The Van Alstyne Public Library has a new rotating books-on-CDs collection.  This rotating collection was funded by the Tocker Foundation for the small libraries of Grayson County.  Each library keeps one of the collections for three months, and then forwards it on to the next library, so all have a continuous collection of new books on CD.  Some of the titles are Sandra Brown’s Not Even For Love, Christopher Rice’s Blind Fall, Orson Scott Card’s A War of Gifts, Madeleine L’Engle’s A swiftly Tilting Planet, Philip Margolin’s Executive Privilege, Bernhard Schlink’s Homecoming, and Russell Banks, The Reserve.

From the Files of Judy Spence:  2008 was a very busy year for Teen Council.  We tried some new events, said good-bye to our beloved seniors as they went on to college, and welcomed several new members into the fold.  Here is a look back at the events Teen Council hosted in 2008.

On February 21, Teen Council hosted Poetry Night.  March 3-5 was Teen Tech Week.  March 7 was our 4th Gaming Tournament.  May 1 was the Annual Art Contest and on May 8, the Council hosted a seminar, Harassment: A Look From All sides.  July 11 was the first Teen Movie Night and on July 31 there was a book release party for Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer.  August was packed full of Teen Council activities. There were two Teen Movie Nights, August 8 and 22.  On August 9, the Council hosted a Rock Band Tournament and on August 15, an Anime Convention.  On September 18, there was a book release party for Brisingr by Anthony Paolini.  On November 1 was the Monster Masquerade.

In addition to all of this, Teen Council members shelved hundreds of children’s books, helped prepare new books for the shelves, celebrated several birthdays, and enjoyed a Council Lock-In at the library.  The Teen Tech Team solved several complicated problems on our network and upgraded some older computers. 

The Teen Council is enjoying its highest membership ever, and we look forward to flexing our muscles in 2009.

Teen Council Book Review:  Peter Wilson recommends Mossflower by Brian Jacques. 

In this book, “A wildcat princess murders her father and takes the throne, tyrannically enslaving the woodland creatures.  When they escape into the woods, they take it upon themselves to gain allies and destroy the evil queen.” 

The book is based on younger themes, but it is a long book.  Peter recommends it for ages 10-15. 

Peter says, “I liked how the author combined talking animals with more human characteristics: love, hate, revenge, bravery, etc.