Posts Tagged Penguin Group USA
May 16, 2012 at 5:31 am · Filed under Ages 14 and Up ·Tagged beach reads, book review, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Penguin Group USA, Sarah Dessen, summer reads, teen book, Young Adult, Young Adult Fiction
I really think Sarah Dessen and I could be best friends. She’s fun and quirky and writes amazing books. Plus, I hear she really likes dessert. We’re meant to be! She’s also a brilliant author that can truly channel the teen mind and the need for “real” fiction. Though I love them all, Along for the Ride is definitely my favorite and the perfect book to get teens geared up for summer vacation!
Auden is an incredibly smart girl, a girl with a great head on her shoulders, but also a girl forced to grow up quickly to impress her academic parents, even after they divorced. Always studying, always doing the right thing. This summer, Auden is just sick to death of putting up with her overbearing, uncaring mother and all the graduate students that flit in and out of the woman’s life, so she decides to go spend the summer at her father’s beach house, with his new wife, and new baby sister.
Taking a job in her stepmother’s fancy beach boutique is about the last thing Auden planned to do, as were falling in love with both a guy and her baby sister, or forgetting to study all summer long. But work, fall in love, and become a “real girl” she does, and the experience is both satisfying and terrifying. Her simple, lonely life has become one filled to the brim with people and emotions and Auden isn’t quite sure how to live anymore.
In true Sarah Dessen fashion, the reader gets a perfect YA book experience. The characters feel like they could be kids you go to school with (and they all have fabulous names), the situations are ones that teens today really find themselves in, and the connections Dessen makes between plot, character, and reader is truly remarkable.
Plus, cute guys and the beach?? You all need this book.
Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen; $9.99; Penguin Group USA; Ages 14+
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March 19, 2012 at 7:08 am · Filed under Uncategorized ·Tagged Ages 3 - 6, Balzer + Bray, book review, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Indie Next, Jon Klassen, Mac Barnett, Marie Lu, Penguin Group USA, Picture Book, read aloud, teen book, Young Adult
In the independent bookstore world, we have something called the Indie Next List, in which booksellers from all over the country submit reviews of the books they’ve been enjoying, which are then published into a newsletter and sent to all the indie bookstores across the country. It’s great word of mouth for both the books and for the store, if someone from your store happens to have one of their reviews featured.
Our staff spends a lot of time submitting reviews for books, because we love to spread the word on ones we loved reading. Here are a couple of our recent reviews that were chosen to be published in the Indie Next Newsletter:
Legend, by Marie Lu; $17.99; Penguin Group USA; Ages 14+
“Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, 15-year-old June is a military prodigy committed to her country. Her complete antithesis is a 15-year-old Day, the country’s most wanted criminal and the prime suspect in the murder of June’s brother. June sets out to capture Day, but, in a shocking turn of events, the teens discover a sinister conspiracy that pits both o them against the government. Filled with action and suspense!”
Extra Yarn, by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen; $16.99; Balzer + Bray; Ages 3+
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The town where Annabelle lives is a very boring place–a dull gray city where nobody wheres anything colorful at all. One day Annabelle finds a box full of yarn, so she knits herself a sweater. But she finds that she has extra yarn left over. Soon, she is knitting sweaters for everyone and everything (even a pickup truck!) and her town is becoming brighter by the stitch. Somehow, she always has extra yarn!”
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January 21, 2012 at 3:46 pm · Filed under Ages 14 and Up ·Tagged book review, cancer, Dial Books, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, humor, john green, Penguin Group USA, teen books, The Fault in Our Stars, Young Adult
John Green has made quite the name for himself in the YA world, with novels like Paper Towns and Looking for Alaska. His latest was just released this week and is already getting lots of positive buzz in the book world. Several of us have read it and absolutely love it!
Hazel and Augustus meet in the most unusual place — a cancer support group. Though the setting alone may lead a reader to believe the story will be heavy and depressing, it’s anything but. Filled with sarcasm and hysterical wit, you’ll be both laughing and crying through the entire book. Sometimes both at the same time!
Teens and adults will each take something away from this heartfelt and honest novel of first love, whimsy, and raw soul. Buy it for everyone you know!
We have lots of copies in stock, ALL of them signed! We’d be happy to set one aside for you (or ship you one if you’re out of the area). We also have copies of Green’s other titles for you to purchase, as well. Just give us a call! 703-548-4092.
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green; $17.99; Dial Books; Ages 14+
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January 2, 2012 at 12:30 pm · Filed under Uncategorized ·Tagged ages 0-3, ages 2-6, Ages 3 - 6, Brian Biggs, children's picture book, HarperCollins, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Lauren Oliver, Lita Judge, Meg Wolitzer, Penguin Group, Penguin Group USA, Running Press Books, Simon & Schuster, simon and schuster, Sue DiCicco
Megan had a huge list of favorites for the year, proving that 2011 was a GREAT year for publishing! After some crafty picking and choosing, she was able to pick just a few of her favorite books to share with you:
Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver; $16.99; HarperCollins; ages 8+
Everything Goes On Land by Brian Biggs; $14.99; HarperCollins; ages 3+
The Fingertips of Duncan Dorfman by Meg Wolitzer; $16.99; Penguin Group; age 10+
You Are My Work of Art by Sue DiCicco; $11.95; Running Press Books; ages 2+
Red Sled by Lita Judge; $16.99; Simon & Schuster; ages 3+
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December 29, 2011 at 11:31 am · Filed under Adult fiction and non-fiction, Ages 3 - 6, Ages newborn - 3, Booksellers Diary ·Tagged adult fiction, ages 0-3, Ages 3 - 6, Ann Droyd, Deborah Harkness, Discovery of Witches, Everything On It, Goodnight Ipad, HarperCollins, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, It's a Little Book, Lane Smith, Man in the Moon, parody, Penguin Group, Penguin Group USA, poetry, Roaring Brook Press, Shel Silverstein, Simon & Schuster, William Joyce
Cristi loves finding the perfect book for customers and will always go out of her way to make sure you’re happy with your purchase! She loved a lot of books that were published this year and had a hard time choosing just a few! These are the ones that really stood out for her:
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness; $28.95; Penguin Group; Adult Fiction
It’s a Little Book by Lane Smith; $7.99; Roaring Brook Press; ages 2+
The Man in the Moon by William Joyce; $17.99; Simon & Schuster; ages 3+
Every Thing On It by Shel Silverstein; $19.99; HarperCollins; ages 8+
Goodnight Ipad: A Parody for the Next Generation by Ann Droyd; $14.95; Penguin Group; ages 5+
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October 31, 2011 at 2:49 pm · Filed under Events ·Tagged Alexandria, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Old Town Alexandria, Penguin Group USA, Random House, Scholastic, special events
On Friday, November 4th, we’re having an exciting event to kick off our holiday shopping season and YOU are invited!
At 5:30, Barbara Kurland, a local reading specialist, will be demonstrating her Three Ps Reading Improvement Program. Great for struggling readers or parents/teachers that want to take a new approach to teaching reading.
From 6:00-7:00 we’ll be having an exciting presention by three publishing reps, each showcasing some of their favorite holiday picks for gift giving. We’ll be featuring books from Penguin, Random House, and Scholastic. Come meet the people who help us fill our shelves with great titles!
We’ll also have wine, cheese, and other refreshments, so come join us for a night of food, fun, and BOOKS!
R.S.V.P. by calling the store or sending us an email. 703-548-4092/info@hooray4books.com
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October 26, 2011 at 1:31 pm · Filed under Ages 12 and up ·Tagged book review, Book Wish Foundation, Darfur, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Penguin Group USA, teen book, Young Adult
With the holidays quickly approaching and many people wanting to not only make purchases for their family members and friends, but also help those in need, this fabulous new book gives readers the best of both worlds.
Filled with stories by some of the most popular 
authors and poets in the world today, the central theme is “wishes.” Each story is different, some serious, some funny. R.L. Stine, John Green, Joyce Carol Oates, Ann M. Martin, Jane Yolen, and Alexander McCall Smith are just a few of the awesome contributors to the collection, which includes a foreword by Mia Farrow.
A purchase of What You Wish For will benefit Book Wish Foundation, an organization which helps to build libraries in Darfuri refugee camps. All of their proceeds are donated to the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR. What could be better?! If you’re interested in learning more about this amazing organization and tracking the progress of the libraries, I encourage you to visit Book Wish Foundation.
This would not only make an excellent gift for someone you know, but for those gift exchanges where you really don’t know the person you’re buying a gift for! Helping a wonderful organization do awesome work in our world, while providing a beautifully written story collection will please any gift recipient.
What You Wish For: A Book for Darfur; $17.99; G.P. Putnam’s Sons; Ages 12+
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May 12, 2011 at 11:35 am · Filed under Ages 14 and Up ·Tagged 12-18, book review, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Penguin Group USA, summer reads, Young Adult
Mclean is completely and utterly lost in terms of knowing who she is and what she wants out of her life. Each time she moves to a new town with her restaurant-flipper dad, she reinvents herself and changes her name. She’s been the quiet one, the overachiever, the popular girl, etc., always trying to escape her real life that includes a mom that had an affair, an eventual divorce between her parents, and a dad who can’t even watch their favorite team play basketball anymore…something they’ve always bonded over.
This latest move begins the same as all the others: new restaurant, new house, new name, but Mclean can’t quite figure out who she wants to be in this town. She actually begins making real friends, including Dave, a guy who makes her think about herself in a way she’s never quite managed before. As time passes, Mclean starts to be herself, forgive some people, and discover a lot about her family she never thought she could deal with.
Sarah Dessen is the queen of realistic, contemporary fiction for teens. Her characters are well-written and come across as honest and believable. If you’re looking for a great read to start off your summer, think about picking up What Happened to Goodbye or any others by Sarah Dessen.
What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen, $19.99, Viking Press, 9780670012947, Young Adult
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November 12, 2010 at 7:42 am · Filed under Ages 10 - 12 ·Tagged A Tale Dark and Grimm, Adam Gidwitz, Dutton Children's Books, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Old Town Alexandria, Penguin Group USA
A Tale Dark and Grimm, by Adam Gidwitz
Love a good action and adventure tale? Crave creativity, humor and heart in your stories? A Tale Dark and Grimm is truly the book for you. Gidwitz re-invents the fairy tale in his mesmerizing novel which tells the familiar story of Grimm’s Hansel and Gretel like you have never heard it before. Together, this famous dynamic duo travel into the depths of the fairy tale forest, outsmarting a cannibalistic witch, evading a murderous hunter, and challenging a ferocious dragon along the way. But, as Gidwitz says in the beginning of his novel, “Reader : beware;” A Tale Dark and Grimm is a bloody, grisly, tale. This is not the bedtime story to lull a little one into sweet dreams! Gidwitz’s sardonic, witty narration will have you laughing aloud while biting your nails in fear.
Fairy Tale lovers, rejoice! Gidwitz has given us a new classic to admire. Be sure to come to Hooray For Books on Friday, November 19th at 3:15pm to meet Adam Gidwitz himself! To reserve a copy of A Tale Dark and Grimm, call 703-548-4092!
For more information, check out the author’s home page: http://www.adamgidwitz.com/
A Tale Dark and Grimm. Dutton Children’s Books, $16.99; Ages 10-12.
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October 25, 2010 at 2:38 pm · Filed under Ages 3 - 6 ·Tagged book review, Everyone Needs a Friend, Hooray For Books Children's Bookstore, Independent Bookstores, Penguin Group USA, Price Stern Sloan, Tricycle Press, Welcome Home Mouse
Rebecca’s Fabulous Friendship Finds!
Here are a few of my favorite tales celebrating the power of friendship!
Welcome Home Mouse, by Elisa Kleven
Elisa Kleven’s delightful tale explores friendships of all shapes and sizes! When clumsy Stanley the elephant sets out to the grocery store, his ball mistakenly crashes in on Mouse’s cottage! With a little creativity, however, Stanley and Mouse rebuild the little critter’s home, forming a friendship as well as a cozy new house for Mouse! Kleven’s vivid, intricate illustrations are mesmerizing, capturing a colorful, charming world with the turn of every page. page. Welcome Home Mouse, by Elisa Kleven, Tricycle Press. Ages 3-6
Everyone Needs a Friend, by Dubravka Kolanovic
Jack the wolf lives a quiet life in the hills. While he spends his days making jam, knitting scarves,and picking berries, he never has a friend to join him. Everything changes one winter night when Walter the mouse come trekking over the hills, looking for some shelter for the night. Walter and Jack discover all the things they can do together! Even though Jack gets angry when the new house guest begins to make a mess, he eventually learns that friendship is more important than spilled jam! Everybody Needs a Friend is filled with soft and gentle pastel illustrations!
Everybody Needs a Friend, by Dubravka Kolanovic, Price Stern Sloan (An Imprint of Penguin Group) publishing. Ages 3-6
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Auden is an incredibly smart girl, a girl with a great head on her shoulders, but also a girl forced to grow up quickly to impress her academic parents, even after they divorced. Always studying, always doing the right thing. This summer, Auden is just sick to death of putting up with her overbearing, uncaring mother and all the graduate students that flit in and out of the woman’s life, so she decides to go spend the summer at her father’s beach house, with his new wife, and new baby sister.
