The Librarian Writer

This is a photograph of my cat Jasmine, who passed away earlier this year. She was 17 years old and I adopted her when she was 5, so that's 12 years I'm very grateful I got to spend with her. Because it's Thanksgiving weekend and we've all got places to be, things to do, and leftovers to eat, this week I've collected a series of random cat videos for your entertainment and in honor of Jasmine. Pepper, An Actor's Life : Ninja Cat : I'm a Kitty Cat : An Engineer's Guide to Cats :

I recently saw Hanna , an action movie that came out earlier this year about a 16-year-old assassin. I thought it did a great job of using YA tropes (friendship, boys, identity), plus it's a pretty kick-ass movie. Hanna wasn't a mega-budget film and wasn't a mega-blockbuster, but there are good performances by Eric Bana and Cate Blanchett (if you can get past her Southern accent). And Saoirse Ronan as Hanna is amazing. (Oh, there's a pretty kick-ass soundtrack by The Chemical Brothers, too.) It's definitely worth renting, streaming, or putting on your Netflix queue if you missed it in theaters. Here's the trailer for Hanna :   Hanna also got me thinking about some teen-centric movies you may have missed entirely, because I almost did. These are indie movies that didn't have wide distribution and that I stumbled upon, either through recommendations or dumb luck. The Chumscrubber stars Jamie Bell as a teen in suburbia whose drug-dealing friend ...

Title: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer Author: Michelle Hodkin Publisher: Simon & Schuster Publication Date: September 27, 2011 ISBN-13: 978-1442421769 446 pp. Reading copy via local library This book had a lot of buzz pre-publication and I can see why. Way cool cover. Intriguing premise of is-she/isn't-she crazy. And it almost delivers.  It kind of bums me that I didn't L-O-V-E it like I thought I would, but it's still a good read. Mara Dyer (not her real name as we learn in a prologue) wakes up in the hospital after an accident has killed her best friend Rachel, frenemy Claire, and boyfriend Jude. Mara has no memory of the accident and starts seeing Claire and Jude. Mara tries to convince herself that she has post-traumatic stress disorder and these sightings are merely hallucinations. Mara also convinces her family that what she really needs is to get away from places that remind her of her friends, so the whole family moves to Florida. There she enters...

It rained this morning, I'm wearing my favorite red sweater, and I'm drinking a bigass cup of coffee. Fall is very much in the air. The year has zoomed by, but I've managed to keep on track with the Debut Author Challenge . Last month, I read and reviewed Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys (and guys, seriously, read this book). And I'm almost done with The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (review forthcoming). Alas, I haven't had time to go back and finish any of the other books I'm reading. So I'm going to choose one of them to complete for my December read. One thing I've learned during the year is that unless I can get an egalley before the publication date, I just don't have the time to read a book during the month it's published. Fetching by Kiera Stewart, which was my December read choice so very long ago, ended up being published in November, and I missed the egalley boat. But I'm halfway through How Lamar'...

I finally made it to LACMA's Tim Burton exhibit , which was all the awesome that I was expecting. No one is allowed to take a camera into the exhibit, but people are permitted to take a photo of the entrance, which is suitably twisted. I am a huge Tim Burton fan, although I acknowledge that his work has been uneven ( Planet of the Apes , anyone?) . But in the spirit of Halloween, I thought I'd share some Tim Burton love. First of all, Cakewrecks recently highlighted Tim Burton themed cakes that you just have to see to believe. Secondly, I stumbled upon the original version of The Nightmare Before Christmas poem, narrated by Christopher Lee, and here for you to enjoy: Finally, here's a sneak peek at Tim Burton's Dark Shadows , which releases next year. (Yes, I have ridiculously high expectations.) Bonus video : And because it's Halloween, I have to include Neil Gaiman's (why isn't Tim Burton directing The Graveyard Book ?) pitch for All Hal...

Title: Between Shades of Gray Author: Ruta Sepetys Publisher: Philomel Publication Date: March 22, 2011 ISBN-13: 978-0399254123 344 pp. Reading copy purchased at SCBWI conference I've read several really awesome books this year because of the Debut Author Challenge , but none have affected me as deeply as Between Shades of Gray . Lina is a fifteen year old art student in Lithuania during the outbreak of World War II. One night, she's rounded up along with her mother and younger brother and sent to a work camp in Russia. It's a harrowing story full of hardship and tragedy, but there is also kindness, hope, and even romance. Ruta Sepetys created a story inspired by her own family history and shined a light on a dark corner of our shared human history. It is a powerful read and, believe me, you will need some Kleenex handy. I would recommend Between Shades of Gray to readers who enjoyed Witness by Karen Hesse or Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan. Bonus...

I've mentioned the website Hot Guys Reading Books before, which pretty much delivers what it says it does. Now there's another website you need to check out: Men of the Stacks . It gives "sexy librarian" a new meaning as male librarians get their very own pin-up calendar! There are a couple of beefcakey shots (Mr. January is a yowza), but most are of fully clothed cute guy librarians.  All proceeds from the calendar go to the It Gets Better Project , the brainchild of author Dan Savage to help LGBTQ teens who are bullied. You may have seen one of the It Gets Better videos. Everyone from celebrities to politicians to CEOs to ordinary people have taped messages of support to LGBTQ teens to let them know that they are important and loved and awesome things wait for them. One of my favorite It Gets Better videos is from Tim Gunn: Consider buying the Men of the Stacks 2012 calendar as a Christmas/Hanukkah/Festivus present!