Movie Review:

NEW BLONDE BOND,
SAME GOOD OLD ACTION

Americans for years have had a fascination for the British secret agent who, before his successful films, was just another character in a series of novels by Former British WWII Agent Ian Fleming. Sean Connery (The Untouchables) of course became the first to have the chance to showcase stylish action skills and impeccable cunning as Ian Fleming’s famous 007. Connery was followed by Roger Moore (007 For Your Eyes Only) and others; the latest two being the charming Pierce Brosnan (007 Goldeneye), and the blonde pretty boy Daniel Craig. When Craig was introduced as the new Bond in 007 Casino Royale, Americans all asked the same questions: “Who the heck is this guy?” and “Why is he blonde?” Well, those who are actively into movies would know Craig’s noteworthy role in Spielberg’s Munich. As for the blonde part, American filmmakers have always had a preference of blondes over brunettes. Am I right? Out of the other potential nominees, which included British powerhouses such as Hugh Grant, Clive Owen, and Orlando Bloom, Craig was the only one who not only looked the part, but acted better than any Bond that America had seen since Sir Sean Connery.

Fleming’s 007 Casino Royale starts at the beginning of Bonds career when he has yet to achieve his double-0 status. Packed with lengthy chase scenes, action packed encounters with epic villains such as Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen), and beautiful damsels in distress, make Bonds newest flick the best yet. Judy Dench’s (Shakespeare in Love) performance as “M” deserved an Oscar nomination of its own, and Craig’s performance as the 007 (which was nominated for a BAFTA Award) was so believable, that he could make Bond more popular than he already is (if that’s even possible). So it just goes to show; no matter what color your hair is, its your acting that makes your character worth watching.
7.5 out of 10

By Soham

High School Musical 2

The Disney Network plans to air High School Musical 2 on Friday, Aug. 17. The sequel takes place over the summer. Troy (Zac Efron) is working at the local country club and gets Gabriella (Vanessa Anne Hudgens) a job as a lifeguard. However, he is unaware that Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) wants to keep them apart. Everyone else is back as they all get ready for the club's annual talent show.

Scott Westerfeld's new book

Scott Westerfeld, author of "So Yesterday" and the "Uglies" trilogy recently spoke at a conference for librarians and gave some details about his newest book "Extras." It is the fourth book in the "Uglies" trilogy/series and is set in Japan. It takes place three years after the end of "Specials" and has a different main character. There will be some guest stars from the "Uglies" trilogy in the newest book. He said in the world of "Extras," fame has replaced money and face rank is the most important thing (think FaceBook, MySpace, etc.) "Extras" is to fame as "Uglies" is to beauty is the way Scott described it. "Extras" looks like it will be out Oct. 2, 2007. For more information, check out Scott's blog at http://www.scottwesterfeld.com/blog/

The Golden Compass Movie

If you've ever read the His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman, you'll want to check out this website from the upcoming movie The Golden Compass, the first book in the trilogy. Find out what your daemon is, and if you're saying to yourself, "a what?," visit the website!

Princeton Teen Book Bash

The Princeton Public Library is hosting the Princeton Teen Book Bash on Saturday, May 5 from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. There will be a bunch of young adult authors at the event. You can meet them, hear them read from their books and buy signed copies.

Some of the authors scheduled to appear are K.L. Going ("Fat Kid Rules the World"); Megan McCafferty ("Charmed Thirds"); Blake Nelson ("Paranoid Park"); Maureen Johnson ("13 Little Blue Envelopes"); Ned Vizzini ("It's Kind of a Funny Story"); E. Lockart ("Dramarama"); and more.

Go to www.princeton.lib.nj.us/teens/books/index.html for details.

Movie Review - Little Miss Sunshine

The typical American Family Comedy. We have seen it. A father who strives for his children to make him proud, a mother with depression and anxiety from god-knows what, a suicidal uncle ready to end his time on earth, a drug addicted grandfather who feels no shame in destroying his lungs, a nihilistic teenager who refuses to converse with his family because they are so “uncool”, and an adorable little girl who is more concentrated on her looks than anything else. Have we seen this before? Probably. The lack of unoriginality in such movies like “RV” makes the family comedy genre an Oscar- repellant.

But Little Miss Sunshine changed all that stereotyping once it came into theatres. We have all seen American families have major breakdowns on the silver screen before, but not as entertaining as this. Little Miss Sunshine, with it’s quirky, and out-of-the-box humor, keeps a smirk on its audiences’ faces from start to finish. The fabulous direction by husband-wife duo Jonathan Dayton, and Valerie Farris, and a superb debut screenplay by Michael Ardnt, make this family comedy a complete rival to the ordinary.

With 2 Golden Globe Nominations and popular bids for Oscars, Little Miss Sunshine is truly the surprise comedy of the year. An artsy look at a typical American family that delivers to America, one extremely important moral: No matter how different or weird the members of you family are, they are still your family and that’s all that matters.
By Soham

Gaming Afternoon @ The Mary Jacobs Library

Join us for a Spring Break Special! Thursday, April 5 from 1:30 - 3pm, we'll be playing DDR and Guitar Hero II. We'll also have available some favorite board games.

Feel free to bring your favorite PS2 game (nothing with a mature rating, please). Registration for this event is required. So if you want to come you must call the phone number listed below.

Of course, munchies will be served! Hope to see you there!

The Mary Jacobs Library is located at 64 Washington Street in Rocky Hill. Call us at 609-924-7073 x102

Review of A Murder is Announced

A Murder is Announced is a mystery about an unusal crime. The murder is announced in the local Gazette to take place at 6:30 the next afternoon. And, many make the mistake of thinking it as a murder mystery party, even though it is not. Many arrive that afternoon, to witness the murder. As Detective Insperctor Craddock, and Miss Jane Marple investigate, they go on an interesting journey finding new suspects, more murders, and the final culprit. This book has an amazing and unexpected ending. VERY good, VERY recommended. ...A Miss Marple Story. Reviewed by Liza.

Review of A Great and Terrible Beauty

In A Great and Terrible Beauty, Gemma Doyle is in India with her mom in the market when someone whispers to her mom "Circe." Next thing Gemma knows, is that she runs away from her mom and finds her dead. Later in the book, Gemma finds out the reason her mom was killed a why Gemma might also be killed. Her mother was part of the Order and she was the last person who could open the realms which is another world. Now that her mom is killed, Gemma posseses the power to open the realms. Now Gemma must save her friend and more importantly her mother from the dangers in the realm.
In this book you can feel the magic pulling you in with the suspence. If you are a fantasy loving girl, you will be pulled into this book just like I did. And if you liked this book just as much as I did, there is a sequel called Rebel Angels for you to read. Boys- STAY AWAY! Reviewed by Cathy

Review of Milkweed

The book Milkweed is a moving story about the Holocaust and its horrors. It shows the life a kid going through the rough times and finds a way to find hope. He starts as a orphan living in the streets, slowly finding friends, and not living in a house, but in a horse stable. He grows to find more friends who become family, and help him through his journey. It describes the rough conditions of the mistreatment of the Jews during this time, but still focuses on a young boy learning new things and finding new hope. It s a very interesting book, and is VERY recommended. Reviewd by Liza.

Gossip Girl TV Update

Blake Lively and Leighton Meester are set to star in the CW's drama pilot Gossip Girl, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The show is written by The O.C.'s Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and directed by Mark Piznarski who has worked on series like Everwood and Veronica Mars.

Leighton Meester (Surface) will play Blair, and Blake Lively (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants) will play Serena.

For more details, go to http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0847169/

Lauren Myracle at Barnes & Noble

Author Lauren Myracle will appear at the Barnes & Noble in Bridgewater on Friday, March 23 at 7 p.m.

Lauren's books include TTYL, The Fashion Disaster That Changed My Life and Rhymes With Witches. Her newest book is L8R, G8R.

For more details, call the store at (908) 526-7425 or visit the author's Web site at http://www.laurenmyracle.com/

Open Knitting & Crochet at Mary Jacobs Library

What: Open knitting and crochet for middle and high school students! Experienced stitchers just bring your current project. Newbies are always welcome! Basic instruction can be provided. Newbies need to bring light colored yarn and size 8 knitting needles or size G crochet hook.

When: Tuesday, Feb 27 at 7pm!

Where: The Mary Jacobs Library in Rocky Hill is located at 64 Washington St. Our phone # is 609-924-7073.

Fun with yarn and plenty of good conversation! Hope to see you there!

Teen Book Review - The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson

When May Gold’s father dies unexpectedly from a heart attack, the Gold family has to continue on with their lives however hard it may be. May’s mother starts working a lot more to pay bills and becomes disconnected from her three children. The three girls all deal with the grief in different ways. Palmer, the youngest, does nothing but watch TV and play softball. Brooks, the oldest, quits softball and starts drinking. May, the middle child, decides she has to pick up the slack around the house and tries to keep the family from falling apart. Her dad’s best friend and his family also try to help out, but nothing is working. All the Gold family really needs is some closure.

This book was a very enjoyable read. When I picked it up off the shelf, I figured it was going to be average chick lit, but to my surprise it had quite some depth to it. I was able to see the affect the dad’s death had on each girl. It was very well written and all of the side stories made the book exciting, but like all chick lit, it was quite predictable!
Review by Amy

Stuff to Do

Check out the January and February FREE events at the Bridgewater Library!!! If you have an idea for a program leave a comment...thanks!

FREE Classic Book Podcasts!!!

Open Culture: Audiobook Podcast Collection has free podcasts of books like: A Tale of Two Cities, Canturby Tales, Call of the Wild, Dracula, Emma, Pride and Prejudice and MORE!!
Listening is believing...

AMAZING BOOK RESOURCE!!!!

Check out the New York Public Libraries "Books for the Teen Age - 2006." Categories include fiction, do-it-yourself, science, the U.S.A - past and present, stories of people who are Native American, African-American, Latino and Asian, love, mind and body, and much, much more!

Check it out by clicking here.

Book Review - Nothing But the Truth (and a Few White Lies) by Justina Chen Headley

Patricia Yi-Phen Ho is a hapa. Hapa is Hawaiian for someone who's half-Asian and half-white. Patty doesn't feel totally Asian but she doesn't feel totally white. She never felt completely as a whole anywhere. When she found out her future with Belly-Button Grandma, the Chinese fortune-teller, through her belly button that she might end up with a white guy, her ultra-strict Taiwanese mom sent her straight to the math camp at Stanford. Patty never liked her mom's idea but she found out while at Stanford and at her aunt's house why her mom doesn't let her do things her way and most importantly, she found out about her mom's life and whatever happened to her dad. Patty's new life starts at Stanford with all kinds of different probabilities.
This book is very interesting and definitely funny. Through this novel, you can understand Patricia Yi-Phen Ho's life and views on different things and places. So I would really recommend this novel to anyone who likes comedy/humor, wants to know how a half-Asian, half-white person's life would be, or is interested in knowing about Asian society and culture.
Review by Tina

Sock Monkey visits Bridgewater on his Epic Library Tour!

After a near temper tantrum, Sock Monkey gets his way and attempts to drive the library van. We tried to tell him his feet don't reach the gas pedal, but he just wouldn't listen.



Sock Monkey is convinced to give up the quest to drive and does storytime for the library monkeys.






To round off his trip, Sock Monkey showed off his artistic abilities by helping the library's graphic artist, Christine, paint a mural in the youth services room.

We'll miss you, Sock Monkey!!!!
To find out more about Sock Monkey's Library Tour click here.

Teen Book Reviews

BLEACH (graphic novel)

Great Japanese comic with some comedy, action, and seriousness blended together to form a great manga.

This story takes place in modern Japan where people go on doing their every day jobs. Except what most people don’t see is what one person can see. Ichigo is you basic high school kid with friends and a family except for one thing that separates him from most people -- he has the ability to see ghosts clearly. It is a rare ability in which only one in every 50,000 people will have and only a handful of people can see them clearly. Ichigo’s life changes one day when he sees for the first time a hollow and a soul reaper engaged in battle. The hollow is slain and the soul reaper disappears. Life goes on but when his family becomes under attack by a hollow he is forced to become a soul reaper to save his family.
Review by Al


The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Clubis truly one of those books that can be enjoyed and appreciated by women readers ranging from any age. The Joy Luck Club tells the stories of four Chinese women and their daughters. Each woman has their own story to tell as do their daughters, with which the reader can see the different points of views of two different generations searching for essentially the same thing-happiness. The joy luck club meets every week and was started by Suyuan Woo. Yet, after Suyuan dies, her daughter is forced to replace her in the joy luck club. It is then that her daughter learns about her mother’s dark past and becomes closer to her than she was when Suyuan was actually living. This novel is refreshingly different from most other novels because each chapter contains a different story from either a mom or a daughter that relates an individual struggle; however, each tale is connected to one another, reminding the reader of the intimate bond shared between the joy luck club. The Joy Luck Club truly is a splendid book that displays an innovative writing style by Amy Tan and a depth of human emotion and understanding. Such a remarkable story is indeed a rare find.
Also recommended: Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden, House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
Review by Deekshita


The Awakening by Kate Chopin

Kate Chopin’s The Awakening was one of the first American books to openly challenge a women’s constrained role in society and her desire for liberation. This novel chronicles Edna Pontellier as she realizes that she is worth more in life than just a “housewife” burdened with trivial matters. As Edna’s eyes awaken more and more each day to the world of possibility out there for her, she begins to make some radical changes -- one of these changes being that she moves out (leaving her husband and two sons) into her own apartment. Such a move was virtually unheard of in the early 1900s. Consequently, Edna must face the consequences of her behavior as she spirals down a path of unhappiness.
The Awakening, interestingly enough, was one of the only controversial books whose controversy had driven it into obscurity; most books receiving so much notoriety usually become more popular because of that attention. The Awakening, however, is still vastly unheard of even in this decade. This novel offers an interesting portrait into the lifestyle of women ruled by Victorian code, but it is not a book for all readers. It has a rather slow start and is meant for the more patient reader.
Also recommended: Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert, Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, and Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence
Reviewed by Deekshita


The Devil Wears Prada
by Lauren Weisberger

Before becoming a movie, The Devil Wears Prada was a New York Times bestseller for weeks. The novel chronicles recent college graduate, Andrea Sachs, as she struggles to attain her dream job in the big city -- to become a writer for The New Yorker. However, instead of landing her dream job, she lands the job that turns into her worst nightmare. Andrea ends up working in a fashion magazine, an area that she knows absolutely nothing about, for the powerfully mean Miranda Priestly in exchange for a recommendation to work at The New Yorker. Andrea’s world turns upside down as she is introduced to the glitz and glamour of city life. Yet, she realizes that the glamour is really a cover-up for a world that is filled with superficial phonies who have no real purpose in life except to gossip, party, and shop. Likewise Miranda makes Andrea’s life as miserable as possible as she sends Andrea on absurd tasks like getting a hold of the latest Harry Potter book a day before it hits stores or to pick up her dry-cleaning in the middle of the night. Andrea patiently sticks with her job so she can get her recommendation, until she notices that she has turned into a miniature version of Miranda herself. The Devil Wears Prada is a very funny book that is perfect for a lazy day. At the same time, it offers a witty dialogue and some very deep character insights.
Also recommended: Can You Keep a Secret by Sophie Kinsella, The Shopaholic Series by Sophie Kinsella
Reviewed by Deekshita


White Oleander by Janet Fitch

Astrid Magnussen is a girl living the perfect life with her brilliant poet mom, Ingrid, until Ingrid murders a man with poison and lands in jail. Astrid is then left motherless during a crucial point in her life -- when she starts growing up. Astrid winds up in a string of foster homes that are all very different, all of which have something important to teach her as Astrid tries to decide who she is and what she wants. Astrid’s first home is with Starr Thomas (a born-again Christian who is also a recovering alcoholic) in a trailer park. Astrid is soon kicked out after she begins having a relationship with Starr’s boyfriend. Astrid then winds up with Clair Richards and her husband. Claire provides Astrid with the perfect life -- a caring family, a wardrobe full of pretty new clothes, and lots of attention. Yet, Claire struggles from depression, forcing Astrid to look after her. After a dark tragedy in the Richards’ house, Astrid ends up living with Rena, a cynical Russian businesswomen who teaches Astrid all about money, hard work, and the real world. During all of this, Astrid continues to come to terms with her mother’s crime, which she eventually has to confront at the end of the novel. White Oleander is a very touching story about one girl’s perseverance and strength in midst of one very chaotic and troubled life.
Also recommended: The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom, Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Reviewed by Deekshita