Hey guys! Just a heads up about some cool events that are taking place in the next few weeks. That's right, always looking out for you. :)

Feb. 10, 2011 @ 3:30pm - Cupcake Craze Contest - Come decorate cupcakes for Valentine's Day. Cupcakes and decorating supplies provided.

Feb. 12, 2011 @ 10:00am - Tuition for Teens - Open to teens and their parents, use our new database to find money for college.

Feb. 15, 2011 @ 3:30pm - TAG! Meeting

Feb. 22, 2011 @ 5:00pm - Get Hooked! Crochet for Beginners - Come learn how to crochet. Please bring your own hook and a smooth, lightweight yarn to practice with.

Feb. 24, 2011  @ 3:30pm - Gaming Days @ the Library - Board, Card and Video Games for teens!****SOUTHWEST LIBRARY****

To start off the new year, I thought what better than new books! Here's some of the latest and greatest now available at your library. Request your copy today!

Hey guys! I just wanted to give everyone a head's up that January's TAG! meeting is going to be super cool. We'll have new books, food (probably pizza unless someone tells me they want something different), a contest, and some rockin' music. Oh, and something to do with paint... but I'm not telling what. : )

We'll be in the Lake Room of the Beale Memorial Library, Tuesday, January 11th at 3:30 pm. It'll be lots of fun as we plan for the new year, so bring a friend and join us for an exciting time.

~Rachel

Okay boys and girls, here's a list of our upcoming teen events. Let me know if you have any questions. ;) 

Friday, 12/10 - Recycled Junk Jewelry. Jewelry for Steampunks & Junk Hounds @ 3:30 in the Lake Room

Tuesday, 12/14 - TAG! Teen Advisory Group meeting @ 3:30 in the Lake Room

Tuesday, 1/11 -  TAG! Teen Advisory Group meeting @ 3:30 in the Lake Room

Tuesday, 1/18 - Get Hooked! Crochet for Beginners. Open to all ages. Bring your own work or come to learn @ 3:30 in the Lake Room.

-Rachel

I'm sure that all you are ready for some very yummy food next week. I know I am. Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, rolls, pumpkin pie, chocolate pie, that fruit salad that always seems to be there... Yep, I'm ready.

This is just a quick reminder that the Kern County Library will be CLOSED Thursday thru Saturday (November 25th - 27th). Enjoy your holidays, eat lots of food, hang out with the family, and maybe squeeze in a little Black Friday shopping.  :)

Cheers!
~Rachel

Bad things don't happen in Gentry. No floods, tornadoes, or earthquakes. No disease reaches the people of Gentry. Nothing bad happens.

Unless you count the children stolen from their cribs in the night, and offered up as human sacrifices days later. This is the price the town pays for their safety. Once a year, a child is taken and something else, something unnatural, is left in its place. The replacement is fragile, and usually doesn't survive. Parents bury the replacement and provide a headstone with their child's name on it.

That's what should have happened to Malcolm Doyle. Well, the replacement of Malcolm, anyway.

Mackie hates what he is. He lives his life just trying to blend in, and it generally works until Tate's sister is taken. Tate is determined to get her sister back, and she suspects that Mackie might be able to help her. Now, Mackie has to decide if he is willing to risk everything for Tate, by confronting the very monsters who left Mackie to die in a stranger's crib. Or will he, like the rest of the people in Gentry, choose to let Tate's sister pay the price for their safety?

In the blink of an eye, Mia's entire life is forever changed. A day that begins as a cherished "snow day," one of those days where the universe grants you a special gift, no school, soon turns in to the worst day of Mia's life. One that takes everything she has. Now she must decide if she is strong enough to survive, or if she even wants to.

Witnessing her damaged body being pulled from the wreckage of her family's car is just the beginning. She listens as friends tell her it's okay to go, and as others tell her to stay. Intensely moving, this book explores the life that Mia had and what she has lost. If I Stay is a witty and fun book that manages to take a serious situation and turn it into a beautiful discovery. I highly recommend this book, and am looking forward to the sequel Where She Went which will be available April 2011. (Already available for requests!)

-Rachel

"I don't want to be a man," said Jace. "I want to be an angst-ridden teenager who can't confront his own inner demons and takes it out verbally on other people instead."
 
"Well," said Luke, "you're doing a fantastic job."
 
 — Cassandra Clare, City of Ashes

"Ninety-five days, and then I'll be safe. I wonder whether the procedure will hurt. I want to get it over with. It's hard to be patient. It's hard not to be afraid while I'm still uncured, though so far the deliria hasn't touched me yet. Still, I worry. They say that in the old days, love drove people to madness. The deadliest of all deadly things: It kills you both when you have it and when you don't." 


Hmm... sounds interesting, right? Well, one of the great perks of being a librarian is getting to read books BEFORE they come out. Recently, someone put the book Delirium by Lauren Oliver in my hands and I thought it looked pretty interesting. So I read it in like two days and needless to say it really got my attention. I'm not going to through any spoilers out, but trust me when I say get it! Get it now!


I realize this won't be out until February, but I just have a feeling that this is going to be a big hit, which generally means request lists out the wazoo. So get your name on the list now, and be one of the first few to have it (I've already ordered several copies for us). Now that you've heard my two cents, heed your librarian's advice. We are intelligent creatures. :)

~Rachel

Well, first, congratulations for making it this far! You are so close to graduating, moving out of your parents house, living on ramen noodles, oh yeah, and being broke...

So I thought I would share this wonderful little database the library just got. It's called TFS (Tuition Funding Sources) and it's made possible by the Pepsi-Cola Company. They offer free college information, as well as info on how to get scholarships and other financial aid. If you are interested, you can check out the website from home at http://www.tuitionfundingsources.com/?library=KernCountyLib-CA. There's also a link on the Kern County Library home page.

Anyway, just thought I'd let ya'll know about this great resource. Happy scholarship hunting! (Hope you find enough so you don't have eat ramen noodles!)

~Rachel
Your money-lovin librarian