New Things in Friends Shop.....

Every month I enjoy stopping at the Waterford Library's Friends Shop to check out what neat and exciting displays they have. Interesting toys, stickers, and handmade items for incredibly low prices always make me take a second look, if not buy something. Yesterday I bought this incredibly cool handmade snake that can be used as a decoration or a scarf! Make sure you take a peek next time you drop by!

Barnes and Noble reshelving "Teen"

In a sign of just how popular teen fiction has become, Barnes & Noble is in the midst of rearranging its teen fiction section chain-wide this week in an effort to improve the shopping experience and boost sales. Already teen fiction is the biggest book growth category at Barnes & Noble, according to Mary Amicucci, v-p of children’s books. In terms of volume, it is the second largest subject, behind adult fiction.

After testing the concept at a Barnes & Noble store in Hackensack, N.J., three weeks ago, the chain pushed the go button to reorganize all its teen sections by separating out the two most popular genres—paranormal romance and fantasy and adventure—from teen fiction. Teen series will be absorbed into the appropriate category, and two bays will be devoted to bestsellers. One will change weekly to reflect the top 10 teen fiction bestsellers; the other will be organized by genre and display top teen picks.

Signage heralds the new Teen Paranormal Romance section at Barnes & Noble.“It’s really about improving the customer experience,” Amicucci told PW. “We haven’t expanded or shrunk anything. That was the beauty of this—by breaking the genres out, we can really showcase the books. The key is a directed customer shopping experience that really supports browsing patterns.”

In addition to helping teens discover new books, the rearranged sections will enable them to easily filter out books they’re not interested in and go straight to the genre that they’re looking for.

The decision over which titles to put where was made in conjunction with some of Barnes & Noble’s largest publishing partners. Combined, the new paranormal and fantasy and adventure sections are slightly larger than teen fiction. “We’re getting some great feedback from our stores. We’ve seen it make an impact [in Hackensack],” says Amicucci. Although some stores have already completed their relays, the goal is for all the changeovers to be finished by the end of this weekend.

Related Topics and Links:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-industry-news/article/44915-b-n-divides-out-teen-fiction-genres.html

Who Moved My Cheese? --Evan H.

This is a book review authored by one of our on TAB members, Evan. Enjoy!

Who Moved My Cheese?

Who moved my cheese is a fun exciting book that you can't put down. I didn't think the book was cheesy at all. It's about two little people and two little mice who are going from cheese station to cheese station looking for their favorite cheese. One person is excited to go on, but the other one is nervous. There are many lessons in this book and I enjoyed learning them. My dad use to read a brief version of the story to me over and over again when I was a kid. All in all it's a book that sparks the interest of kids and adults alike.

Thanks Evan!

Rolling Stone: Interviews

This is a nice book to read a chapter at a time; wherever and whenever you can fit five minutes into your day to get a glimpse of Robin Williams at his height in the 80's, or Bill Murray after Caddyshack, or even Kurt Cobain in 1994 who says very candidly at one point, "I don't even remember the guitar solo on "Teen Spirit"....it's almost embarrassing to play it."
Names like Jack Nicholson, Spike Lee, Tina Turner, Mick Jagger, the Dalai Llama, and Eminem all give their two cents on their lives, careers, and futures in this unique tome that brings together some of the biggest names in show business. It's a fun read, easy to page through if you're just interested in a few of the names, and very, very, real. Very funny at times, as well. I picked it up yesterday and am nearly done; healthier too for the numerous laughs it gave me--(Isn't Keith Richards priceless)???

Teen Read Week

This week is Teen Read Week @ the Waterford Library. This week is dedicated to teens--just like you--who love to read and will eventually become our future generation of library users (think mom and dad...yeah, it's true). So, in an effort to show YOU, yes YOU, how much we care, we have added an interesting display designed for young adults, bought special bookmarks for the event, and have a contest you can enter at the front desk. One lucky person will win a special prize at the end of the week. So, if you are a tween or teen between the ages of 10-18, please stop at the circulation desk and fill out an entry form. Who knows? Maybe you'll be our lucky "Teen Read Week" Winner.

October Books......

October’s roundup of Cool New Books includes REVOLUTION, the highly anticipated novel by Jennifer Donnelly that weaves together the stories of a depressed, modern-day teen and a young heroine of the French Revolution; FORGE, Laurie Halse Anderson’s page-turning sequel to CHAINS, which tells of a young slave’s struggle to survive the American Revolution --- and somehow forge a path to freedom; THE SCORCH TRIALS by James Dashner, the second installment of The Maze Runner Trilogy that follows Thomas and the Gladers as they try to cope with the challenges of life outside the Maze; BIRTH OF A KILLER, the riveting prequel to Darren Shan’s Cirque du Freak series that sheds light on the mysterious origins of Larten Crepsley; part two of Scott Westerfeld’s Leviathan Trilogy, BEHEMOTH, which chronicles the ongoing conflict between the Darwinists and the Clankers as it plays out on board a British airship; and DASH & LILY’S BOOK OF DARES, Rachel Cohn and David Levithan’s story of a girl who tries to find the right guy by leaving a notebook on the shelf of her favorite bookstore. » Click here

Handling the Undead? Easy in this book.....

*This Review Contains Spoilers

I must say, as an avid reader of zombie-type fiction, I was anticipating this book with every breath. And although I stayed up ALL night (ok, most of it), to finish this book, I have a few complaints:
1. Its end suggested its not really over. Are we going to be dealing with ANOTHER trilogy here?
2. The Zombies just aren't very scary and can talk (!!) which every Romero fan knows, is a big no-no.
3. The undead, while showing bits and pieces of ferocity, aren't really that terrifying...nor do they seem to like to eat people. And, let's face it. That's really the best part of any zombie plan.
4. I had a hart time identifying with any of the main characters whom I found to be extremely one-dimensional and "typecast."
5. The whole butterfly/cocoon connection is a bit beyond me. A great scientific example would be "28 days later", but the whole insect thing just didn't seem plausible in the least.
6. Lastly, the best scene in the book, (the drowned man coming back to life) had very little gore and was "taken care of" using "positive thoughts and singing."
Okay, maybe it's just me. But this was a bit too fluffy for me to take seriously. Perhaps the author's intention was to add some humanity to the whole zombie genre, I don't know. But what I do know is that when I pick up a book with the term "Undead" on the cover....I expect some great brain-eating action