Reading, Reviewing, Arithmati -- jk, it's a quiz!

Listen to Bill.  Bill is wise.

In case you missed it, we're skyping with author Sarah J. Maas tonight!  She's the author of Throne of Glass, which was our book club pick back in December, and its sequel, Crown of Midnight, out August 27, 2013!

And I know - December is kinda a long time ago, especially with school and homework and everything you've read since FIVE MONTHS AGO OKAY CHILL.

F'reals - your Throne of Glass review starts here!  I know you want to look cool and totally in-the-know when we talk to her - duh, me too - so get reviewing by way of one of the your fav ways to waste time (hey, not judging) on the interwebs - a QUIZ!!!  Check out any of these three quizzes, then post your score in the comments section:

Throne of Glass Quiz 1!

(on one of our favorite sites, Goodreads)

 

Quiz 2!                               Quiz 3!

Need to review a bit before you take these schwaiz quizzes?  Here are some sites that'll have you up-to-speed in no time:

• The Throne of Glass Wikipedia page gives you all the basic info (plots, characters, etc.)
• The "Extras" section on Sarah J. Maas' website - she's got character histories, a map of the world of Throne of Glass, and a pronunciation guide for all the tricky names in the book.  
• All our blog posts about Throne of Glass - especially make sure you read what everyone had to say at the meeting back in December!
• Throne of Glass on facebook and pinterest!  You can also have a look at "Bythewyrd", a tumblr made by fans.

Easy-peesy lemon-squeezey-mac-'n-cheesy-don't-be-queasy!  See you at the meeting!  Have your questions ready - see the previous post for some suggestions on this - and don't forget to be at SPL tonight, Thursday, April 4th at 6pm!!!

Skype with Sarah J. Maas TODAY!

Aaaiiii!! Sarah Maas - her face is full of secrets! Also some sweet shades.

Get ready, smithies - our skype-a-palooza with Sarah J. Maas is this Thursday!  Bring all your awesome questions to get some awesome answers.  Still unsure what to ask?  Keep reading for some ideas to get you started:


SUGGESTIONS TO ASK THE SARAH:

• Ask questions about the book:  Think about the characters.  Are you still wondering why they acted the way they did? Were there other parts of the story that didn't make sense?  
• Get crafty for some spoilers: Throne of Glass is the first book in a series, so the book leaves you hangingUGH.  You can ask sneaky questions to try to  get Sarah to give us some hints about the next book... Watch out, though - she looks seriously crafty in almost every picture I can find, so I don't think she'll slip up easily. You'll have to read the sequels to find out more!
• Sarah's Throne of Glass inspiration: Did you know that Throne of Glass is based on the story of Cinderella?  F'reals.  Try asking about how this became her inspiration and how she came up with her spin on the story with Cinderella as an assassin!
• Fantasy world creation and... stuff:  Since the world of Throne of Glass is entirely made-up, the author had to dream up, like, an ENTIRE WORLD for the book, with different countries, geography, languages, history, everything, with enough details to make it realistic.  Um... how?!  Where do you  start when making up a completely new world?  How did Sarah come up with the creepy supernatural mythologies in Throne of Glass? And how did she dream up names like "Eyllwe" and "Chaol"?!
• Ask about being a writer: If you dream of being an author, now's your chance.  Why did she want to be an author? How does she get ideas - is there a certain place or activity that's especially inspiring?  Does she have a favorite method or place to work on writing?  
• ...plus a gazillion other questions:  Feel free to ask something that isn't mentioned here!  Even random questions are okay:  What's her favorite ice cream?  What's Celaena's favorite ice cream?

That's it - get to brainstorming!  You can also read this interview Sarah did for more ideas.  If you still need a refresher on the book, see the last week's post for a review on Throne of Glass, read this blog post for a short summary or look here for detailed summary and character info; for some background on Sarah Maas, check out this post or her website.  And don't forget - the meeting is TODAY, Thursday, April 4th, 6pm @ SPL!!  

Skype with author Sarah J. Maas!!!

Sarah Maas: dreaming up a plotline... or schem-
ing how to get someone to bring you ice cream?

Okay clubbies, this is really cool.  I'll try not to use too many exclamation points, but I make no promises.

So remember Throne of Glass, that sweeeet book we read for our meeting in December? An awesome teen girl/assassin, an intense competition, creepy supernatural forces, plus a hot prince, a bad king, and dreamy captain - ringing any bells?  Hello?

Well, better start remembering soon, because we're skyping with the author at our next meeting!! F'reals, kids - we'll be skyping with Sarah J. Maas at our next meeting (Thursday, April 4th at 6pm)!!!

OMG THIS IS AWESOME.

Throne of Glass is actually Sarah's first novel, and she's younger than most authors (she's a young Young Adult author... a Young Adult author who is young... whatever). Check out her bio from Amazon:

"Sarah J. Maas was born and raised in New York City, but after graduating from Hamilton College in 2008, she moved to Southern California. She's always been just a tad obsessed with fairy-tales and folklore, though she'd MUCH rather be the one slaying the dragon (instead of the damsel in distress). When she's not busy writing, she can be found geeking out over things like Han Solo, gaudy nail polish, and ballet."

Not gonna lie - she sounds pretty adorable. Check out her website for more about her and to get Throne of Glass extras! She also has a blog and is on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. There's also a Throne of Glass Facebook page!

So get reviewing!  Or remembering. Or re-reading.  Or whatever works for you - just get ready!  Keep checking this blog:  there'll be info to refresh your memory on the book, Throne of Glass trivia and quizzes and other cool extras.  Get started now by taking a look at the summary for Throne of Glass, or click here to see all past blog posts on about it.  You can also have a look at this sweeeet book trailer:

Oh yes, this is happening.  The meeting's Thursday, April 4th, 6pm - BE THERE FOR AWESOME.

See, that wasn't too too many exclamation points.  Haha, tutu.

Sci-fi Springtime!: Dark Side of Nowhere by Neal Shusterman

Happy spring break, Smithies!  I know it's a busy week - we had Delirium author Lauren Oliver here at SPL on Monday (our report on that coming soon!), and we had a Mad Hatter's Tea Party for the littler kids on Thursday.  But in between library stuff and doing that pesky spring break project for school,  why not get started on our book for next month, Dark Side of Nowhere by Neal Shusterman!  Check out the synopsis:

The Dark Side of Nowhere by Neal Shusterman

"Jason is having a bad day. The kind of day when you just don't feel like yourself. Only for Jason, it's not just a feeling. He really isn't himself.

Not any more.

Who is he? That's the problem. Jason isn't sure. And it's not just him. Everyone in town is acting weird. His friends. His parents. Everyone. Billington is usually such a normal town. As Jason is about to discover, nothing will ever be normal again."

Alright, that wasn't a great synopsis - the book is way better, and it's totally as creepy as the title implies.  Srrsly, "Dark Side of Nowhere"?  How awesome a title is that?!  (Answer: AWESOME.)  Plus, there's lots of weird science fiction-y action, adventure, hijinks, whutevuh.

So get to reading - next month's meeting is Thursday, April 4th at 6pm at SPL.

And keep watching this blog sweet bloggy goodness.  Coming soon:

• An announcement of another EXTRA AWESOME thing we're doing at the next meeting!!  If you didn't already hear about it at the last meeting, that is. 
• Our post on last meeting's skype with author Hannah Barnaby (read the entire interview!)
• A report on Delirium author Lauren Oliver's recent visit to SPL!