My emotions! The TFIOS trailer is here!

One of my favourite books is being made into a movie and I am equal parts terrified and excited! I talk about The Fault in Our Stars all the time but if you're not sure what the heck i'm talking about see my previous blog about books that John Green has written.

I really hope they do this amazing book justice but after seeing the movie version of The Book Thief I have hope! The book is always better than the movie though so I'm not going to get my hopes up too high.

'18 Great Books You Probably Haven't Read'

A little while ago, John Green who is one of my favourite authors/vloggers/people ever made a video entitled '18 Great Books You Probably Haven't Read'. I watched the video enthusiastically and just as he said I haven't read any of them! But I want to and I thought you might want to as well.

I love John so I'm always going to take his book recommendations seriously and I've requested and several of the books on John's list. Unfortunately we don't have all of the books but we do have quite a lot of them so I've conveniently made a list for you below if you're interested in checking them out.

Round Ireland with a Fridge - Tony Hawks

Thirsty - MT Anderson

Boy Proof - Cecil Castellucci

Fly on the Wall - Emily Lockhart

Show Way - Jacqueline Woodson

The Enormous Room - E.E. Cummings

Regarding the pain of others - Susan Sontag

Death Comes for the Archbishop - Willa Cather

This Blinding Absence of Light - Tahar Ben Jelloun 

Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone: the Carter Family and their legacy in American music / Mark Zwonitzer with Charles Hirshberg

The last summer of reason / Tahar Djaout

(If you don't have the book you're after in our collection John has the Amazon links to the books in the description of his video).

And here is a link to John's books if you're interested in checking them out and I wrote a blog post about them a couple of years ago if you're interested. 

Youtube is my happy place

This post is a little different from what I usually write because you can't actually get any of the following from the library but I'm writing about it anyway because the Internet rules my life. In this blog I'm going to highlight some of my favourite Youtubers, I can't possibly post about them all because this blog would be far too long so I'm going to force myself to pick just a handful from the wonderful world of Youtube.

(Oh and if you don't spend all of your time online, a Youtuber is someone who makes videos and posts them on Youtube. People do this as a full time job now and have huge audiences; Jenna Marbles has over 10 million subscribers! It's crazy and amazing).

Vlogbrothers 
Vlogbrothers consists of John Green, the author of The Fault in our Stars (got a book reference in there! Winning at libraries), and his brother Hank Green who does about every job in the world. They each upload a video a week addressed to each other and that video can be about pretty much anything..

My personal favourite is one of John's videos called Hitler and Sex! Watch below.

Daily Grace, You Deserve a Drink and MyHarto
Next up is the holy trinity of Youtube: Hannah Hart, Grace Helbig and Mamrie Hart. They all of have separate you tube channels but they're best friends in real life and collaborate often, they're collaboration videos are the BEST! These three are hilarious I've posted a video of Daily Grace below but make sure you check out all of their channels, they're all wonderful.

Zoella280390

Zoella is adorable! She's a beauty blogger form the UK who vlogs about all things beauty and buying things and girlyness and lovely little things like that. 

Amy Poehler's Smart Girls
The show that celebrates girls who are changing the world by being themselves. You know how I love, love, love Amy Poehler and am a hardcore feminist? Well Amy has a Youtube channel about empowering and educating women AND I LOVE IT! Check out her interviewing Daily Grace below:

They're are so many more Yotubers that I could introduce but I wont overwhelm you just yet. If you do like these just spend hours getting lost in the YouTube sidebar it will take you to some weird and wonderful places.

Inappropriate books for young people

Here in libraries, we're used to the stereotypes. We're all dull intellectuals with the sense of humour of a damp lettuce sandwich, and can possibly be incited to murder by the sight of a book shelved out of sequence. Just try it sometime.

Either that or we fall vaguely into one of these categories:

1) Sci fi and fantasy geeks who come to blows over whether Anne McCaffrey's books really count as fantasy when the dragons are genetically engineered.

2) Repressed madams who just want a man to unleash our inner tiger.

3) Beaming freaks who address everyone like a class of kindergarteners, clap our hands a lot and think everything is "woooonderful"!

No one - no one - ever views us as crusaders for social justice, or defenders of your freedom to speak. But we're that too.

There was a piece in the Daily Mail recently that really pissed me off. Ha. I can say things like that because I'm a librarian and we don't censor. Here's the link (with thanks to Syfygirl): http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2256356/The-sick-lit-books-aimed-children-Its-disturbing-phenomenon-Tales-teenage-cancer-self-harm-suicide-.html

You may remember me having a go at Sherryl Jordan for criticising violence in teen fiction, particularly The Hunger Games. Well, would you believe it, this author deplores books like The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (and presumably the likes of New Zealand's own See Ya, Simon) that feature dying teenagers. They're "distasteful", apparently. Kaayyyyy. Furthermore, the argument goes, they are preoccupied with sex and swearing. I would posit that the author knows few teenagers. And if she does, that she doesn't recognise that they too are capable of wanting more than mere escapism.

I'm the first to admit that I don't like books like John Green's. While I admired See Ya, Simon, and would recommend it to anyone, it's not the sort of book I would normally go for, either. Terminal illnesses, teen pregnancy, self-harm, abuse and doomed love - I avoid them all like the plague. But why should I stop others reading about them? The people who say that teens aren't ready for such books are also the ones who then complain that teenagers care about nothing but themselves, live in a fairyland, and want only to be famous (or marry someone who is). Which is it? Do we "protect" our kids from reading about real issues - and these are
real issues - and then curse them for not understanding?

I think teens read what they are ready to read. If a book disturbs them, they won't read any more like it - but they will have learned. Like the child psychologist says at the end of the piece, parents' role is not to ban them, but to be there for them, and support them in their questioning. Or do we stop them asking questions too? I would suggest that a lot of society's worst problems are the ones that happen in silence. It's sad that some teens feel inspired by books about suicide and self-harm - but the double standard Carey talks about between newspapers and books is there for a reason. The books are generally about fictional characters, or, obviously, by survivors warning of the dangers of adolescent life. They're about misery.

Newspaper articles are about real people. Bans on reporting suicides prevent fingers getting pointed at grieving families. Also, think of the public reaction, and the vast outpouring of grief. It is this that can cause copycat behaviour among teens, seeing the love and remorse that are released after someone takes their own life. They think: "They'll be sorry too when I'm dead".

Reading about others' misery is cathartic - especially if you talk it over with adults. Reading about what could be perceived as a triumph is far more dangerous. The important thing to remember is not to let your kids read in a vacuum.

At Auckland Libraries, any borrower can borrow any book, unless there is a strict, official censorship rating. You may not be aware that children are perfectly free to wander the shelves checking out books of borderline art or illustrated bedroom manuals. With the use of self-check machines, we can't even always catch them and ask to check with parents first. If this bothers you, watch your children in the library. Taking your kids with you and showing an interest in what they're reading is also the best way to encourage them to read - it's a win-win. But it's not our job as librarians to lock ideas away.

So don't blame publishers for publishing books that challenge the reader. Don't blame libraries for stocking them, either. We believe in letting kids be kids - and that includes asking uncomfortable questions.

How I went from Rebel Wilson to North Korea in a few clicks of my mouse

I was browsing Youtube the other day when I cam across a video by Hank Green from Vlogbrothers about North Korea. Aside from the fact that the Vlogbrothers are my absolute favorite YouTubers I decided to watch the video because I don't know a huge amount about North Korea when I really should. It's a really great video so I encourage you to check it out:

In response to this video John Green (the other half of Vlogbrothers and the author I talk about all the time) made this video about the book Escape from Camp 14 : one man's remarkable odyssey from North Korea to freedom in the west which is about the only known prisoner to escape from a North Korean concentration camp called Camp 14. John does a much better job of explaining the book than I ever could so I've posted the video below. 

This is what I love about the internet. I go on YouTube so watch Rebel Wilson opening the MTV Movie Awards and end up learning about North Korean concentration camps. Thank you internet, you make me smarter. Obviously the videos/book that I stumbled across are much more important than the cast of Pitch Perfect gyrating. So I've requested this book in hope of educating myself about the world we live in. I encourage you to do the same. Check out the publisher's description of Escape from Camp 14 below:

"North Korea is isolated and hungry, bankrupt and belligerent. It is also armed with nuclear weapons. Between 150,000 and 200,000 people are being held in its political prison camps, which have existed twice as long as Stalin's Soviet gulags and twelve times as long as the Nazi concentration camps. Very few born and raised in these camps have escaped. But Shin Donghyuk did. In Escape from Camp 14, acclaimed journalist Blaine Harden tells the story of Shin Dong-hyuk and through the lens of Shin's life unlocks the secrets of the world's most repressive totalitarian state. Shin knew nothing of civilized existence - he saw his mother as a competitor for food, guards raised him to be a snitch, and he witnessed the execution of his own family. Through Harden's harrowing narrative of Shin's life and remarkable escape, he offers an unequaled inside account of one of the world's darkest nations and a riveting tale of endurance, courage, and survival." 

How to spend your summer with John Green

I have to be honest with you dear reader: I am utterly in love with the written word. Whether it be books, plays, poetry, song lyrics or just a really great episode of Community. To me there is a magic to a great piece of writing that is somewhat similar to eating a piece of cake. I love it so much that I kind of want the written word to become a person so I can take it to Las Vegas and marry it.

This being said, you can imagine that when I stuck my nose into a new book by one of my favourite authors, I was pretty excited.

Turns out, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into. 

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is, quite simply, a work of art. I don’t think I have ever read a book that was this beautifully written whilst perfectly poignant. It’s funny, smart, raw, honest and I loved every word. I know that every reader’s experience with a book is different but for me this book was truly an education in what it means to be human. 

Now, I know that MJ has already written about The Fault in Our Stars and has encouraged you to read not only this book but his other work as well (I whole heartedly concur) so I thought I would point out some of his other books for you to enjoy over the summer.

The Fault in Our Stars  

Diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at 13, Hazel was prepared to die until, at 14, a medical miracle shrunk the tumours in her lungs... for now.  

Two years post-miracle, sixteen-year-old Hazel is post-everything else, too; post-high school, post-friends and post-normalcy. And even though she could live for a long time (whatever that means), Hazel lives tethered to an oxygen tank, the tumours tenuously kept at bay with a constant chemical assault. 

Enter Augustus Waters. A match made at cancer kid support group, Augustus is gorgeous, in remission, and shockingly to her, interested in Hazel. Being with Augustus is both an unexpected destination and a long-needed journey, pushing Hazel to re-examine how sickness and health, life and death, will define her and the legacy that everyone leaves behind.

Looking for Alaska

Before: Miles "Pudge" Halter's whole existence has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave the "Great Perhaps" (François Rabelais, poet) even more. Then he heads off to the sometimes crazy, possibly unstable, and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed-up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young, who is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart.

After: Nothing is ever the same.

An Abundance of Katherines 

When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton's type happens to be girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact. He's also a washed-up child prodigy with ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a passion for anagrams, and an overweight, Judge Judy-obsessed best friend. Colin's on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which will predict the future of all relationships, transform him from a fading prodigy into a true genius, and finally win him the girl. Letting expectations go and allowing love in are at the heart of Colin's hilarious quest to find his missing piece and avenge dumpees everywhere.

Paper Towns 

Quentin Jacobsen has spent a lifetime loving the magnificently adventurous Margo Roth Spiegelman from afar. So when she cracks open a window and climbs back into his life - dressed like a ninja and summoning him for an ingenious campaign of revenge - he follows.

After their all-nighter ends and a new day breaks, Q arrives at school to discover that Margo, always an enigma, has now become a mystery. But Q soon learns that there are clues - and they're for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer Q gets, the less Q sees the girl he thought he knew.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson Written with David Levithan 

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two teens—both named Will Grayson—are about to cross paths. As their worlds collide and intertwine, the Will Graysons find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, building toward romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history’s most fabulous high school musical.


Hilarious, poignant, and deeply insightful, John Green and David Levithan’s collaborative novel is brimming with a double helping of the heart and humour that have won both them legions of faithful fans.

Happy 12/12/12 everyone. DFTBA. 

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so I did both

Teenagers. Cancer. Lost limbs. Blindness. Facing up to the reality of life and death. It doesn't exactly sound like the line-up for a stellar read does it?

Thankfully this isn't the case with John Green's latest book, The fault in our stars. This is the funniest and most poignant book I have read in a *long* time. The characters' voices - teenagers, parents, doctors - in this book are pitch perfect. I laughed out loud much more often than I cried.

If you've not read John Green before (An abundance of Katherines, Paper Towns, Looking for Alaska), you're in for a treat as I'd argue that this is his best book yet.