Teens

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Ancestry Library

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Provides resources for genealogy research, including census, immigration, military, and other vital records. Searches may be conducted by name, location, and range of dates. Available from library computers only.

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Boundless

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Ebooks and audiobooks are available for all ages to check out and download! Download the app for your mobile device. This resource is supported by the Illinois State Library. Log in with your barcode number and pin.

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Comics Plus - Teen Library

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Comics Plus is a digital platform that offers thousands of digital comics, graphic novels, and manga exclusively through school, public, and academic libraries.

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Comics are for everyone!

Have you seen the latest Marvel movie? Maybe you prefer the DC shows on Max. Or maybe superheroes are something you gave up back in high school. Well get ready to dive into a whole new world of comics, graphic novels, and manga!

Young Adult Picks

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Rich AF

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

From TikTok star and Your (favorite) Rich BFF Vivian Tu, the definitive book on personal finance for a new generation


When Vivian Tu started working on Wall Street fresh from undergrad, all she knew was that she was making more money than she had ever seen in her life. But it wasn’t until she found a mentor of her own on the trading floor that she began to understand what wealthy people knew intuitively—the secrets to beating the proverbial financial game that has, for too long, been male, pale, and stale.

Building on the lessons she learned on Wall Street about money and the markets, Vivian now offers her best personal finance tips and tricks to readers of all ages and demographics, so that anyone can get rich, whether you grew up knowing the rules to the game or not. Vivian will be your mentor, dispensing fresh, no-BS advice on how to think like a rich person and create smart money habits. Throughout the pages of Rich AF, Vivian will break down her best recommendations to help you:

 

  • Maximize your earnings to get more out of your 9-to-5
  • Understand the differences between savings accounts, and where you should keep your money
  • Identify the tax strategies and (legal) loopholes you need to retire in style
  • Overcome investing fears to secure wealth for generations

And much more!

Rich AF will equip readers with the tools and knowledge to not only understand the financial landscape, but to build a financial strategy of their own. And with Your Rich BFF at your side, you’ll be able to start your financial journey already in an affluent mindset, making the most of your money and growing your wealth for years to come.

 

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The NFT Book

NFTs, non-fungible tokens, as collectible, digital, blockchain-secured files became an international sensation in 2020, with the trend in trading them peaking in the fall of 2021. Many sold for millions, and one even sold for $69 million. And yet what exactly are they, and why do they have value? This is the definitive book on NFTs in the story of art and collecting.

It is co-authored by an art historian who has written often on the value of art and the history of collecting. NFTs caught Noah Charney’s attention and fascinated him. He, too, felt that initial knee-jerk reaction that so many who hear of a $69 million sale do: how is this digital image different from me clicking “right-click save” on my touchpad and downloading it to my computer? Why would anyone pay $69 million for something that’s not f*cking there?

This book provides answers to these questions and far more. Charney sees in NFTs a direct parallel to the history, sociology and psychology of art collecting. He was recently a “normee” but he’s now halfway inside the club—he is also an acknowledged authority on the history of art and collecting. He knows all there is to know about humans collecting things of no practical value but that we just really want. But then he worked for a period with two crypto-related companies, and got to know this world from within.

He’s not alone on this ride. The second half of this book is written by someone who knows just about all there is to know about NFTs: Kenny Schachter. Kenny is an artist, collector, curator, professor, columnist and NFT influencer. In fact, he was listed in the fall of 2021 as among the 30 most influential people in the world of NFTs. He even coined (and trademarked) a term, NFTism. While Charney is an art historian considering the NFT phenomenon from the thoughtful but remote perch of his couch, examining NFTs historical and within the context of collecting and the value of art, Kenny has been “in the field” more than anyone, even during the pandemic, zipping from London to Zurich to Art Basel Switzerland to Art Basel Miami. He has his finger on the virtual, digital pulse of this fascinating, bizarre, hugely lucrative phenomenon.

Welcome to the definitive book on NFTs.

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Dear Black Girls

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“Through honest stories and inspiring lessons from her life, A’ja Wilson reminds us to never doubt who we are or apologize for being true to ourselves. Dear Black Girls is a must-read for every Black girl out there.” ―Gabrielle Union

This one is for all the girls with an apostrophe in their names.

This is for all the girls who are labeled “too loud” and “too emotional.”

This is for all the girls who are constantly asked, “Oh, what did you do with your hair? That’s new.”

This is for my Black girls.

Despite gold medals, WNBA championships, and a list of accolades, A’ja Wilson knows how it feels to be swept under the rug—to not be heard, to not feel seen, to not be taken seriously. As a fourth grader going to a primarily white school in South Carolina, A’ja was told she’d have to stay outside for a classmate’s birthday party. “Huh?” she asked. Because the birthday girl’s father didn’t like Black people.

Wilson tells stories like this, about how even when life tried to hold her down, it didn’t stop her. She shares her contribution to “The Talk,” and how to keep fighting, all while igniting strength, passion, and joy. Dear Black Girls is a necessary and meaningful exploration of what it means to be a Black woman in America today—and a rallying cry to lift up women and girls everywhere.

“​D​ear Black Girls is filled with phenomenal stories and empowering insight on what it means to be a woman in today’s world. I didn’t want to put it down.” ―Tunde Oyeneyin, New York Times bestselling author of Speak

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White Rose

"In a searing indictment of silent complicity,White Roseshines a light on one remarkable young woman's insistence on the power of truth, no matter the cost. A timely call to resistance." - Joy McCullough, author ofBlood Water Paint

"White Rose is a resonant testament to courage. In a time of horrific brutality, young people found a nonviolent way to resist. Told in the form of poetry, the story of their hopes is honored and brought back to life, still relevant today, when regimes that spread hatred are once again thriving, and words are our most powerful defensive weapon." - Margarita Engle, author of Newbery HonoreeThe Surrender Tree and 2017-2019 Young People's Poet Laureate.

"Both heart-wrenching and inspiring, Sophie Scholl's story, as retold by Kip Wilson inWhite Rose, is a stunning reminder to stand against evil, even when you stand alone. This is the kind of book that sticks in your heart long after you've finished. An incredible story of heroism incredibly told." - Mackenzi Lee, author ofNew York Times BestsellerThe Gentleman's Guide to Vice & Virtue

"White Rose
is a deftly plotted, absorbing read. A bold tribute to a brave hero of the German resistance during World War II. Wilson's debut is a triumph!"
--Melanie Crowder, author of National Jewish Book Award finalistAudacity

"A graceful, moving portrait of a heroic young woman's defiant refusal to remain complicit with Nazi oppression." - Julie Berry, Printz Honor author ofThe Passion of Dolssa

A gorgeous and timely novel based on the incredible story of Sophie Scholl, a young German college student who challenged the Nazi regime during World War II as part of The White Rose, a non-violent resistance group.

Disillusioned by the propaganda of Nazi Germany, Sophie Scholl, her brother, and his fellow soldiers formed the White Rose, a group that wrote and distributed anonymous letters criticizing the Nazi regime and calling for action from their fellow German citizens. The following year, Sophie and her brother were arrested for treason and interrogated for information about their collaborators. This debut novel recounts the lives of Sophie and her friends and highlights their brave stand against fascism in Nazi Germany.

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I Must Betray You

#1 New York Times Bestseller and winner of the Carnegie Medal!

A gut-wrenching, startling historical thriller about communist Romania and the citizen spy network that devastated a nation, from the #1 New York Times bestselling, award-winning author of Salt to the Sea and Between Shades of Gray.


Romania, 1989. Communist regimes are crumbling across Europe. Seventeen-year-old Cristian Florescu dreams of becoming a writer, but Romanians aren’t free to dream; they are bound by rules and force.

Amidst the tyrannical dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu in a country governed by isolation and fear, Cristian is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer. He’s left with only two choices: betray everyone and everything he loves—or use his position to creatively undermine the most notoriously evil dictator in Eastern Europe.

Cristian risks everything to unmask the truth behind the regime, give voice to fellow Romanians, and expose to the world what is happening in his country. He eagerly joins the revolution to fight for change when the time arrives. But what is the cost of freedom?

Master storyteller Ruta Sepetys is back with a historical thriller that examines the little-known history of a nation defined by silence, pain, and the unwavering conviction of the human spirit.

Praise for I Must Betray You:

“As educational as it is thrilling...[T]he power of I Must Betray You [is] it doesn’t just describe the destabilizing effects of being spied on; it will make you experience them too.” New York Times Book Review

“A historical heart-pounder…Ms. Sepetys, across her body of work, has become a tribune of the unsung historical moment and a humane voice of moral clarity.”The Wall Street Journal

* "Sepetys brilliantly blends a staggering amount of research with heart, craft, and insight in a way very few writers can. Compulsively readable and brilliant." Kirkus Reviews, starred review

* "Sepetys once again masterfully portrays a dark, forgotten corner of history." Booklist, starred review

* "Sepetys’s latest book maintains the caliber readers have come to expect from an author whose focus on hidden histories has made her a YA powerhouse of historical ­fiction…Sepetys is a formidable writer, and her stories declare the need to write about global issues of social injustice. For that reason and her attention to detail, this is a must-read." School Library Journal, starred review

* "Cristian’s tense first-person narrative foregrounds stark historical realities, unflinchingly confronting deprivations and cruelty while balancing them with perseverance and hope as Romania hurtles toward political change." Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Sepetys keeps readers riveted to this vivid, heartbreaking and compelling novel, locked into every meticulously researched detail. I Must Betray You demands a full investment from its audience--through poetic writing, sympathetic characters, revolutionary plot and pacing, it grips the heart and soul and leaves one breathless.”Shelf Awareness, starred review

"A master class in pacing and atmosphere." BookPage

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The Enigma Game

Don’t miss Elizabeth Wein’s stunning new novel, Stateless

#1 New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Wein delivers an exhilarating, unmissable thriller that finds three very different young adults united to decode a secret that could turn the tide of World War II
Facing a seemingly endless war, fifteen-year-old Louisa Adair wants to fight back, make a difference, do something--anything to escape the Blitz and the ghosts of her parents, who were killed by enemy action. But when she accepts a position caring for an elderly German woman in the small village of Windyedge, Scotland, it hardly seems like a meaningful contribution. Still, the war feels closer than ever in Windyedge, where Ellen McEwen, a volunteer driver with the Royal Air Force, and Jamie Beaufort-Stuart, a flight leader for the 648 Squadron, are facing a barrage of unbreakable code and enemy attacks they can't anticipate.   Their paths converge when a German pilot lands in Windyedge under mysterious circumstances and plants a key that leads Louisa to an unparalleled discovery: an Enigma machine that translates German code. Louisa, Ellen, and Jamie must work together to unravel a puzzle that could turn the tide of the war--but doing so will put them directly in the cross-hairs of the enemy.   Featuring beloved characters from Code Name Verity and The Pearl Thief, as well as a remarkable new voice, this brilliant, breathlessly plotted novel by award-winning author Elizabeth Wein is a must-read.