Time again for New Year's resolutions... what are some of yours?

We, at the Ligonier Valley Library, would like to offer a few New Year's resolution ideas.

5. Visit the library every day!

4. Borrow materials from the library... often!

3. Visit the library Website and Blog.... often!

2. If you haven't done so already, get your new County card!

and the #1 resolution idea.....

1. READ, READ, READ... and then read some more!!!


Enjoy a wonderful and happy 2009!

P.S. If you would rather stay with some of the more traditional resolutions (such as dieting, exercising, spending time with your family), we can help you with those as well. You pick the resolution, and more than likely we have a book, movie, audiobook, or music CD to help you learn it, enjoy it or get through it!

Holiday Help For The Holiday-Challenged

So, no doubt you have holiday music playing on your stereo, your house is all decorated and the cards are in the mail... right? What?! No! You don't have any of these things done! Well, don't feel too bad. First of all, you are not alone. Yes, I too am holiday-challenged.

However, I'll let you in on a little secret. Move closer to your computer screen. Closer! Ok, good. Believe it or not, but we who are holiday-challenged are better off than they who are already done. Why? Because there are oodles of wonderful writers and creators of holiday cheer out there who have made books just for us!!! Oh sorry, I didn't mean to shout in your ear.

So, whether you are on the ball or holiday-challenged, you can find books on everything from what to bake, how to decorate and even how to make your own cards! Now if those books just came with someone to help us do all of this stuff, they'd be perfect. Until then, you'll just have to make do with the books and your kids... or your friends' kids... little nieces or nephews... well, you get the point.

Best Ideas for Christmas by Woman's Day magazine - whether its the current issue or previous ones, this magazine bound into a book is full of ideas on everything from the food you should serve on Christmas day (including recipes) to centerpieces to home-made gifts and ornaments and more!

Ultimate Cardmaking by Sarah Beaman - Covering a wide range of occasions from anniversaries and seasonal highlights to children's cards and invitations, this book is packed with creative techniques, step-by-step pictures, and detailed instructions as well as a range of new and exclusive designs.

Moosewood Restaurant Celebrates : festive meals for holidays festive meals for holidays and special occasions by the Moosewood Collective - Holidays and celebratory gatherings can present a challenge for vegetarian cooks who want to serve festive meals that will satisfy all of their guests. This book meets the challenge, with more than 35 ingenious menus for just about every holiday (traditional or otherwise) as well as parties, weddings and more.

Christmas with Paula Deen : recipes and stories from my favorite holiday by Paula Deen - A collection of beloved holiday recipes and stories interspersed with cherished family photographs.



Enough with the decorating and food preparation, you say! Just reading this list has you exhausted. We have the perfect restorative. How about a good book to snuggle up on the couch with? Pass the hot cocoa, and see if any of these stories fill you with holiday joy:

A Cedar Cove Christmas by Debbie Macomber - Having unsuccessfully traveled to Cedar Cove in search of her baby's father, Mary Jo Wyse, after a comedy of errors, finds herself lodging in an apartment above a stable on Christmas eve. Pregnant and alone, she goes into labor that night! Soon she's not alone as a paramedic, her brothers and a town not only rescue her, but help her celebrate the birth of her baby.

Grace by Richard Paul Evans - An old man reminisces about his first love, a young runaway who taught him more about life than anyone had before or since.



Santa Clawed by Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown - Harry and her husband, Fair, have gone to fetch a Christmas tree at the tree farm run by The Brothers of Love, a semimonastic organization that tends to AIDS patients, when they find the tree they've chosen grimly decorated with a dead body. Can Harry, the sleuthing cats Mrs. Murphy and Pewter, and corgi Tee Tucker save the season from a killjoy who's decided to gift the festive little town of Crozet, Virginia, with murder?

Dashing Through The Snow by Mary Higgins Clark & Carol Higgins Clark - The mother and daughter team bring together Alvirah Meehan and Regan Reilly as they once again find themselves drawn into a mystery. This time they are in Branscombe, New Hampshire for the Festival of Joy when a man goes missing.


Not satisfied with all the books, huh? You want more? Ah, yes... how about a little music, maestro!

Noel by Josh Groban

Let It Snow by Michael Buble

A Swingin' Christmas by Tony Bennett featuring The Count Basie Big Band



And what Christmas would be complete without the annual viewing of "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas"... "It's A Wonderful Life"... and "A Christmas Story"!

Ok. So, now you are finally decorated. Your menu is planned and ready. The cards really are in the mail. And Christmas music is playing on the stereo while you read a fun holiday story by the fire. You have to be feeling the holiday spirit now, right? If you're not, then we have only this one last suggestion to offer you... try the travel section of the library! Then visit some place were you can warm your feet by the hot, ocean sand in the warm, holiday sunshine. Brings a smile to my face!

What are some of your favorite holiday reads or movies?

Holiday Fun @ The Ligonier Valley Library

Don't forget, this weekend is chock full of holiday fun at the Ligonier library!

The day will begin at 10:00 a.m. when members of the Read the Movie...View the Book discussion group watch the movie based on the book "The Accidental Tourist" by Anne Tyler. The discussion group is always looking for new members, so stop in and join them.

Then children of all ages are invited to gather at 3:00 pm for the annual decorating of the library's main Christmas tree. Hundreds of ornaments will be ready for placement upon the tree, but you are welcome to bring your own hand-made ornament to add to the library's collection. After the tree is decorated, the Children's Librarian will read holiday stories to the group. Refreshments will be provided. And you never know... Santa might even pop in for a visit!!!

All this holiday fun will take place on Saturday, December 6th. Hope to see you there!

What are you Thankful for?

Now that the ghosts and goblins have been captured and rendered harmless within the pages of their respective books, our thoughts are free to turn toward other holidays and readings.

Which brings us to Thanksgiving! A truly wonderful holiday, not only for the yummy food, but for the wonderful concept of a whole day dedicated to being thankful for what we have. So, what are you thankful for? Even better, what books are you thankful for? Did a particular novel or non-fiction account inspire you, make you smile when you needed it?

I'm thankful for all of the books and their authors, not only because they keep me employed but because of the wonderful (and sometimes not so wonderful) journeys they take us on! In particular, I'm thankful for:


"The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch for his inspiring story of living life to the fullest, with courage and grace.



"The Geography of Bliss" by Eric Weiner. An insightful, humorous book that was one of the best "trips" around the world I've ever been on.



"Some Danger Involved" by Will Thomas, a mystery set in Victorian England that introduces several quirky and wonderful characters that I thorough enjoy reading about.


Oh! And... and... a host of others! But now it's your turn!

Mystery Book Group Receives The Ultimate Facelift!

The "Murder, Mystery and Mayhem" Book Discussion Group has undergone some major changes! Not only has the name been changed to "Death in the Stacks," but the website has a new look. And as if that were not enough, the group has gone from meeting monthly at the library to meeting online!!!

Yes, you read that right! "Death in the Stacks" is now an online mystery/thriller book discussion group? Sound intriguing? Join us! It's not hard, but it does require setting up an account with Shelfari.com - an international social network that allows you to not only join some rather interesting discussion groups, but to create your very own cyber-bookshelf.

For more information or to find some helpful instructions on joining, visit the Death in the Stacks webpage. We look forward to hearing from you!

Ligonier 250 : The Fort, The Town, The Valley

Ralph Kinney Bennett, author of Ligonier 250: The Fort, The Town, The Valley, will read from his book, discuss researching and writing it and answer questions at the Ligonier Valley Library on Wednesday, October 22 at 7 p.m.

The book, tracing the settlement and subsequent history of Ligonier and the valley over the past two and a half centuries, was published in June 2008 as part of the ongoing Ligonier 250 celebration.

Bennett, a retired national editor of The Reader’s Digest who now writes for various magazines and publications, says his short narrative history of Ligonier is an effort to explain what he calls “Ligonierness,” that “unique cultural quality” that characterizes the valley. Bennett, who is a trustee of the library, will be available immediately before and after the program to sign copies of his book.

Once upon a midnight dreary...

The door creaks open and a tentative foot crosses the threshold, heartbeat racing with anticipation of what might be found on the other side. Ghosts? Monsters? A mystery full of intrigue and thrills? Cautiously the person steps inside only to be met with... the smiling faces of library staff. A sigh of relief escapes the patron, as, for now, the things that go bump in the... errr... library have been tamed and trapped within the pages of a good book. Comforted, the patron hurries to their favorite section... it is lunchtime after all.

So as a chill enters the air and Halloween ghost and goblins loom on the horizon, what will you be reading? Tell us, we're just dying to know.

Crafts, floats, re-enactors, food, bands... what do these things have in common?

... they can all be found in Ligonier this weekend!

Fort Ligonier Days - October 10, 11 & 12

Come join the town as we celebrate 250 years of history! For more information or to see a schedule of events, visit the Fort Ligonier Days website.

The library will be closed on Friday and Saturday, and will re-open at 10:00 am on Monday the 13th! See you then!

Meanwhile, share some of your favorite stories from previous Fort Ligonier Days by commenting to this post.

Had a fun morning at our "Read the Movie...View the Book" meeting. We are a small, but mighty group of book and movie lovers! Since this was our first meeting on a Saturday morning, I brought along a variety of books and movies for the members of the group to consider for future discussions and viewings.

We just started chatting and throwing out ideas...It was great! Once we started talking about a favorite movie or book, the discussion snowballed. We discussed classics like "The Grapes of Wrath," "Rebecca" and "To Kill a Mockingbird" and recent movies based on bestsellers like Robert Ludlum's "Bourne Identity." One of the best suggestions was to read a book that had several movie versions and then watch all of the versions and compare them. Did you know that Jane Austen's classic book, "Emma," not only inspired the 1996 movie, "Emma," starring Gwyneth Paltrow, but also inspired the teen hit, "Clueless," starring Alicia Silverstone!

We decided to read Anne Tyler's quirky book, "The Accidental Tourist." The movie version stars Geena Davis, who won an academy award for her role as an eccentric dog trainer and single mother who befriends travel author, Macon Leary, played by William Hurt. Why this choice? Lots of good discussion potential! And the movie? Lots of good discussion potential!

If you want to have a little fun (and a little intellectual stimulation) come and join us on the first Saturday of every month. Drop the kids off...pick up the groceries on the way home...serve PB&J for lunch...mow the lawn after dinner.

New "Book Bargain" Table at Re-Readables

We have just added a new "Book Bargain" table in Re-Readables. Everything on the display table is only 25 cents.

Just a reminder that now that the yearly book sale is over, we need donations for the store, especially "newer" books and DVDs that are in very good condition.

We also need magazines. We are looking for current decorating, cooking, arts & antiques titles as well as woodworking, hunting, dogs, horses, fishing, etc. Favorite titles include: Martha Stewart Living, Better Homes & Gardens, House Beautiful, Architectural Digest, Antiques, Country Living and Country Homes, any British decorating titles, Traditional Home, Southern Living, etc.

Please do not donate at this time: National Geographics or Smithsonian. We have zillions and they are just not selling well.

Read the Movie ... View the Book Disucssion Group

The Read the Movie ... Book Discussion Group is back and Re-organized!

Intrigued? Join us on Saturday, October 4th at 10:30 a.m. for a meet and greet. We also hope to select books and movies for future discussions. Come with lots of ideas!

As before, members will read a book (fiction or non-fiction) one month, then view the film version of the book the following month. However, the meetings will now be held on the 1st Saturday of each month at 10:30 am.

For more information on what changes are happening with the group or to see past book/movie selections, visit the Read the Movie website.

Can't make the first meeting? Not a problem. If you are interested in joining the Read the Movie ... Book Discussion group, contact the library at 724-238-6451 or lvlibrary@wpa.net (be sure to include your contact information in the email).

Hope to see you there!

THE BOOK SALE IS OVER!

Yes, the book sale is over for another year!

However, do not despair! You can still find lots of good books to read by checking out the library's collection. We have TONS of books, audiobooks, music CDs, DVDs and even VHS tapes just waiting for you to borrow them!

For those who perfer to purchase their materials, we offer you a guilt-free guarantee! You can buy gently-used books, DVDs, videos, and CDs and feel good about helping the library. Then donate the materials back to the library for someone else to enjoy.

Re-Readables Bookstore is open year-round during normal library hours.

Final Week of the Book Sale!

September 8 - 13 is the final week of the Odds & Ends Bargain Book Sale found in the library's basement! And we're offering you quite a deal! What's better than .25 cents an item, you wonder? How about $1.00 for a bag (or box) full of items?

For the final week of the bargain book sale, bring your own bag (or box) and fill it for a $1.00!*

The sale is open Mon - Sat at 10:00 am and closes a half hour before the library closes. Hundreds of "treasures" are still available.

*This does NOT include any materials found in the Re-Readables book store. All items in the book store are individually priced.

Odds & Ends Book Sale

The book sale is under way and will continue until Saturday, September 13!

There are still hundreds of treasures to be found and everything is 25 cents! So stop in and browse through the selection which can be found in the basement.

The sale opens Mon - Fri at 10:00 am and closes a half hour before the library closes.

ODDS & ENDS PREVIEW PARTY AND BOOK SALE

The Annual Book Sale Preview Party will have a new twist this year.

All participants in the preview party will receive a shopping bag when they arrive. Fill your bag with bargain books found in the basement for a buck! Yes, you read that right... $1.00! After your bag is full, any additional purchases you make will be .25 cents.

The time to pre-register for the party has ended, but you can still pay at the door. Tickets are $20.00 per person. Checks should be made payable to the Ligonier Valley Library.

The preview party is Friday, August 22 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. The book sale officially opens to the public on Saturday, August 23 from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

The Re-Readables Bookstore will be open during the preview party and sale. However, materials found in the bookstore are individually priced and are NOT part of the bag for a buck deal or sale. Re-Readables is open year round during normal library hours, offering a wonderful selection of gently-used books and more.

Class Reunion causes freak exercising routine to form

Ok, so my 20-year class reunion is only two months away, and I'm thinking now is the perfect time to get into shape! Right? I mean, why wait until the last minute? Thankfully, my YMCA membership is still current so I can work out in their gym a few days a week. But that started me thinking - what if I didn't have a Y Membership? Then what? Then it clicked, I would do what our library patrons would do... ask myself about some books or DVDs on getting physically fit!

Here's the end result:

Living well : 21 days to transform your life, supercharge your health, and feel spectacular by Montel Williams

Get wet, get fit : the complete guide to getting a swimmer's body by Megan Quann Jendrick

Walking for fitness : the beginner's handbook by Marnie Caron

Fitness instructor's handbook : a complete guide to health and fitness by Morc Coulson

Do you prefer working out with a DVD? If so, try one of these:


Cardio Salsa

Yoga Zone conditioning and stress release : beginners

Pilates workout for dummies





And for those who prefer to get their excerise from "The Great Outdoors":

Conditioning for outdoor fitness : functional exercise and nutrition for every body by David Musnick

60 hikes within 60 miles, Pittsburgh : including Allegheny and surrounding counties by Donna Ruff

This is just a sample of the books and DVDs that can be found in the Ligonier library's collection, not including the other 19 libraries in our system. To find more titles, browse the online catalog or stop in and ask us for help... and get into shape for your own special occasion.


(As with any exercise program, always remember to check with a physician before starting.)

Pet Photo Winners Posted

The winners of the Ligonier Valley Library's 3rd Annual Pet Photo Contest have been announced! The next time you're strolling around the Diamond, stop by the library's front display window to see the pictures. You can also view them on the library's website at http://www.ligonierlibrary.org/petphotocontest.htm

The top five winners in each category are listed. First place winners in each category received a $25 Ligonier Chamber of Commerce Gift Certificate and their pictures in the Ligonier Echo. The Grand Prize winner received a digital camera and will have her picture in the Echo, too.
Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to all those who participated. A special thanks to Dr. Henry Croft of Loyalhanna Veterinary Clinic for sponsoring the contest!

Last Day To Vote For Your Favorite Pet!

Today is the last day to vote in the library's 3rd Annual Pet Photo Contest. If you haven't stopped in to look at the 131 contestants, you're missing some cute mugs.

You can vote for your faves in four categories: Dog, Cat, Pocket Pet, and Farm Animal. Votes will be tabulated and the winners will be announced Monday. The top five photos in each category will be on display in the library's front display window and on the library's website. The winners in each category will receive $25 Ligonier Valley Chamber of Commerce Gift Certificates and their pictures in the Ligonier Echo.

Sassy the Bathing Beauty (at right) was chosen as the Grand Prize Winner by a panel of seven judges, which included the popular vet Dr. Croft, who sponsored the contest. Sassy is owned by the Palmer family and actually enjoys dressing up like this. She purrs throughout her photo shoot and refuses to allow her outfits to be taken off! The judges thought the pic was colorful and well thought out. I particularly like how her left arm and leg are draped over her perfectly laid back body. She looks ready to hit the beach or hang out with Kenny Chesney!

If you'd like to see Sassy and the other cute pics in the 3rd Annual Pet Photo Contest, stop by the library and vote today! Or, you can drop by and see the winners next week--or check them out on our web page at www.ligonierlibrary.org.

Happy Birthday to Beatrix Potter!

Helen Beatrix Potter was born on July 28, 1866.

Ms. Potter is most famous for her children's literature, especially The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Peter disobeys his mother by entering Mr. McGregor's garden and nearly getting caught. His harrowing escape has been read by millions of kids over many generations.

I remember reading about his adventures as a child, and not long ago enjoyed hearing them again when Mrs. Norris read them to our storyhour kids.

You can find these and more of Ms. Potter's books in the library (or even most bookstores). Read them to the small child in your life. If that child happens to be yourself, don't worry... we won't tell!

Bus Trip to Titanic Exhibit at Carnegie Science Center

The library is hosting a bus trip on Tuesday, August 26 to see the Titanic Exhibit at the Carnegie Science Center.

The cost of the trip is $52.00 per person and includes lunch.

Reservations are required and must be paid to the library by Monday, August 11. Make checks payable to: Ligonier Valley Library.

Shhhh! Libraries can be fun

Libraries are such serious places. You’ll never find anyone laughing in one. The other day, two ladies stopped at my desk to ask for help locating some essential reading material.

“Do you have any books on potty training?” one of them asked.
“Of course,” I said, swiveling in my chair to access our library catalog. “Would you like books for you or the child?”
A pause. Then, a quizzical look.
“Well…I already know how to…” her voice trailed off.
“No, would you like a book for the child to read or for you on how to train your child?”
Of course, I only made it through half of the explanation before we all started giggling. We giggled the whole walk back to get the books, in fact.
Yes, a little gem like this is part of what makes working in a library fun. We enjoy not only when these little incidents happen, but telling the stories about them for years to come.
We like it when people make inadvertent slips of the tongue and ask for “The Scarlet Pumpernickel” instead of “The Scarlet Pimpernel.”
I once referred to an award as the Bram Stroker award instead of the Bram Stoker award. The coworker who caught me saying it brings it up all the time.
I always get a laugh when I tell people that our DVDs and videos are located in two sections of the libraries.
“Adult movies are…” I begin.
“What?! You have adult movies!”
Explaining the term “Graphic Novel” is a ball of fun, as well.
Just last week, I recommended the latest book by J.R.R. Tolkien to someone.
“Isn’t he dead?” she asked.
“Children of Hurin” came out in April of last year. Tolkien died in 1973.
“Oh, it happens all the time.” I replied.
Probably the best laugh we can have at the library is generated by a simple question.
“Do you have any good books?”
“No,” we usually reply, “only bad ones.”

Buggy Books for Young Readers

Since the theme for the 2008 Summer Reading Club program is Catch the Reading Bug @ your library, it only seemed appropriate to do a post on... you guessed it.... Bug Books! Here are a few selections from the shelves of the Ligonier Valley Library:


Bug Out!: The World's Creepiest, Crawliest Critters by Ginjer L. Clarke, illustrated by Pete Mueller - Introduces various bugs that hurt, help, hunt, and hide, including killer bees, ladybugs, army ants, and cicadas.



Ugly Bugs by Kerri O'Donnell - This book describes cockroaches, stag beetles, peanut-head bugs, praying mantises, walkingsticks, dung beetles, stink bugs, and mosquitoes.



The Very Ugly Bug by Liz Pichon - A bug is so ugly she scares away the bird that was about to devour her.



Bug Hunter by David Burnie - Presents general information about different insects and includes more than thirty activities to help study insects, such as building nets to capture butterflies and building moth traps.

Make a Book Happy...Take It On Vacation

In a library, books go through a sort of aging process. Like newborns that eventually grow up and don't receive as much attention as their newer siblings, books can be overlooked. In fact, they can even be forgotten.

Imagine the life of a book. It comes into the library all shiny and new. Its pages are unmarked and its cover not splattered with labels. It lands on the New Fiction bookshelf for the first six months and enjoys wide popularity. People pick it up and look at it. They leaf through its pages. The lucky ones get taken home by various folks. The very lucky ones get taken on vacation.

But over the years, the book's popularity wanes. People don't take it out as much. Its sits on the shelf and occasionally gets picked up by a browser or somebody who loves its author.

I see once popular titles like "The Bridges of Madison County" by James Waller that have now developed a layer of dust. Like a puppy in a pet store, it strives to get noticed and taken home and, when it isn't, seems to despair that it will never go home with anyone.

You can help these lonely, once-popular-but-now-forgotten books. Pick up a bestseller from years ago. Browse the hard to see bottom and top shelves in the library. The books on these shelves are always forgotten because people don't look up or are too lazy to kneel on the floor.

Make an old book happy again. Read one! Take one to Bermuda! Just don't leave it on the plane.

True Crime Fans Aren't Serial Killers

Do you like to read true crime books? Are you embarrassed to tell anyone about it because they will think you are a serial killer? You are not alone!

True crime has been considered a genre since Truman Capote released "In Cold Blood" in 1966. He credits himself with the creation of the "nonfiction novel." Today, True Crime has its own section in bookstores and a whole aisle at the Ligonier Valley Library.

Upstairs on the mezzanine under the call number 364.15, you can always find people sitting on a stool perusing a true crime thriller. Sometimes when I walk by, a person might pretend to be looking at books across the aisle so I won't think they are looking at True Crime books. Typically, though, they will be so engrossed in what they're reading that they won't even look up.

Many people read true crime books. Yet the general public believes that other people will think they are sick if they find out their little secret. In other words, it's not a good thing to bring up on a first date...

True Crime has come a long way since "In Cold Blood." Yes, there are those mass market paperbacks about the latest crime in the news. Yet there are also literary greats like "In Cold Blood" that are being published even today.

"Thunderstruck" and "Devil in the White City" are two literary True Crime books that come to mind. Written in 2006 and 2003, respectively, these books took the reading world by storm when they were published.

Other "literary" True Crime books include "A Death in Belmont" by Sebastian Junger, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" by John Berendt, and "The Executioner's Song" by Norman Mailer. Mailer's book, however, is classified under fiction because of fictionalized conversations. The story, however, is true.

Some classic True Crime titles include: "Helter Skelter" by Vincent Bugliosi, "Shot in the Heart" by Mikal Gilmore, and "Blind Faith" and "Fatal Vision" --both by Joe McGinnis.

Of course, the most famous True Crime writer has to be Ann Rule. She is famous for "Small Sacrifices" and "The Stranger Beside Me." The latter is about Ted Bundy. She worked with him in a self-help clinic before he went on to become famous--or infamous.

So, the next time you're embarrassed to admit that you read True Crime books, don't be. We at the Ligonier Valley Library understand because we see people reading them everyday!

BUG MANIA @ THE LIBRARY

Michael List of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh will present "Bug Mania," an interactive and entertaining series of sketches that will introduce all of the diversity, life cycles, and ecological importance of insects -- the largest and most diverse animal group on Earth.

The Mania starts at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 10.

"Bug Mania" is one of our many fun Summer Reading Club activities scheduled for this year.

This program is free and open to all.

More mysteries .... for younger readers

Many readers were introduced to the world of mysteries by Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys (such as our commenter to the post from June 17th, "What's in a Mystery?"). Young readers eagerly tagged along on their crime-solving adventures. While those characters are still around, here are some other detectives being read by a whole new generation of mystery lovers.

The Nate the Great series by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat. The first book in this series bares the name of it's leading character, Nate the Great. Readers follow along as the Pancake-loving crime fighter solves the mystery of the missing picture.





Bones and the Birthday mystery by David A. Adler, 5th in the series. In his latest case, young Jeffrey Bones tries to discover the whereabouts of his grandfather's missing birthday present.




A new mystery series features Enola Holmes. (Can you guess who her big brother is?) The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets : an Enola Holmes mystery by Nancy Springer introduces Fourteen-year-old Enola Holmes, who disguises as a beautiful woman, to find clues in floral bouquets as she searches for the missing Doctor Watson, a companion of her famous older brother... Sherlock.

If the above characters are a little young for our Teenager readers, then how about these aspiring detectives:

The Angel of Death : a forensic mystery by Alane Ferguson
Seventeen-year-old high school senior Cameryn Mahoney uses skills learned as assistant to her coroner father to try to unravel the mystery of a local teacher's gruesome death, while also awaiting a possible reunion with her long-missing mother.

Rat Life : a mystery by Tedd Arnold
After developing an unusual friendship with a young Vietnam War veteran in 1972, fourteen-year-old Todd discovers his writing talent and solves a murder mystery.

No Time Like Show Time : a Hermux Tantamoq adventure by Michael Hoeye
Watchmaker-mouse Hermux Tantamoq enters the exciting and somewhat shady world of show business to investigate a mysterious blackmailer at the Varmint Theater.