This week’s book trailer of the week is for The Selection by Kiera Cass. The Selection will hit book shelves next week and has already been picked up for a new TV show on the CW network. Click here to check out Kiera Cass’ website where it has all the news about the cast and filming of the TV show. Also, click here to find The Selection in the Library!
by Gabrielle Zevin
Anya Balanchine lives in New York City in 2083. In this future New York City, things like chocolate, coffee, and caffeine are illegal. Water is running out, and clothes are being handed down through the generations because production of new clothing has ceased. This New York City is run by a government that outlaws many things that are commonplace today, but things like chocolate are still available if you know the right people. Anya is one of those people. She is the daughter of a black-market chocolate crime boss, and her family is what we would consider the mafia. Anya’s father, however, was gunned down when she was a child and as far as she’s concerned she wants no part in the family business. Anya will take the perks, though, that come along with being the prominent daughter in one of the most notorious chocolate mafia families. However, these perks come with a price when she gives her ex-boyfriend chocolate that almost kills him. Someone is lacing Anya’s family chocolate with poison and Anya takes the fall. When she finds out what is really happening, Anya has to take steps to make things right which means getting involved in the family business after all.
All These Things I’ve Done is an interesting read. This future NYC is a different kind of dystopian that we’ve been seeing in other books. Zevin has created a world where each thing that is illegal plays such an important role to Anya’s story, even though this world is close to our, this is what makes this novel so interesting. I really liked getting to know Anya’s world better, as much as I liked getting to know Anya herself. She is a really likable character who you want to see take on her enemies and win, but you also hope that she can stay out of the family business and just be a normal teen. The supporting characters in this book are just as important to the story, and you really get a sense of how vital family and friends are in this future world. If you are a fan of dystopian books, like The Hunger Games, but want a world that is not as violent or so different from our own world then pick up Gabrielle Zevin’s All These Things I’ve Done. It has all the things you could want out of a good read: action, crime, the mafia, a mystery, and even some romance thrown into the mix!
This week’s book trailer is for Insurgent by Veronica Roth. Insurgent won’t hit book shelves until May 1, but the book trailer was posted last week. If you are a fan of Divergent, you’ll definitely want to watch this trailer. It’s really good! Click here to find Insurgent in our catalog and put a hold on it today!
Join us tomorrow, March 23 at 4 p.m. for a book discussion of The Hunger Games!
The movie hits the theater on Friday, and we are going to celebrate by revisiting the book, The Hunger Games. Come discuss your thoughts on this first title in Suzanne Collins’ trilogy. What kind of people would dream up this type of entertainment? What do you think is the cruelest part of the Hunger Games? Could this ultimately be the direction reality TV is headed? What do you think? Enjoy some snacks while you discuss these ideas and more.
For teens in grades 6 – 12. Click here to register for the program!
This week’s book trailer is for Starters by Lissa Price. Click here to find Starters in the Library!
Then click here to head over to EW’s Shelf Life blog to read an interview where Ally Condie answers questions about the trilogy, including an update on a movie adaptation! Also, they reveal the cover for book 3:
by Marie Lu
Legend is a book that had a lot of hype surrounding it. So when I sat down to read I wondered if it would live up to all of the hype. Legend wasn’t legendary, but it was pretty good and it stands apart from other dystopian (books similar to The Hunger Games) novels that have come out in the past year. What makes Legend stand out? First, there’s the font: it’s gold- I thought that was really cool. I’ve read a LOT of books and none of them so far have had gold colored font. The chapters written from Day’s perspective, the notorious teen criminal on the run from the Republic, are in gold. Then the chapters written by June, the genius future star of the Republic’s security force, are in black. Another great element is the action in the book. Right from the beginning you’re pulled into one of Day’s daring missions to try and help his family. This mission goes terribly wrong when one of the Republic’s security guards tries to stop Day and ends up losing his life. What makes matter worse is that it security guard was also June’s brother. A brother, who was like a father to her, since their parents died a few years back. June is assigned to track down Day and bring him to justice for killing her brother. But once June and Day meet face to face it turns out perhaps avenging her brother’s death isn’t the real answer to her or the Republic’s problems.
by Marissa Meyer
Cinder had me hooked from page 1: a scene in which a cyborg named Cinder replaces her foot. What a great way to begin a retelling of the Cinderella tale!
Cinder is set in a future Asian nation. Clearly, this Asian Commonwealth is the super power in the world. There have been wars, great advances in technologies, and a plague. Cinder is a cyborg mechanic, living a pitiful life of servitude after the man who saved her died and made his wife swear to keep Cinder safe. At the beginning of the novel, Cinder is spending just another day at the market when she is approached by a cloaked man asking her to fix his android tutor. This cloaked man turns out to be Prince Kai. The story that follows is not your traditional Cinderella story, however. The plague is sweeping through the nation, the Prince’s father and Cinder’s beloved step sister Peony are dying from it. After Cinder is involuntary drafted for plague testing on cyborgs (thanks to her evil step mother) Cinder finds out that she may hold the secret to the cure the disease. What follows is an exciting tale that keeps you guessing until the end.
I would highly recommend Cinder to any reader. This is a great science fiction read, with the added bonus of a retelling of the Cinderella story. However, this is not a strict retelling, Meyer only has nods to the original fairy tale. For me, Cinder was one of those rare books that I couldn’t put down and it is also one that I have been recommending to everyone!
Also, check out this great book trailer:
According to Teen.com, Taylor Swift with the duo Civil War released their song for the Hunger Games soundtrack via Twitter. The song is entitled “Safe & Sound”. Listen to it below:
Legend is the latest hot dystopian novel to hit the shelves. It was published in November and even before it appeared on bookshelves it had a movie deal. The author, Marie Lu, has a pretty interesting background as a director for a video game company and says that the idea for Legend came to her while she was watching Les Miserables.
To read more about Lu’s background in video games, click here to read her interview with EW’s Shelf Life.
To read more about the her inspiration for Legend, click here to read her interview with MTV’s Hollywood Crush blog.
Click here to find Legend in the Library!
