Crooked Kingdom

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Book Club recap by Kara Eng, Grade 12 Crooked Kingdom For February, YA Book Club read Crooked Kingdom, the sequel to Six of Crows, which we read in November 2015. Previously, Six of Crows was our highest rated book, but Crooked Kingdom has now taken that spot. Many thought that Crooked […]

It’s Kind of a Funny Story — movie discussion

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recap by Angel Gomez & Genevieve Harvey Even though we live in an age where we can access information almost instantly, sometimes it’s hard to spread awareness of certain topics society views as “problems” or “controversial.” An example of this is the topic of mental illnesses, mental health, and how […]

YA Book Club — Steelheart

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Book Club recap by McKenna Blackshire, grade 8 Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson Summary: Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary men and women extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. But Epics are no friends of man. With incredible gifts […]

YA Book Club — We All Looked up

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Book Club recap by Kara Eng, Grade 12 We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach Summary: Four high school seniors put their hopes, hearts, and humanity on the line as an asteroid hurtles toward Earth in this contemporary novel. They always say that high school is the best time of […]

Wonderland Murder Mystery

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It’s a Mad Hatter Tea Party!  But beware:  something sinister lurks in Wonderland.  It’s a land of stories, but who’s telling the real tale? And who murdered the poor, poor Prince of Hearts? All the key characters are suspects. It’s up to you to solve it. Prowl through Wonderland hunting for […]

Mug Painting

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Personalize your own mugs using markers!  These instructions are adapted from Popsugar.  Here’s how: What you need: Oil-based Sharpie paint markers. These can be ordered online or purchased at an art store. White mugs. We ordered these in bulk from Dollar Tree at $1 each. (optional) Stencils. You can make your own […]

YA Book Club — The Crown’s Game

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Book Club recap by Kara Eng, grade 12 The Crown’s Game by Evelyn Skye Summary: Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are the only enchanters in Russia, and when the Ottoman Empire […]

Static – teen review, author interview, & book club

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Review, author interview, & book club recap by Kara Eng, grade 12 Static by Eric Laster Static puts a twist on death. Instead of seeing dead people, Curtis Brooks talks to them, or at least just his brother. After his brother, Wilt, dies in a suspicious car accident, Curt starts receiving […]

Interview with Shannon Messenger

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    In August, one of our teen reviewers got the chance to snag a Skype interview with Shannon Messenger, one of the authors who will be featured at our annual Pasadena Loves YA book festival on September 17. The two series under her name are the ongoing middle grade […]

Mental Health Resource Center

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by McKenna Blackshire, grade 8 The Mental Health Resource Center Reception began with two Teen Advisory Board members, Frissiel Juscamatia and Meep Gomez, talking to the audience about their own experiences and beliefs related to Mental Health. This was followed by representatives from several organizations, each specializing in mental health, […]