Creations from our Cupcake Decorating Party

Last Saturday, February 26, we had a Cupcake Decorating Party at the library. We started out with chocolate and vanilla cupcakes and frostings, and then participants mixed up their own fun and vibrant colors. They also creatively used sprinkles, M&M's, chocolate chips, and Reese's Pieces in their designs. Everyone enjoyed being able to create their own cupcake masterpiece! Take a look at what I'm calling "cupcake art" --    

by Amanda	by Jocelyn
by Hayle	by Hayle
by Milagros	by Milagros
by Emma	by Emma
by Rachel	by Rachel
by Denise	by Victoria
Tic Tac Toe by Mauricio	by Maria
by Maria	by Isabella
by Isabella The cupcake design is her dog, Gracey!	by Isabella The cupcake design is her dog, Ginger!
by Haley	by Haley

Thank you to everyone who attended our Cupcake Decorating Party!

Pick the films for our Spring Break Movie Marathon!

Monday, March 28 we are having a Spring Break Movie Marathon just for teens. We'll start the first film shortly after1:30 PM and then show three movies (with breaks in-between). Enjoy beverages, popcorn, and other snacks during the marathon. Between movies we'll also see who knows the most movie trivia! Sign up to attend the Spring Break Movie Marathon by registering online or calling the Information Desk at 847-428-3661 x 308.

Here are some movies that have been released on DVD in the last few months. Vote 1) in the poll on the right side of the page or 2) by posting in the Comments section: Put 1 next to your first choice, 2 next to your second, and 3 next to your third choice:

Charlie St. Cloud (PG-13)
Easy A (PG-13)
Iron Man 2 (PG-13)
The Last Airbender (PG)
Lottery Ticket (PG-13)
Salt (PG-13)
Secretariat (PG)
Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World (PG-13)
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (PG)
Step Up 3 (PG-13)
You Again (PG)

You're invited... to our Cupcake Decorating Party

Join us this Saturday, February 26 at 2 PM in the downstairs Meeting Room for our Cupcake Decorating Party!
We'll provide the cupcakes, frosting, and supplies. All you have to do is show up and get creative with your cupcake designs. We still have openings for this program. Be sure to register online, or call the Information Desk at 847-428-3661 x 308. Stay tuned to the blog for photos of everyone's cupcake artwork!

Who should be cast in The Hunger Games movie?

Movie studio Lionsgate has the rights to Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games trilogy, and production is estimated to begin late this spring or in early summer, with an expected release date of March 23, 2012. This means that even though fans have finished all the books in the series (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay), we still have the movies to look forward to. I hope that actual teenage actors, and not twentysomethings, are hired for the roles of Katniss, Peeta, and Gale. If you've read the books, which actors and actresses do you see playing the characters in the adaptation of the first book? Would you prefer that unknown actors and actresses are cast as these characters? Here are the characters to cast, along with a couple of my suggestions:

Katniss Everdeen
Sixteen-year-old Katniss hunts and trades for food to provide for her mother and younger sister. She wears her long dark hair in a braid. Entertainment Weekly recommends Chloe Moretz for this role. My choice: Hailee Steinfeld, who was recently nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in True Grit. She is talented, the right age (fifteen), and has the toughness needed to play Katniss.

Peeta Mellark
Although Katniss knew of Peeta before The Hunger Games, they have never spoken to each other, despite an important event from when they were younger that Katniss never forgot. One night Peeta threw a couple loaves of bread out to Katniss, who was starving and foraging behind his father's bakery for food. Peeta is described as being "medium height, stocky build, [with] ashy blond hair that falls in waves over his forehead." Throughout the Games it is difficult for Katniss to know whether Peeta is being genuine or is simply "playing the game."

Gale
Gale is eighteen years old and best friends with Katniss. He takes care of his family and goes out hunting with Katniss, who he has nicknamed Catnip. Katniss notes of Gale: "He could be my brother. Straight black hair, olive skin, we even have the same gray eyes." While Katniss denies having any romantic feelings for Gale, he may care for her more than just a friend. Do any actors come to mind when you read the following description of Gale?

...if he wants kids, Gale won't have any trouble finding a wife. He's good-looking, he's strong enough to handle the work in the mines, and he can hunt. You can tell by the way the girls whisper about him when he walks by in school that they want him. It makes me jealous but not for the reason people might think. Good hunting partners are hard to find. (p. 10)

Rue
In the book, Katniss says that Rue "can move through the woods like a shadow..." The other tributes underestimate Rue due to her small size. She loves music and is friends with some mockingjays back at home. Only twelve-years-old, she reminds Katniss of her sister.

She has bright, dark eyes and satiny brown skin and stands tilted up on her toes with her arms slightly extended to her sides, as if ready to take wing at the slightest sound. It's impossible not to think of a bird. (p. 98-9)

Prim Everdeen
Prim is the younger sister of Katniss, and has light hair and blue eyes like their mother. My choice to play this character: Eleven-year-old Kiernan Sherpka, best known for her role as Sally Draper on Mad Men.

Haymitch Abernathy
Described as "a paunchy, middle-aged man," Haymitch is drunk when he is first introduced, and is one of only two tributes from District 12 who have won The Hunger Games. I think Robbie Coltrane, who plays Hagrid in the Harry Potter films, would be a good choice for this character.

I had trouble thinking of teenage actors for the roles of Peeta and Gale. Who have I been missing? Plus, don't forget these other roles: Effie Trinket, the mayor, Cinna, the rest of the tributes in The Hunger Games....

Happy birthday, Charles Dickens!

English novelist Charles Dickens was born February 7, 1812, in what is now Portsmouth, England.

Facts about Dickens...

• He was one of eight children in a family that struggled with financial issues, and his father eventually ended up in debtor's prison. 
• By the time Dickens was a teenager he was already working in the law courts as a freelance reporter and stenographer. 
• At the age of 20 he worked as a news reporter and then began submitting sketches to various publications; this work was later published as Sketches by Boz. 
• Dickens was also quite popular in the United States and went on a lecture tour in 1842.  
• He had ten children with his wife Catherine (he separated from his wife in 1858).
• His public readings of his novels were very popular.
• Dickens died of a stroke on June 9, 1870.
• Thinking about visiting London? Visit the Charles Dickens Museum!

Books by Dickens:

• Nicholas Nickleby
• The Old Curiosity Shop
• Oliver Twist
• A Christmas Carol
• David Copperfield
• Bleak House
• Little Dorrit
• A Tale of Two Cities
• Great Expectations

One of my favorite books, and one that I continue to go back to re-read, is Great Expectations. I love Dickens' manner of telling a story and how he writes his characters. Have you read anything by Charles Dickens? What do you think of his writing?

Check out these books just added to the collection!

Sapphique by Catherine Fisher Find it in the catalog! TEEN FISHER	Fallout by Ellen Hopkins Find it in the catalog! TEEN HOPKINS	Fat Vampire: A Never Coming of Age Story by Adam Rex Find it in the catalog! TEEN REX
Immortal Beloved by Cate Tiernan Find it in the catalog! TEEN TIERNAN	Accomplice by Eireann Corrigan Find it in the catalog! TEEN CORRIGAN	Three Black Swans by Caroline Cooney Find it in the catalog! TEEN COONEY
Deadly Little Lies:  A Touch Novel by Laurie Faria Stolarz Find it in the catalog! TEEN STOLARZ	Bloody Valentine:  A Blue Bloods Book by Melissa De la Cruz Find it in the catalog! TEEN DE LA CRUZ	Bruiser by Neal Shusterman Find it in the catalog! TEEN SHUSTERMAN
Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Find it in the catalog! TEEN BARNES	Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin Find it in the catalog! TEEN WERLIN	Misguided Angel:  A Blue Bloods Novel by Melissa De la Cruz Find it in the catalog! TEEN DE LA CRUZ
Scrawl by Mark Shulman Find it in the catalog! TEEN SHULMAN	Once in a Full Moon by Ellen Schreiber Find it in the catalog! TEEN SCHREIBER	Heart to Heart by Lurlene McDaniel Find it in the catalog! TEEN MCDANIEL
You by Charles Benoit Find it in the catalog! TEEN BENOIT	Batman:  The Dark Knight Strikes Again by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley Find it in the catalog! TEEN GRAPHIC NOVEL BATMAN	Crazy by Han Nolan Find it in the catalog! TEEN NOLAN
Firelight by Sophie Jordan Find it in the catalog! TEEN JORDAN	Entice by Carrie Jones Find it in the catalog! TEEN JONES	Dark Song by Gail Giles Find it in the catalog! TEEN GILES
The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney Find it in the catalog! TEEN WHITNEY	Twelfth Grade Kills by Heather Brewer Find it in the catalog! TEEN BREWER	Hothouse by Chris Lynch Find it in the catalog! TEEN LYNCH
Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry Find it in the catalog! TEEN MABERRY

Teen Gaming Club

Join us in the Meeting Room this Friday, January 14 from 3-5 PM for the Teen Gaming Club. Choose to play the Wii games Rock Band 3, Guitar Hero, Mario Kart, Just Dance, or Just Dance 2. You can also bring in your own Wii games. While you wait to play on the Wii you can choose from our selection of board games to play, or just eat snacks and socialize with your friends.

Sign up for Winter Reading

Don’t let the winter blues get to you. You can get still get away from the Midwest winter even if you don’t go by plane, train, or automobile. Allow yourself to be transported to different places by opening up a good book. Reading is Your Ticket to Travel is the theme for Teen and Adult Winter Reading this year. Sign up begins Monday, January 10 at the Information Desk. You will receive a reading log where you can write down the books you listen to or read.

You do not have a requirement for a certain number of books to read. Read 1 book. Read 5. Read 15! Grab more entries from the Information Desk if you need them. Each book you read enters you into the weekly gift card prize drawings that will start at the end of week 2 (January 16-January 22), in addition to the grand prize drawing. One teen will win $75 in Target gift cards for the grand prize! The weekly drawings are for $20 gift cards to Classic Cinemas, Dunkin' Donuts, or Target.

New Year's resolutions

Do you make New Year's resolutions? What are your resolutions for 2011? Many people kick into "healthy mode" after the holidays with resolutions to eat better or to exercise five times a week. Since everyone makes these types of resolutions, I thought about other ideas. Funny resolutions. Out-of-the-ordinary resolutions. Just plain weird resolutions. Here is a list I brainstormed for myself:

• Make a daily attempt to insert the phrase "make haste" into normal conversation.
• Try a new recipe (not dessert!!) at least once a month.
• Walk backwards more often.
• Break out Cha Cha moves instead of walking.
• Write with my left hand 30 minutes a day so that by 2012 I will be ambidexterous.
• Come to think of it, I should probably practice my cursive handwriting 30 minutes a day, too, since my handwriting has evolved into a printing/cursive hybrid that is quite awful.
• Only read books told from the point of view of animals (The Art of Racing in the Rain, Animal Farm...)
• Learn sign language.
• Earn at least 9,000 points on all the songs featured in Wii game Just Dance.

Be a little crazy in formulating your resolutions for 2011 and share them in the Comments section!