Cedar Mill & Bethany Libraries Podcasts

The teen council met in February 2024 to discuss their favorite recent reads by Black authors.  Books discussed are:

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
Dangerous Ones by Lauren Blackwood (publishes in May 2024)
Cameron Battle and the Hidden Kingdoms by Jamar Perry
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

On January 8, 2024, the Teen Library Council interviewed the student writing group, Ad Meliora. They talk about what writing contests they have and the workshops they teach.  They also share some of their favorite reads.

Ad Meliora website

Books discussed:

Babel

Minor Feelings

Pachinko

Homegoing

Anne of Green Gables

Lie Tree

Eragon and Murtaugh

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Grace of Kings

Poppy War

The Cedar Mill & Bethany Teen Council discusses some of their favorite winter reads and holiday movies as they prepare for Winter Break 2023. 

Join our Winter Reading Challenge

Books discussed are:

Monster Orphan Spy by Matt Killeen
Night Circus by Erin Morgensten (book for adults)
Love in Winter Wonderland by A Bello
Wool by Hugh Howey (book for adults)
A Dance with Dragons by George RR Martin (book for adults)
Mistletoe Promise by Richard Paul Evans (made for adults)

Movies discussed are:

Anastasia
Home Alone
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Horton Hears a Who
California Christmas
Christmas Chronicles

Teen council dives into all things Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes as we eagerly await the movie to come out.  We also discuss books with many narrators and how these can be somewhat confusing unless handled well.  There are many things we are thankful for this year, which we discuss as well.

Don't miss our tips for students studying for AP and IB tests (Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate).

Books and websites discussed:

Winter Reading

Poet X - Elizabeth Acevedo

RevisionDojo IB (help with IB testing)

Guest List - Lucy Foley

A Game of Thrones - George Martin

Shadow and Bone - Leigh Bardugo

Kahn Academy 

Dry - Neil Shusterman

Long Way Down - Jason Reynolds

Infernal Devices - Cassandra Clare

Cat Farris presentation

Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes - Suzanne Collins

Find out more about your child’s literacy development and their progress towards becoming an independent reader. Learn how the Science of Reading can help you support your child’s literacy development in Kindergarten through 3rd grade. Presented by Rachell Keys.

Rachell Keys is a School Psychologist currently working for the Northwest Regional Education Service District. Over the past twenty years she has worked to improve literacy outcomes in Oregon and nationally. She has pursued her passion to help all kids become successful readers in a variety of ways. Rachell taught courses on reading instruction at Portland State University, worked as the Literacy Coordinator for the Tigard-Tualatin School District, supported schools in Oregon as part of the Reading First initiative and tutored individual students during the pandemic. 

This recording is part of our 2023 Parent Information Series. Slides of the presentation are available on our website.

Chowder Chat is back with an episode about some favorite spooky shows along with a few books.

We'll cover Stranger Things, Locke & Key, Sawkill Girls, Percy Jackson and more.  Hear about some upcoming events and some of our favorite things to do in October.

The teen council discusses books for Pride, what they are looking forward to this summer, and what they've been reading lately.  This is the last episode for this school year.

Titles and events discussed:

In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan
Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

Across the Spiderverse and the soundtrack

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning

Oppenheimer

Guardians of the Galaxy 3

Song: Best Day of My Life by American Authors

Singer Lizzie McAlpine

Her song Ceilings

Freedom Festival in Portland
Kesha Ajose Fisher
Kim Johnson

What we're reading:

Verify by Joelle Charbonneau
Fahrenheit 541 by Ray Bradbury
Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong
This Woven Kingdom by Tahereh Mafi

This month, we talk about study tips and mental health, two closely related subjects for many teens, particularly this time of year (Spring). We also talk about our recent reads.

Books discussed are:

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Educated by Tara Westover
The Likeness by Tana French
Farrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

New York Times bestselling Young Adult author Ellie Marney joins the Teen Council via Zoom from Australia to discuss her books and the writing process. This interview took place on April 10, 2023.

Ellie Marney is a crime writer and author of None Shall Sleep, The Killing Code, and many other series and standalones. Her newest book, the second installment of the None Shall Sleep series– Some Shall Break– will be released in June 2023.

Marney has lived in many places around the world including Indonesia, India and Singapore– but now she lives in Australia with her family. To promote Australian women authors, she helped create the LoveOzYAbookclub and advocates for others to help them find their voice.

You can find her at elliemarney.com or @elliemarney on Instagram and Twitter!

Authors and books mentioned in this podcast:

Steig Larrson

Lee Childs

Susan Hill

Nightbirds by Kate Armstrong

The council discusses graphic novels that they have enjoyed this month in honor of the library's Crosshatch reading challenge which runs through May 6, 2023. Titles discusses are:

• Archie comics vs. the Riverdale TV show
• Amulet
• Darth Vader comics
• American Born Chinese
• Persepolis
• X-men
• Hawkeye
• Excalibur
• Big Nate

The teen council discusses romance books in Young Adult  and when adding romance to an adventure story elevates both genres.  They also discuss what they are currently reading. Books discussed are as follows:

In the Woods by Tana French
As Long as the Lemon Tree Grows by Zoulfa Katouh
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
Plague by Michael Grant
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Diviners by Libba Bray
Legendborn & Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn
Mondays Not Coming by Tiffany Jackson

We also include a snippet of our interview from January 2023 with Librarian Jen Blair. Most of the audio was unusable but a full transcript can be read at https://library.cedarmill.org/teens/chowder-chat-interview-district-librarian-jen-blair/ 

The Teen Council met on Dec. 12, 2022 to discuss their favorite books, movies and music of the year. Some of the titles mention are as follows:

Books

• The Good Girl's Guide to Murder - Holly Jackson
• Touching the Void - Joe Simpson
• Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs - Steve Brusatte
• Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas
• City of Bones - Cassandra Clare
• Eragon - Christopher Paolini
• The Light in Hidden Places -  Sharon Cameron
• All My Rage - Sabaa Tahir
• Kaikeyi - Vaishnavi Patel
• Lobizona - Romina Garber

Movies & TV

• In the Heights
• The Swimmers
• Wednesday
• Friends
• The Private Affair
• The Great British Bake Off
• Is It Cake
• Adventures of Merlin
• Grey's Anatomy
• The Conjuring
• How to Get Away With Murder
• Evolution of Lactose
• Stranger Things
• Black Panther 2
• Riverdale
• Marvel TV shows
• The Batman
• Batman the Dark Knight

Music

• Midnights - Taylor Swift
• Yet to Come - BTS
• Pink Venom - Blackpink
• Jung Kook - Dreamers
• Shut Down - Blackpink
• Anson Seabra
• Phoebe Bridgers
• Harry Styles
• Conan Gray
• James Arthur
• Heartbreak Anniversary, For Tonight, Lie Again - Giveon

Staff from the Cedar Mill & Bethany Libraries gather in December 2022 to discuss our favorite books, movies, TV, games, music and more from 2022. You can place holds on these titles on our website.

Topics discussed are:

1:12 Our favorites:

• Tomorrow, Tomorrow & Tomorrow – Mark 
• Nona the Ninth – Christine
• The Monk & Robot series – Marti
• Vespertine - Sabrina
• The Darkness Outside Us – Will
• Isla to Island – Laura B.
  

7:42 Bethany Library Favorites

• The Stars Did Wander Darkling - Christine
  
• Demon Copperhead 
• Nightmare Alley and Cabinet of Curiosities 

11:03 Books for Children

• Mel Fell - Laura B.
• The Used-to-be Best Friend
• The Marvellers 

13:26 Books for Teens

• Iron Widow – Will 
• Firekeeper's Daughter – Christine
• All My Rage - Mark
• Teen Council favorites - Mark 

17:11 Graphic Novels and Manga

• Devils Candy – Sabrina and Christine  
• The Well – Mark
• The Nice House on the Lake – Marti
• Play It Cool, Guys – Christine
• The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza - Laura B.
  

22:10 Fiction for Adults

• The Spear Cuts Through Water – Marti
• Less is Lost – Will
• Remarkably Bright Creatures – Laura B. 

24:36 Nonfiction for Adults

• Confessions of a Bookseller - Christine 
• Worn: A People’s History of Clothing- Sabrina
• The Flag the Cross and the Station Wagon – Will
• Emma Dreams of Stars (GN) – Laura B.

28:15 Movies, TV and Streaming

• Bullet Train - Marti
• Turning Red
  
• Everything Everywhere All At Once
• Andor – Mark
• The Offer - Mark 

33  Music and Podcasts

• The World ep 1: Movement - Sabrina  
• Cool People Who did Cool Stuff - Mark 

35:22 Video Games & Online Games

• Unrailed! - Sabrina 
• Redactle - Sabrina 

37:15 Board Games

• Wingspan - Mark 
• Terraforming Mars – Mark 

38:34 Our Favorites part 2

• I Must Betray You – Mark 
• Home is Where the Heart is (Good Dog) - Laura B. 
• Princess Floralinda and the Forty Flight Tower- Sabrina 
• This Is Not a Book About Benedict Cumberbatch - Christine 

The teen council discusses book facts, news and their favorite YA historical fiction and nonfiction in this month's episode of Chowder Chat.  Books discussed include A Brief History of Time, Meemaw, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Cellar, The Diviners, Light in Hidden Places, Bamboo People, Night, I Survived..., and the Lovely War.

Our teen council recommends their favorite scary reads and spooky films in this month's 5th season kick off podcast. Find a new favorite like Sawkill Girls. Maybe one of their favs will lead you to a new favorite as well.

The teen council talks about summer reading and how you can participate along with some of their favorite series to read in the summer like Sarah Maas.

Parent Information Series 2022

Local writer Afton Nelson is interviewed by the Teen Council about what it takes to write as a profession. She talks about how to be a freelance writer, what it's like to be a ghostwriter, how she approaches writing for publications and writing her own novel.