Trailer Tuesday: Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

I love the way Lauren Oliver writes.  Her descriptions are so vivid.  And the girl can spin a yarn, too.  Before I Fall was her debut novel.  While Oliver's most recent releases (Leisl and Po and The Spindlers) are geared towards a middle grade audience, note that Before I Fall includes drinking, drugs, sex and inappropriate teacher/student contact (yep, she goes there), making this a choice for an older teen audience.  And they'll love it.  It's part Groundhog Day, part Mean Girls, and totally awesome.





The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

48 24 Hour Book Challenge: The Eleventh Plague

I just finished up my own personal 4824 Hour Book Challenge (inspired by MotherReader, but unable to set aside the weekend) with an ARC of Jeff Hirsch's post-apocalyptic debut novel (note: NOT a dystopia) The Eleventh Plague.  I wasn't really sure what to expect, but the cover art and quote from Suzanne Collins had me feeling I was in for something good that was a possible Hunger Games read-alike.  And it was good, but it wasn't what I thought it would be.

Since I keep getting hung up on a few things that irked me about the this book, I think I need to get them out of the way first, before I move on to the things I enjoyed.

1. Name Dropping: From McDonald's (on the first page) to Kroger to even Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Lord of the Rings, there were recognizable names all throughout the book.  And even though Hirsch chose carefully and selected brands and books that are likely to stand the test of time, every time I read a "name" it pulled me out of the world they were in, and back into my own.  I realize that maybe that was the point, to show that this could be the world that waits just around the corner, but I just didn't like it. It felt like a commercial.  Happily, these references subsided as the story developed.
2. Dropping the phrase "son of a b*tch" three pages in to the story.  It's the only curse word in the entire book and there it is in the first chapter! This made me uncomfortable because I pictured a 7th grader (the book's audience is ages 12+/grades 7+) going wide-eyed* and wondering if the rest of the book was right for them.  Then I thought about the parent who would read the jacket summary and perhaps the first one or two chapters before purchasing the book or while reviewing their child's library selections.  Language that early in a book typically signifies you're in for more and worse as the story develops.  Needless to say, by Chapter 2 I was ready to pitch this book into my "do not buy" pile.  But I kept reading, and while the story that unfolded wasn't what I expected, it was pretty good.
3. The title.  The book isn't about the Eleventh Plague.  It's about the surviving and rebuilding in the wake of the Eleventh Plague.  It's about trying to build a community when everything has been torn down.  There's still action, for sure.  But it's not about the fall of society that happened due to the Eleventh Plague.  It's about the struggle to make the remains of the world something worth fighting for, when forces are combining to destroy what little is left.  It would have been so much cooler to call it the The Twelfth Plague.

So what did I like?  

1. Realistic Setting and Backstory: I liked that the story drew heavily from reality (which I realize some may say lies in contradiction to my first dislike).  Twenty years prior to the story's present, a group of "American students backpacking in China were caught where they shouldn't have been and mistaken for spies," which wouldn't have been a big deal, but "oil was running out, and the Earth was getting warmer." Sound familiar? Then the USA nukes China and in response, China unleashes a souped-up version of the flu, known as P11, on the American populace and invades the west coast.  Hundreds of millions die and civilization crumbles.  That's a sweet set up.
2. Protagonist Stephen Quinn:  He's fifteen and he's angsty.  He's lost everyone he ever loved and has trust issues.  He's a lover and a fighter, and he's a reader. The complete package.
3. The Drama: I was pulled into both the fight/action sequences and the light romantic sub-plot.  Those pages flew by and I could very easily put myself into the world and feel like I was fighting and struggling alongside Stephen.

A Hunger Games read-alike it is not.  Not everything post-apocalyptic with teenagers is "like" HG.  Would fans of Hunger Games enjoy it?  Probably.  Most people probably wouldn't get hung up on the things I did, and thus transition easily into the story that drives the novel forward.  I'll definitely be interested to see what other people think as reviews start popping up (likely closer to the September release date).

The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch

Scholastic, hardcover $17.99

Release Date: September 2011

Review copy provided by ARC picked up at BEA.

Note: Quoted sections in review are from an uncorrected proof.  Text is not final.  

*You're probably reading this and thinking "if you think they haven't heard worse, you must live on another planet."  I know that our world is filled with violence and cursing and bad things.  And I know my 6th graders have seen Hot Tub Time Machine and There Will Be Blood.  They can take it.  But have you seen a middle schooler's reaction when there's an unexpected curse (or as my kids say, "cuss") word?  It's humorous to me how strongly they react when they don't see it coming.  They'll mark the page and show it to me and ask if I knew it was there.  7th and 8th graders will turn books back in after finishing them and tell me that although they read and really liked the book, I should be careful about checking it out to other students, who might not be able to handle it.


The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Just Like Groundhog Day: Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall

I know, I know, it's February 1st, not February 2nd.  A Groundhog Day post should wait until tomorrow.  Except tomorrow is Saturday, and I don't post on Saturday.  So I'm doing a little Groundhog Day Post today!

No Groundhog Day post would be complete without nn abundance of references to the classic Bill Murray/Andy McDowell film, Groundhog Day.  You know it well, I hope.  Basic plot: Weatherman Phil Connors (Murray) is assigned the dreaded task of reporting on the outcome of Punxsutawney Phil's annual Groundhog Day appearance.  He gets stuck in a time loop and finds himself reliving February 2nd again and again, and takes increasing liberties each day.  Seemingly, nothing he does will get him out of the loop.  Observe:



Interested in a relatively quick and fun read to celebrate Phil (groundhog and character from the movie)?  Get yo'self a copy of Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall!  I've posted about it previously here, so I won't rehash that, but it's a title that'll get you thinking.  As noted previously, there are several heavy topics covered and mature content as well, so it's not for the Liesl & Po set.

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

The Spoils of BEA

Another successful BEA and my first (of what I hope to be many) SLJ Day of Dialog!


Not only did I get to see so many of my beloved fellow librarians and book-ish friends while at the conference, but I also came away with several signed copies of books and totes full of ARCs and gained valuable perspective on topics including Steampunk, Tweens*, and Nonfiction*...and an author reading from a soon-to-be-published work, that just blew.my.mind.


Most of the ARCs have already been distributed amongst students who just could not get over the idea that they would have the opportunity to read books before they were even published.  I allowed any student who wished to "check out" one ARC, provided they read it, bring it back and let me know whether it was a good book to purchase for the school's collection.   One student almost cried because she was so excited**.  I guess that makes up for the student who asked "And how much are you paying us?"  The rest of the ARCs are coming with me to Chicago this summer!  Though my student population is 11-14, I actually prefer older YA titles for my personal reading, so I scooped up a couple of titles that I was most excited about.  And what, you might ask, are my favorite takeaways from BEA?


Splendor by Anna Godbersen (signed copy)
Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness (ARC, third in the "Chaos Walking" trilogy)
Delirium by Lauren Oliver (ARC, author of "Before I Fall")


And what did I really want, but couldn't find?


Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (I wish!)
Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson (though I hear some folks got this!)
Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia (totally could've gotten this one, but flaked)
Reckless by Cornelia Funke*** (again, I wish, but I was in a session when they handed these out. So foolish!)


How about you?  Did you go?  What did you get?  If you were not in on the BEA action, is there an ARC I could send your way that would make it all better?  Let me know!


* Interesting, because as noted in sessions on each of these topics: Should we define something by what it is not?  Tweens are in-between and thus neither children nor teens (though I'd submit they're children) and Nonfiction is not fiction...But, dare I ask, what are each of these things, then?
** And this is why I love my job and my students. 
*** Whose name, contrary to my previous belief, is not pronounced "Funk," but rather, "Funk-ay," which I must admit, I kinda like!

Belated BEA Recap: Part 1

So, I probably should've posted this about a week ago, but things have been busy in LibrariYAn land, so it just didn't happen. Alas. A week later than planned, here's my recap...

From start to finish, my day at BEA was pretty fantastic. I went in armed with the following plan:

Step 1: Get ARC* of Catching Fire
Step 2: Visit publisher booths and collect as many cool YA ARCs as possible
Step 3: Attend the YA Editor's Buzz to learn about hot upcoming fall titles
Step 4: Depart en route NJ with bags of books

And pretty much, that's exactly how the day went, except that I was able to acquire two ARCs of Catching Fire and once I was there I learned of another hot ARC that I HAD to get my hands on before proceeding to Step 2. What ARC was that, you ask? Why, it was the second book in Patrick Ness' Chaos Walking Trilogy, The Ask and the Answer. The first book in the trilogy, The Knife of Never Letting Go, was a big hit, and many people I've talked to thought it was even better than the first book a certain other trilogy whose second book I was quite hungry to get my hands on at BEA. But, they'd given out all the ARCs. Luckily, one of the kind folks at the Candlewick booth took down my info. and had one shipped to me! It arrived yesterday and is patiently waiting on my TBR pile.

But on to Step 2: The collection of cool YA ARCs from the exhibitor booths. It seems every librarian I've talked to collected a completely different set of ARCs than I did. I'm jealous of some of theirs, and proud of mine. Since I'm headed to a middle school come the fall, you'll note my titles span for ages 12-18. Here's what I brought home and will reading this summer:

Bloomsbury
Forest Born by Shannon Hale (fourth book in Books of Bayern/Goose Girl series)

Girl in the Arena by Lise Hai (a gladiator's daughter steps into the arena - sounds Hunger Games-esque)

Lady Macbeth's Daughter by Lisa Klein (what if MacBeth had a daughter?)

Liar by Justine Larbalestier (unreliable narrator tells her story)

A Whole Nother Story by Dr. Cuthbert Soup (Series of Unfortunate Events-ish)

Walker Books (for Young Readers)

Demon Princess: Reign or Shine by Michelle Rowen (girl learns she's part demon, and is heir to the throne)

Breathless by Jessica Warman (semi-autobiographical tale of talent, boarding school and family secrets)

The Tear Collector by Patrick Jones (vampires that feed on your tears)

Little, Brown

School of Fear by Gitty Daneshvari (scaredy cat kids go to an exclusive school to help overcome their fears and find there's more to afraid of than they thought)

Soulstice: The Devouring Book 2 by Simon Holt (demons inhabit human bodies; trouble ensues)

Amulet

Troy High by Shana Norris (retelling of Homer's Illiad with rival high schools and football)

Charlesbridge

The Importance of Wings by Robin Friedman (fitting in and standing out)

Kids Can Press
Recipe for Disaster by Maureen Fergus (the arrivel a new girl threatens to burn Francie's perfectly baked life)

I've about halfway through Liar and plan to finish it today. It's pretty good, and I'm just waiting for that "gotcha" moment when it all comes together - or falls apart. Not sure which I'll read next, but am open to suggestions, if there's one you'd love for me to preview on the blog. Let me know in the comments.

But back to the Expo...After a morning of schlepping around, it was time for some lunch. With tote bags filled to the brim and aching shoulders, my next stop was the Young Adult Editor's Buzz.

Stay tuned for my next installment of the Belated BEA Recap to see what editors are forecasting to be this fall's biggest YA books.

* For those new to the terminology, an ARC - Advance Reader's Copy - is an uncorrected proof. Publishers create these and distribute them to reviewers, librarians and booksellers in advance of the release of a book to generate buzz for a upcoming title. ARCs are generally low-quality, unpolished, unfinalized versions of the books they will become. They are NOT items for sale and are NOT the real book. There's typically additional copyediting, artwork and sometimes entirely rewritten passages before the ARC becomes a published book.

(Not a) Review: Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral

Chopsticks by Jessica Rodriguez and Rodrigo Corral



I had intended to write a post reviewing Chopsticks, but then I realized that since I'm not even sure what happened in the novel (after several readings), I'm certainly not qualified to write a review.  Still, the book is so inventive and unique and confusing that I didn't want to say nothing about it.  I'll begin with the trailer...



And now let's have a little plot summary...

Glory is a teenage piano prodigy.  Frank is the boy next door.  The two fall in love and have a whirlwind romance, complete with late-night message chats and mix CDs.  Chopsticks is their song.  Just as their love begins to flourish, Glory heads out on a tour that takes her to world-renowned concert venues, and away from Frank.  Before long, the stress of performing and her longing to be with Frank consume Glory and lead her to breakdown.  She'll be on stage performing and then, without warning, will begin playing Chopsticks.  Her father takes her off tour and checks her into a mental health facility.  She escapes.

But that's just the surface story.  Because, you see, this is an interactive novel.  The pictures and the words, when read carefully tell a different story.  A story that conflicts with the story being told.  A story of a young girl's descent into madness.

I would have marked this post as having spoilers and leave a bunch of space, but since I'm not entirely certain what was real and what was in Glory's mind and since it only really takes about 30 minutes to read the entire book and/or go through the entire iPhone app (which, incidentally, was named "App of the Year" by Media Bistro), I'm just going to go ahead and write about the book.

If you've read it, please comment with your thoughts and opinions!  If you haven't read it, go buy the app or read the book (it seriously won't take long at all), and then come back after you've typed in or clicked all the links and carefully gone over the details on every page.  I have a pretty strong sense that in billing this as an "interactive" novel, the publishers weren't just envisioning the reader interacting with the text and images, but also with other readers.

So here are my questions:

Q. Is Frank real?
Possible A: The first time I read the book, I was positive that he was a real person, and that Glory's dad hated him because her association with him drove her to madness.  Then I read it again and talked about it with friends. I don't think he's real. That's why her dad hates "Frank" so much; Frank is a delusion.  He's the face on the wine bottle, and she created him in one of her drunken fits of madness.  If you look at Glory's wall of art towards the end of the book, you'll even see that those pictures her drew for and of her...are signed with her name.  Not his.

Q: But what about the chat messages?
Possible A: Heck if I know.  I can't explain how she can chat with a made up person. I guess this means my answer to the first question is wrong, but it's all I've got.

Q: So what is real?
Possible A: Glory is a piano prodigy.  She has an obsession with Chopsticks. She has been institutionalized.  Several times.  Her mother is dead from a (self-inflicted?) motorcycle accident.  Her father wants her to be well, but isn't sure how to save her.  He enlists the help of a friend and says "I don't want to lose her too."

Q: What else is there?
Possible A: I'm sure I've conveniently forgotten about images that conflict with my version of the story. Haha. Oops.

CHAT WITH ME!!!

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Review: Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick

Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick



Arn Chorn-Pond was just a child when the Khmer Rouge came to his village in Cambodia and forced the people out of their homes and into the countryside.  One moment he was dancing outside the theatre with his brother, hustling for change, and the next he was torn from his family and forced to labor in the rice fields.  He makes a promise to himself that he will never fall down.  Because if he does, the soldiers will kill him.  Instead, he chooses survival by any means necessary, volunteering to play in a band, even though he's never played a note in his life, assisting with executions and cozying up to individuals with power.  He is not always proud of his actions, but he does what he needs to do to survive and tries to help others when he can.  Then he is handed a gun and forced to become a soldier himself.

Arn Chorn-Pond is a real person.  He is alive today because of willingness to do whatever it took to survive.  Once freed from the control of the Khmer Rouge he began to work for peace in Cambodia and to spread public awareness of their atrocities.  Patricia McCormick spent many hours over the course of several years interviewing him and then molding his story into a work of historical fiction.  One risk McCormick took in telling Arn's story is that she used his voice, broken English and all.  At first, the choppiness and improper grammar made it difficult to read.  I forced myself to keep reading, and the words turned into a voice that I heard as I read.  It almost felt like he was sitting before me, telling me his story.  I wondered if McCormick would be able to maintain the voice, or if there would be parts in the middle where it would vanish, in favor of  a more easily comprehensible language.  It never wavered.  More impressive, perhaps, was the care with which she handled violent scenes.  When awful, grotesque things happened in the story (which was often) McCormick described the brutality of the scene and conveyed without going into gritty detail.  Her intent was to educate the reader about about the horrors of the Khmer Rouge, not to sensationalize their acts of violence.

At the end of the book, both Arn Chorn-Pond and Patricia McCormick offer acknowledgements.  Having little prior knowledge about the Khmer Rouge or Chorn-Pond I was actually shocked to find out that he was an actual person.  My jaw literally dropped and I read his acknowledgements in awe of his struggle and his will to survive.  Learning that he was real made the story more powerful and the actions of the Khmer Rouge that much more detestable.  I wouldn't be surprised to see this book added to the 8th or 9th grade curriculum over the course of the next few years.

Never Fall Down is one of five finalists for the 2012 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

Belated BEA Recap: Part 2: YA Editor's Buzz

I told myself I wouldn't blog about anything else until I finally got around to finishing and posting Part 2 of my Belated BEA Recap. Well, here it is!

Probably the coolest part of BEA (which now was so long ago that it almost seems like a dream) was attending the Young Adult Editor's Buzz and getting the scoop on (and ARCs of) the biggest fall novels from the folks at the publishing houses who've already read what's coming and know what's going to be big.

Six editors were on the dais and each described one upcoming release. Then afterwards, they had a chance to mention other titles both from their publishing house and others that they were really excited about. Everything they mentioned sounded awesome, and I was lucky enough to get a few (but not all) of the ARCs before they seized upon by other hungry ARC hunters.

But onto what all the buzz was about…

Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor (Arthur A. Levine Books) – Due out October 1st, Lips Touch contains three supernatural short stories, each of which revolves around a single kiss. I wasn’t lucky enough to nab an ARC, but this one sounds like it’ll suck you in and be hard to put down (or maybe Arthur Levine the man is just really good at marketing). Liz B. at Tea Cozy did get an ARC and has already raved about Lips Touch on her blog.

The Devil’s Kiss by Sarwat Chadda (Disney/Hyperion) – The first in a trilogy, The Devil’s Kiss is Sarwat Chadda’s debut novel about a girl who has often unwillingly sacrificed her normal teenage life to train and become the youngest and only female member of the Knight’s Templar. I’ve only read the first few pages thus far, but it sounded really dark and suspenseful from the booktalk. I’m thinking this might be a good recommendation for those who enjoyed Graceling and maybe The Hunger Games. Due out September 1st.

The Maze Runner by James Dashner (Delacorte Press for Young Readers) – Think Lord of the Flies meets the movie Cube meets anything ever written by M. Night Shymalan. My husband is reading this one right now, and I’ll hopefully be getting to it soon. It sounds really good, and again, edge of your seat, nail bitingly suspenseful! The premise: Every 30 days, a new boy arrives in “the Glade,” transported by an elevator which he doesn’t remember getting on. Not only doesn’t he remember how he got there, but he can’t remember anything about his previous life, except for his first name. Each morning, stone doors open onto a maze. Each night, they close tight. One day, a girl appears from the elevator bringing a disturbing message.

Refresh, Refresh by Danica Novgorodoff’s (First Second Books) – This one sounds like it might be a tear-jerker. Based on the award-winning short story by Benjamin Percy, Refresh, Refresh is artist Danica Novgorodoff's graphic interpretation, of the story of three boys about to graduate high school who are trying to figure out their future as they wait for their fathers, who are serving in the Iraq War, to come home. Anxiously awaiting communication from their distant fathers, they continually refresh their e-mail again and again. Look for it at the end of September.

The Sweetheart of Prosper County by Jill S. Alexander (Feiwel & Friends) – Another debut and another potential tear-jerker. The story centers around Austin and her quest to wind up on the hood of a pick-up truck as the “Sweetheart of Prosper County.” She owns a rooster named Charles Dickens and from what I’ve heard there’s a scene with her, Charles Dickens and some fishing that is particularly emotional. It sounds like it is in turns sweet, silly and sad, and it’s most definitely on my TBR pile. On September 1st it’ll make it’s way to your library bookshelf.

Viola in Reel Life by Adriana Trigiani (Harper Collins Children's Books) – Best-selling author Adriana Trigiani has decided to throw her hat into the YA ring with her first in a trilogy. As I understand it, this book, which hasn’t even been published yet, has already been turned into a screenplay and is in pre-production. A friend is borrowing it, and I haven’t had a chance to give it a read yet, but I remember something about her being fashionably different and going to boarding school, (maybe to experience “real life” since she’s a movie star?) and I typically LOVE boarding school books, as I see boarding school as this really cool environment where kids are tasked with being adults before they are really ready and all sorts of deep, meaningful experiences happen. My friends who’ve attended boarding school tell me it’s more about drinking, sneaking around, and awaiting care packages from parents. Alas, I’m still intrigued. Get it September 1st.

So, that’s a couple starts to trilogies and even more debuts, all of which sound like they’re going to be terrific reads. I’m very excited for September to roll around and bring the bounty of fall publishing releases. In the meantime, I’ll be working though the ARCs I have and picking up a few more at the ALA Conference, which kicks off in less than two weeks in good ol’ Chicago.

Harry Potter Camp: The Schedule

At my YALSA Symposium presentation I told attendees that I would make sure to put up all of my Harry Potter Camp materials on the blog. I'd been meaning to it anyway, so this is a perfect opportunity to get my butt in gear. Instead of just dumping everything, I thought it might be helpful to do a series of posts on the various activities and link to them on the Harry Potter Camp tab that I've added on the main page. On that page you can also find some background info. and logistics about my camp. 

Possibly the most daunting task in creating a 5-day camp was creating a schedule that packed in as much Pottertastic fun as possible and struck the right balance of activities to appeal to the different personalities that would undoubtedly be in attendance. From my daily experiences with middle school students I know that balancing loud and quiet, active and passive and thoughtful and silly is of utmost importance when trying to capture and hold their attention.

I agonized over how much time to spend on every activity and where it should fall in the schedule. Knowing that I would also likely be battling the heat and humidity, I tried to schedule outdoor activities before 11am. Wanting to keep (relatively) true to the order of events in both the books and a given year at Hogwarts, I also tried to sequence activities that would take us all the way from Sorting Ceremony to the Battle of Hogwarts.

The original schedule looked a bit different than what actually wound up happening, but I was prepared for that and had a "roll with the punches" mentality. Knowing that I had a whole week to hit the highlights gave me confidence that even if we ran out of time to do everything one day, we could push things to the next. I also made sure to plan more activities than could possibly ever fit into the schedule. Keeping a few extra activities in my back pocket "just in case" is one of my best teaching strategies. That way, if something flopped or took much less time than anticipated I wouldn't be scrambling to figure out a way to keep everyone occupied. Extra activities and YouTube.

I tried my best to update the schedule below to reflect what actually played out. The kids turned out to be insanely obsessed with Dueling (they are still doing it at recess sometimes, and even kids who didn't come to camp are joining in), and not so into Transfiguration (which you'll note doesn't even appear on the schedule, because as I described the activity and saw their disinterest I quickly pivoted and said "Dueling?" to which they responded with cheers and shouts of joy).

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
9:00	Sorting Ceremony	"Class" Picture Day	Capture the Egg  (Tri-Wizard Tourn.)	Chocolate Frogs: Boxes & Cards	Playful Potions
9:30	Quidditch	Quidditch	Pool  (Tri-Wizard Tourn.)	Quidditch	Quidditch
10:00	Quidditch	Quidditch	Pool  (Tri-Wizard Tourn.)	Quidditch	Quidditch
10:30	Ollivander's (wand making)	Scribbulus's (quill making)	Pool  (Tri-Wizard Tourn.)	Chocolate Frogs Peppermint Toads Cockroach Clusters	Cauldron Cakes
11:00	Acid Pops Licorice Wands	Bertie Bott's Taste Test	Pool (Tri-Wizard Tournament)	Chocolate Frogs Peppermint Toads Cockroach Clusters	Butterbeer Pumpkin Juice
11:30	Lunch	Lunch	Pool (Tri-Wizard Tournament)	Lunch	Feast
12:00	Dueling	Dueling	Pool (Tri-Wizard Tournament)	Legilimency	Dueling
12:30	Dueling	Dueling	Lunch	HP Alliance Speaker	Horcrux Scavenger Hunt
1:00	Sorcerer's Stone Challenge	Drinkable Potions	Minute-To-Win-Its (Tri-Wizard Tournament)	HP Alliance Speaker	Horcrux Scavenger Hunt
1:30	Sorcerer's Stone Challenge	Drinkable Potions	Minute-To-Win-Its (Tri-Wizard Tournament)	HP Alliance Speaker	Battle of Hogwarts
2:00	OWL Exams (Trivia)	OWL Exams (Trivia)	OWL Exams (Trivia)	OWL Exams (Trivia)	Battle of Hogwarts
2:30	OWL Exams (Trivia)	OWL Exams (Trivia)	OWL Exams (Trivia)	OWL Exams (Trivia)	Closing/Diplomas

Not on the schedule but definitely also utilized were YouTube videos and other fun Harry Potter things on the web. Check out my Harry Potter Camp Padlet with links to everything. These little distractions were great to use when we had just a few minutes to fill and not a whole chunk of time.

But what good is this silly schedule if I'm not giving you all the details on what we did? No good at all, I say! Stay tuned. Details are coming...

The LibrariYAn is an Amazon Associate. If you click from links on this blog to Amazon and buy something (anything!), I receive a small percentage of the purchase price.