Teen Game Days at Renton Libraries! - Summer Finale

Renton Highlands Branch - Tuesday, August 25th, 3:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Renton Main Branch - Thursday, August 27th, 2009, 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. -

Stop by the one of the Renton Libraries the last week of August to play Guitar Hero2 - Aerosmith, Dance Dance Revolution, board games, High School Musical karaoke, eat snacks, create some artwork, and generally have fun.

Visit With a Critter at the Renton Main Branch

“Max” is visiting the Renton Public Library, and he’s bringing all his furry friends!
The Seattle Humane Society’s bright yellow, 38-foot mobile adoption and education unit will be loaded up with dogs, cats, and even a few critters – all available for on-the-spot adoption.


WHAT: MaxMobile Visits Renton
WHERE: Renton Public Library Main Branch
WHEN: Tuesday, August 18th, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
WHY: Adorable animals available for adoption, or even just a cuddle with a warm, furry human!

Be sure to check with your parents before you head out, especially if you're hoping to bring anybody home. Remember, animals are a really big responsibility (food, vet bills, little wanted "presents" around the house, etc.) and require a big committment. Find out more at the Max Mobile.

Teens Love Polls, Right?!!!

Here's one about your library at http://allaboutrenton.wordpress.com/

Calling All Engineers of the Future!

The National Engineers Week Foundations' 2009-2010 Future City Competition invites all seventh and eighth grade students in the United States to create cities of the future. The theme this year is "Providing an Affordable Living Space for People Who Have Lost Their Home Due to a Disaster or Financial Emergency." Contestants will first design a model of their city using SimCity 4 Deluxe software, and follow it up with a physical model using recycled materials and a research essay about it. The best part is, it's your chance at winning scholarships and travel!

For more information, visit http://www.futurecity.org/competition.shtm

There's Still Time to Win Prizes!

Great News! There's still another month left of summer! And that means you still have time to check out some great books from the library, and complete your summer reading log. If you haven't picked one up yet, teen reading logs are still available at the Renton Main and Highlands Branches. You can also turn in reviews and tell us what you liked or didn't like this summer! Stay cool with some terrific summer reads!

Here's a list of some new and/or very hot titles to get you started. Check them out at the Renton Libraries.

Hotlanta by Denene Millner
Living a privileged life in Atlanta, wealthy and beautiful African American twin sisters, Sydney and Lauren, must deal with family secrets and scandal when their father is released from prison.



Graceling by Kristin CashoreIn a world where some people are born with extreme and often-feared skills called Graces, Katsa struggles for redemption from her own horrifying Grace, the Grace of killing, and teams up with another young fighter to save their land from a corrupt king.


Suck It Up! by Brian Meehl
After graduating from the International Vampire League, a scrawny, teenaged vampire named Morning is given the chance to fulfill his childhood dream of becoming a superhero when he embarks on a League mission to become the first vampire to reveal his identity to humans and to demonstrate how peacefully-evolved, blood-substitute-drinking vampires can use their powers to help humanity.

Gone by Michael Grant
In a small town on the coast of California, everyone over the age of fourteen suddenly disappears, setting up a battle between the remaining town residents and the students from a local private school, as well as those who have "The Power" and are able to perform supernatural feats and those who do not.


Skin Hunger by Kathleen Duey
In alternate chapters, Sadima travels from her farm home to the city and becomes assistant to a heartless man who is trying to restore knowledge of magic to the world, and a group of boys fights to survive in the academy that has resulted from his efforts.


The Carbon Diaries 2015 by Saci Lloyd
In 2015, when England becomes the first nation to introduce carbon dioxide rationing in a drastic bid to combat climate change, sixteen-year-old Laura documents the first year of rationing as her family spirals out of control. Told in short diary entries filled with scrapbook clippings, this riveting ecothriller is one girl's attempt to stay grounded in a world where disaster has become the norm.

Teen Altered Book Craft at Renton Main Branch

2:00 to 4:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 6th

You’d be surprised at what you can do with an old book. Using recycled library books, we will make original works of art or create a “new” book for a journal or sketchbook. All craft materials and tools will be provided. Call to Register: 425-430-6825.

Teen Tuesdays at the Highlands Library

Tuesday, July 28th, 3:00 to 5:00p.m. - Highlands Library
This week, stop by the Highlands Library for our first ever Anime Party! Watch anime, show us your moves in Dance Dance Revolution, draw manga, try your hand at origami, and make your very own candy sushi. Oh, yeah, and did we mention there will be free snacks and prizes, too!

Tell Us What You Think!

The City of Renton is considering a ballot measure to propose annexing the Renton Library System to the King County Library System. Now is your chance to have a say, and to actually have your voice heard! Take the survey, and then tell your parents to take it too! http://www.surveymonkey.com/rentonlibrarysurvey.

Strange Mad Libs

Sitting at home on a Sunday afternoon, you'd think I'd have better things to do than play on the Internet. Well, actually I do, but since I'm reading the new Emily the Strange novel, The Lost Days, I got it in my head to check out her Website (http://www.emilystrange.com/) and wandered onto her strange Badlibs. Here's what I came up with:

"A LAB EXPERIMENT GONE HORRIBLY WRONG" A badlib by Jessica Marie.
"HORNK! GASPLUSH! BAKLOOIE! Terrible sounds poured from the Oddisee as Emily frantically pushed buttons and pulled levers, trying to find out what had gone so horribly wrong. She was in the final stages of a very important experiment to create a brand-new type of stalking cat. But unfortunately, it looked like she had created a hellish mutant sweet tortoise, instead! “I don’t get it,” Emily said out loud, while her faithful lab assistant and cat friend Mystery listened. “All I did was take some DNA from my big toe, add a little hairball and a cup of berry juice (you know, the stuff Johnny Depp drinks?) and mix it all in a beaker. My data shows that this should work! Mystery, where did I go wrong?” Mystery scooted loudly, then meowed into the microphone of the Oddisee. Her thoughts were translated on the screen: “bleedin' bimbo!! I mean, normally you’re pretty smart for a human, but today you acted like a big idiot. What made you think you should get DNA from your big toe? It should have come from your butt cheek! Also, I really think you should have used candy instead of hairballs - it ALWAYS makes my experiments much more interesting! And finally – I recommend blood instead of berry juice. I don’t care if Johnny Depp drinks a gallon of that stuff a day, it just doesn’t make a good stalking cat!” Emily slapped her earlobe and sighed. “You’re right, Mystery. You’re always right.” Then, turning some dials and fiddling with some ipods, she tried to end the experiment. But – fudgerola!-- it was TOO LATE! The hellish mutant sweet tortoise had escaped, and was running around the lab, breaking beakers everywhere. The last thing Emily saw was its huge, piehole mouth opening wide – and then, the total darkness of the inside of its eyeball. “HELP! MYSTERY! GET ME OUT OF HERE!” she yelled as loudly as she could. But all she could hear, from her prison inside the monster, was the sound of one cat laughing...

Even More Book Recommendations!

After another busy week of visiting schools, here are a few more books we showed off in classes...just some of the fun titles you can grab to start your summer reading. Don't forget that you can put these on hold from home by visiting the library catalog or in person at either library branch.

Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go by Dale E. Bayse

Milton is a good kid...honest!! So why is he doomed to this place where even the boogeyperson doesn't think he belongs for all eternity...or until he turns 18...whichever happens first?

Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson

Alcatraz just turned 13 and his present was...a bag of sand. Some inheritance! But then suddenly everyone is after it...and it may be more valuable than he thought. He's off on a dangerous mission...to the public library? But watch out for dinosaurs. And sharks. And lots of other stuff those evil librarians have been hiding.







Hip Hop: A Short History by Rosa Waters
How far back to you think hip hop goes? A little history, and a few favorite stars in this quick read.







Teen Zone: Astrology by Jackie Barrow

Draw your own personal chart based on the time and place you were born and get an absolutely personal horoscope!






Adventures in Cartooning by James Sturm, Andrew Arnold, and Alexis Frederick-Frost

Warning: There is a big dragon in this book who will eat all of your candy if he is not stopped! Read the exciting story, and learn to draw one of your own in this all-cartooning adventure.