Tag: teenage

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Children’s Books – Podcast 23

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Hello and welcome to the Falkirk Libraries podcast with Tanya and Gavin
Today’s episode is all about children’s books, but there’s still lots for adults to enjoy, even if you haven’t got a wee person to get books for. Have a look on the library catalogue to request books discussed.

What we have been reading and listening to:
Tanya has been reading:
• Reading Dorothy L Sayers’ Strong Poison
• Listening to: Peace out – relaxation and mindfulness stories for kids Grant has been reading:
Gavin has been reading:
• Raw: My journey into the Wu-Tang by Lamont ‘U-God’ Hawkins.

New and forthcoming adult books:
• I am Heathcliff, Kate Mosse
• 84K, Claire North
• Displaced, Barbara Nadel
• Grime Kids, DJ Target

New and forthcoming children’s titles:
• The Cook and the King by Julia Donaldson (author), David Roberts (illustrator) (0 – 5 years)
• Daisy and the Trouble with School Trips by Kes Gray (6 – 9 years)
• Secrets of a Sun King by Emma Carroll (9 – 12 years)
• The Storm Keeper’s Island by Catherine Doyle (Teen)

DVD recommendations:
• Peter Rabbit – PG
• Rampage – 12
• The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie – 12

Our Reading Agony this week:
I borrow a lot of books, but I also like to buy some. Any tips for picking up reasonably priced books? – Most of the libraries sell withdrawn books, DVDs and audio books. The items are removed from our collections for various reason and are very reasonably priced.

Staff quotes of the day: I never knew that my staff wanted me to be a pretzel

Our discussion:  Fantastic children’s books for ages (very roughly) 10 – 13yrs
• Game Guides are particularly popular for this age group – see Minecraft or Fortnite
• Graphic novels are also an excellent way of getting them reading, especially the ones related to games or TV show. For example, Plants Vs Zombies, Teen Titans Go!, Pokemon, Yo-kai Watch.
• Manga – (for the older kids) My Hero Academia Manga series; the Assassination Classroom series; how to draw Manga books
• Tintin
• Follow your child’s interests, for example books about science
Fiction
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid series
• Sky Hawk, Gill Lewis
• Mind Blind, Lari Don
• Rat Runners, Oision McGann
• Everything by Rick Riordan (e.g. the Percy Jackson series)
• For the upper part of the age range) Michael Grant’s Gone series
• How to Train Your Dragon series by Cressida Cowell
• Andy Griffiths’ The 13 Storey Treehouse series
• Harry Potter books
• James Patterson, Middle School series

Did you know? If you are looking for a kids’ or teens’ reading group, then get into your local library – most public libraries have them. At Falkirk Libraries we have Chatterbooks sessions (7 – 12yrs) in most of the libraries and a teenage reading group in Falkirk Library (ages 13 – 17yrs) where we have booky fun and chat about books that we love (or hate). – have a look on the website at www.falkirkcommunitytrust.org or ask in your local library.

Thank you for listening to the Library Love podcast, we hope you’ve enjoyed yourself and if you did, then tell a friend or colleague about our podcast; or give us a review on iTunes so more people get to hear about us. We love to hear from you and if you’d like to get in touch with us, then go to then go to librarylovefalkirk.com, Falkirk Libraries on Facebook, or @LibFalkirk on Twitter.

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Summer books – Podcast 18

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Hello and welcome to the Falkirk Libraries podcast with Tanya and Vikki.
This episode we were chatting about summery reads.  Does the daylight and weather affect our reading choice?  All the books mentioned can be found and requested on the Falkirk Libraries page

What we have been reading and listening to:
Vikki has been reading:
• Black Wood by SJI Holliday
• Public Library and Other Stories by Ali Smith

Tanya has been reading:
• The Last Tudor by Philippa Gregory
• Stories for Boys Who Dare to be Different by Ben Brooks
• Seeds of Friendship (pic bk) by Michael Foreman favourite with the 5 – 7 yr olds

New and forthcoming adult books:
• The Wanted by Robert Crais
• This is What Happened by Mike Herron
• The Crooked Staircase by Dean Koontz (Jane Hawk thriller book 3)
• The Love of a Family by Rebecca Shaw
• Days of Wonder by Keith Stuart (author of A Boy made of blocks)

New and forthcoming children’s titles:
• Star Wars Maker Lab by Cole Horton (Non-fiction)
• British Insects and Other Minibeasts  by Clare Collinson
• Octopants by Suzy Senior (0-5)
• The Girl with the Lost Smile by Miranda Hart (9-11)
• Mirror Mirror by Cara Delevigne & Rowan Coleman (Teen)

DVD recommendations:
• All the money in the world (15)
• The Maze Runner Death Cure (12)
• Early Man (AArdman Animation) (PG)

Our Reading Agony this episode: “I’ve got to plan a child’s birthday party and don’t know where to start”  Here are some of our suggestions:

• Great British Bake Off Children’s Party Cakes and Bakes by Annie Rigg
• Kids Party Cakes Quick and Easy Recipes by Ann Nicol
• Party Animal Cakes by Lindy Smith
• Cute and Easy costumes for kids by Emma Hardy
• Quick Costumes for Kids by Deborah House
• Braids Bunches and Pigtails  50 Fun and Easy Hairdo’s for parties by Jenny Strebe
• Party Games by Lisa Reagan
• Party Games by Sean Callery
• Face Painting by Karen Harvey

Staff quote of the episode: “We’ve got a filing cabinet with no key – let’s jimmy it open and see what’s inside,”

Our discussion: We have talked about cosy reads but what about when the suns out and the nights are longer and Tanya doesn’t need a rug in her shed anymore. Does better weather affect our reading tastes? Well perhaps is the answer:  below are some of the books enjoyed in summers gone by as well as highly anticipated in summer 2018.
• Captain Correlli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres,
• The Sunrise by Victoria Hislop
• The Girl under the Olive Tree by Leah Fleming,
• The Tea Planters Wife by Dinah Jefferies.
• The Sapphire Widow by Dinah Jefferies
• The Good People by Hannah Kent
• Brief Cases by Jim Butcher
• The Lake District Murder by John Bude
• The Sussex Downs Murder by John Bude
• Million Love Songs by Carole Matthews

Did you know? We have a separate section in every library for Teen readers, it’s where we keep all our past exam papers and guides, a wide range of fiction titles and comics.

Thank you for listening to the Library Love podcast, we hope you’ve enjoyed yourself and if you did, then tell a friend or colleague about our podcast; or give us a review on iTunes so more people get to hear about us. We love to hear from you and if you’d like to get in touch with us, then go to then go to librarylovefalkirk.com, Falkirk Libraries on Facebook, or @LibFalkirk on Twitter.

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Books we loved as teens – podcast 12

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Hello and welcome wonderful people. So lovely to see you on a sunny day in Falkirk. Vikki, Lynne and I (Tanya) focused on teen books today, for the Year of Young People, but there’s loads here for everyone and if you’re of a similar age to us, you might get some nostalgia feels during our main discussion today when we talked about the books we read as teenagers – see if you can guess our ages from our book choices.  We’d like to thank the lovely folks at Falkirk Explored for the wonderful photo of a snowy Falkirk.

What we have been reading and listening to:
Lynne has been reading the Scottish Teenage Book Prize shortlist:
• Children of Icarus by Caighlan Smith
• The Haunting of Jessop Rise by Danny Weston
• Elizabeth Laird’s Welcome to Nowhere
Vikki has been reading:
• The Rain- Soaked Bride by Guy Adams
• The Growing Season by Helen Sedgwick
Tanya has been reading:
• Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
And listening to:
• The Infinite Monkey Cage by Dr Brian Cox and Robin Ince

New and forthcoming adult books:
• The Gathering Dark by James Oswald
• An Unsuitable Match by Joanna Trollope
• Nucleus by Rory Clements
• The Monk of Mokha by Dave Eggers
• The Reading Cure: how books restored my appetite by Laura Freeman

New and forthcoming children’s books:
• Look out, it’s a dragon! by Johnny Lambert (0-5 years)
• Horrid Henry’s School Fair by Francesca Simon (5-7 years)
• Uncle Shawn and Bill and the almost entirely unplanned adventure by A.L. Kennedy (7-9 years)
• Reissue of James Dashner’s 13th Reality Series (9-11 years)
• Rock War book 4 Crash Landing by Robert Muchamore (teen)

DVD recommendations:
• American Made (15)
• Fear the Walking Dead (15)

Our Reading Agony this week:  My child has exams this year – how can I help them?
• Past papers from the library
• De stress – exercise, even a walk counts, and there are lots of books on destressing
• Healthy food and a good breakfast on exam days!
• Fiction for pleasure, comics are good for a short burst
• Borrow a family DVD and watch together
• ‘How to study’ books
• Studying in the library (neutral place without distractions)
• Good planning

Both staff quotes of the day are from Lynne this podcast: “You’re destroying the look of my podium” and “I’m just fodder for you two to poke fun at!” – Vikki and I are chastised and chastened and other words beginning with ‘ch’ … cheeky, perhaps.

Our Discussion was looking at those books that we read when we were transitioning from reading kids’ books to adult books. There were some mixed feelings about some of the books, especially about Vikki’s descent into Victorian misery, but we had fun discussing our choices. I haven’t caught all of the books or authors mentioned as we got a bit excited, but here are most of them:
• Jane Austen
• D H Lawrence
• Thomas Hardy
• Ruth Rendell
• PD James
• Agatha Christie
• Science fiction (anything and everything in Campbeltown Library)
• Douglas Adams
• James Herriot
• Poldark novels by Winston Graham
• Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M Pirsig
• The Color Purple by Alice Walker
• Stephen King
• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• Lord of the Flies by William Golding
• Jean M Auel’s Clan of the Cave Bear – warning – adult content, not recommended for your young teens

Did you know?  All libraries have books on both physical and mental health issues. Books on mental health (e.g. depression or anxiety) or neurological difference (e.g. austism or dyslexia) can be really useful in helping us to understand our own or others’ experiences and in suggesting ways in which changes can be made to improve those experiences – whether that’s using CBT for anxiety or teachers gaining a better understanding of neurological difference to support all their pupils –  and we have quite a few.   If one library doesn’t have, then we’ll either get it from another library or try and buy them in, for example if your doctor or someone from Camhs (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service) has a suggestion. We have lots on depression, dealing with anxiety, understanding Autism, etc. We would also suggest:
• The Reading Agency has a list of Mood Boosting Books recommended by kids and Mood Boosting Books for adults (many suitable for teens) and the Scottish Book Trust also has some great suggested book lists for teens.
• Young Scot always has some good advice as does the SQA (Scottish Qualifications Authority).
• Reach.Scot – the whole point of their website is supporting young people at school and helping them to get the right support

Thank you for listening to the Library Love podcast, we hope you’ve enjoyed yourself and if you did, then give us a shout out on Facebook or twitter. We love to hear from you and if you’d like to get in touch with us, then go to then go to librarylovefalkirk.com, Falkirk Libraries on fb, or @LibFalkirk on Twitter

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RED Book Awards – podcast 8

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Hello, we had a great chat today on the eighth Library love Podcast, with loads of excellent reading suggestions. Gavin and Naomi shared what we had recently been reading:
• Gavin read A Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne, The first volume in the Seven Kennings series
• Naomi read Switch Bitch by Roald Dahl

New and forthcoming adult books:
• Soundproof Future Scotland by Graham Rae (Local author)
• Desert Oath (Assassins Creed Origins) by Oliver Bowden
• The Red Dancer – Life of Mata Hari by Richard Skinner
• Fall Down Seven Times, Get Up Eight by Haoki Higashida
• Ashes Reborn by Keri Arthur

New and forthcoming children’s books:
• Ugly Five by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffer (0-5)
• Where is the Unicorn? by Paul Moran (5-7)
• Bella Tabbypaw by Daisy Meadows (7-9)
• Bad Dad by David Walliams (9-11)
• Getaway by Jeff Kinney (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) (9-11)

DVD recommendations:
• Cars 3 (U)
• Captain Underpants – The First Epic Movie (U)
• Outlander Season 3 (18)
• Fear the Walking Dead Season 3 (18)

RED Book Awards
The RED Book Award is Falkirk’s Book Award which each secondary school in the authority participates in. RED stands for Read, Enjoy, Debate and is all about reading for enjoyment and stimulating lively debate about books.
The award is now in its 12th year.
13 and 14-year-olds from English classes in Bo’ness Academy, Braes High, Denny High, Falkirk High, Graeme High, Grangemouth High, Larbert High and St. Mungo’s High as well as reading groups in Polmont Young Offenders Institute and from a variety of countries take part. The young people read the 4 shortlisted titles, vote for their favourite book and produce a creative interpretation of one of the books for the award ceremony.
The shortlist of books is decided after lengthy debate by school and public librarians, young people feed in their opinions to the debate too.
The young people decide the winning book through a secret vote a few weeks before the award ceremony. The winner is revealed by opening the red envelope at the close of the big day!
Key Dates
• April – August: A longlist of books is read from which the shortlist is agreed.
• September – April: Young people read, enjoy and debate the books.
• April: Pupils vote for their favourite book.
• May: The RED Book Award ceremony held at the Falkirk Town Hall
• It is great fun for all those involved.

We discussed the short list:
• Boy X by Dan Smith
• Welcome to Nowhere by Elizabeth Laird
• Hell and High Water by Tanya Landman
• Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

Did you Know we have Homework Clubs in Bonnybridge Library and Denny Library ?
– Denny Library Thursdays at 4pm
– Bonnybridge Library Thursday at 5.30pm