Here is our first post from San Antonio. See the pictures at http://homepage.mac.com/hrunting/PhotoAlbum11.html
&
http://homepage.mac.com/hrunting/PhotoAlbum12.html

The following is what the STAB Antonian's (our BBYA group) has to say so far:

HELLLLOOOOO STABBBYA GROUPIES!!!!!
We all know you want to be here, but we’re here instead of you. HAHAHAHA. In San Antonio. Having the greatest time… ever.

“THE STARS AT NIGHT ARE BIG AND BRIGHT…”

Things that we have done so far:
1) thanks to Rick, left on a red-eye flight at 11 PM from seatac and arrived at dallas fort worth airport in the middle of the night. Staggered blindly through the airport trying to find our gate. Bought huge cups of starbucks and sat waiting for the flight to san Antonio. Molly spilled her chantico all over her pants and Alene’s bag. It was not happy, but we had snacks for later.
2. finally got to san Antonio, with about 3 hours of sleep between us. Found a van. Nina had to pay for it, because the responsible chaperone had no cash. Jackie and Molly almost had to brave the freeways of San Antonio without seatbelts, because the poor taxi-van had none for them. Nina also pinched herself. Hard. She blamed it on her
suitcase. See picture Blister from Hell.
3) We attempted to arrive at the hotel. They wouldn’t let us check in. But Thurston the Bell Captain was really nice, and directed us to an office cubicle disguised as ladies room, where we attempted to look more….human. We’re not sure it worked.
4) A random woman came in and talked to us about Seattle and books. We didn’t know her.
5) We got directions from Thurston to the Alamo, to go see if there was a basement. Disappointment of the Century: there is no basement, only a bunch of rocks piled on top of each other with random flags from different countries, that have nothing to do with Texas or Mexico or the Alamo… also, some memorials from dead people, and every possession Davey Crockett ever owned.
6) Then we went to the Convention Center. It was freezing. Though it wasn’t supposed to be. Rick lied. We theorize that Rick made up the weather report he gave us. Inside the Convention Center it was toasty warm, but outside it was like, 20 degrees. Maybe.
7.) We waited in like twenty different lines to get little slips of paper that let us into a big room with lots of SWAG! Here we met Rick. We screamed and cried like the groupies we are when we saw him. All the librarians passing were shocked that Rick knew such fashionable, charming, adorable, attractive, and likable people (that’s us). Then some guy who knew Rick was like, “hey, it’s Rick’s girls!” Um, hello, weird? So the guy who knew Rick said we were now the “Rickettes.” Which kind of sounds like rickets, which is like, a disease. But whatever. It was supposed to sound like Rockettes, like the dance group. We only do high kicks for a considerable fee. (We really are the next big thing,)
8) After we scored all kinds of swag, I mean SWAG, (sorry), including weird pencils and American history posters (YES!) we went to the mall and had lunch: orange chicken, according to Texas. It was actually more like elevensies, and now Rick thinks he’s a hobbit, which is really kind of sad because if you look at him closely he actually does resemble one. So now his new name is Ricko, like Frodo, and he’s going to stop shaving his feet and start living in a hole in the ground so he will stop hiding his true identity. At last! Molly also spilled on herself again, and has since stated that “Orange Chicken” sauce goes quite well with leftover Chantico Starbucks chocolate.
9) We tried to get Jackie’s ears pierced, but the fascists at Claire’s wouldn’t let us because her mom wasn’t there. We’re now on the lookout for red-headed people willing to go back with us.
10) We went BACK to the Convention Center, into HBC-214A (the room where they talk about teen books.) Also, coincidentally, the room farthest from the elevator. We put all our SWAG in the room which was a relief because our backs were actually broken, and our shoulders were going to pop out of our sockets, and our feet were melding to our shoes. We then proceeded to lie across three chairs each and fall into a deep slumber. Except for Molly, who kept watch for us, reading free graphic novels. Rick and the other librarians talked about teen books, which was fun for them.
-We take a short break for a passage from the Holy Bible. –
“And when Rachel saw that she beared Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, give me children, or else I die.”
BY THE WAY: WE LOVE ALENE LIKE WE LOVE OREOS, and that’s a lot of love, right there.

Back to the blog.
11) We heard Ricko Baggins dis Loyola Chin, and yet support Sandpiper all the way.(WHAT?) Then one guy was like, “Sandpiper begins where Rainbow Party ended.” Uh…. How about not? Let’s not even go there.
12) So then, we met Angie and her roommate, Jerene. WE went back to the hotel to freshen up. Nina was adamant that she takes a shower because she’s very aquatic. And so, we went back down to the lobby late because of Nina Aquatica.
ANYWAY, Angie & Jerene ditched us. SO, we traipsed around San Antonio without their help. We went to the MERCADO and bought lots of touristy stuff. Then we thought we’d get dinner but ended up getting ice cream instead!! And Nina almost had a near disaster with the point of her cone, which apparently you’re just supposed to shove in your mouth instead of chewing like a civilized person. It was determined that Nina didn’t know anything at this point, about ice cream or otherwise.
13) After this ice cream adventure, we walked down the River Walk, where you basically walk down the fake little river. Michelle took many pictures of Hitchcock-esque Birds(f.y.i: they were called Grackles), pretty things, and Molly waving to random boaters on the river. Alene called her mom, Nina spaced out as she shivered, and Jackie chilled.
14) We went back to our hotel, and Nina went upstairs to change. Again. A half hour later, she came back downstairs, where the party was goin on in the hotel lobby, where Ricko Baggins had just showed up in a dashing suit and yellow tie, and was about to go to a party we weren’t invited to. What a jerk. He did, however, buy us Oreos and Red Vines, so we allowed him to go and forgave him somewhat.
15) We are currently in Alene’s room, which is much bigger than ours, by the way, and watching a movie that every single actor in Hollywood seems to be in, including Will Smith, Jason Lee, Jack Black, Jon Voigt, Regina King, and Seth Green. And some little kids that play video games. We’re ordering pizza (Alene had to speak sharply to the pizza delivery people, since they were unfortunately not very intelligent.)
THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY! Stay posted for more of our adventures in San Antonio. Tomorrow we’re going to unscrew all the traffic lights so that they hang the right way. People in Texas are incapable of putting them vertically and think they look best sideways. What a state.

“…DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS!!!!!!”

Just a reminder that we will have a work party tomorrow starting at 4. However, if you have time before Thursday, you can come in anytime to volunteer. Even if I'm not here, Gaye or Laurie (our Children's librarians) will be able to put you to work.
If you are artistically inclined (even moderately) this is a great opportunity for you to do some interesting work.
If you are like me and don't even know what end of the paintbrush to use, I still have plenty of stuff for you to do that is not "arty".
Thanks STABies! Hope to see you this week!

Shoreline Teen Advisory Board Primer
Pretty much everything you need to know about S.T.A.B.

Important STAB Acronyms:
• STAB: Shoreline Teen Advisory Board-The name of our illustrious group.
• BBYA: Best Books for Young Adults-The national committee that we are working on to choose the Best Books of the Year.
• STABBBYA: Shoreline Teen Advisory Board Best Books for Young Adults- The arm of STAB dedicated to working on and discussing BBYA titles (pronounced “stab ‘ya”). See the next page for more information.
• STASH: Shoreline Teen Advisory Store House- Also known as The Closet. Where we keep the STABBBYA books and other STAB supplies.
• STABLog: Shoreline Teen Advisory Board Log- http://www.shorstab.blogspot.com/

Important Websites:
• STABLog: Keep up to date on all things STAB related- www.shorstab.blogspot.com/
• BWI: The STAB resource for our lists and our review sources (Check with me for login information)- www.bwibooks.com/
• BBYA Homepage: Look at past lists and keep up with current nominations- www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/bbya

Process for the “Monthly” STAB Meetings:
• Go to www.bwibooks.com and access the STAB account. If you don't remember the login, let me know and I'll e-mail it to you.
• Click on "Your lists" on the right side of the page. Find the list with your name and open it. If you don't see one with your name, e-mail me and I can set up a list for you. If you can't get a hold of me, review the list "Extra1" or "Extra2".
• Once you open the list, you’ll notice many of the books have "Full Text Reviews" done by professional publications. You can access them by clicking either the big red "FTR" link or click on the "Details" link to access the cover art, the reviews and a summary of the book.
• Or, if you want, you can look them up in a place like Amazon.com. Remember to look more closely at the professional reviews than at the customer reviews.
• Based on the reviews, what you read in the summary, the cover art and anything else that strikes your fancy, give me a score for the book on a scale from 1-5. 1 is low (don't you dare buy this thing) and 5 being high (I just might go buy this book myself).

Volunteering:
There are a number of volunteer tasks available to STAB members. These projects range from the mundane to the strange. If there is something you are particularly interested in doing please let me know and I will do my best to get you involved. Here are some of examples:

• Shelving holds
• Creating displays
• General clean up
• Maintaining the BBYA Database
• Developing the booklist
• Labeling Books
• Shelving BBYA books
• Planning programs
• Processing comics
• Coming to meetings
• Cutting paper
• Filling Displays
• Maintaining the STAB database


STABBBYA Information

Process for the STABBBYA Meetings:
• Read at least one book before each meeting
• Come prepared to discuss what you liked/loved/hated about each book and present a brief description
• It is OK not to like a book
• Respect what others have to say about a book but feel free to disagree
• Ask questions about what others are reading
• I’m looking for your honest opinions

Writing Reviews:
When you write a review for a STABBBYA book, I would like you to:
• Write why you like/love/hate the book.
• A brief description (if the book is not nominated).
• Score it using the Quality/Popularity scale (See Below).
• E-mail it to me.
• As always, I'm looking for your honest opinion about the books

Here is the format I would like you to use when writing a review:
Reviewer's Name
Author Last Name, Author First Name-Title
Review
Q/P Scores
Should it make the list?
So for example:
Rick Orsillo
Conrad, Eustace-Happy funny book
This the true story T.R. McSwiller and his quest for the elusive Hammacher Schlemmer.
I think this book is the worst thing I have ever read. It was neither happy, nor funny. In fact it was a little depressing. I especially disliked the metaphor of the mongoose. Very disturbing.
1Q/2P
List? No
Obviously my review is somewhat lacking, but I think you get the idea.

Use this scale to rate books for STABBBYA:
Here is the Q/P Score I referred to earlier:

Quality
5Q Hard to imagine it being better written.
4Q Better than most, marred by occasional lapses.
3Q Readable, without serious defects.
2Q Better editing or work by the author might have warranted a 3Q.
1Q Hard to understand how it got published, except in relation to its P rating (and not even then sometimes).

Popularity
5P Every YA (who reads) was dying to read it yesterday.
4P Broad general or genre YA appeal.
3P Will appeal with pushing.
2P For the YA reader with a special interest in the subject.
1P No teen will read unless forced to for assignments.

The Final BBYA Nominations list is out and it is 217 titles long. You can view the entire list by clicking on the Best Books for Young Adults website link on the right side of the page. I've planned a few meetings for the rest of the year to discuss the nominations. They should all be on Tuesday nights from 4-6. Hopefully you can make all or most of the meetings. The dates are:
November 8th

November 29th

December 6th

December 27th

January 17th

Hope you can make! Look for more updates on the STABlog soon!

STAB Meeting Review: September 05

For those who missed the 9-13 Meeting we had, here are the high points for a meeting that had too much gossip, ice cream, and clumpy pizza:

• Parade and Posters: Thanks for those who helped out in the parade. Get your signs while they last before they are thrown out.
• San Antonio: Interested in going to San Antonio for free? There's a catch, but if your interested, contact Rick. Date for the trip is January 23,24.
  
• STABBYA: Rick is compiling a report on what the reaction was to the new subdivision group. Voice your opinions to him before he finishes it up.
• Booksale: FOSL is having their annual booksale and they need help. Dates are as follows: Wednesday, September 14th, to 5pm, Thursday, September 15 to 7 PM, Sunday September 18th from 3-5 PM. It is IMPERATIVE you go and help out if you want to go to San Antonio.
• Volunteering: With the school year beginning, Rick needs more grunts and servants..er volunteers to help him. Come individually rather than as a group. Don't forget to fill out time sheets regardless of whetehr you need the hours or not.

That about wraps it up. See you all next month and hope you're doing well in the first few days of school.

~Victor

More news from the desk of the Chief:

STABies,
I sent you an e-mail earlier this week about the book sale so I won't remind you that the Friends are looking forward to your help on:

Wednesday, September 14th until 5 pm
Thursday, September 15th until 7 pm
Sunday, September 18th from 3-5 pm
Oh. Now look what I've done. Whoops.

Secondly, I'm trying to put together a STAB meeting for Tuesday Sept. 13th from 4-6pm. Let me know if you can make it so I can assign you a list to work on. If you have joined recently and have no idea what I'm talking about, this is one of the meetings that we have occasionally so you can tell me what to buy. I just need to know if you can make it so I know how many booklists to make. If we have time we can talk about the BBYA books we've been reading. Let me know if you can come ASAP please.

Lastly, I'm working on an article about my experiences on the Best Books committee. If you have any comments on what you learned or what you thought of your experiences while doing work on the committee, e-mail me. This has mostly to do with my work last year on the committee when I was the administrative assistant, but if you want to tell me what you have thought about your experiences this year as well, I'd be happy to hear.

Thanks! Hope to hear from you all very soon!

From the Desk of the Chief:

Am I spamming you yet?

I just wanted to remind you the Friends booksale is going on next weekend and they could use your help! The times for which they are asking assitance are;

Wednesday, September 14th until 5 pm
Thursday, September 15th until 7 pm
Sunday, September 18th from 3-5 pm

If you have any interest in going to San Antonio, it is imperitive that you come to one or more of these times. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks,

Rick Orsillo, Teen Services Librarian

STAB Meeting Review: Inaugural Edition

For those of you who could not make it to the meeting or didn't come at all, here's the topics we went over:

• Celebrate Shoreline! This year's parade through Shoreline is on August 20th during the morning hours. We're not decking out completely like we did a few years back. According to Rick, it helps make the FOSL (Friends of the Shoreline Library) happy, and that's good because they provide the pizza money.
• FOSL Book Sale! September 14th to the 18th. Again, same reasons as above. Come if you can, and if you're lucky, you might get discounted books at the sale!
• Volunteering! If you need hours, come in and get things done. There's about a month to go, so get it done while you still have time.
• STABBYA! More swag has come in and more stuff to read. If you're interested, pop down to the library and get some books. There's more of everything!

Other than that, stay tuned for updates about the parade and such. See you in a month.

~Victor

There is a STAB meeting on July 26th from 2-4 pm. Please let me know if you can come. Thanks heaps!

It would really help when I put them in the database if you could send the reviews individually and put them in the following format:

Reviewer's Name
Author Last Name, Author First Name-Title
Review
Q/P Scores
Should it make the list?
So for example:

Rick Orsillo
Conrad, Eustace-Happy funny book
I think book is the worst thing I have ever read. It was neither happy, nor funny. In fact it was a little depressing. I especially disliked the metaphor of the mongoose. Very disturbing.
1Q/2P
List? No

Obviously my review is somewhat lacking, but I think you get the idea. Any questions? Let me know.
Here are the Q/P scores in case you needed them again:

VOYA's Book Review Codes
Quality
5Q
Hard to imagine it being better written.
4Q
Better than most, marred by occasional lapses.
3Q
Readable, without serious defects.
2Q
Better editing or work by the author might have warranted a 3Q.
1Q
Hard to understand how it got published, except in relation to its P rating (and not even then sometimes).

Popularity
5P
Every YA (who reads) was dying to read it yesterday.
4P
Broad general or genre YA appeal.
3P
Will appeal with pushing.
2P
For the YA reader with a special interest in the subject.
1P
No teen will read unless forced to for assignments.

STABies,

Just a little reminder that we have our first real STABBBYA Meeting on TuesdayMay 3rd from 4-6pm. Since this will be our first meeting of this group, I had afew thoughts I wanted to share and a few questions I wanted to ask you beforethe meeting. I envision the meeting proceeding thusly:

1. Each of you will a change to talk about the book/s that you have read fromthe STASH. Then we all ask you probing questions like "What do you think wasthe significance of the mongoose in the final scene," and other such nonsense.Try to come prepared with ideas about the book like:
a. a short (1 minute at most) summary of the book.
b. a statement about why you did or didn't like the book.c. your Q/P scores.d. try not too give away too much when tell us how it ends.e. should we read this book? Should I nominate it if I haven't.

2. Then I'll talk about the books I've read and encourage you take them and readthem.

3. Please bring back your books so that other can have a shot at reading themand so we can see what you are talking about.

Now for a couple of questions that I would like you to answer:

1. What would you like to eat at this meeting? I was thinking that popcorn ora finger food would work better than pizza. I'm up for pizza if you want--justlet me know.

2. What information do you want from me? How can I make this meeting helpfulfor you? Anything I can give you that will help you figure out what you want toread? Let me know.

3. Any suggestions on what else you would like to do with this meeting? I'lltry to incorporate it if we can.

4. Let me know if you can make it so I know how many people to expect.

Thanks! Hope you can make it!

When you review a STABBBYA book try and use the VOYA Q/P scale. VOYA (Voice ofYouth Advocates) is a magazine librarians and other people of that ilk read. Ithas articles and what-not (actually, quite a bit of what-not) in it. Abouthalf of the magazine is dedicated to book reviews and this is the scale theyuse.
They rate books on Quality (the Q) and Popularity (the P). They also giveit a grade level.
So, in conclusion, if you are writing a review for me for STABBBYA, I would likeyou to:
1. Write why you like/love/hate the book.
2. A brief description
3. Score it and give it a grade level.
As always, I'm looking for your honest opinion about the books.

Here is how Iwould liked the books scored. Let me know if you have any questions.
VOYA's Book Review Codes

Quality
5QHard to imagine it being better written.
4QBetter than most, marred by occasional lapses.
3QReadable, without serious defects.
2QBetter editing or work by the author might have warranted a 3Q.
1QHard to understand how it got published, except in relation to its P rating (andnot even then sometimes).

Popularity
5PEvery YA (who reads) was dying to read it yesterday.
4PBroad general or genre YA appeal.
3PWill appeal with pushing.
2PFor the YA reader with a special interest in the subject.
1PNo teen will read unless forced to for assignments.

Grade Level Interest
M Middle School (defined as grades 6-8).
J Junior High (defined as grades 7-9).
S Senior High (defined as grades 10-12).
A/YA Adult-marketed book recommended for teens.

Missing the Meeting means READ THIS

1. STABBBYA Update: Why haven't we had a STABBBYA Meeting yet? rick needs more people to be reading ths big closet of books - START READING THEM Anyway, after the last STAB meeting, we should have another meeting one later this month. For updates you can always check theBBYA website at: www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/bbya<http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/bbya>

2. SAT Program: rick is nice enough to tell you about programs ahead of time so PAY ATTNETION if you or anyone you know or love will be taking the SAT soon, have themsign up for the free SAT class here at Shoreline. It will be on April 23rd at10:30 am. Call 1-800-527-8378 (or 1-800-KAP-TEST) to register.

3. Library Job Opening: for all you rick wanna be's... The library has a page position open. Check out thewebsite for more info and an application:<http://www.kcls.org/employment/hrjobs.cfm> . The position closes March 25th sohurry. Unfortunately, the positions are really only available for daytimehours, but you can still apply.

4. Volunteering: We've been having quite a few opportunities to volunteer in the last few weeks. Most of it has to do with BBYA stuff. If you are interested in helping out, orif you need some community service hours shortly, this may be just what youneed. Call or e-mail before you come in so I can try and prepare something foryou.

5. THE BIG BOOKLIST: Thanks to everyone that stopped in and helped with this monster. Most of thebooks came from two lists generated at ALA. One is the Margaret A. EdwardsAwards that went to Francesca Lia Block. Check out that award here:<http://www.ala.org/ala/yalsa/booklistsawards/margaretaedwards/margaretedwards.htm>We also had a mess of books from the Popular Paperbacks list. You can find outmore about that list here: <http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/poppaper>

HEADS UP! FREE SAT PRACTICE!
1. We've scheduled an SAT Practice test for April 23rd. Sign up early! Plus let friends and relativesknow--especially if they will be taking the test anytime soon.

SAT Practice TestHigh School students:

Wonder how you will score on the SAT? Find out by takinga free Kaplan practice test. This fully proctored practice SAT will show youwhat to expect on test day. You will also receive a comprehensive analysis ofyour performance on the test detailing individual strengths and weaknesses. Kenmore, Lake Forest Park and Shoreline Libraries are pleased to make thisavailable free of charge to high school students.

DATE AND LOCATION:

Saturday,April 23, 10AM-2:30 PM, Shoreline Library meeting room. Pre-registration required; call 1-800-527-8378 to pre-register with Kaplan.

Limited to 50 participants.

HEADS UP! JOB OPPORTUNITY
2. We have 3 page openings. If you are interested in working here check out theKCLS employment site at http://www.kcls.org/employment/hrjobs.cfm It isn'tofficially listed yet, but you can fill out the application get it ready. Rick needs to know if he is put down as a reference!
3. We got our booklist for the month. March 15th meeting from 4pm-6pm.

What was talked about at the meeting:

STAB Meeting,
Tuesday, February 1st, 2005
4pm-6pm

1. Back from Boston: Where I regailed the group with stories from my trip and suggested we might want to have a STAB contingent at ALA when it comes to Seattle in 2007. We can also videotape comments that people have on nominations that I can bring to Chicago in June for ALA.

2. STABBBYA Rules:
· Check out books for 1 week. If can’t get the book done in a week, let me know how it is going, but get it back in ASAP.
· There is a STABBBYA Notebook in the closet. Make sure to sign the book out when you take it.
· Make sure to sign the book in when you bring it back.
· Try to read a book a month.
· Always keep in mind the policies and procedures for nominating a title. Find them here: www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists/bbya
· E-mail me what you think about the book. If you liked it, loved it, hated it, thought it was ok, or even if you took the book, but didn’t read it.

3. Booklist