Teen Summer Reading Program Winner

The first winner in Metamorphosis, the Teen Summer Reading Game has been awarded a prize of a $10 gift certificate for Claire's. There's still time to get in on some winning action. The next winner will be announced on Monday, June 30.

So what's this all about?

It's easy. Read a book. Fill out the green review form. Enter it into the Book Review box in the Teenspace to win a prize. New reviews are collected from Saturday through Friday, with a new winner drawn and announced every Monday. Official rules can be found on the review card.

Didn't win in a weekly drawing? Well, you've still got a shot to win the grand prize of an ipod shuffle. All reviews turned in will be entered into that drawing. Read a lot? Prizes will also be given for most books read in first, second and third place.

Good luck and Happy Reading!

Book Review: Samurai Shortstop

Samurai Shortstop
By Alan Gratz

It’s a time of transition in japan from the old customs to a more modern style, and Toyo, a freshman in high school, is trying to understand why his relatives are so attached to the old ways. Toyo witnesses his uncle commit seppuku - the samurai custom of ritual suicide - and wonders why he did it. Toyo was born into the samurai class, but those traditions are no longer tolerated in society. Instead, he's going to an elite Japanese boarding school where he learns western ways and plays baseball. Nevertheless, Toyo's father insists on teaching him the samurai customs so that Toyo can assist in his suicide. Amidst school hazing, school class struggles, and samurai lessons, Toyo learns to find a balance between the old and the new and at the same time play a good game of baseball. This book is recommended for its healthy dose of Japanese history.

Click here to find Samurai Shortstop in the library catalog

Metamorphosis: Transform Yourself, Read.

Teen Summer Reading Game

Read(a book). Write(a review). Win(a prize). Drawings held weekly!

How I See It: My Place...Teen Digital Photography Project

Are you interested in photography? How about writing? The library will be hosting an exciting program this summer, where you'll learn all about taking digital photos, uploading them to the computer, editing them with Adobe Photoshop Elements, and then writing about the experience. At the end of the program, your photos will be exhibited in the library and online.


Twenty other libraries across California will be participating in the project. It's a chance to get your voice heard and also earn community service hours. Come to the main library to get an application or for more information contact Shawna at shawna.sherman@hayward-ca.gov.


This project is a program of the California Council for the Humanities California Stories: How I See It campaign conducted in partnership with Califa. It is supported in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian. For more information on the Council and the California Stories initiative, visit www.californiastories.org.

Breaking Dawn, Twilight the Movie...NEWS

For all those Twilight fans out there, here are the latest happenings in Stephenie Meyer's world:

1. Read the first chapter of Breaking Dawn here:

http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20203238,00.html?iid=top25-20080531-Stephenie+Meyer%3A+Exclusive+book+preview

2. Check out the cover for Breaking Dawn here:

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/breakingdawn.html

PS: The library will be hosting a Breaking Dawn shower on August 2nd. Stay tuned for more information. Copies of the book will be raffled off as prizes.

3. Catch a glimpse of the trailer for the Twilight movie here:

http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2008/06/01/watch-our-exclusive-twilight-clip-from-the-movie-awards-preshow/