Teens & Tweens

Photo of seating, tables, shelves, colorful decorations, and white board in the library teen and tween area

Teen & Tween Events

This event is in the "Teen & Tween" group

Nintendo Switch: Mario Kart Tournament

3:45pm–5:00pm
Teen & Tween
Registration Required
Library Branch: Thomas Ford Memorial Library
Room: Program Room
Age Group: Teen & Tween
Program Type: Hands On, STEAM, Technology
Registration Required
Event Details:

Show off your driving skills in our Mario Kart Tournament! Snacks wil be provided.

This event is in the "Teen & Tween" group

Pumpkin Parfait

3:45pm–4:45pm
Teen & Tween
Registration Required
Library Branch: Thomas Ford Memorial Library
Room: Program Room
Age Group: Teen & Tween
Program Type: Hands On
Registration Required
Event Details:

Whip up some tasty and seasonal pumpkin pie parfaits with us!

This event is in the "Teen & Tween" group
This event is in the "Adult" group

Western Springs Writers' Society

7:00pm–8:30pm
Teen & Tween, Adult
Library Branch: Thomas Ford Memorial Library
Room: Board Room
Age Group: Teen & Tween, Adult
Program Type: Clubs & Groups
Event Details:

Have a writing itch? The Western Springs Writers' Society welcomes all writers from the community to discuss and hone their craft with other local writers. Whether this is your career or hobby, writers of all levels and genres are invited.

This event is in the "Teen & Tween" group

Teen Board

7:00pm–8:00pm
Teen & Tween
Library Branch: Thomas Ford Memorial Library
Room: Teen/Tween Room
Age Group: Teen & Tween
Program Type: Arts & Crafts, Clubs & Groups, Hands On, Library Boards
Event Details:

Teen Board can be a great way to earn volunteer hours! If you have ideas for how the library can better serve teens and tweens, come join us!

This event is in the "Teen & Tween" group

Book Turkey Kit

All Day
Teen & Tween
Library Branch: Thomas Ford Memorial Library
Room: Teen/Tween Room
Age Group: Teen & Tween
Program Type: Arts & Crafts, Hands On
Event Details:

Turn a regular old book into a festive book turkey! Available in the Teen/Tween Room, while supplies last.

This event is in the "Teen & Tween" group
This event is in the "Adult" group

Western Springs Writers' Society

7:00pm–8:30pm
Teen & Tween, Adult
Library Branch: Thomas Ford Memorial Library
Room: Board Room
Age Group: Teen & Tween, Adult
Program Type: Clubs & Groups
Event Details:

Have a writing itch? The Western Springs Writers' Society welcomes all writers from the community to discuss and hone their craft with other local writers. Whether this is your career or hobby, writers of all levels and genres are invited.

The Teen Space

Welcome to the Teen Room, a space specifically for teens and tweens in grades 5 through 12. The teen room has study space with built in charging stations, as well as comfy chairs for reading and gathering with friends. The teen room houses our Young Adult and Tween books, as well as Graphic Novels for teens and tweens. We have gaming laptops, ipads, maker kits, board games, and much more for you to explore!  

Study table in teen area

Study Areas

The teen room has study space specifically for teens and tweens.  All tables have built-in charging stations.

Laptops set up in the teen area

Gaming Laptops and iPads

Gamers unite in the teen room!  With five gaming laptops loaded with Epic Games, Fortnite, and Roblox, as well as three iPads preloaded with games from Apple Arcade, we have plenty to keep you entertained!

Maker Kits

Maker Kits

Looking for something to do? Our maker kits are always available for fun, screen-free entertainment. Make your own pinback buttons, greeting cards, and much more!

Shelves filled with board games

Game Collection

Gather some friends and get together in the teen room for a game of Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza, Jenga, Clue, or many other card games and board games!  Located under the bench seat by the south window.

White board with "what's your favorite book you've read this summer" and hand written responses in different color markers

Community Art Boards

Two whiteboards in the teen room provide fun prompts, magnetic scrabble tiles, and dry erase markers for our creative teens and tweens.

Graphic novels label on book shelf

YA Graphic Novels

Manga, graphic nonfiction and much more are all available in the teen room on the graphic novel shelf.  Teal dots on the spine highlight graphic novels that are great for tweens.

Tween Fiction section in the library

Tween Section

Look for our YA TW section to find books that are recommended for our younger teens, grades 5-7.  

Teen & Tween Services

Homework Help

Biography in Context

Biography in Context logo

Biography in Context includes nearly a million biographical entries spanning history and geography. Great for biography reports.

View Resource

Britannica Library (Away from Library)

Britannica Library logo

Britannica Library is a respected general purpose encyclopedia. Adult, teen, and children’s versions of the encyclopedia are available on this site.

View Resource

Literary Reference Center Plus

Literary Reference Center logo

Novels, short stories, poems, plot summaries and synopses, and literary criticism. Research guides, lesson plans, and citation tools support student learning.

View Resource

Books for Reluctant Readers

Image for "The Rose Bargain"

The Rose Bargain

*An instant New York Times bestseller!



 

Vying for the hand of one brother.

Falling in love with the other.

 

A new Victorian-inspired romantasy, perfect for fans of Bridgerton, The Selection, and The Cruel Prince.

"If you're looking for the next YA sensation, here it is." --Adalyn Grace, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Belladonna

London, 1848--For four hundred years, England has been under the control of an immortal fae queen who tricked her way onto the throne. To maintain an illusion of benevolence, Queen Mor grants each of her subjects one opportunity to bargain for their deepest desire.

As Ivy Benton prepares to make her debut, she knows that not even a deal with the queen could fix what has gone wrong: Her family's social standing is in shambles, her sister is a shadow of her former self, and Ivy's marriage prospects are nonexistent. So when the queen announces a competition for Prince Bram's hand, Ivy is the first to sign her name in blood. What a bargain can't fix, a crown certainly could.

Ivy soon finds herself a surprising front-runner--with the help of an unexpected ally: Prince Bram's brother, the rakish Prince Emmett, who promises to help Ivy win his brother's heart...for a price. But as the season sweeps Ivy away, with glittering balls veiling the queen's increasingly vicious trials, Ivy realizes there's more at stake than just a wedding. Because all faerie bargains come with a cost, and Ivy may have discovered hers too late.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Witch Haven comes a tale that will leave readers eager to bargain for a sequel.

Image for "Honeysuckle and Bone"

Honeysuckle and Bone

"Eerie, propulsive, and sumptuous, Honeysuckle and Bone is a trip to Jamaica you won't soon forget." --Ayesha Curry

A Goodreads Editors' Pick · A Kirkus Best of January for Young Readers · An Indie Next Pick

On the run from her own dark secrets, a teen girl becomes the nanny for a prestigious family on their Jamaican estate, where she quickly discovers even paradise may be haunted. Carina Marshall is looking to reinvent herself, and what better place to do it than Jamaica, her mother's alluring homeland where she conveniently has access to an au pair gig for the wealthy and powerful Hall family. After months of being the target of vicious rumors and hate online, Carina might have found everything she wants at the luxurious Blackbead House: a world of mango trees, tropical breezes, and glamorous parties--and a place to disappear.

Once there, Carina finds herself settling right into her busy, but comfortable, new life. Yes, the family runs a tight ship, and yes, there is some tension between the Halls, but Carina is content flying under the radar and hanging out with her new friends--not least, the handsome and charming Aaron. But when inexplicable things start happening to her in the house, only getting worse each night, Carina realizes that someone, or something, is out to get her. Is it the Halls? The house itself? Or is her own past catching up with her? With Aaron's help, she must figure out what is haunting her, and fast, before she's forced out of Blackbead House for good.

Honeysuckle and Bone is a deliciously atmospheric and utterly spooky young adult novel, perfect for fans of She is a Haunting, following an imperfect yet courageous teen as she seeks to remake herself in the homeland she always idealized, discovering that new beginnings don't always come easy.

Image for "Recommended Reading"

Recommended Reading

"Recommended Reading is swoon-worthy in every possible way! Bobby's story is a sheer delight and an ode to book lovers everywhere who believe that the magic of stories reaches beyond the page." ―Julie Murphy, #1 New York Times bestselling author

In this opposites-attract YA rom-com inspired by Emma, a failed romantic gesture puts a damper on a queer teen bookseller's summer of book matching and matchmaking until a handsome lifeguard and romance skeptic waltzes into his bookstore. Sometimes you get a second chance at happily ever after when you least expect it . . .

Curvaceous, clever, and an avid reader, seventeen-year-old Bobby Ashton never misses a main character moment. So when it comes to asking out his crush, he plans a romantic gesture grand enough to go down in local history. Unfortunately, though, his extensive knowledge of every rom-com trope ever doesn't prepare him for how tragically he misreads the situation. Suddenly Bobby's very public romantic gesture turns into an ordeal so embarrassing it could be a villain origin story.

Having masterfully shattered every plan for his perfect summer before college, Bobby's last resort is working at his uncle's sleepy bookstore. Soon, Bobby is expertly recommending books for customers to perfectly cure what ails them. Attempting to rebound after a breakup? There's a book for that. Trying to tame your crochety coworker? There's a book for that too. Then a plot twist Bobby never saw coming walks through the door in the form of Luke, an unfairly attractive and staunchly anti-romantic lifeguard.

Bobby's blossoming connection with Luke reminds him of some of his favorite tropes: grumpy-sunshine, quippy banter, and even forced proximity. But after his last romantic disaster, should Bobby use all the tricks in his arsenal to turn Luke's head? Or is he misreading all the signs again? Do grand gestures really need to be so . . . grand?

Perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli, Kacen Callender, and Jason June, Recommended Reading is a bighearted rom-com about discovering love beyond what's in the books . . . but hey, the perfect recommendation can get you pretty far!

Image for "The Trouble with Heroes"

The Trouble with Heroes

An instant New York Times bestseller!

A USA Today bestseller!

Read with Jenna Jr. Summer Reading List Pick!

"Genuinely moving." --The New York Times Book Review

"Explores the healing power of hiking." --NPR's All Things Considered

The Week Jr.'s Book Club Pick 

Bestselling and award-winning author Kate Messner takes readers on a heart-filling journey as a boy finds his path to healing.

One summer.
46 mountain peaks.
A second chance to make things right.

Finn Connelly is nothing like his dad, a star athlete and firefighter hero who always ran toward danger until he died two years ago. Finn is about to fail seventh grade and has never made headlines . . . until now.

Caught on camera vandalizing a cemetery, he's in big trouble for knocking down some dead old lady's headstone. Turns out that grave belongs to a legendary local mountain climber, and her daughter makes Finn an unusual offer: she'll drop all the charges if he agrees to climb all forty-six Adirondack High Peaks in a single summer. And there's just one more thing--he has to bring along the dead woman's dog.

In a wild three months of misadventures, mountain mud, and unexpected mentors, Finn begins to find his way on the trails. At the top of each peak, he can see for miles and slowly begins to understand more about himself and his dad. But the mountains don't care about any of that, and as the clock ticks down to September, they have more surprises in store. Finn's final summit challenge may be more than even a hero can face.

Recommended by Thomas Ford Teens and Tweens

Image for "The Naturals (The Naturals, Book 1)"

The Naturals (The Naturals, Book 1)


Seventeen-year-old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Piecing together the tiniest details, she can tell you who you are and what you want. But, it's not a skill that she's ever taken seriously. That is, until the FBI come knocking: they've begun a classified program that uses exceptional teenagers to crack infamous cold cases, and they need Cassie. 

What Cassie doesn't realize is that there's more at risk than a few unsolved homicides-especially when she's sent to live with a group of teens whose gifts are as unusual as her own. Soon, it becomes clear that no one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes, danger looms close. Caught in a lethal game of cat and mouse with a killer, the Naturals are going to have to use all of their gifts just to survive. 

Think The Mentalist meets Pretty Little Liars-Jennifer Lynn Barnes's The Naturals is a gripping psychological thriller with killer appeal, a to-die-for romance, and the bones of a gritty and compelling new series.

Praise for The Naturals

"The Naturals is Criminal Minds for the YA world, and I loved every page." -New York Times best-selling author Ally Carter

* "[A] tightly paced suspense novel that will keep readers up until the wee hours to finish." -VOYA (starred review)

"This savvy thriller grabs readers right away." -Kirkus Reviews

"It's a stay-up-late-to-finish kind of book, and it doesn't disappoint." -Publishers Weekly

"In this high-adrenaline series opener...even a psychic won't anticipate all the twists and turns." -Booklist