CGHS Library

Readergirlz Teen Read Week 2009

Sweeney's Glamour Shot

Photo by Zak Wohlschlegel

Bad Girls Don't Die

I thought Bad Girls Don't Die was a good book. I would try and guess ahead of time what was going to happen, and I was wrong EVERY time! Most people wouldn’t find that comment funny, but if you know me you would understand. I read a lot, and I have realized that a lot of new authors copy small details from other books. This author did an excellent job in my opinion. It’s a romance/scary book that really pulls you into the story. One minute you are thinking “aww that’s sweet!” and the next you have this little girl trying to kill the neighbor! The ending wasn’t predictable and I liked the book.

Alexis is your typical high school outcast who deals with her parents dysfunctional marriage and a kid sister. At the same time, Carter shows up at her high school and Alexis begins to wonder if someone finally understands her, resulting in her falling for him. As the book goes on, a family argument ends in a sister bonding moment. Alexis quickly discovers that Kasey may no longer be her sister, though. Strange things are happening around their house, and then the harmless spooky things turn dangerous. Alexis realizes that she is the only one who can stop Kasey…but can she? (K. Siegrist)

 

 

Green Day

"They certainly made a lot of money and they certainly were able to buy houses and cars and things. Although that really wasn't where their mindset was necessarily. . . . They actually were saying to themselves, 'We've made it now. What are we gonna do?' And their main response to that was to prove to everybody that they still rocked." (pg. 119 of Nobody Likes You: Inside the Turbulent Life, Times, and Music of Green Day)

Author and Journalist Marc Spitz takes you on an in-depth journey through the past present and soul of GREEN DAY. (Travis and Sabrina)

Sweeney Goes Hollywood

Video by Timothy Frese

Visual Searching

Bing launches new Visual Search

Phil Bradley writes: “No sooner does one new visual search option come along, than you get another. Neck and neck with Google’s Fast Flip (which allows users to skim through Google News stories by viewing an enlarged thumbnail) do we have Bing’s Visual Search. It’s a simple concept: People like searching visually. The idea is that you simply click on what interests you, and you'll get a bunch of images. You can then mouse over the one that interests you and immediately see some information below the search box, with the person/thing/whatever added into the search box for you.”...
Phil Bradley’s Weblog, Sept. 15; Google News Blog, Sept. 14

The School for Dangerous Girls

Catie G. read The School for Dangerous Girls, and her opinion of the book was that she wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. She summarized the book as “weird and creepy”.

            These bad, and Catie says they are really bad, not just pretend-bad, girls are put in this dirty, old, strange mansion for a year to make them model citizens again. The teachers do odd tests to the girls and play cruel mind games. As the book jacket says, "Some girls are meant to get better . . . and some girls are meant to stay forever."

            Catie stuck it out, though, and finished the book. She said the ending was very predictable, but at the same time it seemed fuzzy and unclear. (For another point of view, look at Teenreads. They agree with Catie about the ending.)

Gangs and Gangsters

An illustrated history of the most famous gangs of all time from Jesse James to the mobs of Prohibition, GANGS AND GANGSTERS is old, beat up, and the pages are yellowed, but it is written in a clear, engaging style. “Men were just as violent, just as greedy, just as vindictive in rural America as in the cities, but in the wide open spaces, at least, there weren’t so many of them and legend had room to grow.” (page 119)

Buffy vs. Edward

The splendid Sarah H. sent me Jonathan McIntosh's remix of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Twilight.

Story of a Girl

Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr

At the age of thirteen, Deanna's father found her in the backseat of a car with her older brother's friend, Tommy. The rumors which quickly spread around her small town and her school were horrible, but even worse was the look in her father's eyes. In the three years since the incident, Deanna's dad has given her the cold shoulder, constantly reminding her of the disappointment and embarrassment of that night.

Now sixteen, even though she has dated no one and done nothing, Deanna has been unable to shake her bad reputation. The only classmates she calls friends, Lee and Jason, are dating each other. She feels like a third wheel when they hang out - and a stab of jealousy when she sees Lee wearing Jason's shirt.

Deanna's new job at a pizza place almost offers her more than she can handle. She is surprised to find a new friend in Michael, the middle-aged manager, and even more surprised to find Tommy, her brother's old friend, as a co-worker. Deanna stays put, determined not to let Tommy's presence get the best of her. 

At home, she finds reprieve from her brisk father and her nervous mother in her brother Darren, who lives in the basement with his girlfriend and their infant. Deanna secretly wants to move out with Darren, Stacy, and April, planning on contributing to their rent and bills with her modest paycheck.

During this impressionable summer, Deanna realizes that maybe, just maybe, she can stop worrying about who people think she is and become who she is meant to be. That instead of looking back, she can look forward. (taken from slayground)