Shhh! SVH!

You probably knew that the Sweet Valley High series was re-released a couple years ago and that Diablo Cody is working on bringing it to the big screen. (I'm personally looking forward to seeing Enid all geek chic.) But did you know about Sweet Valley Confidential? It's Jessica and Elizabeth, 10 years later! I think it's only one book, not a new series. It comes out in March, and I previewed the first chapter—not cause I'm a member of Pi Beta Alpha or on the Oracle staff or anything like that; anyone can sign up on the website to read it. However, in case you don't want to, I am happy to share the following tidbits of Elizabeth Wakefield's thoroughly depressing 27-year-old life:

• She has to have THREE locks on the door of her shitty apartment because she lives in New York, where it's like sooo dangerous;
• She orders a PORK CHOP out at a restaurant and brings the leftovers home in a doggie bag;
• Her purse is a Prada knockoff;
• She works for a "throwaway" weekly covering the Off-Broadway scene (not even regular Broadway!) that's so cheap and unknown she has to buy show tickets at the TKTS booth or sneak in during intermission;
• She considers sleeping with her boss, a nice guy with a great body (in the narrator's words). "Right from the start, Elizabeth could tell he was attracted to her. It had probably helped in the hiring, though she had decent credentials, but a little gratitude wouldn't hurt." Well, nothing says "thanks for hiring me for my looks" like a roll in the hay, right, Liz?
• She recently had a "three-week mini affair spread out over two months" (huh?) during which she "cried after every orgasm." For real, that's what it says.
• She listens to Beyonce and Justin Timberlake;
• She sleeps in an oversized Sweet Valley T-shirt but lets people assume she's from LA;
• And Bruce Patman is her best friend!

Also, she's out of ice cubes, and Jessica has done something to hurt her so deeply that she's turned into a sobbing basket-case. Oh, how the mighty fall. I can't decide if I'm dying to read the rest of this or glad I only had to suffer through 15 pages of a sneak peek.

Gimme S'more

Back in April and May, ALL the sixth grade girls were checking out Huge from the school library. I thought there must have been some kind of sexy scene they were passing around. (Cause the only book ALL the girls in my class checked out of the library back-to-back was Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.) But then the ABC Family series based on the book came out this summer, and I figured maybe they were just more in the loop about these things than I was and wanted to get a jump start on the story before the show started? Having just finished the book myself, I still don't know. There is one paragraph about kissing that involves lips and tongues and a boy who tastes like popcorn. However, I'm not sure if that's scandalous enough for middle schoolers these days. I kind of hope so.

I've watched all four episodes of the TV show so far (on Hulu), and I love it. Nikki Blonsky plays Wil, the girl who didn't want to go to fat camp and claims to be happy with her body just the way it is. At Camp Victory, she makes friends with shy, imaginative Becca and enemies with barely-overweight blond Amber (portrayed by the daughter of David Hasselhoff!). One of the great things about the show—in addition to the fact that it was co-developed by My So-Called Life creator Winnie Holzman—is that the characters are more than just cardboard cutouts. You don't totally hate Amber, and you don't totally love Wil. In fact, I think I may like Amber more than I like Wil. She's extremely pretty, and most of the guys at camp have crushes on her. But she's also the kind of girl people would call "big-boned," and because of it she has a lot of insecurities about herself. Sure, she's the Queen Bee at Camp Victory, but what about at home? I'm looking forward to seeing where they take her character in future episodes.

On to the book. The only things it has in common with the TV show are (a) a fat girl named Wil and (b) a fat camp that she was sent to against her wishes. Book Wil is rich and spoiled and almost completely unlikable. She shares a room with April, the perky poor girl who saved up thousands of dollars on her own to go to Wellness Canyon. April is determined to lose weight in spite of the cookies her mom sends her at camp, and Wil is determined to put on some pounds as an eff-you to her fitness-obsessed parents. When the girls realize they both like the same guy (jock-y Colin, perhaps the basis for the Trent character on the TV show), they make a bet to see who can get him to like them back first. If April wins, she gets to keep Wil's iPod for the rest of the summer. If Wil wins, April has to eat all the junk food in 7-11.

My recommendation? Stick with the TV show. The best thing about the book is the cover featuring some mighty delicious looking s'mores. Which are apparently a no-no at fat camp.

Namedropper

Last weekend was the annual ALA (American Library Association) conference in Washington, DC. It was my first time, and partially since I don't have a library to call my own just yet, I took the opportunity to mostly get excited over all the famous author readings/meetings/book-signings and free books.

My favorite part was the YA Author Coffee Klatch on Sunday morning, which was basically like speed-dating with authors. There were six to eight librarians at a table, and every five minutes a new author would sit down to chat with us. I was a little nervous at the beginning, not knowing what to expect ... when all of a sudden who comes over to sit at my table but John Green and David Levithan! Like, two of the biggest superstars there. They were really funny and friendly, and I got this great photo of John Green smiling right at me. (David Levithan was talking, so I cropped him out.) Simone Elkeles, Holly Black, and Rick Yancey also stopped by, along with new-to-me-yet-seemingly-awesome authors Carrie Jones, Jessica Day George, and James Kennedy.

At the end of the event, all the authors got together for a big picture and were very nice about posing for photos with the librarians/fans. I got a shot with Libba Bray (this year's Printz winner, who was super sweet and even waved to me in the ladies room later on) and another with the Green/Levithan team, and I went total fangirl on poor Stephanie Kuehnert, although I was too shy to say anything intelligent or introduce myself as the writer of this blog who interviewed her via email a couple years back. (Seriously, I don't think I've ever spoken the words "my blog" out in public.)

Later in the day I stood in line to get Holly Black's autograph—and snagged an advance copy of her new anthology Zombies Vs. Unicorns—and listened to Laurie Halse Anderson read from her upcoming historical fiction Forge (before waiting in line to get a signed copy of that). I don't think I'm leaving anything out, except the fact that my suitcase weighed an extra ton on the way home due to all the extra books. At least I was smart enough to only bring my Kindle for the trip down.

Le Freak C'est Chic

Le Freak - Chic

Happy Birthday - Stevie Wonder

S.O.S. - ABBA

Untouchable Face - Ani DiFranco

Oops, I Did it Again - Britney Spears

The Jean Genie - David Bowie

U Can't Touch This - MC Hammer

Wannabe - Spice Girls

What's Going On - Marvin Gaye

Jenifa (Taught Me) - De La Soul

I'm Your Boogie Man - KC and the Sunshine Band

Psycho Killer - Talking Heads

Rehab - Amy Winehouse


"She didn't classify herself as 'eclectic,' knowing that the mere self-classification of 'eclectic' musical tastes meant one's tastes were, in fact, anything but."


I made a playlist for Very LeFreak, Rachel Cohn's latest book, about a redheaded college girl who's wired 24/7 and ends up in rehab for her so-called "technology addiction." All these songs or artists are directly mentioned in the book as part of Very's constant need to bond with her iPod.


This one got a lot of disappointing reviews on Goodreads and Amazon, and I think part of it is that Rachel Cohn's—and in this case, Very's—hyper-verbal-pop-culture style weirds people out. I, however, dig it. Especially because it fits perfectly with this character who's all about MORE, NOW, AGAIN, just like that Elizabeth Wurtzel book (which I haven't read). I didn't always feel that the story was so realistic, and Very is certainly not a lovable character, but I think that's part of the beauty of it. Also, the book made me think about how many dang times I check Gmail, Facebook, Twitter and Google Reader like every hour when I'm home. At least for now I am sans smartphone. Going online on my cell is possible but not so super-easy that it's become a problem.


Also also: Very is not just an over-sharer slash online-shopper. She's a computer programmer who created her own social network. And a party-planner, and a flash mob-organizer...

Come on, Give us a Smile

So not only am I a librarian, but it turns out I'm also a rare book collector (!). Check out what I found yesterday in this awesome used book store on Maryland's Eastern Shore: a copy from the second American printing of The Bell Jar. From the front jacket flap:

At last Sylvia Plath's only published novel is available in her own country, eight years after it was published in England under the pseudonym Victoria Lucas. This extraordinary work chronicles the crackup of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, enormously talented, successful—but slowly going under, and maybe for the last time...

I have never seen it in hardcover, let alone with this super/creepy cover. If you've read the book, you know that scene where Esther has to have her picture taken for the magazine and they make her pose with a rose and she totally freaks out? Well, the back cover of the copy I just got shows the photo of Sylvia Plath with a rose that appeared in Mademoiselle's August 1953 issue.

I am (Almost) a Librarian

The countdown is on! Three weeks from today, I will graduate with my Master's degree in Library and Information Science (MLIS, to those of us in the business) and officially become a librarian. So what I am thinking about? All the cool stuff I can get to show off my new title. That way, even though I'm unemployed, everyone will know.

Clockwise from top left: Librarian Necklace from Brookadelphia ($35), Librarian Pin from Fred Flare ($10), for the dudes: Sarah Utter Guybrarian Shirt from Buyolympia.com ($14.95), Library & Media Center Guard Pin from Award Emblem ($3.75), Lucha Librarian Tote Bag from Ophelia's Art ($21.99).

Death of Venus

Eight years ago, back when I was a wannabe college journalist, Venus published my first ever music review. So it's always had a special place in my little writer heart, and as a reader, I've loved watching Venus grow. To go from a zine conceived in a freshman dorm to a mag sold in Barnes & Noble is something completely amazing, especially when that mag/zine manages to retain its sense of independence. Even when Venus was sold to new publishers and handed over to a new editor in chief, it still featured inspiring not-so-household-name cover stars like Cat Power, M.I.A., Dita von Teese, and Feist.

Last fall, Venus went on a bit of a hiatus. The website at venuszine.com didn't publish any new articles for a few months, and the future of the magazine was uncertain. I don't have any of the deets about what happened during that time, but at the other end of the tunnel was the Spring 2010 issue with Melissa Auf der Maur on the cover.

I've been trying to collect my thoughts on this issue for a few weeks now. MAdM and the Baby-sitters Club, two of my faves, both got space on the cover, so I was psyched when my copy came in the mail. And after flipping a few pages in, I got my answer to how Venus had re-emerged from its hibernation in the form of a publisher's letter, in which the new head honcho writes, "I've always been a passionate advocate for other women." It's hard for me to put into words why this (and the general tone of the letter) rubs me the wrong way. Obviously women advocating for other women is a positive thing—but I guess it feels as if she's trying too hard to buddy up to us, the readers of this traditionally feminist publication. Like, why do you need to point out that you've "always been an advocate" for women? It sounds like something a politician would say.

Not to whine, but I'm gonna: There were a few other things about the issue that bothered me. Example #1: a blurb on five "girl-friendly apps" for the iPhone. The old Venus might have covered this same thing but questioned why these apps are targeted at women in the first place. Picks include something called Seafood Watch (health risks for women aged 18-45!) and NikeWomen Training Club. Really? Then there's a style section in which musician Kaki King fills out a questionnaire that asks her to name her favorite cosmetic products. Change K.K. to Katy Perry, and this could have been a piece in Allure or Lucky.

Venus used to be about women in music. It expanded, and got better, when it started featuring women in art and fashion and books and film. But I'm afraid it's starting to be about women as consumers instead of creators. And today the magazine's staff sent out an email dropping the biggest bombshell of all: Venus is not going to be Venus for much longer. They're taking votes on the following possible new names: Cake, Pepper, Spark, and Ditto. Honestly, Venus has never been my favorite mag name (except when they called the men's pages "Penus"), and I know that there's actually another publication called Venus, which is why a couple of years ago the Venus of our discussion started officially calling itself Venus Zine. 

I cast my ballot for Pepper. But I'm sad about the demise of my once-favorite mag. When a magazine changes publishers and names, it's pretty much a new magazine, right?