It’s What’s Happening For Young Adults Through the Library 

December YA Book Picks

Looking for something to read during the holiday break? Then check out one of the following books on our December Monthly Reading List: 

• Two Degrees by Alan Gratz (Grades 4-7) (Adventure): When three children endure separate climate change disasters–a wildfire in the California woods, a close encounter with a hungry polar bear in Canada, and a massive hurricane in Florida–they emerge from their experiences committed to changing the world.

• Frizzy by Claribel A. Ortega (Grades 4-8) (Graphic Novel): Tired of going to the salon to have her curls straightened every weekend, Marlene slowly learns to embrace her natural curly hair with the help of her best friend and favorite aunt.

• Sparrows in the Wind by Gail Carson Levine (Grades 6-8) (Historical Fantasy): Trojan princess Cassandra is cursed by Apollo with the gift of prophecy, and must try to find her place in a world that she knows to be perilous; years later, will her friendship with a young Amazon princess named Rin help her to avert a disastrous end to their war?

• Self-Made Boys: a Great Gatsby Remix by Anna-Marie McLemore (Grades 9-12) (Historical/Romance): Three teens chase their own versions of the American Dream during the Roaring 20s in this YA reimagining of The Great Gatsby.

• I Miss You, I Hate This by Sara Saedi (Grades 9-12) (Realistic): Best friends Parisa Naficy and Gabriela Gonzales grapple with the complexities of their relationship even while they spend their senior year apart due to a pandemic that disproportionately affects young people.

Want more book suggestions? Check out the full December Book List on our website here: www.gardencitypl.org/young-adult-reading-lists/ Patrons can also find the list at the Library, so make sure to visit the Tweens and Teens Room to learn about the latest books! Plus, tweens and teens can earn community service for reading and reviewing the books listed above by joining our Tweens and Teens Best Books 2023 Committee! If interested, please sign-up to join the committee by visiting Garden City Public Library’s website at www.gardencitypl.org/tweens-teens-best-books-2023-committee/ or for more information, please contact the Young Adult Department at www.gardencitypl.org/young-adult-department/contact-the-young-adult-tweens-teens-department/.

 

Help Decorate Our Tree for the Holidays!

Stop by the Tweens and Teens Room at the Garden City Public Library this month and help decorate our tree. We will have supplies to make ornaments available in the Tweens and Teens Room for tweens and teens. Participants can hang the ornament they decorate on our tree or take the ornament home with them. Ornaments will be available to make while supplies last. This program has been funded by the Friends of the Garden City Public Library.

 

Teen Holiday Party

Celebrate the holidays and the New Year with friends during the holiday break by joining us at the Library’s Teen Holiday Party on Wednesday, December 28 at 7PM! Play games, sing karaoke, watch a short holiday film, and do other holiday-themed activities. Snacks and drinks will be served. Teens can bake for the program and earn community service credit! Volunteers who bake must bake at least 2 dozen items, must individually wrap items, and must include a list of ingredients. Please note registrants will be eating baked goods, which will be baked by other tweens and teens. All registrants should indicate if they have any food allergies. This program is for tweens and teens in Grades 6-12 only. Registration is required and begins Tuesday, December 20 at 10AM online via Eventkeeper (www.gardencitypl.org). Space is limited, so make sure to register early to reserve your spot at the party! Teens who complete an online survey after the program can receive community service for participating in this program. This program has been funded by the Friends of the Garden City Public Library.

 

Tree Ornaments for Community Service: Snowflake Ornaments

Earn community service by painting ornaments for the Garden City Public Library’s Tweens and Teens Department’s Ornament Tree! Each volunteer will receive three ornaments and a set of paint pens to decorate their ornaments at home. Paint pens must be returned to the Library. These ornaments will be used to decorate our new ornament tree each month! 

For the month of December ornaments are  snowflakes, which will be used to decorate the Tweens and Teens Ornament Tree in January. Registration began Tuesday, December 13 online via Eventkeeper (www.gardencitypl.org). Space is limited, so check Eventkeeper for availability. Completed ornaments must be returned by December 22 to the Library. 

Registrants will be asked to pick up their ornaments at the Library in order to participate in this community service program. Volunteers must return three decorated ornaments and their set of paint pens in order to receive community service. Volunteers will receive two hours for every three ornaments they submit, at the discretion of the Tweens and Teens Department. This program has been funded by the Friends of the Garden City Public Library.

 

Teen Gamers

Kick off the weekend with our new Teen Gamers program on Friday, December 16 at 3:30PM. We will have our Nintendo Switch consoles for teens to use as well as tabletop board games and Magic: The Gathering cards for teens to play with. This program is for tweens and teens in Grades 6-12 in Fall 2022 only. Registration began Tuesday, December 6 online via Eventkeeper (www.gardencitypl.org). Space is limited, so check Eventkeeper for availability. Teens who complete an online survey after the program can receive community service for participating in this program. This program has been funded by the Friends of the Garden City Public Library.

 

Tweens and Teens Dungeons and Dragons

Join us for Tweens and Teens Dungeons and Dragons on Thursday, December 22, 4PM-5:30PM. Learn how to play the fantasy role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons by participating in one of our monthly Dungeons and Dragons Meet-Ups! Beginners are welcome! Each meet-up will feature a new self-contained, one-shot adventure and players will be assigned premade characters to play. Please register via Eventkeeper (www.gardencitypl.org) to participate in this program. Registration began Tuesday, December 13 online via Eventkeeper (www.gardencitypl.org). Space is limited, so check Eventkeeper for availability. Teens who complete an online survey after the program can receive community service for participating in this program.

 

GCPL Tweens and Teens Best Books 2023 Committee: Volunteers Needed!

The Tweens and Teens Department is looking for tweens and teens in Grades 6-12 to volunteer to provide feedback on recently published Young Adult books as part of our Tweens and Teens Best Books 2023 Committee! Eligible books are those published between October 1, 2022 and December 5, 2023 and aimed at tweens and teens in Grades 6-12. 

Volunteers will be asked to read books on the Tweens and Teens Department’s monthly reading lists beginning with December 2022 and then write a 300-word review. Volunteers can also nominate a book not on our lists as long as it’s published between October 1, 2022 and December 5, 2022 and the Library owns a physical copy in the Young Adult collection. Volunteers will earn community service credit.

Credit for both reading and writing reviews on new books in the Library’s Young Adult Collection. The feedback used throughout the year will help the Young Adult Librarians compile the Best Books list for the year in December 2023.

There are no requirements on how many books a volunteer must read and volunteers can read however many new books they are able to throughout the year. Volunteers can get credit for books they do not finish, as long as they provide 300-word feedback as to why they chose not to finish the book. The committee may meet throughout the year if there is interest, but volunteers are not required to attend meetings and can still participate by reading and providing feedback on recent Young Adult books. 

If interested, please sign-up to join the committee by visiting Garden City Public Library’s website at www.gardencitypl.org/tweens-teens-best-books-2023-committee/ or for more informa

tion, please contact the Young Adult Department at www.gardencitypl.org/young-adult-department/contact-the-young-adult-tweens-teens-department/.

 

Follow Tweens and Teens on Facebook and Instagram

Follow Garden City Library’s Tweens and Teens on Facebook and Instagram! The Young Adult Department uses

 both social media platforms as a tool to post updates and announcements about upcoming Library programs and community service opportunities.

Here are the Facebook and Instagram pages for the Garden City Public Library Tweens and Teens Department: 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/GCPLTweensTeens

Instagram: www.instagram.com/GCPLTweensTeens

 

If you’re interested in participating and want to learn when events will be happening for Tweens and Teens (Grades 6-12), or if you have any questions, email Young Adult Librarian Laura Giunta at www.gardencitypl.org/young-adult-department/contact-the-young-adult-tweens-teens-department/ .

 

Teen Advisory Board Applications Now Available Online

If you are interested in helping to come up with programming ideas or social media outreach ideas for Tweens and Teens in Grades 6-12, consider joining the Teen Advisory Board. Online applications are available at www.gardencitypl.org/teen-advisory-board-application/  Applicants should be in  Grades 6-12. Email Young Adult Librarian Laura Giunta at www.gardencitypl.org/young-adult-department/contact-the-young-adult-tweens-teens-department/ if you have any questions.