, Ismae has already had a rough life. Her mother tried to abort her and Ismae was left with a scar that runs from her left shoulder to her right hip. - Her father had given her to an arranged marriage to a pig farmer. He is abusive.

Ismae is saved by a priest who takes her to a convent, St. Mortain. Ismae discovers that she is the daughter of Mortain, the god of Death.
At the convent, she is trained as one of his handmaidens.

In order to protect Brittany from war, Ismae is taken to the high courts by Gavriel Duval. There, she pretends to be his mistress to learn about the treason.

Release Date: April 3
                                                          ARC Received from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Spell Bound - Rachel Hawkins

Spell Bound - Rachel Hawkins
Hex Hall #3

Sophie's powers are gone. They were taken by the Prodigium Council. She's landed at the Brannick Compound where she first believes she's in danger. Soon, she discovers that the Brannicks are family. Her mother is Brannick.

Sophie knows the battle between those with powers is no where near over.

She and her other classmates are mysteriously sucked back to Hex Hall against their will. There they are going to be trained for the use of their powers.

Chopsticks - Jessica Anthony & Rodrigo Corral

Chopsticks - Jessica Anthony & Rodrigo Corral

Told in scrapbook, IMs, YouTube videos.

Gloria "Glory" Fleming has disappeared. She is missing from the rest home where she was being treated for exhaustion.

Glory was the hailed as "the Brecht of the Piano" before her father took her on a tour through Europe. She became tired. She'd slip and play Chopsticks in the middle of a performance.

Most of all, she missed Frank, her boyfriend. Frank was living a completely different life without Glory. His grades suffered. he gets in fights and is eventually kicked out of school.

Opposites attract.

Rivals - Lauren Kunze & Rina Onur

Rivals - Lauren Kunze & Rina Onur

Callie Andrews, her roommates, friends, acquaintance, boyfriends, etc are now in their 2nd semester at Harvard. Things aren't much better.

Callie must find compromise between time with her friends, work, society demands with the Hasty Pudding club, Clint - the perfect boyfriend, Gregory - the possibly could have been perfect boyfriend, and classes.

That's a lot for a young freshman.


This is book #3 in The Ivy series.
Book #4 (Scandal) - Release date: December 18




This series is my guilty pleasure. As a middle school librarian, I read 100% YA Lit. What I buy usually goes into my school library. This series does not. It's about college age students and a bit too mature for my readers.

Purity - Jackson Pearce

Purity  - Jackson Pearce

"A novel about love, loss, and sex -- but not necessarily in that order. "

While on her death bed, Shelby's mother made her promise things:
   1. to listen to her father.
   2. love as much as possible
   3. live without restraint

Fast forward into Shelby's high school years. She lives by the promises she made. Sometimes, what her father doesn't know is for the best.

Shelby's father decides to join the planning committee for the annual Princess Ball. During the Ball, fathers vow to help their daughters live a pure life. Daughters vow to live a pure life. No drinking. No drugs. No bad behavior. No sex.

This throws a wrench in Shelby's promises to her mother. Is it possible to keep her promises and make the vow?

Shelby decides that she must lose her virginity before the vows. In her mind, this is the only way to keep both.



ARC received from Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: April 24, 2012

In My Mailbox - Week of March 19

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren. Check out the post to see what others received in their mailbox. 

Received from Publishers

  

Purity (ARC)- Jackson Pearce

It's Our Prom (So Deal With It) (ARC) - Julie Anne Peters

 

Wonder Show(ARC) - Hannah Barnaby

Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls (ARC) - Mary Downing Hahn

 

Chronal Engine (ARC) - Greg Leitich Smith

Island of Thieves (ARC)- Josh Lacey

 

Grave Mercy (ARC)- Robin LaFevers

Will Work fro Prom Dress - Aimee Ferris

Purchased

 

The Savage Grace - Bree Despain

Seeing Cinderella  - Jenny Lundquist

  

Spell Bound  - Rachel Hawkins

The Watch That Ends the Night - Allan Wolf

Rivals  - Lauren Kunze and Rina Onur

A Breath of Eyre - Eve Marie Mont

A Breath of Eyre - Eve Marie Mont

Emma Townsend is writing a paper on her favorite book, Jane Eyre, when she is struck by lightning. While she's in a coma, she is transported into the world of Jane Eyre. She's Jane and the people in her life are now the characters in the book.

Emma must choose between the world of Jane Eyre and her world.

ARC received from publisher.
Release date: March 27, 2012

May B - Caroline Starr Rose

May B  - Caroline Starr Rose

May has just been sent to live 15 miles away from her family to help out the neighbors. Pa says it's just until Christmas.

May doesn't question it, but would certainly rather be at home. The family that she has been sent to live with is anything but welcoming. The woman of the house eventually leaves and her husband goes after her. Four days pass and May realizes that they are not coming back.

It's winter. The roof leeks. There's a blizzard. May is determined to find her way home.

Curveball - Jordan Sonnenblick

Curveball (The Year I Lost My Grip) - Jordan Sonnenblick

Peter Friedman knew the minute he threw the last pitch in the game that it would be his last. The pain was too much to bare.

Peter is left to figure out how to spend his time now that baseball is no longer an option. One day while out taking pictures of eagles, his grandfather gives him thousands of dollars worth of camera equipment.
Peters problem is solved.

While taking a photography class in school, Peter discovers his talent as a sports photographer...and the girl flirting with him.

Unfortunately, Peter's grandfather has issues of his own.

Fever - Lauren DeStefano

Fever - Lauren DeStefano
Book #2 - The Chemical Garden Trilogy

Rhine and Gabriel are on the run. She is determined to find her brother Rowan.

Their first stop lands them in a carnival of sorts. The madam ringmaster keeps her harem of girls to entertain gentlemen callers. She even finds a way to get Rhine and Gabriel to entertain.

Once away from the carnival, they do find their way to Manhattan. Only to discover that her father-in-law, Vaughn, is hot on their trail.

In My Mailbox - Week of March 4

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme that is hosted by The Story Siren.Check out the post to see what others received this week.

  

The Catastrophic History of You and Me -  Jess Rothenberg

Double - Jenny Valentine

    

Fever - Lauren DeStefano

Radiate - Marley Gibson

Hidden - Helen Frost

Hidden - Helen Frost

At a young age, Wren was abducted. She was left in the car while her mother went in to pay for gas and buy a soda. West took the car not knowing that Wren was in it.

Wren spent two days in the Monson's garage. Darra, West's daughter knew Wren had to be somewhere inside, but never found Wren before she disappeared.

Years later, when the girls are fourteen they both attend the same camp. They recognize each others names.

Can they come to terms with how the past changed their lives forever?

Flyaway - Helen Landalf

Flyaway - Helen Landalf

Stevie Calhoun has been left home alone again. Her mother hasn't been back for days. This is nothing new, and nothing to worry about for Stevie, until her Aunt Mindy gets involved.

Mindy swoops in and forces Stevie to move in with her. Stevie has to adjust to her perfect aunts ways.

Along the way, Stevie discovers some secrets about her mother that she finds shocking. She comes to care for abandoned birds and a guy named Alan.

My Big Mouth - Peter Hannan

My Big Mouth (10 Songs I Wrote that Almost Got Me Killed) - Peter Hannan

Davis Delaware is the new kid in school. No, he's not from Delaware.

Immediately, Davis knows who the campus bully is and makes note to stay invisible. Unfortunately, Davis' existence is made known when he accidentally hits Gerald "the Butcher" Boggs in the face with a dodge ball.  Also unfortunate is that Davis has a crush on Molly. Molly likes to suck face with Gerald.

Davis, Molly, and Edwin start a band called The Amazing Dweebs and are on top of the school social ladder. Davis is king of the school and the Butcher isn't too happy about it.