New Books ~ August 2014 ~ Part 9

Beyond  Texting: The Fine Art of Face-to-Face Communication for Teenagers by Debra Fine

Describes how to develop the ability to have in-person conversations, offering practical advice on balancing real-world and online relationships and gaining confidence to speak up in personal, educational, and professional atmospheres.

Pivot Point by Kasie West

A girl with the power to search alternate futures lives out six weeks of two different lives in alternating chapters. Both futures hold the potential for love and loss, and ultimately she is forced to choose which fate she is willing to live through.

The Forever Song by Julie Kagawa

Allie will embrace her cold vampire side to hunt down and end Sarren, the psychopathic vampire who murdered Zeke. But Sarren has left many surprises for Allie and her companions as his trail leads straight to the one place they must protect at any cost -- the last vampire-free zone on Earth.

Caged Warrior by Alan Lawrence Sitomer

McCutcheon Daniels' life is full of bone-cracking violence. As a star fighter in the gritty underground Mixed Martial Arts circuit in the poorest section of Detroit, McCutcheon fights under the tutelage of his volatile and violent father, not so much for himself but to survive as protector of his beloved five-year old sister, Gemma. We get to know McCutcheon as he battles opponents who are literally trying to kill him. Mr. Freedman, his science teacher, spots his intellectual potential, befriends him, and encourages him to enter the lottery for a scholarship to an elite charter school so he can obtain a first-class education. 

Seven Billion and Counting: The Crisis in Global Population Growth by Michael Andregg

October 31, 2011, marked an uneasy milestone for Planet Earth. On this day, the global population surpassed seven billion. What does that mean for a world that, until the nineteenth century, was home to less than one billion people? Experts say it means the planet is in trouble. Some wonder if Earth will even be able to sustain human life at its current rate of growth.  Will there be enough food for everyone? Will conflicts over land increase? How will the environment be affected? Can humanity survive the predicted disasters?

World Population Day

Hey YAs~

Today is World Population Day, an event held every year on July 11th to raise awareness of world population issues.  It was held for the first time in 1989, so this year will be the 24th time!  So let's take a look at some interesting facts and figures!

Top 5 Countries with highest populations

1. China - 1,347,350,000
2. India - 1,210,193,422
3. United States - 313,882,000
4. Indonesia - 237,641,326
5. Brazil - 192,376,496

Whoa, there's a big gap between numbers 2 and 3.  Why do you think that is?

Next up, want to know what the world population is RIGHT NOW?!  Well its not the actual population, but its an estimate.  Go HERE and you can see the current US and World population clocks.  Hit refresh to see the page update (it changes very quickly!)

In a future where the Population Police enforce the law limiting a family to only two children, Luke has lived all his twelve years in isolation and fear on his family's farm, until another "third" convinces him that the government is wrong.

Want to read some fiction about what it might be like in the future when overpopulation becomes a problem?  Check out the Shadow Children series by Margaret Peterson Haddix.  You can find them in the Children's Fiction section.  They're very good, I've read the first one and loved it. 

In 2140 England, where drugs enable people to live forever and children are illegal, teenaged Anna, an obedient "Surplus" training to become a house servant, discovers that her birth parents are trying to find her.

There's also The Declaration by Gemma Malley, which also has a couple sequels.  It can be found at YA SFF MAL in the teen room.  Can you think of any more?  Let me know!