Spring 2007 - YALSA - American Library Association

Professional Resourcestion.” Students working on a report for school will find THWhas current, accurate information representing all perspectiveson the topic, not just one point of view. It also provides formattedcitations for each article to include in a bibliography. Teacherslooking for material to supplement a health or science lesson willfind THW meets both state and national education standardsfor health, science, and language arts and was developed with ateam of educators and librarians who understand classroom needs.Contributors include not only experts in fields such as medicine,mental health, nutrition, substance abuse prevention, guidance, andcareer counseling, but also teens themselves. Gilbert is particularlyproud of the personal stories that are continuously collected fromteens who have dealt with many of the issues presented, a projectthat benefits readers and writers alike. YA contributors, identified byfirst name only, have the opportunity to help others while becomingpublished. Some of their stories are serious while others are humorous;but, all are important experiences that become part of thisgrowing resource that helps teens, parents, and educators alike.The user-friendliness of the site begins on the home page,where clarity and ease of navigation lead researchers to subjectareas, telephone hotlines (all of which have passed Gilbert’s objectivitytest), advice, personal stories, current topics (“in the news”),and interactive polls and quizzes. Articles include recommendationsfor further reading as well as Web sites and organizationsapproved by Rosen editors. Conveniently, the THW databaseoffers similar spellings in search results, asking “Did you mean. . . ?” for frequently misspelled words (such as medical terminology)rather than producing a negative result such as “No hitsreturned.”Librarians know how important it is to find the right materialfor teens; “I don’t know” is not good enough. Rosen agrees. Thereis no “I don’t know” for THW users, but rather a clear format,seamless navigation, and accurate information along with a boostof assistance for those who may not be sure what they need or howto spell it.—Kerry Sutherland, Akron-Summit County (Ohio) PublicLibraryHonnold, RoseMary. The Teen Reader’s Advisor. Neal-Schuman, 2006; ISBN-13: 978-1555705510; 491p. $75.Honnold’s new book joins her previous works, 101+ TeenPrograms That Work and More Teen Programs That Work, in Neal-Schuman’s Teens @ the Library series. The Teen Reader’s Advisorexplores current trends in YA literature, discusses awards givento YA literature, and includes resources for more information ontopics, most of which are annotated. Honnold gives tips and suggestionsthat will be useful for dedicated YA librarians and thosenew to providing reader’s advisory services to teen readers. Thealphabetical subject and genre guide is the strength of the bookand will be extremely useful to even the most seasoned teen librarians.All titles are annotated and include indications of potentiallyobjectionable language, sexual content, or violence. Otherinformation includes any awards received, series information orsequels, appropriate grades, and reluctant reader appeal. UnlikeTeen Genreflecting (Libraries Unlimited, 2003), The Teen Reader’sAdvisor does not contain detailed genre descriptions. However,the annotated lists include specific topics such as “Paintingand Graffiti,” “The Salem Witch Trials,” “School Violence,” and“Football” as well as genre lists. Author and title indexes are helpfulin locating specific books in the subject and genre lists. Minor flawsinclude problems with consistency and inclusion of out-of-printtitles. A perfect resource for librarians, teachers, parents, and eventeens, this would be a great addition to any public or school libraryas a reader’s advisory or collection development tool.—AlissaLauzon, Haverhill (Mass.) Public LibraryTeenLibWiki: The Teen Librarian’s Wikipedia (http://yalibrarian.com/yalib_wiki). Hosted by yalibrarian.com.TeenLibWiki is a professional resource for teen librarians foundedand administered by Stephanie Iser of the Alternative TeenServices Web site. Like any wiki, TeenLibWiki facilitates the sharingof community expertise through the continuous developmentof a collaborative online resource. Well-organized but skeletal, thewiki features placeholders for a broad range of content, includingtechnology, programming, literature, and reference. Some sectionsare more developed than others, and content tends to take theform of lists, rather than articles. The literature section is the bestdeveloped.Noteworthy content includes a master index of booklistshosted elsewhere on the Web, an annotated list of links topublishers of YA literature, and thematic booklists drawing heavilyfrom the complementary work of the YALSA-BK discussionlist. Other sections await the attention of contributors. Potentialcontributors are given straightforward instructions for adding ormodifying content, and the introductory text for each page is clearand often witty. The TeenLibWiki shows great potential to be aclearinghouse for information that will support librarians seekingto keep up with the fast-changing world of teen services.—SarahKline Morgan, Cheshire (Conn.) Public Library YALSEditor’s note: Please submit professional resources for review to YALS,c/o Valerie Ott, Wadsworth Public Library, 132 Broad Street,Wadsworth, Ohio 44281. For inquiries about the resources reviewedin this column, contact Valerie Ott at vott724@yahoo.com.Spring 2007 | Young Adult Library Services | YALS 51