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Ages 11-18

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2017 "It's All Write!" Contest Finalists!

by krayla

The finalists of the 2017 “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest are officially published! Check out the list of finalists to see who will move on to the next round. A panel of published Young Adult authors will read the finalist stories over the next several weeks to choose the contest winners. Congratulations to everyone who chose to participate this year!

All writers and aspiring writers are welcome to attend the "It's All Write!" Awards as part of AADL's first Teen Writing Festival on June 4!

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Ramona Blue

by potterbee

Julie Murphy is back with a new novel, Ramona Blue, a story about a strong, marginalized teen doing her best to make sense of who she is.

Ramona Leroux is a 6 foot 3, blue-haired, gay teen who lives in a FEMA trailer with her dad and sister, Hattie, in Eulogy, Mississippi. Things aren't looking so stellar for Ramona after her dreamy summer romance comes to an end, and her grand plans to leave Eulogy don't look quite as likely when her family suddenly needs her more than ever. But when her childhood friend, Freddie, moves back to town, their reconnection brings more than either of them ever expected.

Author of Dumplin’, Murphy is familiar with navigating the world of girls on the brink of self-discovery. In Ramona Blue, she addresses how we use labels and identity markers for defining the relationships we engage in. With coming of age to adulthood labels change and it's challenging to redefine who were and who we are now. Heartfelt, humorous, fun and sure to be a must-read for teens and fans of YA fiction.

A recent interview with the author can be found in current issue of Book Pages.

An exquisite, thoughtful exploration of the ties that bind and the fluidity of relationships, sexuality, and life.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

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Meet “It’s All Write!” 2017 Judge #9: Brooks Benjamin!

by BugsAndSlugs

The ninth judge for this year's “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest and author of the 2016 YA novel My Seventh-Grade Life in Tights is Brooks Benjamin.

Brooks Benjamin describes himself as a reader, writer, teacher, and eater of pizza. He is also a fan of choreographed dance, which lead him to form a New Kids on the Block tribute dance crew in sixth grade. Perhaps this is why his debut novel My Seventh Grade Life in Tights is about Dillon, who wants nothing more than to be a real dancer.

Dillon's Dad wants him to play football, his friends and co-founding members of his freestyle crew think dance studios are for sell-outs, and Dillon just wants to follow his heart. "This first novel is a fun exploration of middle-school friendships and the stigmas that come with certain hobbies...a fresh and winning debut about the power of self-expression." (Booklist)

Stay tuned for more information about “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest 2017 Judges!

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Dig if you will the picture : funk, sex, God and genius in the music of Prince

by potterbee

Today marks one year since the passing of Prince., a beloved artist for many. Recently released is a biography of his life, work, and the artistry of Prince, entitled, Dig if you will the picture : funk, sex, God and genius in the music of Prince.

Ben Greenman (New York Times bestselling author, contributing writer to the New Yorker) presents a unique and kaleidoscopic look into the life, legacy, and electricity of the pop legend Prince and his wide ranging impact on our culture. Uniting a diverse audience while remaining singularly himself, Prince was a tireless artist, a musical virtuoso and chameleon, and a pop-culture prophet who shattered traditional ideas of race and gender, rewrote the rules of identity, and redefined the role of sex in pop music.

Greenman has been listening to and writing about Prince since the mid-eighties. Here, with the passion of an obsessive fan and the skills of a critic, journalist, and novelist, he mines his encyclopedic knowledge of Prince's music to present a biography and the story of the paradigm-shifting ideas that he communicated to his millions of fans around the world.

Greenman's other published work includes collaborations with George Clinton and Questlove on their celebrated memoirs.

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Meet “It’s All Write!” 2017 Judge #8: Christian McKay Heidicker!

by BugsAndSlugs

The eighth judge for this year's “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest and author of the 2016 debut novel Cure for the Common Universe is Christian McKay Heidicker. In this novel recommended for teen gamers and readers of Jesse Andrews and John Green, high school senior Jaxon is sent to rehab for his video game addiction on the eve of his first real date. Jaxon must earn enough points to graduate from the program in 4 days to preserve his date with Serena, or else be forced to recognize that his inability to connect with people can’t be blamed on video games, after all.

Learn more about Christian McKay Heidicker on his website and stay tuned for more information about “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest 2017 Judges!

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Meet “It’s All Write!” 2017 Judge #6: Paula Garner!

by BugsAndSlugs

The sixth judge for this year's “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest is Paula Garner. In Paula’s debut YA novel, Phantom Limbs, readers are introduced to Otis, a 16 year old introverted swimmer dealing with loss and the pressure of competitive sport. Otis must come to terms with the tragedy in his past in order to move forward and tackle the new dreams he has for his future. Phantom Limbs is a 2017 Illinois Reads Selection for grades 9-12!

Paula Garner's next novel, scheduled for publication in Spring 2018, Relative Strangers, follows a teen who just discovered she spent part of her youth in foster care. She is determined to find the family who cared for her, but the romantic feelings she develops for her foster brother threaten her new found happiness.

Paula Garner spends most of her time writing, reading, or making good things to eat. Currently, she lives in the Chicago area with her family and a very bad cat. To learn more about Paula check out her website and stay tuned for more information about “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest 2017 Judges!

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Teens Using Drugs: Education Series

by Beth Manuel

The Dawn Farms Education Series, "Teens Using Drugs: What To Know and What To Do" meets again this month. This is a free, two-part series that will be presented from 7:30-9:00 pm Tuesday, April 4th (part one, "What to Know"), and Tuesday, April 11th, (part two, "What to Do"). The programs will be held in the "Exhibition Room" on the first floor of St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Education Center at 5305 Elliott Drive, Ypsilanti. The sessions are presented by the Dawn Farm Youth & Family Services team. This program is targeted primarily to parents/caretakers of teens & young adults but is inclusive of other family members, teens, professionals, students, people who sponsor or support teens, and others interested. Please contact 734-485-8725 or info@dawnfarm.org or see the link to Dawn Farm for further information.

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Need a Picture ID?

by Beth Manuel

If you've been asked for a picture ID and have been unable to produce it, you may likely be able to get a Washtenaw County ID Card. Applicants must appear in person at the Washtenaw County Vital Records Division. There are point values attributed to a broad range of documents that can serve as proof for applicants to get a picture ID card when they may have been unable to get ID in the past. The cost of the card is $25.00 and is for all ages. Check out the Washtenaw County ID Project on Facebook to find out about events to promote the ID card. Community members are encouraged to get a card in an effort to de-stigmatize it for those who have no other identification card options.

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Meet “It’s All Write!” 2017 Judge #5: Katherine Arden!

by BugsAndSlugs

The fifth judge for this year's “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest is Katherine Arden, the author of the critically acclaimed debut novel, The Bear and the Nightingale. In this story of 14th century Russia, Arden’s heroine, Vasya, is a willful child who can speak to wood sprites and household spirits. Her ability is tolerated until her father marries a pious woman who detests the pagan beliefs of Vasya's people, and as the villagers turn from their old ways, the spirits that kept them safe begin to fade. Vasya soon finds she may be alone in her ability to save her family, her village, and perhaps the world.

Check out Katherine Arden’s website to learn more about her adventures in Moscow, picking macadamia nuts in Maui and the roundabout way in which she became a published author. And don’t worry, if you love The Bear the and Nightingale, it’s the first installment in a trilogy!

Stay tuned for more information about “It’s All Write!” Teen Writing Contest 2017 Judges!

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A Coming of Age Adventure

by Lucy S

"The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley is one part Quentin Tarantino, one part Scheherazade, and twelve parts wild innovation.” Ann Patchett

Hannah Tinti’s notable, gritty, first novel, The Good Thief was very well received in 2008 and those who have been waiting for more from her will not be disappointed with her second accomplishment, The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley.

Samuel Hawley is a lifetime criminal who realizes he needs to change his felonious ways when his daughter, Loo, reaches adolescence and starts acting the part of a delinquent as well. Though Loo is happy to follow her father in all he does, Samuel feels compelled to settle down for her sake. When Samuel and Loo move to Olympus, Massachusetts, the town where Loo’s mother lived, Loo becomes curious about how her mother died. All Loo knows of her mother are the relics that her father carries and sets up in a shrine wherever they relocate. Loo has trouble letting go of the old, peripatetic ways and adapting to life in Olympus. “She began to dread the moves but a part of her also itched for them, because it meant that she could stop trying to fit in and simply slip into the place where she belonged: the passenger seat of her father’s truck as they barreled down the highway.”

Instead of making friends in Olympus, Loo sets out to learn more about what really happened to her mother. As she unravels the mystery of her mother’s past she becomes more deeply involved in her father’s present. Loo starts to comprehend what the twelve scars on her father’s body truly indicate about who he is and the life he’s led.

Interspersed with the chapters that tell of Loo’s adolescence and adjustment to her new home, are chapters set in earlier times that tell us of the harrowing adventures that comprise “the twelve lives of Samuel Hawley,” one chapter for each bullet that has left its mark on his scarred body. The chapters alternate between past and present in a wide setting that spans the entire United States, from Alaska to Massachusetts.

In an interview at the end of the book, Tinti explains how she created Samuel Hawley. She imagined a man blemished by bullets, and as he appeared to her bullet hole by bullet hole she created her story. Each of the chapters describing one of Hawley's wounds contains similar thematic elements. Tinti was influenced by Greek mythology and builds for Hawley a set of Herculean tasks, essentially, twelve different ways of getting shot. Loo, as she matures, is also on an odyssey. Each “first” in her life lies in a chapter sandwiched between the details of her father’s escapades. Her experiences, from her first fight, to her first crime, bring her closer to her father and to understanding the intentions of the people around her. “Their hearts were all cycling through the same madness - the discovery, the bliss, the loss, the despair - like planets taking turns in orbit around the sun.”

Tinti interweaves violence and compassion in this book that is part mystery, part quest for truth, and part love story. The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley is a gunslinging tale of adventure dovetailed with a powerful account of a father’s love as Samuel Hawley struggles with whether to teach his daughter by word or deed. “It was like they were one person, not two. When he thought, Loo acted.”