Music
Fiction
So Punk Rock (and Other Ways to Disappoint Your Mother) by Micol Ostow (F OST)
Four suburban New Jersey students from the Leo R. Gittleman Jewish Day School form a rock band that becomes inexplicably popular, creating exhiliration, friction, confrontation, and soul-searching among its members.
The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour (F LAC)
Colby and Bev have a long-standing pact: graduate, hit the road with Bev's band, and then spend the year wandering around Europe. But moments after the tour kicks off, Bev makes a shocking announcement: she's abandoning their plans - and Colby - to start college in the fall. But the show must go on and The Disenchantments weave through the Pacific Northwest, playing in small towns and dingy venues, while roadie- Colby struggles to deal with Bev's already-growing distance and the most important question of all: what's next?
Road Rash by Mark Huntley Parsons (F PAR)
When teen drummer, Zach, signed up to spend the summer on tour with a rock band, he didn't realize the stairway to heaven was such a bumpy ride.
This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales (F SAL)
Making friends has never been Elise Dembowski’s strong suit. All throughout her life, she’s been the butt of every joke and the outsider in every conversation. When a final attempt at popularity fails, Elise nearly gives up. Then she stumbles upon a warehouse party where she meets Vicky, a girl in a band who accepts her; Char, a cute, yet mysterious disc jockey; Pippa, a carefree spirit from England and most importantly, a love for DJing.
Amplified by Tara Kelly (F KEL)
Privileged seventeen-year-old Jasmine Kiss, kicked out of her house by her father, takes what is left of her meager savings and flees to Santa Cruz, California, to pursue her dream of becoming a rock musician.
Wildflower by Alecia Walker (F WAL)
Sixteen-year-old Bird Barrett is discovered by a country music record label while playing in her family's bluegrass band. As her star rises, she must learn to stay true to her roots while navigating a brave new world of glamour and gold records in Nashville, Tennesse.
The House of Tomorrow by Peter Bognanni (F BOG)
Sebastian Prendergast, having left the safety of the geodesic dome in which he lived after his grandmother had a stroke, meets sixteen-year-old Jared Whitcomb, and together the boys experience the angst of being teenagers while forming a punk rock band, but when Jared's grandma asks him to return to her home, he is faced with choosing between her dying wish and his newfound life.
DJ Rising by Love Maia (F MAI)
Meet Marley, an unassuming high school junior who breathes in music like oxygen. In between caring for his heroin-addicted mother, and keeping his scholarship at a fancy prep school, he dreams of becoming a professional DJ. When chance lands Marley his first real DJ job, his career as "DJ Ice" suddenly skyrockets. But when heart-rending disaster at home brings Marley crashing back down to earth, he is torn between obligation and following his dreams.
Rock Star, Superstar by Blake Nelson (F NEL)
Music is Pete's life. From playing in a jazz band to jamming at 2 AM with his guitar-playing dad, Pete is almost never without his bass. He's sure his treasured Fender Precision bass, along with his vow never to be a sell-out, will lead him to a record deal one day. Then he meets the Carlisle brothers. They can't sing and they can barely play their instruments, but somehow they have a following. And they desperately need a bass player. Pete can play circles around these amateurs, but there's a raw power to their sound that's surprisingly appealing. He can't resist, and he joins The Tiny Masters of Today. When the band gets a chance at real superstardom, Pete wonders if he's ready for the big leagues. He knows the quality of the music should come first . . . but who knew selling out could be so much fun? Blake Nelson's riveting novel shows the realities of life in a band, and all the temptations that come with it.
Struts and Frets by Jon Skovron (F SKO)
Sammy wants to be a musician, as was his grandfather, but while the band he is in is self-destructing, Sammy is too distracted by his grandfather's decline and confused feelings about his best friend to fix it--and his mother stays too busy to help.
Tempo Change by Barbara Hall (F HAL)
Sixteen-year-old Blanche forms a band that wins a spot at Coachella, a southern California music festival, where she hopes to reconnect with her father, a famous but reclusive musician who left when she was six years old.
Band Geek Love by Josie Bloss (F BLO)
All band, all the time. That's how marching band trumpet goddess Ellie Snow has made it to senior year. She's a fierce section leader now, and no boy is going to ruin Ellie's shining moment--her senior solo performance at the homecoming game. And then Connor Higgins shows up.
Guitar Girl by Sarra Manning (F MAN)
Seventeen-year-old Molly Montgomery learns the cost of fame when her band, The Hormones, a group started with her friends just for fun, suddenly becomes all the rage.
Somebody Everybody Listens To by Suzanne Supplee (F SUP)
Upon graduating from high school in the tiny town of Starling, Tennessee, aspiring country singer Retta Lee Jones manages to get herself to Nashville, where, in spite of some bad luck and hard times, she tries to persevere in pursuing her dreams.
The Vinyl Princess by Yvonne Prinz (F PRI)
Allie, a sixteen-year-old who is obsessed with LPs, works at the used record store on Telegraph Ave. and deals with crushes--her own and her mother's--her increasingly popular blog and zine, and generally grows up over the course of one summer in her hometown of Berkeley, California.
Heavy Metal and You by Christopher Krovatin (F KRO)
High schooler Sam begins losing himself when he falls for a preppy girl who wants him to give up getting wasted with his best friends and even his passion for heavy metal music in order to become a better person.
King Dork by Frank Portman (F POR)
Tom Henderson (a.k.a. King Dork) is a typical American high school loser until he discovers the book, The Catcher in the Rye, that will change the world as he knows it. When Tom discovers his deceased father's copy of the Salinger classic, he finds himself in the middle of several interlocking conspiracies and at least half a dozen mysteries involving dead people, fake people, ESP, blood, a secret code, guitars, monks, witchcraft, the Bible, girls, the Crusades, and rock and roll. And it all looks like it s just the tip of a very odd iceberg of clues that may very well unravel the puzzle of his father's death and oddly reveal the secret to attracting semi-hot girls. Being in a band could possibly be the secret to the girl thing but good luck finding a drummer who can count to four.
Harlem Hustle by Janet McDonald (F MCD)
Eric "Hustle" Samson, a smart and street-wise seventeen-year-old dropout from Harlem, aspires to rap stardom, a dream he naively believes is about to come true.
Pop Princess by Rachel Cohn (F COH)
Yearning to escape the small Massachusetts town where her family retreated after her sister's death, Wonder Blake gets her chance when her sister's manager offers Wonder a record contract on her sixteenth birthday.
A Little Wanting Song by Cath Crowley (F CRO)
Told in alternating voices and filled with music, friendship, and romance, this novel is about a summer of friendship, romance, and the kind of longing that begins as a heavy ache but ultimately makes us feel hopeful and wonderfully alive.
Paradise by Jill Alexander (F ALE)
Teenaged Paisley Tillery dreams a career as a professional drummer will take her out of her small Texas town, but when her country rock band gets a handsome new lead singer from Paradise, Texas, those dreams may change.
The Punk Ethic by Timothy Decker (F DEC)
Martin Henry has been challenged by his teacher to make something of himself and struggles to do so while also dealing with the changes in his life that have been caused by his efforts.
Guitar Notes by Mary Amato (F AMA)
Tripp, who plays guitar only for himself, and Lyla, a cellist whose talent has already made her famous but not happy, form an unlikely friendship when they are forced to share a practice room at their high school.
Exile by Kevin Emerson (F EME)
As band manager for the up-and-coming DangerHeart, seventeen-year-old Summer Carlson navigates a relationship with the lead singer and decides whether to act on information that could rocket the band to stardom.
Nonfiction
Punk: The Whole Story by Mark Blake (781.66 PUN)
The definitive story of punk-the music, the culture, the icons-now available in a compact paperback edition. Packed with interviews from the pioneers of punk, a dazzling photo archive, and features on the venues and memorabilia that helped define the generation, PUNK takes you behind the scenes of rock's most irreverent genre.
Green Day : American Idiots & the New Punk Explosion by Ben Myers (782.42166 MYE)
Traces the history of the rock band Green Day, discussing the members' difficult childhoods, influence from British punk bands, career successes and disappointments, influence on American music, and other related topics.
U2 by U2 by U2 (782.42166 U2)In 1975, four teenagers from Mount Temple School in Dublin gathered in a crowded kitchen to discuss forming a band. More than thirty years later, the band is still together, bound by intense loyalty, passionate idealism, and a relentless belief in the power of rock and roll to change the world. In an epic journey that has taken the band from the clubs of Dublin to the stadiums of the world, U2 has sold more than 130 million albums, revolutionized live performance, spearheaded political campaigns, and made music that defines the age in which we live. The members of the band chronicle the group's history, describing the band's beginnings in high school, their rise to fame, the making of their albums, aspects of their personal lives, and other topics.
From the Inside : Linkin Park's Meteora by Steve Baltin (782.42166 BAL)
SoCal alt-metal sextet Linkin Park's first CD Hybrid Theory was the record industry's biggest seller of 2002, with over 14 million copies sold. The band's fusion of hip-hop, rock and electronic music has attracted a diverse, dedicated following around the globe. During their 2003-04 world tour to promote their latest multi-platinum effort, Meteora, Linkin Park brought in photographer Greg Waterman and others to document their experiences on and off the stage.
A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead by Dennis McNally (920 MCN)
Chronicles the history of the Grateful Dead from its beginnings in 1965 through 1995, providing an in-depth look at the band's members, recordings, hit songs, conflicts, and the counterculture that surrounded them.
A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Song by Steve Turner (782.42166 TUR)
Presents a collection of stories that describe the inspiration behind the Beatles songs on the Beatles twelve original albums as well as those on the "Anthology" and "Live at the BBC."
Journals by Kurt Cobain (B COB)
Presents thoughts, lyrics, drawings, and letters that filled Nirvana singer-songwriter Kurt Cobain's notebooks from the late 1980s to his death in 1994.
Biographies:
50 Cent, Christina Aguilera, The Beastie Boys, The Beatles, Beyonce, Johnny Cash, Kelly Clarkson, Kurt Cobain, Miley Cyrus, David Bowie, Dr. Dre, Bob Dylan, Eminem, Jerry Garcia, George Harrison, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Holly, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Janis Joplin, Lady Gaga, Avril Lavigne, John Lennon, Jennifer Lopez, Madonna, Bob Marley, Paul McCartney, Jim Morrison, Notorious B.I.G., Elvis Presley, The Ramones, Rihanna, Carlos Santana, Tupac Shakur, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Justin Timberlake, Tina Turner, U2, Carrie Underwood, Usher, Kanye West, Jay-Z
So Punk Rock (and Other Ways to Disappoint Your Mother) by Micol Ostow (F OST)
Four suburban New Jersey students from the Leo R. Gittleman Jewish Day School form a rock band that becomes inexplicably popular, creating exhiliration, friction, confrontation, and soul-searching among its members.
The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour (F LAC)
Colby and Bev have a long-standing pact: graduate, hit the road with Bev's band, and then spend the year wandering around Europe. But moments after the tour kicks off, Bev makes a shocking announcement: she's abandoning their plans - and Colby - to start college in the fall. But the show must go on and The Disenchantments weave through the Pacific Northwest, playing in small towns and dingy venues, while roadie- Colby struggles to deal with Bev's already-growing distance and the most important question of all: what's next?
Road Rash by Mark Huntley Parsons (F PAR)
When teen drummer, Zach, signed up to spend the summer on tour with a rock band, he didn't realize the stairway to heaven was such a bumpy ride.
This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales (F SAL)
Making friends has never been Elise Dembowski’s strong suit. All throughout her life, she’s been the butt of every joke and the outsider in every conversation. When a final attempt at popularity fails, Elise nearly gives up. Then she stumbles upon a warehouse party where she meets Vicky, a girl in a band who accepts her; Char, a cute, yet mysterious disc jockey; Pippa, a carefree spirit from England and most importantly, a love for DJing.
Amplified by Tara Kelly (F KEL)
Privileged seventeen-year-old Jasmine Kiss, kicked out of her house by her father, takes what is left of her meager savings and flees to Santa Cruz, California, to pursue her dream of becoming a rock musician.
Wildflower by Alecia Walker (F WAL)
Sixteen-year-old Bird Barrett is discovered by a country music record label while playing in her family's bluegrass band. As her star rises, she must learn to stay true to her roots while navigating a brave new world of glamour and gold records in Nashville, Tennesse.
The House of Tomorrow by Peter Bognanni (F BOG)
Sebastian Prendergast, having left the safety of the geodesic dome in which he lived after his grandmother had a stroke, meets sixteen-year-old Jared Whitcomb, and together the boys experience the angst of being teenagers while forming a punk rock band, but when Jared's grandma asks him to return to her home, he is faced with choosing between her dying wish and his newfound life.
DJ Rising by Love Maia (F MAI)
Meet Marley, an unassuming high school junior who breathes in music like oxygen. In between caring for his heroin-addicted mother, and keeping his scholarship at a fancy prep school, he dreams of becoming a professional DJ. When chance lands Marley his first real DJ job, his career as "DJ Ice" suddenly skyrockets. But when heart-rending disaster at home brings Marley crashing back down to earth, he is torn between obligation and following his dreams.
Rock Star, Superstar by Blake Nelson (F NEL)
Music is Pete's life. From playing in a jazz band to jamming at 2 AM with his guitar-playing dad, Pete is almost never without his bass. He's sure his treasured Fender Precision bass, along with his vow never to be a sell-out, will lead him to a record deal one day. Then he meets the Carlisle brothers. They can't sing and they can barely play their instruments, but somehow they have a following. And they desperately need a bass player. Pete can play circles around these amateurs, but there's a raw power to their sound that's surprisingly appealing. He can't resist, and he joins The Tiny Masters of Today. When the band gets a chance at real superstardom, Pete wonders if he's ready for the big leagues. He knows the quality of the music should come first . . . but who knew selling out could be so much fun? Blake Nelson's riveting novel shows the realities of life in a band, and all the temptations that come with it.
Struts and Frets by Jon Skovron (F SKO)
Sammy wants to be a musician, as was his grandfather, but while the band he is in is self-destructing, Sammy is too distracted by his grandfather's decline and confused feelings about his best friend to fix it--and his mother stays too busy to help.
Tempo Change by Barbara Hall (F HAL)
Sixteen-year-old Blanche forms a band that wins a spot at Coachella, a southern California music festival, where she hopes to reconnect with her father, a famous but reclusive musician who left when she was six years old.
Band Geek Love by Josie Bloss (F BLO)
All band, all the time. That's how marching band trumpet goddess Ellie Snow has made it to senior year. She's a fierce section leader now, and no boy is going to ruin Ellie's shining moment--her senior solo performance at the homecoming game. And then Connor Higgins shows up.
Guitar Girl by Sarra Manning (F MAN)
Seventeen-year-old Molly Montgomery learns the cost of fame when her band, The Hormones, a group started with her friends just for fun, suddenly becomes all the rage.
Somebody Everybody Listens To by Suzanne Supplee (F SUP)
Upon graduating from high school in the tiny town of Starling, Tennessee, aspiring country singer Retta Lee Jones manages to get herself to Nashville, where, in spite of some bad luck and hard times, she tries to persevere in pursuing her dreams.
The Vinyl Princess by Yvonne Prinz (F PRI)
Allie, a sixteen-year-old who is obsessed with LPs, works at the used record store on Telegraph Ave. and deals with crushes--her own and her mother's--her increasingly popular blog and zine, and generally grows up over the course of one summer in her hometown of Berkeley, California.
Heavy Metal and You by Christopher Krovatin (F KRO)
High schooler Sam begins losing himself when he falls for a preppy girl who wants him to give up getting wasted with his best friends and even his passion for heavy metal music in order to become a better person.
King Dork by Frank Portman (F POR)
Tom Henderson (a.k.a. King Dork) is a typical American high school loser until he discovers the book, The Catcher in the Rye, that will change the world as he knows it. When Tom discovers his deceased father's copy of the Salinger classic, he finds himself in the middle of several interlocking conspiracies and at least half a dozen mysteries involving dead people, fake people, ESP, blood, a secret code, guitars, monks, witchcraft, the Bible, girls, the Crusades, and rock and roll. And it all looks like it s just the tip of a very odd iceberg of clues that may very well unravel the puzzle of his father's death and oddly reveal the secret to attracting semi-hot girls. Being in a band could possibly be the secret to the girl thing but good luck finding a drummer who can count to four.
Harlem Hustle by Janet McDonald (F MCD)
Eric "Hustle" Samson, a smart and street-wise seventeen-year-old dropout from Harlem, aspires to rap stardom, a dream he naively believes is about to come true.
Pop Princess by Rachel Cohn (F COH)
Yearning to escape the small Massachusetts town where her family retreated after her sister's death, Wonder Blake gets her chance when her sister's manager offers Wonder a record contract on her sixteenth birthday.
A Little Wanting Song by Cath Crowley (F CRO)
Told in alternating voices and filled with music, friendship, and romance, this novel is about a summer of friendship, romance, and the kind of longing that begins as a heavy ache but ultimately makes us feel hopeful and wonderfully alive.
Paradise by Jill Alexander (F ALE)
Teenaged Paisley Tillery dreams a career as a professional drummer will take her out of her small Texas town, but when her country rock band gets a handsome new lead singer from Paradise, Texas, those dreams may change.
The Punk Ethic by Timothy Decker (F DEC)
Martin Henry has been challenged by his teacher to make something of himself and struggles to do so while also dealing with the changes in his life that have been caused by his efforts.
Guitar Notes by Mary Amato (F AMA)
Tripp, who plays guitar only for himself, and Lyla, a cellist whose talent has already made her famous but not happy, form an unlikely friendship when they are forced to share a practice room at their high school.
Exile by Kevin Emerson (F EME)
As band manager for the up-and-coming DangerHeart, seventeen-year-old Summer Carlson navigates a relationship with the lead singer and decides whether to act on information that could rocket the band to stardom.
Nonfiction
Punk: The Whole Story by Mark Blake (781.66 PUN)
The definitive story of punk-the music, the culture, the icons-now available in a compact paperback edition. Packed with interviews from the pioneers of punk, a dazzling photo archive, and features on the venues and memorabilia that helped define the generation, PUNK takes you behind the scenes of rock's most irreverent genre.
Green Day : American Idiots & the New Punk Explosion by Ben Myers (782.42166 MYE)
Traces the history of the rock band Green Day, discussing the members' difficult childhoods, influence from British punk bands, career successes and disappointments, influence on American music, and other related topics.
U2 by U2 by U2 (782.42166 U2)In 1975, four teenagers from Mount Temple School in Dublin gathered in a crowded kitchen to discuss forming a band. More than thirty years later, the band is still together, bound by intense loyalty, passionate idealism, and a relentless belief in the power of rock and roll to change the world. In an epic journey that has taken the band from the clubs of Dublin to the stadiums of the world, U2 has sold more than 130 million albums, revolutionized live performance, spearheaded political campaigns, and made music that defines the age in which we live. The members of the band chronicle the group's history, describing the band's beginnings in high school, their rise to fame, the making of their albums, aspects of their personal lives, and other topics.
From the Inside : Linkin Park's Meteora by Steve Baltin (782.42166 BAL)
SoCal alt-metal sextet Linkin Park's first CD Hybrid Theory was the record industry's biggest seller of 2002, with over 14 million copies sold. The band's fusion of hip-hop, rock and electronic music has attracted a diverse, dedicated following around the globe. During their 2003-04 world tour to promote their latest multi-platinum effort, Meteora, Linkin Park brought in photographer Greg Waterman and others to document their experiences on and off the stage.
A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead by Dennis McNally (920 MCN)
Chronicles the history of the Grateful Dead from its beginnings in 1965 through 1995, providing an in-depth look at the band's members, recordings, hit songs, conflicts, and the counterculture that surrounded them.
A Hard Day's Write: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Song by Steve Turner (782.42166 TUR)
Presents a collection of stories that describe the inspiration behind the Beatles songs on the Beatles twelve original albums as well as those on the "Anthology" and "Live at the BBC."
Journals by Kurt Cobain (B COB)
Presents thoughts, lyrics, drawings, and letters that filled Nirvana singer-songwriter Kurt Cobain's notebooks from the late 1980s to his death in 1994.
Biographies:
50 Cent, Christina Aguilera, The Beastie Boys, The Beatles, Beyonce, Johnny Cash, Kelly Clarkson, Kurt Cobain, Miley Cyrus, David Bowie, Dr. Dre, Bob Dylan, Eminem, Jerry Garcia, George Harrison, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Holly, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Janis Joplin, Lady Gaga, Avril Lavigne, John Lennon, Jennifer Lopez, Madonna, Bob Marley, Paul McCartney, Jim Morrison, Notorious B.I.G., Elvis Presley, The Ramones, Rihanna, Carlos Santana, Tupac Shakur, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Justin Timberlake, Tina Turner, U2, Carrie Underwood, Usher, Kanye West, Jay-Z