CLP Teens Blog

Percy Jackson and The Olympians Series by Rick Riordan

These five books are all about a teenager from New York who discovers that he is the demigod son of Poseidon.  Through the books he finds that he is the child of prophecy and that he must take down the titan Kronos.

Percy is the title character who never fails to get a good joke in.  Annabeth is that one girl that you can never really figure out.  The one thing I thought was cool about this series was how Greek mythology was tied into modern-day society.  I recommend these books to everyone, it’s a great series!

Review by RJ.

Glass Houses by Rachel Caine

A girl moves into a town controlled by vampires and does’nt know it.  She moves into a house that only has three people in it and each person has their own secret.

I found Claire as one of the more interesting characters as she’s only 16 and already in college.  I also liked how the plot was very unpredictable.  I would recommend this series to a fan of very dramatic or dark books or someone that likes vampires.

Review by Jordan.

The Slave Dancer by Paula Fox

This book is about a boy named Jessie who is kidnapped onto a slave ship and then forced to play his fife to the slaves.  Jessie is the main character and I thought that he was really interesting.

I enjoyed that this book showed the story from Jessie’s point of view.  I would recommend this book to a person who likes to read historical fiction.  I thought it was a good book.

Review by Tyler.

¡Tré! by Green Day

This record is more of a mixed bag for Green Day.  Many different songs that have many different tempos. The mood changes for me on this album.  Sometimes, you’ll be happy because of some of the usual fast songs, but some slower songs will make you reflect on your past.

“X-Kid” seems to be popular on the radio.  “99 Revolutions” is Green Day at it’s best.  “The Forgotten” is a mellow piano ballad that will bring long lost memories back into your mind.

Green Day is one of the most successful acts in the world today.  They give their fans three new albums all in one year.  They care about the fans more than they care about themselves!

Great record.  Pick it up and listen to it if you ever get the chance!  You’ll love it!

Review by Dylan.

¡Dos! by Green Day

This album sounds like the band was just hammering out solid tunes in a garage and decided to record them.  Guitar solos in some songs are crazy!  Sounds Great!  The mood ¡Dos! creates for me makes me just want to jam out with my guitar on all the songs and sing along as well.  Very catchy songs.

“Stray Heart” has a killer bass line, the lyrics are good, drums are smooth, and the guitar work is very good with a nice solo added to the song.  Trust me, you will like this song, and I know you will relate to it very well.  Another track is “Wow! That’s loud.”  This is classic Green Day.  Very catchy, very fast, very loud.  A great guitar solo tops it all off.  The song, I think, will remind you a lot of some of The Who’s work.

Green Day is still going after such a long time and they care about their fans.  If you’re in the mood to party, or jam out with some friends, give this record a listen.

Review by Dylan.

¡Uno! by Green Day

Each song on this record is full of energy.  The mood this record creates for me is an exciting happy mood.  This record really makes you feel like Green Day took a trip back to the 90′s and just started jamming out.  The record itself just makes you wanna get up, dance, sing along, or play along with the music.

“Oh Love” is the track that stands out for me the most.  It was chosen as the album’s lead single.  It received a lot of airplay from the radio and became very well known.  It’s a fun and simple song that will be stuck in your head for days.  Another standout song is “Nuclear Family.”  This song sounds like something Green Day could have made in the 1990′s because it sounds like something that could have made it’s way onto “Dookie” if it wanted to.  Great guitar playing, awesome bass, and the drums and lyrics are fantastic!

Green Day is, in my opinion, different than most artists out there today because after 25 years they’re still going strong.  They have not ever made a record that sounded like another record.  They really care about their fans and that’s awesome!

Great record.  Give it a try, I’m sure you’ll love it.

Review by Dylan.

One Piece by Eiichiro Oda

One Piece is about a boy named Monkey D. Luffy. He wants to become king of pirates, so he gathers some crew and goes for an adventure. I liked Sanji, he’s the cook and I found him interesting because he says the most important part of a cooks body is his hands, so he always fights with the lower part of his body with his hands in his pockets.

The only thing I didn’t enjoy was the art, it’s a little weird. I love the characters though, I think they’re oh so very awesome. I would recommend this to everyone. It’s awesome!

Review by Dakoda

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

Hollis Woods, the main character, is a problem-child orphan who basically spends most of her life shipped around from foster home to foster home. The only family she’s ever really pictured herself staying in is Steven’s, in a perfect house by a river, under a mountain. During her brief stay at Steven’s house, she and Steven get into an accident, and as problems worsen she runs away from them. Later, she gets sent to a foster home with a woman named Josie Cahill, an artist. Josie is beautiful and wonderful and has a great cat, but she’s slowly forgetting things, to the point where it might be dangerous for her to live alone, and nobody notices this problem but Hollis, who begins to love her. When the agency comes to take Hollis away and to possibly put Josie in a home, Hollis runs them both away to Steven’s summer home in the mountains, the only place she knows to be safe, where she eventually finds that being a part of a family is not impossible.

Hollis is one of the funniest and most relatable characters I’ve ever read because she’s really stubborn and doesn’t say much. I know every teen book ever is about some quiet kid who has a huge attitude in their head, and it gets really cliché after a while, but what I really like about Hollis is that she doesn’t overthink things or constantly spew her feelings about everything all over the place. She just does it. And that was perfect for me.

What I loved most about this book was the way the story was told. First of all, Patricia Reilly Giff is a wonderful writer, and the details she includes are perfect. But also the story is told with every other chapter in the past timeline, alternating with the present. So you get to see both stories unfold, and they were really well-timed so that as one falls into tragedy the other heals the wounds.

I would actually just recommend this in general to anyone as a really great book, but especially to teens, just because Hollis is a teenager herself.

Review by Jasper

Sloth by Gilbert Hernandez

Miguel Torress is a troubled and curious child, so he purposefully goes in a coma and hurts his family.  He meets a girl he likes when he wakes.  A part in this story that caught my eye was when Miguel’s girlfriend tries to convince him that she wasn’t cheating.  I enjoy reading the boko because it allows me tof cus my attention on new things.

Review by Jaszmier

How to Make Books by Esther K. Smith

I was at the library today in the stacks when I noticed the book How to Make Books, with a simple cover but intriguing title I decided to look inside. The simple craft guide book ended up being a great choice! Smith uses fun little narratives as she introduces each book. There are clear directions, both in cook-book style and illustrations. I tried making two of the books inside and they were lots of fun! The materials needed are things you have around the house and the books themselves don’t take too long to make. It is just up to you to decide how you will decorate your book! So next time you are at the library looking for a good craft book you should check out How to Make Books.

Review by Samantha, Teen Advocacy Committee member