Here are some books our TAB members have read and loved recently. We’ve included the call number so you can come and get them at Reston Regional Library! All summaries are taken from Novelist unless otherwise noted.

Heartless, Marissa Meyer (YFIC MEY)

In this prequel to Alice in Wonderland, Cath would rather open a bakery and marry for love than accept
a proposal from the King of Hearts, especially after meeting the handsome and mysterious court jester.

Shuri 1. The Search for Black Panther, Nnedi Okorafor (YFIC OKO, graphic novels)

T’Challa has disappeared, and everyone is looking at the next in line for the throne. Wakanda expects
Shuri to take on the mantle of Black Panther once more and lead their great nation — but she’s happiest
in a lab, surrounded by her own inventions. She’d rather be testing gauntlets than throwing them down!
So it’s time for Shuri to go rescue her brother yet again. (Summary from Goodreads)

Children of Blood and Bone, Tori Adeyemi (YSF ADE)

Coming of age in a land where her magi mother was killed by the zealous king's guards along with other
former wielders of magic, Zelie embarks on a journey alongside her brother and a fugitive princess to
restore her people's magical abilities.

When Breath Becomes Air, Paul Kalanithi (B KALANITHI)

A young neurosurgeon faced with a terminal diagnosis describes his examination into what truly makes
a meaningful life.

Educated, Tara Westover (B WESTOVER)

Traces the author's experiences as a child born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, describing her
participation in her family's paranoid stockpiling activities and her resolve to educate herself well
enough to earn an acceptance into a prestigious university and the unfamiliar world beyond.

Spirit Animals: Wild Born, Brandon Mull (JFIC MUL)

Discovering when they come of age that they share a bond with special spirit animals who wield great
powers, four children become lone protectors of their world against a dark force that threatens to
destroy everyone they love, in a debut installment in a role-playing action adventure series by the best-
selling author of the Fablehaven books.

The Land of Stories, Chris Colfer (JFIC COL)

An illustrated nursery rhyme and fairy tale collection features the classic tales that Alex and Conner fall
into in the Land of Stories series.

Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury (SF BRA)

A totalitarian regime has ordered all books to be destroyed, but one of the book burners, Guy Montag,
suddenly realizes their merit.

The Book Thief, Markus Zusak (YFIC ZUS)

Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel–a young German
girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are
hiding, as well as their neighbors.

Here are some books TAB members read when they were young teens!

 

Escape From Mr. Limoncello’s Library

When Kyle learns that the world’s most famous game maker, Luigi Lemoncello, has designed the town’s new library and is having an invitation-only lock-in on opening night, he’s determined to be there! But the tricky part isn’t getting into the library—it’s getting out. Because when morning comes, the doors stay locked. Kyle and the other kids must solve every clue and figure out every secret puzzle to find the hidden escape route!

 

Keeper Of The Lost Cities

Twelve-year-old Sophie has never quite fit into her life. She’s skipped multiple grades and doesn’t really connect with the older kids at school, but she’s not comfortable with her family, either. The reason? Sophie’s a Telepath, someone who can read minds. No one knows her secret—at least, that’s what she thinks…

 

Fairy- Tale Detectives

Orphaned sisters Sabrina and Daphne  are sent to live with their newly discovered grandmother, Relda Grimm, in the strange town of Ferryport Landing. The girls soon learn a family secret: that they are descendants of the famous Brothers Grimm, whose book of fairy tales is actually a history book. When a terrorizing giant goes on a rampage through the town, it’s up to the Sisters Grimm to stop him and to solve the mystery of who set the giant loose in the first place. Was it Mayor Charming, formerly Prince Charming, who desperately wants his kingdom back? The Three Not-So-Little Pigs, the shifty town cops? Or one of the many other fairy-tale characters who seem to have it out for the Grimms?

 

Wonder

I won’t describe what I look like. Whatever you’re thinking, it’s probably worse. 

 

The Ruins Of Gorlan (Ranger’s Apprentice, Book 1)

They have always scared him in the past—the Rangers, with their dark cloaks and shadowy ways. The villagers believe the Rangers practice magic that makes them invisible to ordinary people. And now 15-year-old Will, always small for his age, has been chosen as a Ranger’s apprentice. What he doesn’t yet realize is that the Rangers are the protectors of the kingdom. Highly trained in the skills of battle and surveillance, they fight the battles before the battles reach the people. And as Will is about to learn, there is a large battle brewing.

 

Happy Reading!

 

 

Here are some books our TAB members have read and loved recently. We’ve included the call number so you can come and get them at Reston Regional Library! All summaries are taken from Novelist unless otherwise noted..

 

The Inferno, Dante Alighieri (851 D)

Dante’s poetic masterpiece.

 

The Martian, Andy Weir (SF WEI)

Stranded on Mars by a duststorm that compromised his space suit and forced his crew to leave him behind, astronaut Mark Watney struggles to survive in spite of minimal supplies and harsh environmental challenges that test his ingenuity in unique ways.

 

The Odyssey, Homer (883 H)

The Trojan War is over. Odysseus, the cunning King of Ithaca, sets out to return home to his wife Penelope and his son Telemachus. It proves a long journey, fraught with dangers, from Polyphemus the Cyclops, and the seductive Sirens, to the love of Calypso on her all-too-comfortable isle.

 

Animal Farm, George Orwell (FIC ORW)

A satire on totalitarianism in which farm animals overthrow their human owner and set up their own government.

 

Mr. Lemoncello’s Library Olympics, Chris Grabenstein (JFIC GRA)

Mr. Lemoncello has invited teams from all across America to compete in the first ever LIBRARY OLYMPICS… but someone is trying to censor what the kids are reading.

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, JK Rowling (JFIC ROW)

Rescued from the outrageous neglect of his aunt and uncle, a young boy with a great destiny proves his worth while attending Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.

 

Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief, Rick Riordan (JFIC RIO)

After learning that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea, Percy Jackson is transferred from boarding school to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods, and becomes involved in a quest to prevent a war between the gods.

 

The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank (B FRANK)

A timeless story that stands without peer, this definitive edition brings to life the world of a brilliant young girl who, for a time, survived the worst horrors the modern world has ever seen–and who remained triumphantly and heartbreakingly human throughout her ordeal.

 

Uprooted, Naomi Novik (SF NOV)

A tale inspired by the “Beauty and the Beast” story follows the experiences of Agnieszka, who becomes the latest girl chosen to serve an immortal wizard who protects their village from the malevolent forces of a nearby forest.

 

Othello, William Shakespeare (822.3 T7)

The destructive effects of jealousy underlie this tale. Othello, a man of quality and superior intelligence, is brought down by his suspicions of his wife, Desdemona.

 

Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury (SF BRA)

A totalitarian regime has ordered all books to be destroyed, but one of the book burners, Guy Montag, suddenly realizes their merit.

 

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald (FIC FIT)

Newly rich Jay Gatsby tries to recapture the past and win back Daisy Buchanan, his former love, despite the fact she has married.

If you ever need a good book to cry to, this is the list for you!

1. They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera

On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They’re going to die today.

Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they’re both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There’s an app for that. It’s called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure—to live a lifetime in a single day.

2. The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.

By her brother’s graveside, Liesel’s life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger’s Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordian-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library, wherever there are books to be found.

But these are dangerous times. When Liesel’s foster family hides a Jew in their basement, Liesel’s world is both opened up, and closed down.

In superbly crafted writing that burns with intensity, award-winning author Markus Zusak has given us one of the most enduring stories of our time.

3. The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis

Alex Craft knows how to kill someone. And she doesn’t feel bad about it.

Three years ago, when her older sister, Anna, was murdered and the killer walked free, Alex uncaged the language she knows best—the language of violence. While her own crime goes unpunished, Alex knows she can’t be trusted among other people. Not with Jack, the star athlete who wants to really know her but still feels guilty over the role he played the night Anna’s body was discovered. And not with Peekay, the preacher’s kid with a defiant streak who befriends Alex while they volunteer at an animal shelter. Not anyone.

As their senior year unfolds, Alex’s darker nature breaks out, setting these three teens on a collision course that will change their lives forever.

4. We Are Okay by Nina LaCour

You go through life thinking there’s so much you need…

Until you leave with only your phone, your wallet, and a picture of your mother.

Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend, Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit, and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart.

5. Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

While the Titanic and Lusitania are both well-documented disasters, the single greatest tragedy in maritime history is the little-known January 30, 1945 sinking in the Baltic Sea by a Soviet submarine of the Wilhelm Gustloff, a German cruise liner that was supposed to ferry wartime personnel and refugees to safety from the advancing Red Army. The ship was overcrowded with more than 10,500 passengers — the intended capacity was approximately 1,800 — and more than 9,000 people, including 5,000 children, lost their lives.

Sepetys (writer of ‘Between Shades of Gray’) crafts four fictionalized but historically accurate voices to convey the real-life tragedy. Joana, a Lithuanian with nursing experience; Florian, a Prussian soldier fleeing the Nazis with stolen treasure; and Emilia, a Polish girl close to the end of her pregnancy, converge on their escape journeys as Russian troops advance; each will eventually meet Albert, a Nazi peon with delusions of grandeur, assigned to the Gustloff decks.

 

**Descriptions taken from Goodreads

Here are a couple of young adult book full with the holiday spirit!

1.Pride and Prejudice and Mistletoe by Melissa de la Cruz

Darcy Fitzwilliam is 29, beautiful, successful, and brilliant. She dates hedge funders and basketball stars and is never without her three cellphones—one for work, one for play, and one to throw at her assistant (just kidding). Darcy’s never fallen in love, never has time for anyone else’s drama, and never goes home for Christmas if she can help it. But when her mother falls ill, she comes home to Pemberley, Ohio, to spend the season with her family.

Her parents throw their annual Christmas bash, where she meets one Luke Bennet, the smart, sardonic slacker son of their neighbor. Luke is 32-years-old and has never left home. He’s a carpenter and makes beautiful furniture, and is content with his simple life. He comes from a family of five brothers, each one less ambitious than the other. When Darcy and Luke fall into bed after too many eggnogs, Darcy thinks it’s just another one night stand. But why can’t she stop thinking of Luke? What is it about him? And can she fall in love, or will her pride and his prejudice against big-city girls stand in their way?

2. What Light by Jay Asher 

Sierra’s family runs a Christmas tree farm in Oregon—it’s a bucolic setting for a girl to grow up in, except that every year, they pack up and move to California to set up their Christmas tree lot for the season. So Sierra lives two lives: her life in Oregon and her life at Christmas. And leaving one always means missing the other.

Until this particular Christmas, when Sierra meets Caleb, and one life eclipses the other.

By reputation, Caleb is not your perfect guy: years ago, he made an enormous mistake and has been paying for it ever since. But Sierra sees beyond Caleb’s past and becomes determined to help him find forgiveness and, maybe, redemption. As disapproval, misconceptions, and suspicions swirl around them, Caleb and Sierra discover the one thing that transcends all else: true love.

What Light is a love story that’s moving and life-affirming and completely unforgettable.

3. Let It Snow: Three Holiday Romances by John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle

Sparkling white snowdrifts, beautiful presents wrapped in ribbons, and multicolored lights glittering in the night through the falling snow. A Christmas Eve snowstorm transforms one small town into a romantic haven, the kind you see only in movies. Well, kinda. After all, a cold and wet hike from a stranded train through the middle of nowhere would not normally end with a delicious kiss from a charming stranger. And no one would think that a trip to the Waffle House through four feet of snow would lead to love with an old friend. Or that the way back to true love begins with a painfully early morning shift at Starbucks.

Thanks to three of today’s best-selling teen authors—John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle—the magic of the holidays shines on these hilarious and charming interconnected tales of love, romance, and breathtaking kisses.

Enjoy!

Here a couple of library events that we hope you can join us at!

1. Teen Fandom Ornaments.

Create an ornament of your favorite thing, be it Harry Potter, Stranger Things, Dr. Who, or something else. Registration required. Friday, December 13, 4-5:30pm.
Martha Washington Library.

2. Hot Reads for Cold Nights.

Read three books between January 2 and February 29 and receive a coupon for a free book from the Lorton Book Sale. You’ll be entered into a drawing for an Amazon gift
card. Pick up a reading log at the Information Desk. Lorton Library.

3. Teen Art Club

Glow in the Dark Painting. We will paint using glow in the dark paint. Friday,
December 20, 4:30-5:30pm. Dolley Madison Library.

4. Canvas, Cookies and Cocoa!

Paint your masterpiece while having cookies and hot chocolate!
Saturday, December 21, 2-4pm. Patrick Henry Library.

5. Beginners Calligraphy and Elegant Writing Club.

Practice your calligraphy and handwriting with lessons and exercises. Pens and paper provided. Please arrive on time. Registration required. Tuesday,
January 7, 5-6pm. Tysons-Pimmit Regional Library

 

Hope to see you there!

Here are a couple of bookish gifts that are perfect for Christmas!

1.  Book Coffee Mug

This is the perfect bookish mug for the bibliophile at heart.

https://www.amazon.com/Coffee-Bookish-Librarian-Bookworm-Bibliophile/dp/B07N33NV9W/ref=sr_1_12?keywords=bookish&qid=1575845279&sr=8-12

2. Good Luck Socks

These are some super cute socks that any book lover would want!

https://www.amazon.com/Good-Luck-Sock-Womens-Flying/dp/B07PXGDP4H/ref=sr_1_10?dchild=1&keywords=book+socks&qid=1575845378&sr=8-10

3.Harry Potter Coloring Book

This coloring book is sure to amaze any Potterhead!

https://www.amazon.com/Harry-Potter-Coloring-Book-Scholastic/dp/1338029991/ref=sr_1_18?crid=2PPYLRS4JOFCA&keywords=harry+potter+gifts&qid=1575845484&sprefix=harry+p%2Caps%2C161&sr=8-18

4.Just One More Chapter Throw Pillow

This pillow is sure to express any book worm’s iconic lines!

https://www.amazon.com/Chapter-Pillow-Quotes-Cushion-Cotton/dp/B078N7YHYT/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=book+lover+gifts&qid=1575845627&sr=8-7

5.Book Light Reading Night Light

This night light is sure to keep any reader up all night!

https://www.amazon.com/Anyfun-Decorative-Rechargeable-Creative-Birthday/dp/B07KFFQ3FD/ref=sr_1_14?keywords=book+lover+gifts&qid=1575845761&sr=8-14