It is very important to have a challenged book procedure in place in your library for many different reasons. One reason is that the state department looks for your procedure if they come in. You also need to have a procedure in place in case a book is challenged so that the person challenging the book will know who is on the committee and know that you did not just go and find people that have the same views as yourself.

In today's world it is very important for students to read books about cultural diversity. Today there are so many people moving in from all different cultural backgrounds. The more students know about different cultures the more easily they can welcome new friends into their lives and the less likely they are to offend new people they meet.

The controversial book that I choose to read was Looking for Alaska by John Green. This book is considered controversial because of what goes on at the boarding school. The students sneak around, smoke, drink, and pull pranks. Some of the pranks they pull are pretty bad such as when they threw Pudge in the lake after they wrapped him in duct tape. The book also talks about sex and sexual encounters.

For my article critiques I read Hispanic literacy trends: As readers, library patrons, and book characters and How teenagers are using technology in their social lives. From these article I learned that to better serve the Hispanic culture we as librarians need to let everyone know that they are welcome in the library and also have books on display that help to draw their attention to the books. I also learned that in today’s world the phone is a social tool that teenagers feel is a necessity, however, the majority did say that if a form of communication was taken away they would miss face-to-face communication the most! I feel like reading these article can help me to better serve my patrons by helping me know how to help the Hispanics feel welcome in the library and help me know how to better communicate with the teenagers, maybe through a library Facebook page or text message reminders.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

I enjoyed this book. I was amazed at how Hugo was able to live on his own and not let anyone know he was alone. He was a very determined young boy that worked very hard to stay secret and not let anyone know that his uncle was gone. I think it was wonderful how he was able to keep the clocks running and his secret life hidden as long as he did. I enjoyed the ending because I worried about Hugo throughout the book. I was happy to see that the automata made it back to Georges Méliès after he thought it was gone for good. For this book I actually downloaded and listened to the audio and the version I had was great! It had sounds of the train station and it really made me feel as if I was there the entire time. I have also watched the movie Hugo and I thought that it went well with the book. Not all movies are like the book, but I recommend watching this movie after reading the book.

Edwards-Winning author

For my Edwards-winning author I actually just picked a name from the list. I picked Judy Blume and at the time I really didn't know what the Edwards award was. When doing research I found out that the Edwards award is an award that honors an author whose books have appealed to young adults over a period of years. It recognizes an author's work in helping adolescents become aware of themselves and in addressing questions about their role and importance in relationships, society, and in the world. Judy Blume was the 1996 recipient for the book Forever, which is about Michael and Katherine, high school seniors who are in love for the first time. Their love and sexuality are described in an open, realistic manner and with great compassion. The emotions experienced by Michael and Katherine are as true today as they were when the book was written in 1975. The appeal of the book is fresh and continuous because everyday someone, somewhere finds a first love.

Author Study

For my author study I chose to research Lois Lowry, Tomie dePaola, and Juby Blume. I really enjoyed doing the research on these authors because I really did not know that much about any of them. I learned that for the most part they do not have one genre that the majority of their books fall under, but they write more of what they feel needs to be written at the time.