Display: Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarians

Brandon Sanderson is one of the big names in children's, teen's and adult fantasy and he is coming to speak at the Library. Free tickets for his AuthorLink talk at the Provo City Library will be available starting January 18th. His talk is February 1st, at 7:00 p.m.

Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarians
(Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarian #1)
By Brandon Sanderson
Starscape, 2016, (c 2007). Fiction. 319 p.
On his 13th birthday, Alcatraz, who has been raised in the foster system, discovers that he, like the rest of his family, has an unusual special power. He also finds out that his family, the Smedries, are the sworn opponents of the Evil Librarians, a secret society that seeks to control the world.

The Scrivener's Bones
(Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarian #2)
By Brandon Sanderson
Starscape, 2016, (c 2008). Fiction. 367 p.
Alcatraz Smedry goes in search of his father and grandfather in the Library of Alexandria. The library is guarded by wraiths, other monsters, and, of course, evil librarians.

The Knights of Crystallia
(Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarian #3)
By Brandon Sanderson
Starscape, 2016, (c 2009). Fiction. 319 p.
Alcatraz travels to the land of Crystallia which is supposed to be free from Librarians, only to find the country's leadership is about to sign a treaty with the Librarians. Meanwhile Alcatraz hopes to finally meet the parents he never knew.

The Shattered Lens
(Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarian #4)
By Brandon Sanderson
Starscape, 2016, (c 2010). Fiction. 292 p.
Alcatraz and Bastille answer the call to battle giant robots to save the land of Mokia.

The Dark Talent
(Alcatraz Vs. the Evil Librarian #5)
By Brandon Sanderson
Starscape, 2016, Fiction. 300 p.
Having broken the Smedry talents, Alcatraz must find a different way to infiltrate the center of Librarian power to save his friend, Bastille.

Comments

Funny Farm by Mark Teague 2009

There are things I liked about Mark Teague's newest book, Funny Farm , and things I didn't like. Where should I start? I'll do the "didn'ts" first. The illustrations show animals personified. Well, some of the animals are. The main characters, Edward, and his farm family relatives, all dogs, are humanized. They stand upright, do farm chores, eat at a table, wear clothes, knit (yes, with paws) and sleep in beds. Most everybody else on and around the farm, who are also animals, act like animals. They are outside, roll in mud, live in the barn, and require care from their owners. It struck me the most on the page spread where there are pigs playing in puddle in the rain and Edward, a black and white boxer, watches from inside the house. I thought "You're a dog! Go play with them!" But, alas, he can't, seeing as how he goes through his entire visit to the farm wearing a suit and red bow tie. Another picture that bothered me was the maple syrup pa...

The Girl Who Could Fly by Victoria Forester 2008

J Fiction 328 pages I almost didn't finish this book. I got to Chapter 4, and was just about ready to quit (a kind of slow story about a girl, name of Piper McCloud, who discovers she can fly, parents freak out, she becomes a social outcast, yadda, yadda) but suddenly, right there in Chapter 4, the story takes a sharp turn and becomes really interesting . Piper finds herself in the company of others like her, but not "fliers", and under the care and authority of Dr. Hellion. I won't even tell you any more. Read this book. Forester does a great job of keeping you wondering who's the good guy and who's the bad? Piper is a likeable, strong, endearing character that girl readers will enjoy. But don't NOT give it to boys! The main male character is an extremely intelligent young man who is one of the ones you wonder about . . . good or bad? This is a good one, well worth your time.

Review: The Factory

The Factory By Catherine Egan New York, NY : Scholastic Inc., 2025. Fiction. 306 pages. Thirteen-year-old Asher Doyle has been invited to join the Factory, a secretive research facility in the desert which ostensibly extracts renewable energy from the electromagnetic fields of its young recruits. But Asher soon realizes something sinister is going on. Kids are getting sick. The adults who run the Factory seem to be keeping secrets. And the extraction process is not only painful and exhausting, but existentially troubling. Asher makes a handful of new friends who help him with an investigation that turns into a resistance, which turns into...a cliffhanger! The Factory is a page-turning sci-fi with multidimensional characters, an intriguing plot, and refreshingly straight-forward writing. Egan weaves in detail about climate crises and social unrest, making the story's dystopian setting feel rich and plausible. With its sophisticated themes and accessible storytelling, I would recomm...

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