Jamaican Baked Bananas and teen books

"Shout Out Your Summer Reads" is a time to share your favorite summer reading. This Friday Claire shared three of her favorite titles. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer, The Seer and the Sword by Victoria Lanley, and Zach's Lie by Roland Smith. Claire has read Twilight multiple times and just last night she finished rereading The Seer and the Sword. She is only half way through Zach's Lie.

I too brought books to share! Twilight was one of those books. It is a great vampire story. My favorite part of the book is when the family plays baseball. The other title I shared was Peeps by Scott Westerfeld. It is also a vampire story, but with a different take.

What do Baked Bananas have to do with reading? Well the teen summer library program is "Jamaican Library" and baked Bananas is an authentic Jamaican dessert. After discussing our favorite books, we made the bananas and shared them with patrons and the staff. They were good! You can find the recipe in Lucinda's Authentic Jamaican Kitchen by Lucinda Scala Quinn.

Join us on June 29 at 2 for the next "Shout Out Your Summer Reads."

Teen Summer Library Program

Jamaican Library is the theme for the teen summer library program. Students going into 6th grade through 12th grade can register. The program begins June 11 and runs through July 27. Some of the events are a "Beach Party Lock-In" which includes a pizza taste off; a gaming event; Karaoke in a Jamaican coffee house setting; and a barbecue which includes volleyball and a hotdog eating contest. The weekly "makem & takem mon" will include making tie-dye shirts, creating chocolate candies, making soaps & lotions, and creating butt pillows. A movie will also be featured during the "makem & takem mon." In addition, there will be a drawing contest using the library's sidewalk. Many more activities and events are planned so make your way to the sandy beaches of the Waterloo Public Library and enjoy a Jamaica Summer! Don't worry; reading is part of the program too.