Desert Hills Middle School Library

February Reading Contest Winners

2010-03-05T08:31:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to the following students who won the reading contest this month! Way to go! If your name is on this list come by and request your prize from Mrs. Moore.

Jacob Buenning
Lauren Bushnell
Lydia Wood
Rachel Bartholomew
Rachel Kelly
Rebecca Hustead
Samantha Baxter
Skyler Swaney
Tanner Barlow

P.S. The playaways are now ready for check out... Come by and take a look at all the great titles we have!

Playaways Coming Soon!

2010-02-16T08:33:00.000-08:00

Our Playaways have been ordered and we will be receiving them soon. The Playaways can be used in classes and during homeroom. Students who check the books out are required to read the book along with the audio. It's to be used as a tool to help you with your reading skills. Check by the library often to see what we have in store for you. We have an order of books coming in which include both fiction and non-fiction titles. We're springing up with all kinds of fun ways to read...

January Reading Contest Winners!

2010-02-03T09:47:00.000-08:00

Corey De Vany
Justin Brinkerhoff
Quinn Crawford
Rachel Bartholomew
Rachel Kelly
Rebecca Hustead
Scott Jones
Staci Leavitt
Tanner Barlow
Taylor Hummel

Congrats to you all and we love to see great reading! Keep it up and enjoy your movie passes! Everyone can win, all you have to do is turn in a slip to the library after you read a book. That slip enters you into the drawing for movie passes. Every book gives you more of a chance to win!

This weeks new titles!

2010-01-29T10:52:00.000-08:00

Gone by Michael Grant

In a small town on the coast of California, everyone over the age of fourteen suddenly disappears, setting up a battle between the remaining town residents and the students from a local private school, as well as those who have "The Power" and are able to perform supernatural feats and those who do not.

Prey by Michael Crichton

A cloud of nanoparticles programmed as a predator and capable of self-reproduction escapes from a Nevada laboratory and makes the human population its target.

The Locket by Richard Paul Evans

Michael Keddington, a poor young man whose relationship with the rich, beautiful Faye is causing consternation in her family, learns the value of standing up for love when he befriends Esther, a resident of the nursing home where he is employed.

The City of Bones by Cassandra Clark

Suddenly able to see demons and the Darkhunters who are dedicated to returning them to their own dimension, fifteen-year-old Clary Fray is drawn into this bizarre world when her mother disappears and Clary herself is almost killed by a monster.

Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson

On his thirteenth birthday, foster child Alcatraz Smedry receives a bag of sand which is immediately stolen by the evil Librarians who are trying to take over the world, and Alcatraz is introduced to his grandfather and his own special talent, and told that he must use it to save civilization.

Tons of New Books!

2010-01-14T08:49:00.000-08:00

Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson

After finally getting noticed by someone other than school bullies and his ever-angry father, seventeen-year-old Tyler enjoys his tough new reputation and the attentions of a popular girl, but when life starts to go bad again, he must choose between transforming himself or giving in to his destructive thoughts.

Fat Kid Rules the World by K. L. Going

Seventeen-year-old Troy, depressed, suicidal, and weighing nearly three hundred pounds, gets a new perspective on life when Curt, a semi-homeless teen who is a genius on guitar, asks Troy to be the drummer in a rock band.

Rapture of the Deep by L.A. Meyer

In 1806, star-crossed lovers Jacky Faber and Jaimy Fletcher are kidnapped by British Naval Intelligence and forced to embark on yet another daring mission--this time to search for sunken Spanish gold off the Florida coast.

Maze Runner by James Dashner

Sixteen-year-old Thomas wakes up with no memory in the middle of a maze and realizes he must work with the community in which he finds himself if he is to escape.

Leviathan by Scott Westerfield

Map on endpapers. In an alternate 1914 Europe, fifteen-year-old Austrian Prince Alek, on the run from the Clanker Powers who are attempting to take over the globe using mechanical machinery, forms an uneasy alliance with Deryn who, disguised as a boy to join the British Air Service, is learning to fly genetically-engineered beasts.

Welcome Back!

2010-01-09T16:24:00.000-08:00

Students the library is excited to tell you we have received a grant through the state and will be offering students the opportunity to check out "PlayAway" books. These are books you can listen to and follow along with the book for those who find reading sometimes difficult. We will be getting them soon and will update you when they can be checked out! We hope you had a great holiday break and have many new titles ready for your reading pleasure. Come and see what exciting things we have in store for 2010!

November Contest Winners!

2009-12-04T10:11:00.000-08:00

Congrats to those who won movies tickets this last month! Please fill out a form every time you read a book! The more you read, the better your chances are of winning...

Ashley Sommerfeld
Josh Asay
Kessa Cottam
Kris Hansen
Lauren Bushnell
Michael Gibbons
Rebecca Hustead
Skyler Swaney
Staci Leavitt
Tavish Durrant

New Books

2009-11-23T10:05:00.000-08:00

The Magic Thief
by Sarah Prineas

Conn's life is forever changed when he tries to pick the pocket of the wizard Nevery and instead gets a strong jolt of magic, but, instead of punishing the boy, Nevery takes Conn under his wing, teaches him magic, and enlists his help in finding the person responsible for stealing the city's dwindling magic supply.

The Lost Years of Merlin
by T.A. Barron

A young boy who has no identity nor memory of his past washes ashore on the coast of Wales and finds his true name after a series of fantastic adventures.

Leven Thumps and the Wrath of Ezra
by Obert Skye

As Leven, Geth, and Winter continue their quest to save Foo from the invading armies of rants, a new threat arrives, the Dearth.

Jellicoe Road
by Melina Marchetta

Abandoned by her drug-addicted mother at the age of eleven, high school student Taylor Markham struggles with her identity and family history at a boarding school in Australia.

The Help
by Kathryn Stockett

Skeeter returns home to Mississippi from college in 1962 and begins to write stories about the African-American women that are found working in white households, which includes Aibileen, who grieves for the loss of her son while caring for her seventeenth white child, and Minny, Aibileen's sassy friend, the hired cook for a secretive woman who is new to town.

More New Titles...

2009-11-19T10:11:00.000-08:00

The Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman

The orphan Bod, short for Nobody, is taken in by the inhabitants of a graveyard as a child of eighteen months and raised lovingly and carefully to the age of eighteen years by the community of ghosts and otherworldly creatures.

The Girl Who Could Fly
by Victoria Forester

Piper McCloud's ability to fly sets her apart from the other kids, so her mother sends her to an exclusive school for children with exceptional abilities, but even there she does not fit in with the other students.

Football Genius
by Tim Green

Troy, a sixth-grader with an unusual gift for predicting football plays before they occur, attempts to use his ability to help his favorite team, the Atlanta Falcons, but he must first prove himself to the coach and players.

The Fires of Merlin
by T.A. Barron

Having voyaged to the Otherworld in his quest to find himself, the young wizard Merlin must face fire in many different forms and deal with the possibility of losing his own magical power.

Ender in Exile
by Orson Scott Card

"A Tom Doherty Associates book." Ender is offered the choice of living in isolation on Eros at one of the Hegemony's training facilities, but chooses tojourney out to the colonies with his sister, Valentine.

October Reading Contest Winners

2009-11-02T09:51:00.000-08:00

These students and teachers have won the reading contest for the month of October. Congratulations to all those who entered. Keep up the reading! Enjoy your movie passes and be sure to check out the new movies coming out this holiday season.

Jacob Buenning
Rebecca Hustead
Rachel Bartholomew
Mrs. Livingston
Jordan Evans
Lydia Wood
Kessa Cottam
Tyler Cottam
Skyler Swaney

New Titles...

2009-10-28T08:17:00.001-07:00

Dreamquake

by Elizabeth Knox

"Frances Foster books." While investigating the government's involvement in the disappearance of her father, Tziga Hame, and the decline of the art of projecting dreams, dreamhunter Laura learns more about "The Place."

Dreamhunter

by Elizabeth Knox

In a world where select people can enter "The Place" and find dreams of every kind to share with others for a fee, a fifteen-year-old girl is training to be a dreamhunter when her father disappears, leaving her to carry on his mysterious mission.

Downsiders: a novel

by Neal Shusterman

When fourteen-year-old Lindsay meets Talon and discovers the Downsiders world which had evolved from the subway built in New York in 1867 by Alfred Ely Beach, she and her new friend experience the clash of their two cultures.

Do Hard Things: a teenage rebellion against low expectations

by Alex Harris

Do hard things, the gospel, and you. Nineteen-year-old twins Alex and Brett Harris challenge teenagers to reject the "low expectations" of contemporary culture and "do hard things" for God, discussing the Bible and five ways to transform oneself and work for social change.

A Crooked Kind of Perfect

by Linda Urban

Ten-year-old Zoe Elias, who longs to play the piano but must resign herself to learning the organ, instead, finds that her musicianship has a positive impact on her workaholic mother, her jittery father, and her school social life.

They're Here!

2009-10-23T11:21:00.000-07:00

We have received our latest order of books! Come in and check them out. We'll keep highlighting books here on the blog of the newest titles. If you have requested a title and we don't have a copy then it's on a list to be ordered next when funds are available.

Be sure you check in the area "Find a Book" on the right hand sidebar. This link is what we have in our library currently. Many students think if a book is not on the shelf, then we don't have the book. That's untrue. Most popular books get checked out. If you were looking for the title I bet someone else has done the same thing as well. You can be put on a waiting list for a book. Just let Mrs. Moore know or any of the library staff and we will be willing to help you with putting in a request for a book already checked out to another student.

Update on our author, J. Scott Savage... He will be here on November 19, 2009 and will be in the Little Theater during first hour English. Keep up your grades and your English teacher will give you a pass to excuse you from your class to attend this special event.

See What's Coming Soon!

2009-09-10T10:20:00.001-07:00

Code Name Cassandra
by Meg Cabot

Jess Mastriani, hounded by the media and the government after a lightning strike leaves her with the psychic ability to find missing children, wants only to be left alone and tells everyone that she has lost her touch, but the chase begins once again when she gives in to a plea from the father of a missing girl to find his daughter.

The Chronicles of Vladimir Todd: Tenth Grade Bites
by Heather Brewer

Tenth grade does not bring any relief to Vlad who is finding it increasingly difficult to resist feeding on his classmates and to avoid the evil vampire D'Ablo who wants to drain his powers.

The Christopher Killer: A Forensic Mystery
by Alane Ferguson

On the payroll as an assistant to her coroner father, seventeen-year-old Cameryn Mahoney uses her knowledge of forensic medicine to catch the killer of a friend while putting herself in terrible danger.

Catching Fire
by Suzanne Collins

By winning the annual Hunger Games, District 12 tributes Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark have secured a life of safety and plenty for themselves and their families, but because they won by defying the rules, they unwittingly become the faces of an impending rebellion.

The Cabinet of Wonders
by Marie Rutkoski

Twelve-year-old Petra, accompanied by her magical tin spider, goes to Prague hoping to retrieve the enchanted eyes the Prince of Bohemia took from her father, and is aided in her quest by a Roma boy and his sister.

The Bourne Identity by Ludlum, Robert

A man has been shot and now has no memory and as he searches for his origins he comes to fear he may have been an international assassin.

Beastly by Alex Flinn

A modern retelling of "Beauty and the Beast" from the point of view of the Beast, a vain Manhattan private school student who is turned into a monster and must find true love before he can return to his human form.

Armageddon Summer by Jane Yolen

Fourteen-year-old Marina and sixteen-year-old Jed accompany their parents' religious cult, the Believers, to await the end of the world atop a remote mountain, where they try to decide what they themselves believe.

The Angel of Death : a forensic mystery by Alane Ferguson

Seventeen-year-old high school senior Cameryn Mahoney uses skills learned as assistant to her coroner father to try to unravel the mystery of a local teacher's gruesome death, while also awaiting a possible reunion with her long-missing mother.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Budding cartoonist Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Native American is the school mascot.