The Hunger Games, By Suzanne Collins

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Press (September 14, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439023483

Reader's Annotation: In a dystopian future where a reigning government reminds the people of their place in society (and discouraging uprisings) by hosting a reality based TV show meets roman gladiator ring where two tributes (one boy and one girl) from each of the 12 districts are chosen by lottery to fight to the death on camera. Katniss, a black market hunter in district 12, volunteers for the games to replace her young sister. But, will her game hunting background really be enough to keep her alive in the ring?

Summary: "In a not-too-distant future, the United States of America has collapsed, weakened by drought, fire, famine, and war, to be replaced by Panem, a country divided into the Capitol and 12 districts. Each year, two young representatives from each district are selected by lottery to participate in The Hunger Games. Part entertainment, part brutal intimidation of the subjugated districts, the televised games are broadcasted throughout Panem as the 24 participants are forced to eliminate their competitors, literally, with all citizens required to watch. When 16-year-old KatnissÆs young sister, Prim, is selected as the mining districts female representative, Katniss volunteers to take her place. She and her male counterpart, Peeta, the son of the town baker who seems to have all the fighting skills of a lump of bread dough, will be pitted against bigger, stronger representatives who have trained for this their whole lives. CollinsÆs characters are completely realistic and sympathetic as they form alliances and friendships in the face of overwhelming odds; the plot is tense, dramatic, and engrossing. This book will definitely resonate with the generation raised on reality shows like Survivor and American Gladiator. Book one of a planned trilogy." ~Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK 

UnLibrarian's Opinion: I absolutely loved loved this novel. I would go so far as to say it is one of the finest YA novels out there. I can't wait to read the next installment. Evoking the classical lust for blood in a roman arena while feeding off the current state of the iraqi war, 24-hours news coverage, and reality TV, Ms. Collins pulls out all the stops with this pertinent roller coaster ride that is both relatable and fantastic. A MUST READ. 

Extras: Official Trilogy Website http://www.scholastic.com/thehungergames/

Suzanne Collins Official Website: http://www.suzannecollinsbooks.com/

Interview via Borders Media with Suzanne Collins (Hunger Games/Catching Fire)! Part One Below. Visit Link for the Continuation.

 

Lionsgate acquires rights to the film adaptation due out in 2011! 

Via Wikipedia: Lionsgate Entertainmenthas acquired worldwide distribution rights to a film adaptation of The Hunger Games, which will be produced by Nina Jacobson's Color Force production company. Collins will adapt the novel for film herself. IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1392170/

Awards- Via Wikipedia The Hunger Games has also received a number of awards and honors, including being a USA Today and New York Times Best Seller, and being named one of Publishers Weekly's "Best Books of the Year" in 2008 and a New York Times "Notable Children's Book of 2008".

Other authors speak out on why they love the Hunger Games: 

"[The Hunger Games] is a violent, jarring, speed-rap of a novel that generates nearly constant suspense...I couldn't stop reading."

--Stephen King, Entertainment Weekly Review

Read Full EW Review:
http:/​/​www.ew.com/​ew/​article/​0,,20223443,00.html

"I was so obsessed with this book I had to take it with me out to dinner and hide it under the edge of the table so I wouldn't have to stop reading. The story kept me up for several nights in a row, because even after I was finished, I just lay in bed wide awake thinking about it...The Hunger Games is amazing."

--Stephenie Meyer, author of The Twilight Saga

"The Hunger Games is as close to perfect an adventure novel as I've ever read. I could not put it down. Collins has transformed the ancient Labyrinth myth into a terrifyingly believable tale of future America. Readers will be hungry for more."

--Rick Riordan, author of The Percy Jackson Series and The 39 Clues

Trailers: 

Official 
Watch The Hunger Games: Suzanne Collins in Entertainment | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Fan Made and Incredible!  

 

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Feed, by M.T. Anderson, (Guest Review)

Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Candlewick (February 23, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0763622591

Reader's Annotation: "In a future where most people have computer implants in their heads to control their environment, a boy meets an unusual girl who is in serious trouble." ~via Barnes & Noble

Summary & Review:
Feeding on Feed! In the twisted and somewhat dark realm that "Feed" takes place in, the readers are introduced to a character named Titus and his pack of friends lacking grammar and any insight into the real world due to the chip implanted into the back of their heads as infants. Habits including going "mal" (electronically getting high), flying in upcars, and contracting lesions, it is obvious their state of mind is anything but ordinary. But when Titus meets a girl named Violet, she introduces him to a whole new world outside of Feed! A world where reality is not just a download away... ~By Caleb Sims, Age 16, Washington State

Notes:
AWARDS
Finalist 2002 National Book Award for Young People's Literature
Winner 2003 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Fiction ballsook.com/bghb2003.shtml
Winner 2003 Golden Duck Awards Hal Clement Award for Young Adults
Nominee 2005–2006 Green Mountain Book Award

Extras: Wikipedia for M.T. Anderson http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Tobin_Anderson

Lost Constellations: The Art of Tara McPherson, by Tara McPherson

• Title: Lost Constellations: The Art of Tara McPherson
• Author: Tara McPherson
• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Dark Horse Comics (April 15, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595822224
• ISBN-13: 978-1595822222
• Reader's Annotation:   "Lost Constellations: The Art of Tara McPherson Volume 2 is the compelling road map to the artist's most recent and ambitious journeys in paint, pencil, and sculpture." ~Via Dark Horse 
• Features line drawings next to paintings and illustrations (especially cool for the aspiring artist) Lost Constellations explores the Art of Tara Mcpherson as well as includes some of her FAMOUS art rock posters!

Synopsis: McPherson's Vol. II (second to Lonely at Heart), Mcpherson delivers a collection of artwork that has taken the looky-loos by storm. Like most of her characters suspended in either water or space, the reader will quickly find themselves staring at their own loss and gut-lost past, present, and future while suspended in their own space-like intoxication of Tara McPherson. I dare you to get enough. It's impossible. This is a book to own. 

Notes: Parental suggestion for the young ones. Otherwise, subtley dark & delicious for everyone!

Extras: Want MORE Tara Stuff? Or maybe you just want to look at more McPherson art? Visit http://www.taramcpherson.com/

or to buy artwork: http://www.clickforart.com/

Having trouble filling your whole'd out middle? Revisit your childhood with Tara's coloring book/backpack ensemble. And in the meantime go here to color online. Viva la Tara.

Another UnLibrarian Book Trailer! The Forest of Hands and Teeth

The FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH, by Carrie Ryan

Book Trailer by the Unlibrarian!

The Forest of Hands and Teeth, By Carrie Ryan

• Title: The Forest of Hands and Teeth
• Author: Carrie Ryan
• Publishing Date:  March 10, 2009
• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385736819
• Reader's Annotation: In an apocalyptic world Mary lives in a village surrounded by a fence that keeps The Unconsecrated out. Constantly surrounded by death, she is driven by the need to know more. But can Mary survive when she is forced to go down the paths she always dreamed of, and is there really anything other then death waiting for her?
• Synopsis:  As a child Mary's mother tells her of an immense ocean. This place is beyond the Forest of Hands and Teeth and has water as far as the eye can see. But, in Mary's village the sisterhood preaches there is nothing outside the Forest of the Hands and Teeth. The only safe place is that of of the village and it is the people's duty to keep the human race from being expelled forever. It is Mary's duty to watch her mother who longs for her lost love (Mary's Father) who has been taken by The Unconsecrated. Mary knows that her mother longs to be with him and she fears she will give herself to The Forest and The Sickness. Meanwhile, the spring vows and binding ceremonies are coming and men in the village are speaking for the women. Mary has only ever longed for one boy, but it is another that seeks her hand. Mary's duty is fast upon her it may not be anything she ever expected. 
• The beauty of The Forest of Hands and Teeth, Carrie Ryan's first book, lies within it's stark voice that never wavers from it's bleak tone that alludes to that small voice of hope at something more that lives in the back of all our minds. The book doesn't pander to the sugar coated, everything will turn out ok devices that are so inherent in YA lit today. It is refreshing despite it's topic of zombies (a genre being penned at a rate to rival the vampire literary epidemic). The zombie or vampire fan will devour this easy read but not be left without provoking thoughts and conversation. I have the slightest feeling the popularity of this book will spread like the disease of the Unconsecrated. 
  
• Extras: Seven Star Pictures have already bought the rights to the book for a film. It is slated for release in 2010. 
• Medium levels of blood and violence may leave the timid reader uncomfortable, but for the most part warnings for parents and readers are mild. 
  
• Author's Website:  http://www.carrieryan.com/news.php
• The book trailer was a Teen Book Video Award 2008 Finalist.  It is one of the best I've seen! If you are thinking of reading this book you must watch the trailer! 
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• The UnLibrarian is currently working on a fan "casting" book trailer! Stay Tuned!  

Pride & Prejudice & Zombies: The Classic Regency Romance – Now with Ultraviolent Zombie Mayhem

By: By Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith

Publish Date: 2009

ISBN: 1594743347

Page #: 320 pages

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Fiction, Horror

Age Level: Adult, Older Teen

Series Titles: n/a

Subjects: Zombies, Regency Romance, Classics, Satire

Reader's Annotation: Jane Austen's beloved classic Pride and Prejudice now has zombies! After coming out of copyright, Graham-Smith brilliantly adds his own twist by transforming this literary classic with a few choice words here and there (and what a difference)!

 

Synopsis & Review: "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains." So begins the literary transformation of the famous first line of one of the worlds most beloved works of fiction of all time. But if you are like me and so many others, you wouldn’t read Austen to save your life. Unless of course, your life was being threatened by Zombies! I adore a great deal of classics, but in the case of Austen I was particularly inclined to stay away. Now, with open arms, I am taking in my Austen as I never thought I could. Seth Grahame-Smith delivers a hilarious mash-up of Austen romance, Austen dresses, & Austen manners, and now Austen style zombies. (Note the zombie woman who wastes such a fine wedding gown while praying on brains. ‘Tis a shame.) Readers with a taste for Austen, a taste for zombies, or any variation of the two will revel in the satiric re-telling that aptly plays on the original heroine (Elizabeth Bennet) by keeping her as the spirited and determined central character she always was, but now she carries a Katana and martial arts training! Ms. Bennet, who holds a singular talent to slice and dice the demon dead that has been unleashed upon English countryside. Enter Mr. Darcy an arrogant zombie fighter who is drawn to Ms. Bennet and her skill to kill. Their love affaire de couer takes them through all the woes and wins of the original work but turns them into a cutting edge dance with “unmentionables” (a more Austen-esque term then undead I think) at the core. For those of you who abhor romance this is the romance for you. And for those of you who abhor violence, well, dare I say: this is the horror story for you! On a personal Level, I could not recommend a book more! IN fact, this is a Darcy that I can really sink my teeth into! Or shall I say in spirit, I am in want of more! It must be noted that Grahame-Smith does an excellent job at seamless transitions from Austen to zombie moments. Fans of Austen will get a kick out of it! 

Notes: Obviously violence should be taken into parental consideration for younger readers, however comedy and romance tempers the real threat of offensive material (I often laughed at loud). A great choice for reluctant readers of classical literature.

Not surprisingly, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is already being optioned for a movie. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1374989/

Stars: 5

Extras: Seth Grahame-Smith: A "polite" Q & A

How did the book come about?
SETH GRAHAME-SMITH: I'm an aspiring screenwriter living in L.A. At the moment, I'm executive producing a pilot for MTV that I wrote which is a sort of updatedWonder Years-meets-Superbad. But I also wrote a book called How to Survive a Horror Movie and another called Pardon My President, which was letters of apology from George Bush to all the people that he had wronged. My editor at Quirk had wanted to do a mash-up of some type for a long time. He had all these lists of public domain titles and lists of modern literary devices. The robot phenomenon. The vampire phenomenon. And zombies. And we arrived at Pride and Prejudice and Zombies because, when you take a look at the original book, it's almost as if, subconsciously, Jane Austen is laying out the perfect groundwork for an ultraviolent bone-crushing zombie massacre to take place. For instance, there's a regiment of soldiers camped out near the Bennett household. In the book, they're just there for characters to flirt with. But it's not that big a leap to say, Okay, they're there because the countryside has been overrun with what they call the "unmentionable menace."

The what, now?

SETH GRAHAME-SMITH:"The unmentionable menace." They call zombies "unmentionables" because it's a very polite society and the word "zombie" is kind of like a curse word. These aristocrats are trying to get on with their lives as best they can, despite the fact that the country is being devoured around them. They still have their balls and their teas and their manners. It was terrific fun to write, in the style of Jane Austen, describing horrific deaths and entire villages being slaughtered and burned to the ground.

Source: http://popwatch.ew.com/popwatch/2009/02/monster-mash-up.html

BOOK TEASER BY THE UNLIBRARIAN: YEA, THAT'S ME. AND YEA, I MADE ANOTHER ONE...

The Last Days, By Scott Westerfeld

By: Scott Westerfeld

Publisher: Razorbill

Publish Date: 2006

ISBN: 159514062X

Page #: 304 pages

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Fantasy, Horror

Age Level: Older Teen

Series Titles: Peeps (Bk. 1)

Last Days (Bk 2)

Subjects: Vampires, End-of-Days, Music

Reader's Annotation: The streets are taken over by the vampiric parasites and a group of teens in a rock band set out to save the world.

Synopsis: The Last Days is the sequel to the highly acclaimed and apocalyptic vampire story started in Peeps. Set against the same parasite-ridden streets of New York, Westerfeld gives us a group of five teens that form a rock band, whose musical triumphs escalade while the dark happenings of peeps do as well. As a Fender Stratocaster is being thrown to its doom out of a window, Moz and Pearl, strangers until this moment, work together to save it. From here, readers will rock their way through this hardcore, parasite-positive story! The band (with its vampire lead singer) fight the peeps while creating a playlist for the end of days! Maybe rock and roll will save the world (as it does so many teenagers everyday). Or maybe it will bring on the end! A gritty ode to rock and the way it can be a catalyst for teens to express their discomfort and rage, each chapter is named after bands!

Notes: This novel is the sequel to Peeps, but can stand alone. As a fan of Westerfeld's work, I can't recommend his work enough!

Stars: 5

Extras: Author's Website http://www.scottwesterfeld.com/index.htm

The Westerblog http://scottwesterfeld.com/blog/

Book talk about Peeps:

The House of Mirth, By Edith Wharton

By: Edith Wharton

Publisher:  Everyman's Library

Publish Date: 1905

Reprint edition Publishing Date: February 5, 2008

ISBN: 0679406670

Page #: 400

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Fiction, Literature, Classics

Age Level: Older Teen, Adult

Series Titles: n/a

Subjects: Tragedy, Old New York, High-Society, 

Reader's Annotation: Lily Bart, one of literatures finest contradictions, lived in New York at the turn of the Century, when everything was lavish and opulent: for the rich. For the less secure like Ms. Bart, running in these circles were nothing short of a gamble. Unrequited love, a caged life, & shear loss are explored through Lily in Wharton's classic tragedy.

Synopsis: Edith Wharton's doomed novel The House of Mirth is a tale of class and gender, elegance and disaster. It is time-sensitive tale (yet ageless) set in Old New York at the turn of the 20th Century. At the center of The House of Mirth is Lily Bart. Merely a female embellishment, Ms. Bart struggles to stay afloat in a wealthier society then she has means to exist, while at the same time trying to temper a spirit which far out weighs her societal cage. She acknowledges the contradictions of love and marriage, social climbing and luck, while playing the game of turn of the century survival. After a series of terrible mistakes (of which no woman is allotted many in her day) Lily Bart takes a disheartening and tragic, spiraling dive into the darkest place a human soul can exist: a place that many don't return from.

Notes: The House of Mirth was made into a wonderful and (in my humble opinion) underrated film in 2000. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0200720/

A modern library greatest 100 books of all time.

The House of Mirth is one of my favorite novels of all time.

Stars: 5 

Extras: 

Free Content on Project Gutenberg http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/284

Edith Wharton on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edith_Wharton

The House of Mirth on LibraryThing http://www.librarything.com/work/11880

Extras, By Scott Westerfeld

By: Scott Westerfeld

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Publish Date: 2007

ISBN: 1416951172

Page #: 432

Reading Level: Young Adult

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Science Fiction

Series Title: Uglies Series

Uglies 
Pretties 
Specials 
Extras 

Bogus to Bubbly (Companion)

Mind-Rain (Famous Authors Talk About the Uglies Series-June 2009)

Subjects: Dystopia, Friendship, Plastic Surgery, Fame, Romance

Reader's Annotation: Extras is the unexpected 4th book in the awesome Uglies "trilogy." In another city, also affected by the "Mind-Rain" Tally Youngblood (of the first three Uglies books) induced, Aya Fuse is at the center of a fame-centric universe and all she wants to do is not be an extra.

Synopsis: Aya is a nothing. Her feed shows her fame status at a very high, high level. But high is not good. Your stats are better as you get lower because they signify your level of fame: 1 being the most famous person in the world. Any level of fame Aya has is due to her paparazzi like brother who manufactures fame in a Perez Hilton manner at the expense of others. But suddenly Aya has a chance to be outrageously famous and she plans on doing anything possible to kick her own story, even at the expense of others. But when Aya meets her new love interest and begins to find out more about her feed, things get increasingly dangerous and twisted. Is fame worth all that?

Notes: Another provocative take on a socially conscious issue, Westerfeld makes everybody reflect on the world we live in now. This story could stand alone, but I think it delivers much better having read the Uglies first. A new cast of characters leave you wondering what happened to Tally Youngblood, and when we finally find out it ends to fast. But Westerfeld is the master of topic not the master of giving you what you want, which makes me love him even more. 

Stars: 5

Extras: 

The Westerblog: http://scottwesterfeld.com/blog/

Scott Talks Extras:

 

Fan Made Video: