Teen Book Club: The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan

The next Teen Book Club will be held on Friday, December 30th.  The Teen Advisory Board for Grades 6-12 chooses the titles for discussion.  Be prepared to discuss The Last Olympian, the 5th & final novel in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan and enjoy a pizza lunch.  Registration is necessary for the pizza lunch.

Register online on our events calendar or call the library at 609-893-8262.                                                             

November Events for Kids & Teens!

The programs for kids of all ages and teens keep going through the year with story times for babies, toddlers, preschoolers; Make-n-Take Crafts for all ages, an American Girl Tea, Movies, Sewing programs and more! 

Check out our latest calendar filled with events during November! Feel free to browse or PRINT the calendar from here.

Don't forget that our programs are FREE!

Italian for Beginners

Ever wanted to learn Italian? Join us at the Pemberton Community Library for a series of language classes on Wednesday nights in November!

This no stress language course in Italian is for beginners to advanced instructed by Rose DeCicco. Enjoy a fun hour of culture and learning!

Register online or call us at 609-893-8262.

Wednesdays, 

November 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd & 30th @ 6:00 pm

Home School Open House

The Pemberton Community Library will be hosting a Home School Open House for children and their parents involved in Home Schooling programs.

Register on our Events Calendar to reserve your spot. Want to share the information with your home school group? Print the flyer here.

Summer Reading 2011

Thanks to all participants of this year's summer reading program at the Pemberton Community Library!

Children and Teens read a total of 5290 hours this summer! Out of 177 participants, 15 individuals reached 100 or more total hours read in this year's 8 week period of summer reading!

Adults that participated in the Adult Summer Reading Program submitted a total of 200 book reviews!

Just because summer is almost over, doesn't mean you're time at the library is over! We offer programs for all ages all year round! Stop in to pick up monthly calendars or check out or programs on the events calendar! You can also download the current calendar from the sidebar links.

Check out pictures from our End of Summer Reading Party this year:

Sisters Kendall & Leesa show off their Henna Tattoos!

DJ Dance Party was a big hit!

Sisters Saige and Sydney show off their balloon animals!

Matthew poses for a picture with Miss Theresa!

Showing off ice fishing skills in the Game Area.

Waiting for their balloon animals!

Friends Jerianne and Molly show off their Henna Tattoos.

Grace is having a great time dancing with a dinosaur puppet!

Xander is a snake with a sword!

Reese got a flower balloon to go with her butterfly!

Checking out their face paintings.

Miss Theresa & Jazmen as a cat

Serena shows off her face painting and Henna Tattoo!

Sisters Jerianne and Sarah make funny faces for Miss Theresa!

Spiderman looks at David making a funny face.

Sam & Seraphina relax with good books after the chaos of the party.

Annette is reading to check out some books after the party.

Teen Iron Chef Videos!

Teen Iron Chef Videos have been uploaded to the Pemberton Library YouTube page!

They've also been uploaded to the Burlington County Library Teen Facebook and the Burlington County Library System's Facebook!

Round 1:

Round 2:

Teen Iron Chef

The library hosted its first Teen Iron Chef competition on Wednesday, August 3rd for teens going into grades 6 through 12 and it was a big hit! They were given the choice between working in teams or solo while having 20 minutes to create 2 dishes using the ingredients available. Of course, as with the television show, there was a secret ingredient!


There were two rounds, each round with a different secret ingredient and two dishes. Dishes were judged on creativity, presentation and originality. Check out some pictures of the event:

Working out a plan for the first secret ingredient: cupcakes

The ingredient table after Round 1!

Spaghetti & Meatballs

Burgers with Round 2 secret ingredient: Fruit Loops as sesame seeds

Scores! Team Leesa, Jadzia & Serena for the win!

Video for this event will be coming soon to the Burlington County Library Teen Facebook page.  "Like" the page to receive more info about teen programs going on in the Burlington County Library System.

This was such a fun program, we're having Iron Chef program for Kids on Thursday, September 1st at 1:00 pm. REGISTER for this program! Kids ages 5-12 years can participate. 

Book Reviews!

This has been on of our busiest summers and our weekly prize drawing during summer reading was book reviews!

Summer reading participants ages birth-18 years could drop a book review into the drawing box at the Summer Reading Registration Desk for a chance to win a prize every Friday.

Here's a few of the hundreds reviews that were entered:

The Girl Who Owned a City by O.T. Nelson
Reviewed by Serena, age 13

Touching story how a street full of kids work together to help each other survive when their parents and friends are killed by a virus, sparing only children below the age of 13.

Centipede's 100 Shoes by Tony Ross
Reviewed by Matthew, age 4

I liked the book because it was silly. Centipedes don't wear shoes and socks and he had way too many to put on! Then he shared them with his friends and that was nice and silly, too.

The New Hamster by Isabel Campoy
Reviewed by Gregory, age 8


I like this book because its about hamsters and they are furry.


Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Reviewed by Krystal, age 12


What I liked about this book is that it was a remade story of Cinderella but has more fairy tale people in it, like the ogres, elves and giants.

 We'll be posting pictures from programs this week, so keep checking the blog!

Reading Buddies

The Reading Buddies Program kicks off Monday, June 27th with hourly sessions between 3-8 PM. This program pairs a child, in Preschool through 3rd grade, with an eager teen volunteer for an hour of reading - either practicing reading or being read to - where child & teen are sure to make a new friend and be encouraged to keep up with reading during the summer

Check our Events Calendar to register for hourly sessions held Mondays between 3-8 pm & Fridays between 11 am-3 pm. After registering, a permission slip is required for a child to participate and must be returned to Miss Theresa at the time of your first session. Permission slips can be picked up at the Children's Information Desk or printed from here.

For more information, comment below, contact Miss Theresa at 609-893-8262 / email: tprezios@bcls.lib.nj.us or stop by the library and talk with a staff member at the Children's Information Desk.

Summer Events!

Looking forward to summer vacation? Our summer reading program starts on Monday, June 20th! Earn a prize for every 4 hours read, enter book reviews for weekly prize drawings and register for our FREE summer events for all ages! Get your passport stamped all summer long for every program attended to enter the grand prize drawing at the end of the summer!
Stop by the library to register for the program and check out our events. There's something going on every day at the library this summer!

DOWNLOAD & print the summer events calendar or stop in to pick one up. Register for events on our website or visit the Children's Information Desk. 

We are still accepting volunteer applications for teens ages 13 & up. Pick an application up at the Circulation Desk and return it by July 1st.

Staff Book Review

The Goddess Test

by Aimee Carter, 2011

Book Description: It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall.

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.
Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess.


The Goddess Test is a modern retelling of a story in Greek Mythology of Persephone, daughter of Demeter, and Hades, god of the Underworld. Persephone is no longer in the picture and Hades must find another queen to rule the Underworld with him at the request of his siblings (Zeus, Poseidon,  Aphrodite, Hera, Hermes, etc.) or he will no longer be ruler of the Underworld. A series of 7 tests will find Hades a worthy queen, but over time, no one has survived. This is where the main character, Kate, comes into play. She will be the last to take the Goddess Test and there are many surprises along the way.

No spoiler alerts here, but The Goddess Test blew me away and I can't wait until the next one, Goddess Interrupted due out in January 2012. Want to find out what happens to Kate? Get your library card ready! Request it and pick it up at your local branch of the Burlington County Library System.

Interested in other Greek Mythology Fiction? Type in (or click on ->) Mythology, Greek-Fiction into the Subject Box on the online card catalog.

Keep up with the author, Aimee Carter, for new releases on her website. You can follow her on Twitter & like her on Facebook.


 Recommended for Grades 7+

Reviewed by Miss Theresa