Welcome to our newest issue of What’s Up in the Loft, a newsletter for middle & high school students. Each month, we’ll highlight various library resources, new book recommendations, and upcoming events.
![A coloring sheet done with colored pencils depicting a dog peeking over a ledge. The text says "Let's go!" and in handwriting, "I love to play and am super soft! I would love to come home with you!"]()
Loft Teens Promote Dog Adoption Through Coloring Sheets
Loft Teens Promote Dog Adoption Through Coloring SheetsIt’s no secret that coloring pages are popular in the Teen Loft – but this month, teens have been coloring for a different purpose than entertainment: dog adoption! One of our librarians created several different fun pages to promote adoption and hanging them up on adoptable dogs’ kennels at a local shelter! We’ve received dozens of completed pages so far and potential adopters have really enjoyed seeing the colorful encouragements on the kennels.
Interested in more artistic opportunities? Stop by the Loft to color a dog today, enter our our National Library Week bookmark contest, or sign up for the upcoming Teen Tiny Tastes Art Show! Register to pick up supplies & paint at home, or to paint at the library at our Painting Party!
![Find book recommendations by format, genre, topic, Lexile, grade - All on our Teen Booklists page!]()
Niche Booklists for the Discerning Reader
Niche Booklists for the Discerning ReaderOur Teen Booklists page has dozens of lists, ranging from grade-level picks to genre to format to read-alike. This month, we’re highlighting a few niche lists you might be interested in.
Middle and High School Books Made into Movies or TV Shows – read the book, then grab some popcorn & watch while you note the differences. Is the book always better than the movie? You tell us!
Cry Me a Novel – you would be surprised how many t[w]eens ask us for books that will make them cry! Though, let’s be honest – there’s nothing like bawling your eyes out as you finish a book, clutching it to your chest, utterly wrecked yet profoundly moved. This list is packed with middle school stories that will tug at your heartstrings and leave you in tears.
Romantasy – this genre mashup has taken BookTok and Bookstagram by storm, and we can’t keep the most popular titles on the shelves! While you’re waiting for your hold on the new popular books to come in, peruse this list of enchanting tales filled with magic, adventure, and swoon-worthy romance. These captivating stories will transport you to other worlds while tugging at your heartstrings.
Award Winners – if you’ve been told to read an award-winning book in school but have no idea where to start, we’ve got your back. This list includes middle & high school books that have won over a dozen national & state book awards. Use the checkboxes and links on the left side of the catalog page to narrow down the list of winning & honored books to genres or topics that interest you most.
Read-Alikes for Middle & High School Favorites – Don’t miss this section of the Booklists page if you’re looking for books like The Hunger Games, anything Jenny Han has written, Percy Jackson, The Inheritance Games, Taylor Swift, and more. We know you have your favorites – but if we missed one, let us know & we’ll add a read-alike list!
![covers of the books Away by Megan E. Freeman, One Step Forward by Marcie Flinchum Atkins, Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell, and Boy 2.0 by Tracey Baptiste]()
Staff Book Bites Highlights
Staff Book Bites HighlightsYouth Services staff meet each month to share recently read titles from our collections so that we can help each other better know the materials available on our shelves. We try to read broadly, but it’s impossible to read all the good stuff for every age group that we serve. This monthly get-together really helps us learn about books we might not have otherwise heard about! Here are some middle & high school highlights from our March meeting:
Away by Megan E. Freeman – it’s no secret to us that Maddie, our Middle & High School Coordinator, loves Alone by the same author – and she’s been eagerly waiting for this companion novel for months! She told us all about it this month and it sounds even better than the first – told from the perspective of four teens, written in a variety of formats (including prose like the original novel). If you love dystopia-that-could-be-real, this is definitely the book for you (and don’t worry if you didn’t read the first one).
One Step Forward by Marcie Flinchum Atkins – a historical novel in verse set during the time of women’s suffrage, Lan had only read the first dozen or so pages before falling completely in love with it! She said she couldn’t wait until next month’s meeting to share the book with us – and you’ve gotta believe this is a good book if she’s so excited about it after reading such a short amount!
Boy 2.0 by Tracey Baptiste – though we all try to read broadly, action/adventure isn’t often a genre we see a lot of in our Book Bites meetings, but Denise brought this new title about a teen who discovers he has the power to turn invisible, and we were all intrigued! The book sounded really interesting, bringing together themes of social justice with identity, family, and a little bit of good old-fashioned secret scientist plots.
Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell – last month, a librarian said she didn’t bring this book because she didn’t like it, but Catherine, our Elementary School Coordinator, thought it was a blast! You’ll have to check out this fantasy about a boy who rescues a baby griffin from drowning, starting a chain of events that places him in a world of… impossible creatures – then let us know your thoughts!
![upcoming events]()
Spring Break Events
Spring Break Events- TOMORROW!!!!
Sunrise on the Reaping Launch Party
Friday, March 21, 2025, 4-5:15 p.m.
Join us to celebrate the launch of the newest book in the Hunger Games series: Sunrise on the Reaping! Enjoy themed activities and nerding out with other superfans – though previous book-reading/movie-watching is not required to come and have fun. Grades 6-12. - T[w]een Movie Night: Heroic Adventures
Wednesday, March 26, 2025, 6:15 – ? p.m.
Join us for a movie night with snacks! Vote for the heroic adventure we’ll watch when you register (note that program end time will vary depending on the winner). Grades 6-12. - Drop-In T[w]een LEGO Party
Friday, March 28, 3:30-5:15 p.m.
Unleash your creativity and building skills with an open LEGO challenge! We’ll bring the bricks – you bring the ideas. Build whatever you can imagine, hang out, and let your creativity run wild. Grades 6-12. - Note: the Loft will open at 11 a.m. from Monday, March 24 through Friday, March 28.
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Our Strategic Planning process is still underway – please share your feedback with us as we look to the library’s future!
We also invite you to recommend materials for us to include in next month’s newsletter!
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