Thursday, 20 March 2014

Ahhh time... where does it go?

As spring break careens at a breakneck pace towards back-to-school Monday, I find myself pondering the mysteries of time. Why does time pass so much more quickly as one ages? In my youth, I remember time could weigh quite heavily; there was nothing quite so frustrating as boredom. Now I can't remember the last time I was bored; instead, there always seems more to do than time to do it in, despite the fact that my days are now made up of fewer events. As a child, I felt that Christmas would never arrive; as an adult, each Christmas seems to arrive on the heels of the last. With the contrary nature of time, it's little wonder that  many authors seek to manupulate the hourglass, often with surprising results.. Here are a few time-bending stories that you might like:

TimeRiders (TimeRiders #1)

Liam O’Connor should have died at sea in 1912.
Maddy Carter should have died on a plane in 2010.
Sal Vikram should have died in a fire in 2026.

Yet moments before death, someone mysteriously appeared and said, ‘Take my hand ...’

But Liam, Maddy and Sal aren’t rescued. They are recruited by an agency that no one knows exists, with only one purpose—to fix broken history. Because time travel is here, and there are those who would go back in time and change the past. That’s why the TimeRiders exist: to protect us. To stop time travel from destroying the world....

The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare (Alex Wayfare #1)


For as long as 17-year-old Alex Wayfare can remember, she has had visions of the past. Visions that make her feel like she’s really on a ship bound for America, living in Jamestown during the Starving Time, or riding the original Ferris wheel at the World’s Fair.

But these brushes with history pull her from her daily life without warning, sometimes leaving her with strange lasting effects and wounds she can’t explain. Trying to excuse away the aftereffects has booked her more time in the principal’s office than in any of her classes and a permanent place at the bottom of the social hierarchy. Alex is desperate to find out what her visions mean and get rid of them.

It isn’t until she meets Porter, a stranger who knows more than should be possible about her, that she learns the truth: Her visions aren’t really visions. Alex is a Descender – capable of traveling back in time by accessing Limbo, the space between Life and Afterlife. Alex is one soul with fifty-six past lives, fifty-six histories.

Fifty-six lifetimes to explore: the prospect is irresistible to Alex, especially when the same mysterious boy with soulful blue eyes keeps showing up in each of them. But the more she descends, the more it becomes apparent that someone doesn’t want Alex to travel again. Ever.

And will stop at nothing to make this life her last.

Elsewhere

Welcome to Elsewhere. It is warm, with a breeze, and the beaches are marvelous. It’s quiet and peaceful. You can’t get sick or any older. Curious to see new paintings by Picasso? Swing by one of Elsewhere’s museums. Need to talk to someone about your problems? Stop by Marilyn Monroe’s psychiatric practice.
     Elsewhere is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall ends up, after she has died. It is a place so like Earth, yet completely different. Here Liz will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby again and returns to Earth. But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver’s license. She wants to graduate from high school and go to college. And now that she’s dead, Liz is being forced to live a life she doesn’t want with a grandmother she has only just met. And it is not going well. How can Liz let go of the only life she has ever known and embrace a new one? Is it possible that a life lived in reverse is no different from a life lived forward?
     This moving, often funny book about grief, death, and loss will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.

Ruby Red (The Ruby Red Trilogy #1)

Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!
Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

The Time Traveler's Wife

Audrey Niffenegger's dazzling debut is the story of Clare, a beautiful, strong-minded art student, and Henry, an adventuresome librarian, who have known each other since Clare was six and Henry was thirty-six, and were married when Clare was twenty-three and Henry thirty-one. Impossible but true, because Henry is one of the first people diagnosed with Chrono-Displacement Disorder: his genetic clock randomly resets and he finds himself misplaced in time, pulled to moments of emotional gravity from his life, past and future. His disappearances are spontaneous and unpredictable, and lend a spectacular urgency to Clare and Henry's unconventional love story. That their attempt to live normal lives together is threatened by something they can neither prevent nor control makes their story intensely moving and entirely unforgettable.


11/22/63

If you had the chance to change the course of history, would you? Would the consequences be what you hoped?

Jake Epping, 35, teaches high-school English in Lisbon Falls, Maine, and cries reading the brain-damaged janitor's story of childhood Halloween massacre by their drunken father. On his deathbed, pal Al divulges a secret portal to 1958 in his diner back pantry, and enlists Jake to prevent the 11/22/1963 Dallas assassination of American President John F. Kennedy. Under the alias George Amberson, our hero joins the cigarette-hazed full-flavored world of Elvis rock'n'roll, Negro discrimination, and freeway gas-guzzlers without seat belts. Will Jake lurk in impoverished immigrant slums beside troubled loner Lee Harvey Oswald, or share small-town friendliness with beautiful high school librarian Sadie Dunhill, the love of his life?
There you have it - time travel tales for every type of reader. You'll find them all in your library.



Friday, 14 February 2014

Happy Valentine's Day!

It's been too long since my last post, but the weeks since Christmas have flown by in our busy library. There are dozens of great new titles being released and I'm trying to keep up. If you have a recommendation for a book for our collection, please let me know, here or in person. This seems to be the year for finishing trilogies; I've just received the final books for each of the following series:

Enclave by Ann Aguirre  (Horde)
Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi (Into the Still Blue)
Pure by Julianna Baggott (Burn)
Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick (Monsters)
Tempest by Julie Cross (Timestorm)
Shatter Me by Tehera Mafi (Ignite Me)


In the next few months, we'll see the third books for these popular series:

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
Ashfall by Mike Mullen
Blood Red Road by Moira Young
Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne

This is just a taste of the new books. Come in and see them all.

The new bookmarks are here and are proving to be just as popular as the last batch. We'll have one more contest for the artists in the school to design bookmarks in the last term.

Melanie Ray, a professional story-teller, visited the library yesterday to share some tales of the Middle Ages with a particular emphasis on the stories found in Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. As always, her audience of senior students was whisked away to other times and lands for an enchanting hour.

Saturday, 21 December 2013

Happy Holidays!

What a lovely start to the holidays! The snow day felt like a gift - a slow day for wrapping gifts, reading, napping, and enjoying the fall of lazy flakes from a quiet sky.

The Bookmark Contest was a success. Kody, Kayliegh, Danica, Megan, Jordyn  and Loveleen created amazing tiny works of art which will be available in the new year.

This is just a quick post for now. I'll be back soon with a list of new books which will be ready to borrow when you all return to HPSS. Hint - Manga fans will be very happy.

Sunday, 24 November 2013

The winner is...

Harveer Sekhon won the Divergent boxed set. Congratulations, Harveer, and thank you to all who participated. We've got some terrific new reviews. The next contest will be a new Design a Bookmark contest. Listen to the announcements for the start of this competition.

Friday, 1 November 2013

NOVEMBER CONTEST!

The library is hosting an exciting contest for November. The prize is a box set of the Divergent trilogy in hardcover - many of you have loved this series, now you have the chance to own all three books to read or reread at your leisure. To enter, all you have to do is write a review of any book and submit it to Ms. Schmor in the library. You can submit it in person or by email to Christine.schmor@mpsd.ca. Names of entrants will go into a draw that will take place on Thursday, November 21st at 3:30 pm. You can write up to four reviews for four chances to win. Good luck!
HOW TO WRITE A REVIEW***************************************
Your reviews do not have to be lengthy. You should begin with an introduction to the main characters, the setting and the plot. Set the scene and hint at future twists, but no spoilers please. If you know the genre or type of literature (paranormal, fantasy, romance, mystery, thriller, science fiction, humour, survival, dystopian, steampunk, relationship issues etc.) make mention of it.

Next, explain what you most liked about the novel. Try to be specific and provide examples where you can. If you simply say the story was interesting, you're not telling us much. But if you describe the characters as multi-dimensional, realistic and compelling and the plot as original, suspenseful and surprising, we have a much more clear impression. You can mention some weaknesses at this point, but they should not overshadow the novel's strengths.

Finish with a recommendation. What kind of reader would be most drawn to this story? Is the novel appropriate for a certain age group or for anyone? Does the novel put forward an important theme or lesson about life? Is this a series book that will have readers looking for the sequels? Is this a book that will change a reader's life?

Saturday, 26 October 2013

The book you've been waiting for.... ALLEGIANT

 
Yes, it is finally here. Those of you who have been dying to know what happens to Tris and Four can now finish the Divergent series with the long-awaited Allegiant. We have two copies that are out with readers right now, but we have more coming next week. Here's a look at the upcoming movie.

Sunday, 20 October 2013

MORE READALIKES!

I've just listed some readalike titles for the  Conspiracy 365 series and John Green's novels on the " If you like, you should try" page. Take a look!