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by: 
Jen, Teen Contributor

I still am a little unsure how I feel about Dream House, written by YouTube star, CutiePieMarzia. And to be honest, I had not heard of her before...but back to the subject at hand, Dream House was an interesting read that left me with a lot of questions. This story is about a girl named Amethyst, who finds herself in a very weird situation in a big creepy house with some sketchy, creepy people. The more time she spends in the house, the more I was asking myself, "what in the world is Amethyst doing"?! 

She comes across this big, beautiful house and a nice litte old couple who lives there. They invite her inside and welcome her to stay the night. One night turns into many as strange things happen to her each day.

At times I found the story to be a little over the top and silly, (seriously, why didn't she leave?) but I pushed through it and on the other side I found it to be a pretty scary read, though a little unbelievable at times. 

I would not read it again, but I didn't find it to be a waste of time. I give it a 2/5

by: 
Emily, Teen Contributor

Once there was a man who lived alone in a hut overlooking an ocean. The sky was often gray with storm clouds, and the constant rain brought a chill to the air. Though the wind howled despondently, the man was quite content. He woke early every morning, pulling on a raincoat and chest waiters before leaving the hut. He would walk down to the shoreline with an old fishing net and a thermos of coffee. After spending hours tossing in the waves in his boat he would return home. Although he was alone and there was little coziness to his hut, he would never dream of leaving. For his grandmother told him years earlier when he was a little boy that you can only be truly happy when you look inside yourself and can smile at what you see there. He had traveled the world and lived in many a place, but it was only in the lonely hut on the gray blue ocean that he could smile. 

 

Image Credit: mightymighymatze on Flickr. 

by: 
Teen Contributors

Katie, Teen Contributor

I liked that when the parents came in to sign their children up they ended up singing up too when they found out they could. It got the whole family involved and reading. Also, it was really great to see people excited about getting their free book when they signed up because they already knew what they would start the program. The hours are very flexible and it's nice to be at the table both helping and relaxing with other work when no one is there.

 

Annamarie, Teen Contributor

Last summer was one of the best summers ever. Everyone was so nice and helpful. I really enjoyed it.

 

Tennessee, Teen Contributor

Being a volunteer last year was an amazing experience! I had the chance to stray away from my comfort zone and talked and helped lots of people I loved seeing the kids they were so exited to get their book and start reading. I think that it is key to start and learn to love reading at a young age, so you get an amazing feeling when you know you are helping a kid take their first steps towards loving to read. The library is like a second home to me. I met so many other teens, and made many friends, it was great to talk, laugh, and work with kids my age for four hours straight. I felt like I truly belonged there. I also really enjoyed the hands on activities I helped with. This is a great  program! It's something that everyone should try, especially if you have nothing to do during the summer. You don't know until you try! 

 

Emily, Teen Contributor

I had a great time volunteering last year. It was awesome to be at the library helping kids and parents sign up and log their reading, and it was also super neat to get to see the wide range of people who use the library, and realize the extent of the library's impact on the community. I had a blast, and a nice bonus was getting volunteer hours.  It was an incredible experience, and I encourage others to volunteer as well. 

 

Destinee, Teen Contributor

Summer reading was really fun! I got to see the best of the community and got to help the nicest people. Watching little kids faces light up when they got their prizes was the best part! I also got to help some amazing people, including a deaf woman! Over all summer reading was a great experience. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to doing it again this summer.

Volunteer Application

by: 
William, Teen Contributor

ISEEYOU is a um... Criminal who uses smoke and creepy stuff to his advantage. He lost his parents to an explosion while Rusher (a different hero) was trying to save them. ISEEYOU swore revenge upon Rusher for letting his parents die. He is an adopted kid and creepy. "I see you, you cannot see me" is his catch phrase and way to get revenge and defeat others (you can't see him...but HE can see YOU). He wears a mask to add some more creep to him. He is also a teenager who likes to make wisecracking jokes at his foes. And one more thing... ISEEYOU... (Not really though)

 

 George Gambol wanted to have fun with some of the experiments he had using robotics. He made a suit to hide his identity and went on a crime spree, taking anything he could find or want using his robotic exo-legs. Of course he was stopped. Later he did more experiments, but these experiments were live or die. He then gained superpowers like Lightspeed, but with one advantage... He could leap to very high heights. Thus gaining the name Leap...

 

by: 
Jeremiah, Teen Contributor

Be warned: this film is rated R. 

When Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele announced that they were ending their critically acclaimed Comedy Central show, Key & Peele, fans everywhere were understandably heartbroken. For those who watched it, Key & Peele was one of the funniest shows on television, continually delivering hilarious sketches every week: their chemistry undeniable and their comedic brilliance evident. Luckily for all us fans, as well as fans of comedy in general, Key and Peele star in Keanu, a hilarious fun film about two suburban cousins and the cutest cat anyone has ever seen.

Jordan Peele plays Rell, a regular suburban man whose girlfriend just broke up with him. Still reeling from the loss, his cousin Clarence (Keegan-Michael Key) comes over to help him through his tough time. When Clarence arrives though, it seems like he won’t need to help Rell much; Rell has replaced his ex with a kitten who showed up at his door. He named the cat Keanu, and it is possibly the most adorable kitten that has ever existed. So when Keanu gets stolen by a gang, it’s up to Rell and Clarence to descend into the criminal underworld in order to retrieve Keanu.

Jokes are the most important part of any comedy, and Keanu delivers on this front. Not to say that every joke landed, there were a solid amount of chuckle-worthy lines and a few more jokes that just missed completely, but I laughed heartily many times during the movie. The plot provides a lot of room for jokes surrounding the “thuggery” Rell and Clarence try to feign around real gangsters, as both are as un-thug as possible. These jokes land most often out of them all, and this dynamic is one of the core elements in Keanu.

Speaking of core elements, Key and Peele have some undeniably great chemistry. And how could they not, having worked on together for many years, all the way back to MADTV. Key is the more extroverted of the two and Peele is quieter and more understated in his role. For many duos, the louder character has a tendency to eclipse their quiet counterpart. Key did this a few times throughout Keanu, but a testament to their ability to work together, Peele stands out in several scenes on his own accord.

The film is written well, with the ratio of jokes to serious moments perfect. What’s great about this film is that it isn’t just a stupid movie to hunt down a kitten. It is that, but not just that. The character Rell has no companion, doesn’t have a job he’s emotionally invested in, doesn’t have a present family. To Rell, Keanu is his whole world, and about the only thing he finds meaning in. This deeper, emotional theme is really what roots the film in reality among all the George Michael jokes. Rell’s feeling of dependency on Keanu allows the film to go to some crazy ridiculous places, and it sure does go there, while delivering an emotional basis for the audience to connect with. I truly believe that this dynamic is one of the two secrets that elevate this film from all the other R rated comedies.

The other thing that propels Keanu past it’s competition is the kitten itself. Jordan Peele once said in an interview they at times had seven different cats all used for the role of Keanu. Regardless, the kitten (or cumulation of kittens) Keanu is, as I have mentioned, probably the cutest cat I have ever seen. This cuteness helps people forget the few jokes that don’t land and some of the few subpar elements of the script, like poor pacing. Instead of leaving the theater saying, “that was pretty funny,” people will probably leave saying “THIS part was hilarious, THIS part too, and that kitten was ADORABLE”.

A little bit of cuteness goes a long way, as the saying I just made up goes, and Keanu is a testament to this. With some hilarious moments, a grounded emotional story, and a kitten straight from heaven, you should enjoy Keanu a lot! I’d rate it 8/10

For more reviews, visit my blog

Image credit: you as a machine on Flickr.

by: 
Emily, Teen Contributor

This photo was taken during the Denver Botanical Gardens Orchid Exhibit. 

 

by: 
Kai, Teen Contributor

So, it’s the time of the year to plant all of your seeds. But you probably don’t know the first thing about gardening do you? Well, today I will be telling you about starting your seeds. 

The first thing you’ll want to do is buy some indoor planting pots. I got some small plastic pots in a tray. They came with clear dome over them to help the seeds germinate, (or to help the seed sprout into a plant.)

These little seed starter pods might come with discs that expand when you pour water on them, but I personally like to throw them away or find ones that don’t have them. Instead of the pods I like to get some potting soil and mix it in with Bison manure. Not everyone has bison manure so just potting soil will work. Pour the soil into the little pods and label what the seeds pods are what with some tape. To plant the seeds I use a pencil and poke the eraser in just enough to make a hole in it.

Now it’s up to you what seeds you want to plant. I am planting some herbs and leafy plants this year. Now you just have to water and care for the plants until the frost comes, where you can ant them out in your garden. What? You don’t have a garden plot? That’s an easy fix. You can designate a plot of land in your backyard to the size you want your garden to be (with consent). After that, you can put fence or bricks around the garden to protect it. 

To prepare the dirt for planting, mix in some potting soil and manure into your dug up dirt. I have a wood stove so I put wood ashes into my garden and that seems to help as well. If you have a rototiller that’s great, just keep on tilling the garden until it’s all mixed together. If you don’t have a rototiller, you will have to use a shovel, which is a little harder but has the same result.

Congratulations! You have just started your very own garden! This is just the tip of the iceberg though. Soon I will talk about taking care of your garden. Just remember that gardening is a full time hobby. You have to take care of the plants more than you think. However, it pays back tenfold.

by: 
Zane, Teen Contributor

Last year really impacted me a lot. I did a lot of volunteer work at Arvada, and I still have been. I have never been a huge fan of reading, but helping people is one thing I have always enjoyed doing. One reason I started doing this, was because I needed service hours for scouting! I never thought I would do so much volunteering. I mean, I did some hours here and there at my school, but nothing like here. The staff at the libraries are very kind, and help out if you needed it. I met lots of people during this, and actually, some people even asked if I was there that day. I had to work around other things, but I got 118+ hours in. It was fun seeing the smiles on people's faces when they successfully got things completed, and they got their prizes. This was the main highlight of my summer last year, and I would recommend doing it to any teen. I honestly would rather be there helping others all day, than sitting around and playing video games all day. I have never been a huge video gamer, and this is much healthier for you anyway. Anyone who is looking to do something besides sitting around and doing nothing all day, should really try it. They always need as much help as possible!

Volunteer Application

by: 
William, Teen Contributor

William Specht worked at a science lab to innovate lives. He was working on a genetic enhancer to allow people to react faster to surroundings. At the time the lab was experiencing many break ins. One night while William was working the Virus showed up, (a artificial intelligence robot, more about him later!) telling William to test his genetic enhancer on himself. He was really freaked out because the enhancer could still be unstable. Doing what the robot told him to do he felt a wave of vibration on himself. Also, he saw the world around him going in slow motion. But later, when he could control what was happening to him, he was the one going super fast. So the world around him looked super slow.

 

by: 
Caitlin, Teen Contributor

Book Basics: Passenger by Alexandra Bracken 

Published: January 2016, Disney- Hyperion 

Genre: YA, adventure, historical fiction

Page Count: 

Star Rating: ★★★★ 

Recommended For/If You Liked: PJO fans or fans of historical fiction and adventure

Favorite Quote: “...it matters not who you love, but only the quality of such a love… a flower is no less beautiful because it does not bloom in the expected form. Because it lasts an hour and not days.” 

 It’s been a long time since I’ve read an adventure novel. And Passenger is just that- a good, wholesome adventure story, with a healthy helping of romance and history on the side. Passenger follows the story of 17-year-old Etta Spencer,  a violin prodigy whose only concern is her upcoming debut and what to do with her future. But then a mysterious sound leads her to a passage that takes her to a ship headed towards 1776 New York City. There, Etta is thrown into a family of time travelers, ruled by a power-hungry old man named Cyrus Ironwood and discovers that she too possess the ability to time travel. Ironwood blackmails Etta into finding a special device called an astrolabe, which Etta must find using clues her mother left her and the help of Nicholas Carter, an 18th century privateer. 

It took a couple chapters for the book to get going, but once Etta woke up on the ship the plot picked up quickly. The pacing was a little off throughout the entire book, but it wasn’t a major problem. There were some parts that I had to power through because I knew that the story would get better. Other than the pacing, the plot was nicely developed, with a good balance between romance and adventure. (If you don’t like romance interfering with your adventure then this book isn’t for you. The romance wasn’t overpowering, but it did take up a fair chunk of the story.) 

Nicholas and Etta’s romance was very nicely written and I really liked the added complexity of race as an issue within their relationship (Nicholas is black, and Etta is white). It’s obviously a major issue during Nicholas’s time, but Etta does acknowledge that while people would be much more accepting of an interracial relationship in our time, the present day is still far from free of racism. Sexism was also an issue dealt with in the novel, but wasn’t as heavy as racism. I loved how these issues were repeated and dealt with across the various time periods that Nicholas and Etta traveled to. 

The character development was great and Etta was absolutely perfect as an independent, badass heroine. 

Aside from some minor issues, I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun, adventurous story with complex characters and relationships. And after the ending (spoiler alert: it’s a major cliffhanger) I’m definitely going to read the next book. Anyone who’s a fan of adventure, historical fiction, or both will enjoy this story. 

Don't forget to check out my blog for more YA book reviews and recommendations and follow me on Instagram (@thebookishbookworm) for bookish photography and updates every time I post! 

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