FAR FAR AWAY - A Modern Fairy Tale

Fairy tales are so en vogue right now, and I'll be the first to say that I am very very into this trend.  I've always loved fairy tales, and the public's new interest in the darker originals of these stories is even more exciting.  TV producers of shows like Grimm and Once upon a Time have jumped on the fairy tale bandwagon, and authors have started to do the same over the past few years.

WINGER

"I get by with a little help from friends" - The Beatles

This Beatles quote was in my head a lot while I read this book. Andrew Smith’s Winger is full of situations where the main character and narrator, Ryan Dean West, relies on his closest friends to get him through the most tumultuous year of his young life. 

Megaphones and Mayhem in DARE ME

Okay. I just want to start by stating that Megan Abbott's Dare Me is a novel about cheerleaders.  Pass all the judgements about the book's subject that you want; I did the same thing when I picked it up.  However, let me go on by stating that, as someone who does not like is typically hesitant about picking up books about cheerleaders, I was sorely (and gladly!) mistaken.

THE KINGDOM OF LITTLE WOUNDS: not for the faint-of-heart!

!

Susann Cokal's debut novel The Kingdom of Little Wounds is the story of two young, lower-class girls caught up in a very adult, upper-class world of treachery and deceit. While the Scandenavian city of Skyggehavn celebrates the impending wedding of Princess Sophia, a terrible illness plagues much of the city's nobility, including many members of the royal family.  Ava Bingen, a seamstress, and Midi Sorte, a slave, find themselves at the center of a power struggle amidst the chaos and fragility of the young princes and princesses meant to succeed the throne.  

THE RADLEYS (no relation to Boo)

"Your instincts are wrong.  Animals rely on insticts for their daily survival, but we are not beasts. We are not lions or sharks or vultures. We are civilized, and civilization only works if insticts are supressed.  So do your bit for society and ignore those dark desires inside you. -The Abstainer's Handbook (second edition), p. 54"

How to Love your Summer Reading Assignment

It's a time of year every student and teacher looks forward to. Days are getting longer, shorts are getting, well, shorter, and Tank Top Tuesday is in full swing (did it ever really end?). Students are eagerly awaiting the days where they can spend their time as they please, completely free from school work of any kind.  Free that is, until they receive their summer reading packets.

Here goes nothing!

Welcome to the Blue Valley High Library's first ever blog! Though we've been following some of our favorite bloggers for years, this is our first ever shot at joining the blogging community and documenting our own experiences as we explore new ways of teaching research and digital literacy skills in the library.

We hope that this page offers our staff and students a peek at what we do here in the BVH library, as well as an opportunity for us to reflect on our roles as media specialists. Follow this blog for updates on class projects, new tech tools, and (of course) books we loved!