YouTube Video Contest and Cast Party

Have you ever wanted to make movies? Well now is your chance. Create and upload an original video to YouTube and attend our Libraries Together Cast Party. This year we have decided you or your team can choose your own theme. Below is a list of examples we thought up, but feel free to make the movie you want to make!
·         Live action video games, such as a reenactment of an epic Minecraft session.
·         Infomercials for your favorite book, library program, or fictional product.
·         A flashmob.
·         Incorporate Skype or twitter interview with your favorite author.
·         Reinterpret classic literature with a healthy dose of teen angst.

Who can create a video? Quad-city Teens ages 12-19. Work alone or with friends. Be spontaneous or be scripted. Keep it fun and library appropriate. Upload the video to YouTube and return this form with the URL or email it to your librarian. Then come to our Cast Party held after-hours at Bettendorf Public Library.


NEED HELP?
Need a video camera? Call your local library or school to see if a camera is available for use and if they have Windows Movie Maker or iMovie editing programs. You can always use your cell phone or digital camera video modes.

Need to edit? Before or after you have created your video, you can visit your local library to use the editing software.

UPLOADING
After the video is edited, please create an account at YouTube so you can upload it. All videos are subject to the YouTube terms of use found at http://www.youtube.com/static?gl=US&template=terms


After uploading, please email or return the attached entry form to your library with the title of your video, its URL, your name(s), phone number.

PRIZES
Entries will be judged by area library staff. We will choose one video as the Library’s Choice and attendees at the Cast Party will choose one as the Viewer’s Choice. Both will win $100 cash. Other awards will be given to the makers of the most creative, entertaining, and best quality videos.

WHEN?
Entries due Saturday, February 25th

AFTER HOURS CAST PARTY!
Participants and cast are invited to the After-Hours Cast Party and Screening where we will mingle, serve refreshments, and give awards. The Cast party will be at the Bettendorf Library on Friday March 23rd at 5:30 p.m. Please register at http://bit.ly/utubecast

RETURN ENTRY FORM TO YOUR HOME LIBRARY AND/OR EMAIL INFO TO:
jgillette@bettendorf.org, cvogt@davenportlibrary.com, scarlin@scottcountylibrary.org

The Late Bus

The Late Bus by Rick Jasper is a short, spooky novel about Lamar. He takes the late bus home after football practice. The driver had always been a nice older lady named Miss Robin. Miss Robin suddenly dies so Lamar and his friends attend her funeral. Suddenly, Miss Robin sits up and tells Lamar that someone is in trouble. No one else seems to have seen what happened and Lamar has no idea who or what she is talking about.
Then they meet the new bus driver, Mr Rumble. He doesn't talk much and he seems to be hiding some dark secrets from the kids. Bad things begin to happen on the rides home. Can Lamar figure out what is haunting Mr Rumble?

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (and other concerns)

This book is a collection of essays written by the adorable and honest Mindy Kaling. You might recognize her from The Office. She is a producer and writer, as well as actress.
Mindy talks about happy and innocuous issues like weight, fashion, and friendships. She tells the story of a recent photo shoot where the stylist brought her a bunch of outfits in size 0 and one ugly dress in her size. This caused her to break down in the bathroom, but she decided the photo shoot was going to go her way. She insisted that one of the small dresses be altered for her size and ended up feeling and looking great.
Mindy also talks about her journey to Hollywood and the people who helped her get there. It's an interesting look at how to become a Hollywood writer/actress without losing oneself. This is a cute and lighthearted read that will appeal to aspiring actors and writers.

Bad Island by Doug Tennapel

Bad Island is another fun graphic novel by Doug TenNapel, author of Ghostopolis. In Bad Island, we meet a family preparing to go on vacation. The son, Reese, would rather stay home than spend time boating with his parents and little sister Janie. Nonetheless, he joins the family and they have quite an adventure. A dangerous storm shipwrecks them on an island. The plants and animals are very foreign and unlike anything they have ever seen. The family keeps running into these mysterious stones with symbols on them. When strange creatures begin to attack them, they realize that they are safe when they are near these stones. The family also runs into a skeleton of a man who has a map. They try to decipher what the map may mean and where they are safe on the island.

There is another story in the book that details how these creatures came to the island and what their back story is. The story flashes back to a war between two factions and of course, the two stories intertwine and come to a satisfying conclusion.

The story was fascinating and the illustrations are fantastic. I love the artist's style. Very vibrant and expressive. This is recommended for fans of Amulet and Ghostopolis!

Dead is Not an Option

Dead is Not an Option is another great installment in the Dead is series by Marlene Perez. (and the last?) Daisy is nearing the end of Senior Year and something sinister is brewing in Nightshade. Tension is high between the Weres and Vamps and the Council cannot seem to keep it under control. Many weres and vamps have been found dead or injured and both blame the other side. This causes some tension within Daisy's family as well, because the sisters are dating both vamps and weres. To add to the stress, Daisy has not heard from any of the colleges to which she applied.
Of course, Daisy takes it upon herself to help Chief Mendez and Mr Bone solve the murders and attacks. She uses her detective and her psychic abilities to aid in the hunt.
As always, the characters are very real and likable. The story contains many twists and turns, with more than just one conflict to solve. Teens will love this fun and slightly dark series.

Bad Taste in Boys is about Kate Grable. Kate is a very intelligent girl who wants to be a doctor one day. In the meantime, she has been volunteering as the athletic trainer for her schools football team. One day, the coach asks Kate to inject some players with these syringes that he claims are filled with a vitamin. Of course, she refuses and suspects the vials actually contain steroids.
Later, she is at a party with a bunch of the players. One of them passes out and stops breathing. She starts to administer CPR and suddenly, he snaps up and smacks her on the butt. She still can't seem to find his pulse and he still looks very white and, well, dead. Having seen an injection site on him, she starts to worry that the coach injected him and this maybe some strange side effect. When she sees him again, he lunges at her and bites a big chunk out her lip. Very strange.
Soon, Kate starts noticing the crazy behavior from the coach and from other players. It seems that this shot has been turning people into zombies. And they are hungry.

This is a fun book that will appeal to both guy and girl readers and fans of zombie books. It is well written and not filled with a bunch of silly slang talk like some teen books. This is a clean read- parts of it are slightly gruesome, but nothing too graphic. There's also no cursing or mention of sex.

The Water Wars

The Water Wars is set in a future in which water is now more valuable than oil or gold. The author does not give much background on how this happened, just that most of United States is now like a desert, and millions have died from starvation or dehydration. Water is only used for drinking, and even then, only a small amount is rationed to each family. Of course, the water companies have become more powerful and corrupt than ever, and they often fight against each other, the government, and pirates for untapped springs.

The story follows two siblings, Will and Vera. This water deprived life is the only one they have ever known. As they are waiting for the school bus one day, they meet a boy named Kai. Kai is not worried about water in the least. He eventually tells them that he is a diviner, a person who can sense water. His father is a driller. Together they are very valuable for their talents. Kai is driven everywhere in a limo and is often accompanied by an armed bodyguard.

When Will and Vera don't hear from Kai, they get worried and stop by his house. They find it ransacked, and his bodyguard dead. Together, they decide that they need to rescue Kai and his father from whoever may have taken him. This leads them on a grand adventure across North America, involving pirates and evil terrorists, eventually leading to a showdown at a water plant off the east coast.

I thought this was a great book, filled with lots of action and adventure. The characters were likeable and well developed. It did remind me a bit of the Hunger Games because of the survival strategies and violence. Fans of that trilogy will enjoy The Water Wars as well.