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So, you want to be a Hip Librarian?
Thanks for your interest in the Hip Librarian's Book Blog! We have space for new voices and are seeking new reviewers.
A little background - the HLBB site got 41,000 hits in the last year, and was founded by April Mazza and Allison Peters as a way to share must reads.
We would love to have one new review posted every day. If you think you can write one review a month, take a look at the site and send a sample review of any title with appeal to ages 0-18 (picture book, poetry, fiction, biography, etc) to Beth Gallaway at informationgoddess29 AT gmail DOT com. Beth will share with the others in the group. Members will vote on adding new reviewers.
Please note that multiple reviews of a title are fine – feel free to re-review a title we liked or loathed. You can also leave a review as a comment on a title that has already been reviewed – if we like it and you provide your contact information, we’ll get in touch with you.
We are looking for a critical, honest eye and unique voice. Reviews should be 200-300 words and include summary and evaluation to discuss literary, artistic, and other merit. You must use your real name and stand behind the reviews you write. It's fine to say if you DIDN'T like something but the ratings (1-5 stars) must be justified through analysis. Tone may be personal or professional. We are not looking for summaries, booktalks, or personal attacks on books or their authors.
We currently pick up books at conferences, and Beth receives and distributes review copies, galleys and ARCS from:
- Orca
- Scholastic
- Sterling
- Candlewick
- Raab Associates (distributor)
Reviewers are welcome to solicit their own review copies or to get titles from the YA ARC project. Publishers are welcome to get their names added to the list above by contacting Beth Gallaway at informationgoddess29 AT gmail DOT com.
Dear Sara,
I was wondering if you might be interested in reviewing my new ya novel
called RETURNABLE GIRL. It's the story of Ronnie Harman, a 13 year old in
foster care. Ronnie wants more than anything to fit in with the popular
crowed (especially beautiful but stuck-up Paige) but when she betrays her
only friend (a chubby outcast named Cat) she begins a pattern of deception
that can only end in disaster. Soon after an important letter presents
Ronnie with the most heart-wrenching decision of her life: to accept the
woman who wants to adopt her or return to the woman who once abandoned her.
The book has gotten great reviews so far! Let me know if you'd like a
review copy.
Thanks so much!!!!
PS I'd LOVE to be considered for a reviewer!
Pam Lowell
www.pamelalowell.com
School Library Journal, October, 2006
"By creating a truly believable teenage narrative voice and a fully
realized cast of characters, Lowell offers an engrossing, well-plotted, and
impressive read. Each character, from Ronnie’s depressed and
self-destructive neighbor to the motorcycle-riding youth minister,
struggles with very human challenges and plays a meaningful role in the
girl’s growth. Difficult issues–betrayal, depression, emotional abuse–are
handled without melodrama or sensationalism. Ultimately, the novel
celebrates the resilience of both teens and adults, the bonds formed in
healing, and the journeys taken in finding and following one’s heart.
Readers will feel they have traveled the physical and emotional distance
with Ronnie, and will find comfort and hope in the story’s resolution.–Riva
Pollard, The Winsor School Library, Boston