Let Cheryl Burke Give You Dancing Lessons

I truly enjoyed reading Dancing Lessons: How I Found Passion and Potential On the Dance Floor and in Life by Cheryl Burke! I am a big fan of the television show, "Dancing with the Stars," and enjoy watching the celebrity as well as the professional dancers each week as they hit the ballroom floor and perform Latin and Classical ballroom dances. This book was written by Cheryl Burke, one of my favorite professional dancers, who has been with the show since Season Two. During that season, she won the coveted "mirror ball trophy" when her celebrity partner Drew Lachey (formerly a singer with 98 degrees) won the season. The book is very approachable and is arranged by the types of dance that mirror a specific time in her life. I always had the perception that Cheryl was this wonderfully talented, confident dance, but this book shows how she overcame numerous insecurities (she used to be shy :) ) to have a successful dance career and win the mirror ball trophy twice, so far. My favorite part of the book was learning about all of the struggles that Cheryl's mom went through (as a divorced single mom) to start and maintain her own business and how Cheryl overcame some really harsh personal incidences to become the star she is today. The book ends with a section on each of her celebrity partners and a discussion of the lessons she learned from each of them. This is a truly inspiring read, if you are a fan of the show or not. It is a great story of finding your dream and living life to the fullest. I think this would be a great book to give to a teen who is entering college and embarking on her own quest to find herself.

Find "The Way Back"

Every now and then I view a movie that makes a big impact on me. The movie that I have recently checked out from the library and really enjoyed is called The Way Back. Inspired by real events, the movie details the struggle of seven prisoners who attempt the impossible---escape from a brutal Siberian gulag in 1940. They begin a treacherous 4,500-mile trek to freedom across some of the world's most merciless landscapes (Siberia, Mongolia, the Himalayas) in their desperate attempt to beat the odds and live. The prisoners have very little food and water and barely trust each other, and their trek is further complicated when a teenage runaway asks to travel with them. This movie is a gripping wilderness adventure as well as a testament to the resiliency of the human spirit. This is an incredible story that you will not soon forget. The movie stars Ed Harris, Jim Sturgess, Saqirse Ronan and Colin Farrell and is directed by six-time Oscar-nominee Peter Weir.

New YA Books Added to the Collection--Part 2

This is the second blog (of two) that examines new books that have been recently added to the library's YA collection. If you missed last week's blog, check the archives for the May 4, 2011 entry.

The Abused Werewolf Rescue Group by Catherine Jinks opens with Tobias Richard Vandevelde waking up in the hospital with no memory of the night before. His terrified mother tells him that he was found unconscious at Featherdale Wildlife Park in a dingo pen. He figures his two rambunctious best friends are responsible until he discovers that they're just as freaked out as he is. Then the mysterious Reuben turns up, claiming that Toby has a rare and dangerous "condition." Next thing he knows, Toby finds himself involved with a strange bunch of sickly insomniacs who seem convinced that he needs their help. It's not until he's kidnapped and imprisoned that he starts to believe them.

Virals by Kathy Reichs introduces 14 year old Tory Brennan. She is the niece of the world-famous forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. She moves to the middle of nowhere Morris Island, South Carolina to live with a marine biologist dad she's never known. Tory does the best she can to adjust to her new life. There she meets a group of local kids who are just as "Sci-Phile" as she is--science geeks who have grown up experiencing the backswoods marshlands of nearby Loggerhead Island. But there's something strange going on at the Loggerhead Research Institute...maybe even something deadly. After rescuing a stray wolfdog pup from a top-secret lab, Tory and her friends are exposed to a rare strain of canine parvovirus, changing them--and their DNA--forever. Now, with newly heightened senses and canine-quick reflexes, they'll have to solve a cold-case murder that's suddenly become very hot.

Zombies vs. Unicorns by Holly Black and Jusine Larbalestier is an anthology of 12 stories. Though each tale has its own flavor, the dialogue between the co-editors draws them together, creating the feel of one long, continuous story. With Black defending the unicorn side of the debate and Larbalestier advocating voraciously for zombies, each team has six powerful stories to sway readers into joining one side or another.

After by Amy Efaw is Devon's story. Before it all, Devon was a good student, a good athlete, an all-around good girl, but then IT happened--the thing that was so horrible, so shameful, so impossible to imagine that Devon simply chose not to admit it to anyone, even herself. But denial can't make a thing go away, and now Devon's in a juvenile detention center, facing a possible life sentence for her actions. Does she deserve that punishment? Did she know what she was doing? Or was her denial so deep that she was unable to register the seemingly unavoidable changes happening to her?

These are just a few of the wonderful YA books available for check-out---browse the shelves and see what else the library has to offer!

New YA Books Added to the Collection--Part 1

Recently Jennifer has been working on beefing up our YA collection. The YA collection sits on white shelving to the right of the elevator (if you are in front of the elevator) and contains books suitable for high school through college age. Some amazing-sounding titles have passed through my hands and I wanted to share a few.

You by Charles Benoit finds fifteen-year old Kyle Chase covered in blood with no memory of what happened and time is running out.

Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins has Sophie Mercer discovering that she is not a witch, like she thought, but a demon and one of only two in the world. She also learns that she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. She decides to got to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers for good--or kill her. But once she arrives she makes a shocking discovery--someone is raising demons in secret, with plans to use their powers, and probably not for good.

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher is the story of Finn and Claudia. Finn cannot remember his childhood or life before Incarceron--a prison that has been sealed for centuries, where inmates live in cells, dilapidated cities, and unbounded wilderness. No one has ever escaped, but then he finds a crystal key and a girl named Claudia. Claudia's father is the Warden of Incarceron and Claudia is about to become a kind of prisoner herself, doomed to an arranged marriage. If she helps Finn escape, she will need his help in return. But they don't realize that there is more to Incarceron than meets the eye. Escape will take their greatest courage and cost far more than they know because Incarceron is alive.

Stayed tuned for next week's blog where we examine four more new YA books!!!