After relocating to a Michigan mill town following the 1871 Chicago fire, 12-year-old Adrian struggles to adjust to small-town life and faces the prospect of losing yet another home, his new friends and his secret hobby. The Town That Disappeared, a historical fiction novel by Battle Creek’s Sandy Carlson, is a delightful coming-of-age story based on real-life events that will teach young readers about area history, compassion and acceptance. It’s a good story to tell, and Carlson does a very nice job. Aimed at middle-school readers, this book definitely would appeal to the Guys Read set.

Carlson’s book is part of the Local Indie @ KDL collection, housed at the Cascade Township and Kentwood (Richard L. Root) branches. It was created to give independent authors, filmmakers and musicians the opportunity to be added to our shelves and to be featured by staff in order to increase viewers, readers and listeners.

Click here to browse our Local Indie @ KDL collection.

Word Wise, KDL’s annual teen poetry contest, celebrated its tenth year and it once again was a huge success thanks to all the great teen poets out there. This year, nearly 200 poems were submitted. Library staff reviewed the poems and narrowed down the entries, submitting them to Grand Rapids Poet Laureate, David Cope, for final analysis. Ten winners were chosen and a PDF of the winning poems will soon be available for your reading pleasure.

Congratulations to the winning poets!

A Day’s Worth of Broken Haiku by Alex Courtade

A Ghazal in a Shadow by Alistair Poole

The Script of the Lost by Stephanie Sutherland

Unseen Actors and . . . by Karina Bursch

Stars by Makenzie Hutchings

Opening the Worn Cigar Box in the Basement by Hannah Fleming

The Perfect Kiss by Emily Anderson

That Sweet Aroma by Kate Ruehrdanz

The Broken Poet by Paige Jackson

Watching the Stars by Bethany Garvon

The school year is winding down, and that means we are gearing up for Summer Reading @ KDL. With programs for kids, teens and adults, we are inviting the whole family to get Grounded in Happiness @ KDL. And if discovering some great books isn’t enough of an incentive to participate, we have also got some awesome prizes up for grabs, including gift cards to nearly 20 different stores, John Ball Zoo memberships, iPods, NOOK eReaders and more!

Summer Reading @ KDL kicks off on Saturday, June 1. Stop by your local branch to sign up, and don’t forget to pick up a program guide while you’re there. Our summer line-up includes dinosaurs, magic, animals, food and music, just to name a few! Watch this video to amp up your excitement!

KDL’s inaugural Book Bash, held April 27 and 28 at our Comstock Park Service Center, was a weekend of good food, great fun and gargantuan bargains on more than 100,000 books, CDs, DVDs, games and more.

A few numbers:

• Hits to the Book Bash website – 5,544 since February
• Participants in the Facebook quilt contest – 12,753
• Attendance at Book Bash – 1,467
• Dollars raised for KDL programs – $31,797
• 93 volunteers worked 1,245 hours

Thanks to everyone who volunteered, shopped and supported the event. See you next year!

There are a lot of series written for teens, but sometimes one of those books disappoints and the whole series is never the same. Luckily, this is not the case with the Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta.

The first book, Finnikin of the Rock, helps set the backstory of the of the small kingdom called Lumatere, which is part of the Land of Skuldenore. Finnikin and his guardian have spent the last 10 years trying to find a home for the displaced people of their kingdom after the royal family was murdered and a curse is placed around the kingdom, which no one can cross. Their path is changed forever when they meet Evanjalin, who swears the heir to the throne is still alive.

The second book, Froi of the Exiles, picks up where Finnikin left off. Without giving away the ending of the first book, Froi is sent on a dangerous mission to the neighboring kingdom of Charyn, where he meets Quintana of Charyn (the third book title), the daughter of the king responsible for the death of the Lumatere royal family.

Each book was a pleasure to read and brought the characters to life, flaws and all. While the series has been wrapped up, I for one wouldn’t mind another book set in Lumatere! If you haven’t given this series a try, stop by your local library today to pick up a copy.

Good news for eBook fans — new titles from major publisher Hachette Book Group are now available from the library again! Hachette stopped selling eBooks to libraries in 2010, limiting the availability of popular authors such as James Patterson, David Baldacci, Sandra Brown and others to only titles released before this date. But they are now once again making their full collection available for libraries to purchase.

KDL has purchased over 200 new Hachette titles, including:

• Life after Life by Kate Atkinson
• The Hit by David Baldacci
• Death of Yesterday by M. C. Beaton
• Low Pressure by Sandra Brown
• Beautiful Creatures series by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
• The Fifth Assassin by Brad Meltzer
• 12th of Never by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro
• Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris

Since lots of popular titles are now available for the first time, we’ve also increased the checkout limit to 15 items, so visit http://ebooks.kdl.org and start downloading!

Hey library lovers: we want to know how KDL has helped you or your family save money this year. Everyone who shares their story by May 22 by filling out this form will be entered for the chance to win a $25 gift card from Schuler Books & Music. Also, everyone who enters might find their stories shared on our website here.

You love-bomb us, we love-bomb you right back.

aaaaaaaand go!

P.S. – Comments left on this blog post will not be considered for the contest; please fill out the form by clicking here.

Do you like books that send shivers down your spine? Maybe you like your books with some odd twists. If so, the Dark and Twisted booklist should provide the thrills you’re looking for.

Some staff favorites from the list include Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs and Rick Yancey’s The Monstrumologist. One staff member even called The Monstrumoligist “the grossest book I’ve ever read.” Both are sure to keep you up at night.

Are you already making plans for summer? Don’t forget about all the FREE programs available at the library! The Summer 2013 issue of the KDL Kaleidoscope program guide is now available online. You’ll find all you need to know about summer events and get some great information on library resources and staff recommendations. (Printed guides will also be available in the branches by mid-May.)

It’s sure to be an exciting summer at KDL, and you don’t want to miss a thing. Check out the KDL Kaleidoscope today!

2013 is shaping up to be a great year for those of us who love seeing our favorite books on the big screen. But whether the movie is good or bad, it is always nice to read the book before you see the movie. Below is a list of just a few of the great books still coming out as movies this year, with the release dates. Stop in at your local branch to pick up a copy of the book now, or follow the link below to put one on hold.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald – May 10
World War Z by Max Brooks – June 21
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan – August 7
Paranoia by Joseph Finder – August 16
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare – August 23
Serena by Ron Rash – September 27
Carrie by Stephen King – October 18
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card – November 1
The Wolf of Wall Street by Jordan Belfort – November 15
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire – November 22
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug  by JRR Tolkien – December 13
The Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel – December 18
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty by James Thurber – December 25

What book do you think should be made into a movie?