Holy moly, I'm featured again!

As luck would have it, I'm being featured again! This time it's on GReads!, written by the fabulous Ginger.

If you want to know things like which movies I can't watch enough, which books I'm reading now, and what my favorite cupcake is, check out the interview here.

Feeling buried.

Does anyone else ever feel completely overwhelmed by the amount of books out there? I'm starting to really feel the pressure about all the new YA releases, and the classics I've yet to read. I feel obligated to read them all, especially since I hope to one day be a YA or teen librarian. I need to know this literature cold—but I feel like I'm constantly behind.

Being a part of the book blogging community has certainly added many great titles to my TBR list, but the more I see, the more I want to read, and the less time I have. Add to that my compulsion to exercise at least 3 times a week (or if I have a free couple of hours), and that's even less time. (This wasn't so bad when my treadmill worked, but now I can't read and run at the same time—poop.)

I'm finding that listening to books on CD in my car as I drive around to all the places I need to be has helped whittle it down a bit. I just finished listening to Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork (look out for a review later this week), and really enjoyed it. Plus I'm spending my driving time doing something worthwhile. Two birds with one stone, woot. This is why you'll notice more audiobook reviews from me.

How does everyone else handle this? From an informal Twitter survey, I found some people feel the same way I do, while others relish the thought of being buried in books and always having something to read. Thoughts?

I'm being profiled!

Oh hey guess what! I am the featured blogger this month at Annick Press's blog, Tea Time at Annick Press! If you want to get to know me a little bit better, check out the interview here.

I'm kind of excited about it, not gonna lie.

Teen Spaces in Libraries

In my Young Adult Services and Programs class, we recently spoke about teen spaces in libraries. I got to thinking about how controversial it can be. Should we give them their own room, or at least give them some cooler furniture? Should food or beverages be allowed? What does the budget allow? How can we make it so the teen space is clearly designated for them?

In a perfect world, every library would have a space just for teens. It would be comfy, with colorful walls and funky lighting, posters and artwork, and of course, lots of materials that would interest them. This space would be separated from the rest of the library, and everyone would see the importance of and need for this use of space. But we don't live in a perfect world, and in many libraries the only "space" teens have are on the shelves of the young adult section.

In the library where I work, there's no teen room, just a section right next to the quiet reading room (not ideal). There are a few tables and chairs, and a few books on self-help reader's advisory. My hometown's library is a little better, with some more comfortable seating and a space blocked off by the shelves of the teen section. It's slightly cozier. But it's still not a real great "hang out" space, which I think is important. We want teens to spend time in the library. If they have no place to do this, then why would they stay?

What are all your thoughts on this? Do you have an awesome teen room in your local library? (One person in my class described one where the teens themselves helped design it—complete with a glass garage-type door that can be closed and opened whenever they want to play music inside. How incredibly awesome, not to mention functional.) Does your library even have a space for teens, or do you think there isn't a need for one?

Villette Readalong: Week 3

Whew! JUST finished the part assigned for week 3, and all I have to say is I KNEW IT I TOTALLY CALLED THAT IN YOUR FACE.

**WARNING: Spoilers for Villette up to chapter 18 follow.**

Holy crap I TOTALLY called Dr. John being Graham. I super excited that I was totally right. The hair! The name! As to how it all played out, well, I'm glad Lucy FINALLY had a reason to say something to him. Honestly though, how could he have not recognized her? For real. She spent large amounts of time at his house. I know he was all preoccupied with Ginevra being a huge bee-yotch, but come on now. I'd have been upset if he hadn't recognized me too, which is (I'm guessing) the reason Lucy didn't say a damn word. Kids!

And how completely bizarre must it have been for Lucy to wake up with so many familiar objects around her like that? It's like when you wake up and you can't remember where you are, but times 10. She thought she was crazy, she said so herself. I'd have freaked.

**SPOILERS DONE**

As for everything else going on, I'm wanting some more action. I'm starting to lose a little interest in the characters, though the last couple chapters got me into it a little more. Lucy is clearly grappling with the tragedies of her past, and I'm hoping we get to see what that's all about. I want to know what happened.

Top Ten Book-to-Movie Adaptations

Hey all! It's Top Ten Tuesday time again, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, and I know you want to know what my top ten favorite book-to-movie adaptations are.

1. To Kill a Mockingbird. If you haven't seen this movie and yet loved the book, you NEED to go watch this now. It's THE BEST adaptation I've ever seen, bar none. So close to the book, with a stellar performance by Gregory Peck as Atticus.

2. Pride and Prejudice. Yeah, sorry, I mean the one with Keira Knightly. I really liked this one, and I don't have the patience to sit through the six-hour BBC one.

3. The Princess Bride. One of the only adaptations where I like the movie better than the book. It ends better! And is so quotable.

4. A Kid in King Arthur's Court. Based on Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. Really, I just wanted to remind you all that this movie exists. Remember the '90s??

5. A Christmas Story. This is based on a few essays from Jean Shepherd's In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash. I could watch this movie a million times and still find it funny. It's pretty much my favorite.

6. Shrek. Yeah, this is a picture book by William Steig. Surprise! I love the movie way better though.

7. Homeward Bound. How can you not love this movie? The dogs and cat talk! And one of them is Michael J. Fox!

8. Bridget Jones's Diary. Okay, so maybe I like the movie better than the book a little more often than I thought. Movie = awesome, book = pretty good.

9. The Secret Garden. I love this movie. The garden itself is magical, and the young actors excellent. Plus the music is gorgeous.

10. Coraline. The movie did a great job at translating the creepy factor of the book. The stop-action animation really did the trick. I just wasn't so sure about some character additions... where the heck did that other random kid come from?

There you have it! Top ten that I can think of at the moment. Go to The Broke and the Bookish to list your top ten favorites.

Review: "Saraswati's Way" by Monika Schroeder

Title: Saraswati's Way
Author: Monika Schroeder
Publisher: Frances Foster Books, 2010

Akash is 12 years old, living with his extended family in their Indian village, and dreams of learning more about math and numbers. He is excellent with figures and can mentally solve many math problems—bu he has learned all his teacher has to offer, and his family cannot afford to get him a tutor or send him on to a higher level of school. But then tragedy strikes, and he is forced to work off his family's debt in a quarry. He escapes, but only to become a street child in Delhi, where he starts to understand how hopeless his situation seems. Can he resist the temptations of making quick money through unseemly means, or will he be able to be patient and find the right way to knowledge?

This is a quick read, but full of descriptions of place, Indian culture, street life and Hinduism. I learned a bit about the Hindu religion and how its practitioners worship, at least in the part of India Akash is from, and I learned a lot about the Indian culture, namely life in a traditional household and life for children on the street. It can be gritty, and children have to resort to desperate measures to survive.

Yet Schroeder gives us this picture in a more kid-friendly way. Despite the horror of street life, the phrasing is simple and gentle enough for younger readers to understand it without having nightmares. Her writing is very to the point and frank.

I did have a few problems while I was reading. Some paragraphs are far too long; I think the text could use a bit more editing and breaks in the structure when it comes to that. I found an entire chapter that only had one paragraph. There were also parts of dialogue where there wasn't a new paragraph when a new character spoke, which confused me. And speaking of dialogue, some of it was very stilted and seemed unrealistic, especially a scene with a doctor toward the end of the book. I found the writing tended to be a bit choppy, but for some reason this worked for the most part.

One other thing that confused me was the unfamiliar religious practices described. At one point there is a festival going on and Akash's family is in mourning—certain things happen, and I couldn't tell if it was because of the festival or the mourning period. I could get what was happening most of the time, and eventually I figured out what was going on after I got confused, but I struggled a bit occasionally.

I was sucked into the story, especially once Akash started to be exposed to the darker side of street living. I got worked up at the injustices, worried about the young hero of the story, and was saddened at the circumstances. There are drugs and perverts in the world, and Akash is forced to find this out. Luckily he (somehow) manages to find friends pretty quickly and easily, so he's rarely ever truly alone.

After the novel ends, there is an author's note that explains about street children in India, Vedic math, and the Hindu gods mentioned in the text—I recommend reading this. There's also a glossary for the Indian terms used throughout the book.

Saraswati's Way tells the ultimately hopeful story of a boy who ends up on the street and tries to survive, while always pursuing his goal of getting a good education. Though there were some issues for me, I think this would be a good introduction to Indian custom and religion for a younger reader, plus it gives some nifty math tricks.

Disclosure: The author sent me a copy of this book for review.