GreenBeanTeenQueen

I am so excited for the upcoming release of Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (out August 24!) and I'm sure many of you are too. Which is why I'm thrilled to announce GreenBeanTeenQueen is part of the Official Mockingjay 13 District Blog Tour! GreenBeanTeenQueen is a member of District 4 (home to Finnick and Mags-yes, I'm a proud district four member!), so on Monday August 9, be sure to stop by the blog for an exclusive Hunger Games giveaway! (I can't tell you what-I have to keep you in suspense, but I will say it's very cool and you'll want to check it out!) In the meantime, you can check out the new Official Hunger Games Facebook Page -there are polls, sample chapters from the first two books, and my favorite part, you can gift supplies to your friends! Are you excited? Any predictions for what will happen in Mockingjay ? And of course, the question on everyone's mind-Team Peeta or Team Gale? (Team Peeta!!)

Rating: 5/5 Stars Genre: Dystopian Release Date: 9/16/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Grace was raised to be an angel-a suicide bomber who would honor her mission. But Grace can't die for the cause so instead she's on the run trying to get to a new life of freedom. She escapes to a train where she hides in plain site with her strange traveling companion Kerr, who has secrets of his own. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: Grace is a stunning book that proves to me that Elizabeth Scott can write anything! Grace is a dystopian book that doesn't feel like a dystopian. It's a raw and powerful read that is chilling because readers can see the events easily unfolding today. Grace comes from a society that is blindly following Keran Berj and is part of a group that opposes his rule. Keran Berj's rule is frighteningly familiar and terrifying. Just look at history to see how a ruler like this could take over and it's easy to believe in Grace's tale. The read...

Tween Tuesday is a weekly meme to highlight great reads for tweens hosted here at GreenBeanTeenQueen. Join in the fun and post your own Tween Tuesday post and include the link in the comments. If you're a reader of my blog, you most likely know that I love romance in my books! As a librarian, I get asked for good tween romances a lot-tween readers want romance and parents are sometimes nervous about their tween reading books with romance. So for my tween romance readers, here's a list of some of my favorite tween romances. (And I know often when you mention romance it makes tween boys turn up their noses (and hey, guys like romance too!), but these all have romance plots but they're not central to the story and you can easily talk up another angle of the story to the guys.) The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger -Is origami Yoda real or a hoax? Tommy really needs to know-because if he follows origami Yoda's advice and it's wrong, he could just en...

Growing up, my family went to the library weekly-sometimes daily-and we were always reading and surrounded by books. I attended storytimes, children's book sales, children's programs and participated in the summer reading program. But when my teen years came, there wasn't as much for me at the library. There was a small section of books (with SVH, Fear Street, Nancy Drew Files, and Sunfire Romances ) but no programs or librarian specifically for me as a teen. I had such a hard time finding something to read and spent many days wandering aimlessly through the library stacks coming away with nothing. I really wanted someone to recommend a good book, but I was too shy to ask. I tell you this because I think this experience is why I am so passionate about library service to teens. Teens belong in the library, just like every other age group, but very often they don't feel accepted or like the library has anything to offer them. Being a teen librarian may sound easy, and w...

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I was so thrilled when I got to meet Holly Cupala at ALA this year! She's a ton of fun and super sweet and now I have the chance to host her here at GreenBeanTeenQueen! This author interview is part of Holly's worldwide blog tour-check out the next stop Monday, July 26 at The Undercover Book Lover Holly is hosting a contest as part of her tour, she check out Holly's blog and be sure to comment on the tour posts for entries! Welcome to GreenBeanTeenQueen Holly! Thank you for having me, Sarah! And can I just tell you, I love to say Green Bean Teen Queen? I’ve been looking forward to this forever. What was your favorite book as a teen? I spanned the continuum between SVH (oh yes, I pondered the ways of Elizabeth and Jessica with the best of them) and the classics. I had an unstoppable collection of teen romances. My parents must have thought they were pretty harmless…they were anything but! Mean girls, bad boys, monumental dilemmas…these things imprinted themselves on my co...

Check out Holly Cupala's blog for tour info including a chance to win prizes! Comments here count towards weekly prize drawings! Rating: 4/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary Release Date: 6/22/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Miranda has spent the past five years living in the shadow her sister, who died and left Miranda as part of a family that is falling apart. Her mother has always told her not to end up like her sister, but when two pink lines appear on a pregnancy test, Miranda's perfect daughter act is up. Her boyfriend has left her for her best friend, who might not really be a friend at all, she ditched her former best friend and now she won't talk to her, and all Miranda wants is her sister to help her through it all. Miranda searches for more about her sister's past and in the process finds out secrets about her sister-and discovers some she was hiding from herself. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: I wasn't sure what to think of Tell Me a Secret . It combines two...

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars Genre: Paranormal Release Date: 8/31/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Sixteen-year-old Evie hasn't ever really know what normal is. Her best friend is a mermaid, she can see through paranormals glamours, and she has a job bagging and tagging paranormals for IPCA-the International Paranormal Containment Agency. When an unknown paranormal goes on a killing spree, Evie is on the case to figure out what's going on. She meets a mysterious boy who might have the answers she seeks-as well as new information on IPCA that may make her question everything she's ever know. And all Evie wants is to be a normal teen-is that too much to ask? GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: Paranormalcy is fun, fun, fun! With shelves already full of paranormal YA reads, Paranormalcy stands out for being a lighter take on the paranormal genre and never taking itself to seriously. There's no brooding or over the top drama, which is a breath of fresh air. I loved Evie-she's spun...

Rating: 4/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary Release Date: 4/27/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: When Maddy's boyfriend of two years cheats on her with uber-popular and perfect Heather Campbell and nothing bad happens to him, Maddy decides to take matters into her own hands. She forms The Karma Club with her two best friends and the goal is to right the wrongs of the universe and take revenge on those who have done them wrong. But when you start to mess with Karma, it starts to mess back. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: The Karma Club is such a fun read! Maddy and her friends have the guts to pull of the sort of plans that anyone who has been hurt might wish to happen. There's a blurb on the back of the book that says this a book to read after you get dumped. I agree-the revenge and girl power are fun. Of course not all of their plans work out and some are pretty mean, so I felt the girls deserved what happened when they realize what they'd put into motion with their club. ...

Tween Tuesday is a weekly meme to highlight great reads for tweens! Join the fun, post a tween review, and add your link in the comments. Rating: 5/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary Release Date: 4/1/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Is Origami Yoda real or just a hoax? That's the question on Tommy's mind as he tries to discover the truth about Origami Yoda. Tommy is having girl problems-he likes Sara but doesn't know if she likes him back-and Origami Yoda has given him advice, but before he follows it he wants to know if Yoda is real or not. Origami Yoda is a finger puppet made by Dwight. Dwight has always been the strange kid at school and surely he's not smart enough to give the wise advice that Origami Yoda has given. So is Origami Yoda magical and real and should Tommy listen to him? GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: This is a short, fast, and fun read that has great tween appeal as well as appeal to all ages. I'm sure teens and adults would get a kick out of this ...

Photo Credit: Mindy Garfinkle Please welcome author Jenny Meyerhoff to GreenBeanTeenQueen! Jenny is the author of Queen of Secrets. I asked Jenny to share a story about libraries and I love what she has to say! A lot of people think I’m crazy because I pay to have a library card. The town I live in doesn’t have a library and none of my taxes go to support a neighboring town’s library, so unless I pay a fee for a library card, I won’t have one. Most of the people in my town do not pay this fee. It costs about $200. I guess to them it seems like a lot. After all they could buy themselves around 6-20 (or more) new books a year with that money, and since most people only read a couple of books per year anyway, it’s not such a great deal. But for me it’s a bargain, and not just because as a group my family probably checks out more than 20 books a month. (And movies too!) Libraries are a vital community center. When I go to the library, I always run into someone I know. I’m a pretty introver...

Rating: 3/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary Release Date: 6/22/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Shy sophomore Essie Green believes this will be the year her life changes. She's made varsity cheerleading and maybe popular football quarterback Austin King will finally notice her. Essie starts to make friends and Austin asks her out, but Essie is hiding a secret-the new boy Micah is her cousin. Micah and his family are observant Jew and everyone at school makes fun of Micah. But if Essie admits that they're related, won't everyone make fun of her too? When the teasing turns to hazing, Essie has to decide what she wants to stand up for. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: Queen of Secrets is loosely based on the Book of Esther. Knowing that as I read it, I liked picking out the parallels and seeing how the author gave this Biblical story a modern twist. That's not to say it's religious fiction, this is more realistic fiction with a religion in the story. Really this is Essie'...

Rating: 5/5 Stars Genre: Fantasy Release Date: 7/13/2010 Books in Series: Shiver , Linger Add to Goodreads About the Book: Last winter Sam was a wolf. But this year he's still human. But there are new wolves that were brought to the pack and one wolf, Cole, keeps changing early. As Sam tries to figure out his new role as pack leader, human boy, and what's happening with Cole, Grace is noticing changes in herself and feels as though her time is short. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: (Warning, this review may contain a lot of gushing!!!) Loved it, loved it, loved it! If I had a golden green bean award to give to books, I would give it to Linger . I wanted to read this in one sitting, but I made myself stop and put it down so I could savor it (which ok, I savored over two days instead of one-I couldn't help myself!) I read a lot of books and while I enjoy many of them and love a few, it's a rare book that makes me want to go back and re-read it again and again. But when I turne...

Rating: 4/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary Release Date: 7/1/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Sixteen-year-old Madison still loves logging on to Friendverse to see what her BFFs and her cute new boyfriend Nate are up to. But the latest social networking craze is Status Q, which is all about rapid-fire status updates. When one of Mad’s friends has to pull off a high-pressure heist, the gang relies on Status Q to send code messages to each other…all in the middle of a school dance! Will up-to-the-minute social networking save the day…or lead to good old-fashioned disaster? GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: I was happily surprised by this novel! Sure, it's fluffy and somewhat chick-litty, but I like that sort of thing, so I enjoyed What's Your St@tus . It was a quick read and loads of fun. The beginning of each chapter is told in Status Q updates, so I think it could have appeal for readers who like books written in chat, text, e-mail style. I wasn't expecting a lot going in and I was...

Tween Tuesday is a weekly meme started here at GreenBeanTeenQueen to highlight great reads for tweens. Join in the fun and leave your Tween Tuesday link in the comments. Rating: 3.5/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary Release Date: 4/27/2010 About the Book: Evie's life is about to get a lot more interesting, thanks to Francesca. Francesca is the niece of Evie's neighbor and she's a whirlwind. Francesca can be a bit dramatic and says she left her old school because they tried to "suppress her spirit." Evie doesn't want to be friends with Francesca, but when they get paired up in a school project, Evie finds herself drawn to Francesca's crazy life. But Evie can never quite tell if Francesca is telling the truth and their project isn't going as well as Evie would like. Plus, Francesca is trying to play matchmaker between the girls teachers, which could only end up in disaster. One thing is for sure-this will be a school year Evie will never forget. GreenBeanTeen...

Rating: 3/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary/Sci-Fi Release Date: 5/25/10 Add to Goodreads About the Book: TroDyn is the company that runs the small community that Mason lives in. But TroDyn has many secrets and Mason is about to get involved in a big one. While helping his mom at the nursing home she works at, Mason plays a video of his Dad reading The Runaway Bunny to a group of comatose teens. The video is the only knowledge Mason has of his father. During the reading, one of the teens wakes up and tells Mason they have to run and he needs to help her. Mason can't leave her so he helps her leave. Soon Mason discovers this girl is part of TroDyn's biggest, and most gruesome, secret. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: I really liked S. A. Bodeen's other novel, The Compound , and while The Gardener had a similar feel and a mystery to unravel, I didn't think it was quite as thrilling. Try not to read the back cover or any synopsis of the book because it gives away the big secret that Ma...

After reading and reviewing Wish I Might and complaining about characters in books who read up, I got to thinking about YA characters who are also YA readers. Maybe I just notice this more because I'm a librarian and an avid reader, but I love when a character in a book is a big reader. But it annoys me when I read YA (or children's books) and the avid reader character talks about their love of reading but then only goes on to mention classics and the typical required reading at school. Why can't these YA characters who are also readers mention YA books? I fight very hard for YA literature. I fight with Lexile reading levels all the time. I fight to have teens read what they want, no matter what it is and who cares if it's a classic literary novel. Who cares if it's below your reading level, if you enjoy it, read it. As someone who sees how amazing YA lit is, it can be very frustrating to come across a character in a book who is a teen and also a reader, but then o...

In promotion for her newest book, The Education of Bet , Lauren Baratz-Logsted is answering one question a day on various blogs around the blogosphere. Today is my day to host Lauren and here's my question: If you had to travel back in time and spend time with Will and Bet, what modern convenience would you take with you that you couldn't live without? Lauren : My little TV. I'd introduce Will and Bet to General Hospital. Once they realized that the people inside the box can't get out of the box, I'm sure they'd agree with me that the trial of Sonny for killing his wife - with no less than three people who know him on the jury! - is the most ridiculous thing they've ever seen. Will and Bet are wise that way. Love it! I was hooked on GH in college and when Lauren talks about it on Twitter, it makes me want to go back and get hooked all over again. I love Sonny-that trial sounds crazy! Want to follow Lauren's One Question Tour? Check out some of her othe...

Tween Tuesday is a weekly meme started here at GreenBeanTeenQueen to highlight great middle grade reads for tweens! Join the fun and post your own Tween Tuesday post-add the link in the comments. Rating: 3/5 Stars Genre: Action/Adventure Release Date: 4/27/2010 Add to Goodreads About the Book: Max Murphy is upset when his parents change vacation plans at the last minute to visit Central America-and leave him home. But when a plane ticket arrives and Max is told he needs to join his parents in San Xavier, he sets off on an adventure. When he arrives, Max discovers his parents are missing. With the help of a Maya girl named Lola, Max discovers that many people-his parents included-are after The Jaguar Stones-ancient stones that hold power. Max and Lola set off to find Max's parents and stop the Jaguar Stones from falling into the wrong hands. GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: This is a rare book that is action/adventure without being too heavy on the fantasy. There are some fantasy element...

Rating: 2/5 Stars Genre: Contemporary Release Date: 5/1/2010 About the Book: Willa's summer just got more confusing. A boy has shown up in Bramble claiming that he's Willa's long lost half-brother and that he think their father might still be alive. Does Willa believe him? And if this is true, how will this affect her mom and Sam? GreenBeanTeenQueen Says: This is a hard review to write because I adored the first three books in this series. But when the series took a turn from being "The Wedding Planner's Daughter" series to "The Life of Willa Havisham" the charm started to fade. I could deal with the last book because there were still glimpses of the charm that I liked. There was the big twist at the end with Willa's brother which was somewhat out of character for the books I thought, but still interesting. But Wish I Might just fell flat for me. The book itself is only 166 pages, and it takes around 70 pages in before we really get to t...