Just added: Contest for ABC Family Secret Life and Pretty Little Liars Books, DVDs and More

Update 5/2010: Secret Life of the American Teenager Season 3 episodes and Volume 4 DVD

It has now been almost two months since the last new episode of The Secret Life of the American Teenager aired. Although new episodes do not begin again for another two months, at least the new season premier date has been announced. All new episodes of The Secret Life will begin on Monday night, January 11, 2010.

Here is a sneak peek of the new season of The Secret Life of the American Teenager from ABC Family:



The Secret Life of the American Teenager: Season 3 DVD will be released on December 22, 2009, just in time for the holidays. This DVD would certainly make a great gift or stocking stuffer for any fan of the series.

Would you like to see The Secret Life of the American Teenager at the People's Choice Awards? If so, you can vote for it, along with your other favorites on the People's Choice nominee voting page. The award show will be aired on CBS on January 6, 2010, just a few days before the new season of The Secret Life begins.

See also: Interview with Shailene Woodley of The Secret Life of the American Teenager

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Comic books are becoming more mainstream and seen as an acceptable form of reading for people of all types (See How Comic Books became part of the literary establishment, a great article by Tim Martin showing that comic books are not just for nerds). Due to their popularity, iPhone and iTouch apps have been developed so that readers can now enjoy their favorite comics on the go. Here are the 5 best apps for comic book fans:

1. Comix - (free) The great thing about this app by ComiXology is that it is both a comic book reader and a comic book library and store. As a reader, it is great in that it offers the viewer the choice of reading the comic panel by panel and looking at the full page. You can pinch, zoom or pan to make it easy on your eyes. The best part of this app though is the ability to buy comics directly from within. Over 70 free comics are included and over 450 comics are available. And today, October 30, it was announced that several Marvel comics will be available to purchase from within this free Comix app.

2. ComicZeal - ($3.99) ComicZeal is a comic book reader. You buy your comics separately through individual apps, and use this to read them.  However, you can download hundreds of Golden Age Comics and Jim Shelley's Flashback Universe for free. It has a pretty wood background and keeps track for you of which comics you've started reading and which you've finished.

3. iVerse Comics - (Free) iVerse Comics is a digital comic book store. 30 apps are available for free download with over 100 titles currently available to purchase and many more coming soon. This app gets raves for its store, but not as much for its reader.

4. Go! Manga+ - ($3.99) For those unfamiliar with the term, Manga is Japanese comics. Go Manga+ is a Manga viewer for online Manga websites. You can read over 600+ Manga from the web in this viewer.

5. ComiXology - ($1.99) This is not an app for reading comics. However, for real comic book fans, this is the most important app to have. It shows you what is coming to your favorite comic book store. You can preview covers and creator info. It also includes columns and podcasts about comics. A comic book buyers dream app.

Check out these apps and enjoy comics wherever you go. Do you think you would enjoy reading comics on an iPhone screen or is it too small to enjoy?

See also:
Do Teenage Girls read Comics and Graphic Novels?
Cool New Apps!

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When I first saw In the Driver's Seat: A Girl's Guide to Her First Car, I thought it was a wonderful idea for a book. After reading it, I now think that it should be called "A great guide to buying, owning and using a car for ANYBODY that is not an expert. I am studying this book myself and I am then going to give it to my son.

Written by Erika Stalder, In the Driver's Seat: A Girl's Guide to Her First Car is a very easy to read and use, practical advice guide. Unlike most literature about cars, this book is truly written for anyone to understand. It should be required reading upon graduating from drivers education classes.

You can get an idea of how practical the advice in 'In The Driver's Seat' is by reading the Table of Contents. These are the chapters included in this book:
  1. Snagging your first car
  2. Learning to love (or at least look at) your owner's manual
  3. Checking out your cars anatomy
  4. Stocking your car with must-haves
  5. Maintaining your new set of wheels
  6. Fixing stuff on the fly
  7. Going to the mechanic
  8. Navigating dicey driving situations
  9. Styling your ride

In addition to the extremely useful advice, there are also fun facts and statistics inserted throughout. Maybe if I had a book like this when I was younger I wouldn't have to rely on my husband for every little car-related thing. In the Driver's Seat: A Girl's Guide to Her First Car is the perfect gift for any new driver.

See also: Teens, Technology and Aging at Forward with Ford 2011

 

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When my kids were younger, they loved building with LEGOs. As they got older, video games became their passion. What a great idea to combine these two into a game for the whole family. LEGO Rock Band should be perfect for tweens and even for teens that might want to relive their LEGO building days.

LEGO Rock Band is releasing next Tuesday, November 3, 2009, just in time for the holidays, if you can get your family to wait that long. The catchphrase for this game is "Build a band, rock the universe". That is because in this game, players build their avatars. Other differences between LEGO Rock Band and other Rock Bands include the addition of a super easy mode for younger players (and parents like me), more family friendly rock songs and the addition of fun challenges such as defeating a giant octopus, summoning a storm or demolishing a skyscraper.

Get a feel for what LEGO Rock Band looks and sounds like from this new trailer:



On sale, November 3, LEGO Rock Band will be available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii and Nintendo DS. The songs are still all rock, just a bit more family-friendly. LEGO Rock Band works with other Rock Band controllers. If parents are looking for a game to connect with their teens and tweens, could any game be more perfect?

See also: LEGO Life of George Combines Digital and Physical Gaming

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Fanlala is a safe, family friendly, social community fan website for teens and tweens aged 8-14. The website provides young fans the latest news, articles and photos of their favorite celebrities. Teen members can connect to each other in Fanlala by way of personal profiles, blogs and the uploading pictures and videos (which are monitored by Fanlala).

Fans also participate through contests, games, polls, quizzes and discussions. Access to Fanlala TV, which offers exclusive video content, featuring the most popular teen celebrities, is another great feature of Fanlala.

"We are very excited about Fanlala as we created this interactive community for tweens and teens from ages 8-14 to give them access to the best content and exclusive, original coverage on their favorite stars,” says Fanlala.com COO Timothy Golden. "What makes Fanlala.com different from other sites is that it provides a one-stop destination for young fans to get all the entertainment news, videos and photos that interest them most without searching all over the web."

The celebrities featured on Fanlala include Ashley Tisdale, Taylor Swift, Robert Pattinson, Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers and Miranda Cosgrove. There are also fan pages for the cast members from the Twilight series, JONAS, iCarly, High School Musical, Hannah Montana, Drake & Josh, Another Cinderella and more.

On Fanlala, member information and personal profiles are kept confidential. A continuous effort is made to ensure the protection of the young teen fans and the trust of their parents.

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There seems to be many companies, lately, making stylish ear buds for teens and tweens. I recently came across some very colorful ear buds made by 2XL. There are four different styles and each comes in many different multicolor choices. With this variety, both guys and girls can find buds unique ear buds to fit their style.

The four styles of ear buds consist of:
1. Spoke - An in-ear bud featuring noise isolation, in-ear acoustics and changeable gels for a comfortable fit. Available in nine different color patterns.

2. Groove - These grip hanger ear buds are great for wearing when active. Available in seven color patterns.

3. Ratio - Feature soft silicone wrap, these are the most similar to average ear buds. Available in seven color patterns.

4. Corners - The most unique they feature a very comfortable on-ear design and headband suspension. Also available in seven colors.

The acoustics of these 2XL ear buds are great. When I tried them, the music in my iPod sounded just as good as with much more expensive headphones. The price of these buds range from $9.99 to $19.99, depending on style. These ear buds can be purchased at Best Buys across the country and on the 2XL website.

See also:
Holiday Gifts for Teens - Speakers and Headphones
Stylish ear buds for back to school fashion
ShareBuds: Ear buds for 2

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Another week has gone by, so here is another list of interesting articles you might have missed this week. Below are 10 pop culture, technology and teen articles from the week ending 10/24/2009 that I would like to share with you:

Teens and Technology

1. UCLA STUDY: Search the Internet, Activate Your Brain - Mashable

2. Teens Saving the World - Radical Parenting

3. When Mean Girls Go Digital - Newsweek

4. Josh In A Box: Helpful Advice for Parents of Teens! - Shaping Youth

5. If teens are confused by Twitter, what's the right SocMed tool in school? - ZDNet

Pop Culture

1. 'Glee' exclusive: Joss Whedon to direct! - EW: The Ausiello Files

2. Geek frenzy: 'Battlestar's' Katee Sackhoff to guest on Big Bang Theory' - The Chicago Tribune: The Watcher

3. New Moon Soundtrack Artists On & Off the Stage: Photo Gallery - The Monitor

4. The Colbert Report's The Word - iPhone app - TV Squad

5. 'Lost': 12 Enduring Mysteries - EW: Totally Lost

Which articles do you prefer, teens, tech or pop culture? Would you like to see more of a specific topic? If you have any interesting articles from the past week that fit in one of these categories, please share.

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Cover via Amazon

The middle school years can be the most difficult for anyone. Author Annie Fox, M.Ed. has found a unique way to help teens survive middle school unscathed. She has created a book series, Middle School Confidential, that teens and tweens will enjoy reading. The books are part graphic/novel and part practical life skills that cover a variety of topics.

The books feature a group of sex teens, Jack, Jen, Chris, Abby, Mateo and Michelle, trying to figure out middle school. Throughout the book there are quotes from real teens, advice, quizzes and resources that relate to the story. There are currently two books already published in the series, with a third coming out in January. The three books are:

1. Middle School Confidential Book 1: Be Confident in Who You Are - deals with bullies and teasing, threatened friendships, moods and self esteem.

2. Middle School Confidential Book 2: Real Friends vs. the Other Kind - deals with changing friendships, what is a real friend, peer pressure, reaching out and resolving conflicts.

3. Middle School Confidential Book 3: What's Up with My Family? - Coming out in January, this book will deal with family matters such as sibling rivalry, divorce, trust and decision making.

The Middle School Confidential series, written by Annie Fox and illustrated by Matt Kindt, is truly unique. The comic book/graphic novel form is a great way to illustrate true life situations. The advice, quizzes and the rest are also written in a browsable way that middle schoolers will find appealing. When your teens get older, they can graduate to Annie's other books, Too Stressed to Think and My Teen Survival Guide to Dating and Relating. Check out the Annie Fox website for more on her advice and books.

See also: Tips for Teens by Teen Author in Brain Snacks for Teens on the Go

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While doing research for Connect with your Teens or even while just browsing the web, I often come across interesting websites that I want to share with you. However, I wind up bookmarking more sites than I have time to write individual posts about. I thought I would share these 10 very different websites for teens with you all at once:

1. Mother Daughter Book Club - A website to find age-appropriate reading lists, favorite selections, author interviews and reviews from moms of books that mothers and daughters can share.

2. SMITHTeens - A website for anyone ages 13-19 to share their story in six-word memoirs. Entries may be featured in their upcoming book "Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure.

3. Life as a Teensizer - A blog about fashion, style, design and more for girls in their TEENS (sizes, that is).

4. Guys Read - To help boys become self-motivated lifelong readers this website recommends books that guys love. There are recommendations for guys of all ages.

5. TeenNick  - A website for teens and tweens, from the TeenNick television network, that contains games, videos, shows, quizzes, trends and community.

6. Sweet Search - A search engine made for students. It uses the insights of real people combined with technology to bring teens the websites they want and need and spare them the clutter of useless results. Owned and operated by the same parents company as findingDulcinea: Librarian of the Internet.

7. Challenge You - Teens and tweens can make and then play multiplayer online games for free. It is also a safe online community, where kids can also play other member's games, vote, add comments and chat.

8. Girls Communicating Career Connections - Videos, games and fun activities produced by middle school girls about science and engineering careers for girls from under-served groups.

9. TechXav: We Teens Love Tech - A blog about technology written by eight teenagers aged 14 and 15.

10. Next Generation Journal: The Opinion Site for "The Next Generation" - Created by high school and college students, this website is a platform for teens and young adults to express their opinions about the issues that affect them most. "Next Generation Journal is an interactive Op/Ed page where teens and young adults can submit original opinion articles, discussion topics, and commentaries about issues including politics, world affairs, domestic news, sports, and culture. Visitors are encouraged to not only read the opinions posted, but also to consider and contribute their own unique viewpoints."

I hope you will all find at least a few that your teens will enjoy. Feel free to suggest any others websites for teens in the comments.

See also: 
Websites for Teenagers - 2 Different and Interesting Sites
Social Websites for Teens and Tweens

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The premiere of the sixth season of Lost is still a few months away, but the buzz about this incredible TV show never stops. More than any other show, people can't get enough of it. Here are few pieces of Lost news I wanted to share:

Lost Auction
Profiles in History, the world's largest Hollywood memorabilia auctioneer, will be holding a "Lost" Auction after the series finale next May. The items to be sold will include props, costumes, set pieces and artifacts from throughout all seven seasons of Lost. Many of the items were on display this past summer at Comic-Con in San Diego.

Here are a few of the items included in the Lost Auction:
1. Penny's letter written to Desmond placed in the book to be read when he believes his life would end
2. Danielle Rousseau's Music Box
3. Virgin Mary statues from Yemi's airplane
4. Charlie's Drive Shaft ring
5. Sawyer's copy of Watership Down
For the full list with pictures see the Lost Preview page from the auction website.

Lost Poster Hieroglyphics
As happens every season, a new poster for Season six of Lost has been released. There are two very interesting observations. The first is that it contains the pictures of people that have died on Lost, in addition to the characters that are still alive. This makes things look like Jack's plan with the bomb to change the future might have worked.

The other item of interest on the poster just came to light more recently. It turns out that the words on the poster "The Final Season" contain what look like hieroglyphics. Popular Mechanics magazine, big fans of Lost, sent the poster to Dr. James Allen, professor of Egyptology, to decipher. His interpretation is that "The hieroglyphs spell out two Egyptian words, meaning 'Who is the guide?' or 'Who is the leader?'" What do you think this means?

See also: Top 70 Lost Quotes - Season 1-5

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Another Sunday, another list of interesting articles you might have missed this week. Here are the articles about pop culture, technology and teens from the week ending 10/17/2009 that I would like to share with you:

1. The Explicit Books Teens Read (and the ones we read when we were their age) - Entertainment Weekly

2. Forget the Thanksgiving Day Parade; Glee gets a World Series Game - TV Squad'

3. 100 Best Blogs for Healthy Parents - Online Nursing Programs.net

4. Abrams Keeps it all in the Fan Family: Star Trek', 'Lost' mastermind expanding brand - Variety

5. Kris Allen's self-titled album cover revealed! (And the five things we learned from it.) - Entertainment Weekly

6. Top 10 Games You Can Play on Facebook - Mashable

7. Simpsons Still Haunts After 2 Decades of 'Treehouse of Horror' - Wired

8. Monty Python on Independent Film Channel in October - Examiner

9. Top 10 Reminder Tools for Forgetful Minds - Lifehacker

10. 'Flashfoward': the Next 'Lost' or the Next 'Heroes'? - Newsweek Pop Vox blog

Of course one of the biggest stories this past week was about the "balloon boy" and the fallout from it. However, I don't think anyone missed that story and if you did just check any news site and you will find multiple articles.

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Inside College: The Insider's Guide to Everything College is new website created by Alloy Education, a division of Alloy Media & Marketing, the creators of many teen websites. What sets this website apart from most is that all of its information is given in lists.

Inside College is a website for anyone and everyone. Not only does it have a tremendous amount of information for teens looking into college and for college students, but also for anyone curious about anything to do with college. Some of the most popular lists include everything from "The Top 50 College Libraries" to "Campuses Where Movies Were Filmed" to "Colleges For Students Slow to Make Friends". The lists were written by Steven Antonoff, educational consultant and author of the book, The College Finder.

To find lists that interest you, there is a link for most popular lists, you can use their search tool, or you can browse lists by topic. The lists are divided into these overall topics:

1. Majors
2. The Learning Environment - calendars, special programs ...
3. World View - study abroad, colleges overseas ...
4. College Costs - scholarships, grants, low tuition
5. Student Body
6. Student Experience
7. Athletics
8. Hidden Gems - best schools you've never heard of
9. College Admission
10. College Trivia - random,weird, funky and fun
11. Helpful Stuff - resources the experts use

Inside College plans on adding a scholarship search tool, forums, video content and a personal profile feature soon. Additional lists will also be added. What I love about Inside College is that lists are so much quicker and more fun to read than essays. There is a list for almost anything on this website, however, if you can think of a topic that they don't have, Inside College has a "Suggest a List" link right on the homepage.

See also:
Should Rankings Matter in College Selection? 

What College's Look For in an Applicant
5 Great Lists for College Bound Students
College Search and Admission Advice for both Parents and Teens
Top 3 Student College Review Websites
Applying to Law School? - Think Twice

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The premiere of the second movie in the Twilight franchise, New Moon, is still over a month away, get the excitement in the air is palpable. The New Moon Soundtrack was slated for release on Tuesday, October 20, 2009. Tuesday is the day of the week that music is normally released. However, due to the overwhelming buzz, the release was moved up to this Friday, October 16th.

The New Moon Soundtrack features songs by Death Cab for Cutie, The Killers, Muse, OK Go and others. The Twilight Soundtrack, featuring Linkin Park, Paramore and Muse was a big hit and increased the fan base of many of the bands on the album. There is every reason to believe that the New Moon Soundtrack will be just as, if not more, successful.

Taking advantage of the popularity of The Twilight Saga, and the current hysteria, other New Moon merchandise is for sale. Do you want to learn more about the movie before it opens? The Twilight Saga: New Moon - The Official Illustrated Movie Companion is already for sale. Getting ready for 2010? You can buy The Twilight Saga - New Moon 2010 Movie Calendar. You can also find Twilight New Moon bookmarks, either individually or as a set of four. There is one for Edward; Jacob; Jacob and Bella; and New Moon in general.

This week's People magazine will only fuel the hype. People's special New Moon issue will hit the stands this Friday. "Robert Pattinson shares his baby photos, Taylor Lautner growls for the fans and Kristen Stewart gets intense." The magazine will also contain exclusive New Moon behind the scenes photos. Have fun, New Moon fans.

See also: 
Top 20 Fall Movies for Teens 
New Moon on Cover of EW Fall Movie Preview

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Marlene Wallach, the President of Wilhelmina Kids & Teens modeling agency, has written a collection of tween lifestyle books. These books were created to help every girl be the best she can be. Marlene also has a website, Just Ask Marlene, created to empower girls to find their unique beauty and have it shine from the inside out. Marlene is not trying to turn girls into models. Her goal is to give tween girls the confidence and tools to look and feel their best and to battle the overwhelming feelings of self-consciousness that are so prevalent in teens and tween girls.

There are four books in the tween lifestyle collection:

My Self: A Guide to Me - Probably the most unique and important of the four. My Self includes sections on self-esteem issues, the 10 commandments of body image, how to speak up and negotiate, how to give and take criticism, frenemies, bullying, relaxation, inspiration and more.

My Life: A Guide to Health and Fitness - Includes sports and exercise, a meal planner, sleep and health and fitness issues, which are important at any age.

My Look: A Guide to Fashion & Style - Including are tips on how to create a mood wall; how to shop till you drop in friends or sisters closets, sales and thrift shops; keeping a wardrobe diary; clothes for different figures and packing for trips, sleepovers, etc.

My Beauty: A Guide to Looking and Feeling Great - A guide to hair, including hair styles for different faces and salons; makeup, fresh and free of allergies and skincare, water so important.

The books are light and colorful and are packed with quizzes, techniques, interviews, games, charts, quotes, tips and more. Marlene's lifestyle books will also be useful to any parent struggling to help their tweens deal with any of these issues. They would make a great gift for single fathers struggling to understand their tween daughters. Much of what is contained in the My Self and My Life books can be applied to boys also. There is so little written for and about tween boys, that it is great that those two books are fairly unisex.

Don't forget to also take a look at the Just Ask Marlene (JAM) website. It has areas on the four topics that the book cover, plus a section on modeling, another section called Fun, containing downloads, giveaways, videos, discussions and a blog. The books and website are intended for tweens and teens approximately 8 - 14 years old. Both the Just Ask Marlene website and her My Self, My Life, My Look and My Beauty books aim to get tweens to stop trying to be perfect and to start feeling good about who they are.

See also:  
20 Coming of Age Novels for Teens
Modeling for Tweens - Interview, Contests, Books and more
YA Authors and Musicians Take On Bullying

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Below are links to stories that appeared this past week on the Internet. I selected stories dealing with teens, tech and pop culture that I hoped would interest you.


Teens and Tech

10 Best Educational Online Games for Students - Radical Parenting

20 Fantastic Free iPhone Apps for Parents - Mashable

Google for Teens and Students - Examiner

Barnes & Noble May Soon Unveil Its Own E-Reader Device - Media Decoder

Pop Culture

Lauren Graham officially cast on Parenthood - TV Squad

Castle Halloween episode: Vampire fetish + costumes = promising! - EW Popwatch

New Documentary: Inside the Life of Robert Pattinson - The Insider

Exclusive: NBC may move up Chuck launch - EW: The Ausiello Files

Modern Family, Cougar Town Live; Southland Dies - E!

Gossip threesome and Lost Scoop! The Best Thing You'll Read Today - E! I am including this mostly because of this one comment made by Kristin: "I'm hearing from Lost sources that every single shot of the first few episodes are so revealing that the producers have convinced ABC to NOT SHOW A SINGLE FRAME before the new season airs. No promo scenes, no photos, no nada! So you will be completely in the dark, but it is for good reason: The twists they're planning are so good, you will WANT to be surprised. Trust me."

I am going to try to make this a regular Sunday feature. Let me know if you enjoyed this post of links to teens, tech and pop culture and if you would like this to become a regular feature.

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Adam Lambert fans no longer have to wait for his CD to go on sale November 24th to hear a new song from him. American Idol's newest runner-up has recorded the song "Time for Miracles", the theme song for 2012, the new end-of-the-world disaster movie by Roland Emmerich. Thanks to Moviefone and PopEater, below is an exclusive preview of the making of "Time for Miracles" as well as Adam Lambert sing it over footage of 2012.

The soundtrack to 2012 will go on sale on November 10th, two weeks before Adam Lambert's untitled CD. The movie 2012 will hit theaters worldwide on November 13th. This doomsday movie stars John Cusack, Amanda Peet, Danny Glover, Thandie Newton, Oliver Platt and Woody Harrelson.

Watch the Adam Lambert/2012 video featuring the song "Time for Miracles":



See also:
Majors & Minors - Teen Singing TV Contest with Celeb Coaches
Adam Lambert CD could top American Idol sales
Top 20 Fall Movies for Teens

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Robert Hilburn, music critic for the Los Angeles Times from 1970 to 2005 has written a new book of his memoirs, Corn Flakes with John Lennon and Other Tales from a Rock 'n' Roll Life. This fascinating book goes on sale on October 13, 2009.

In Corn Flakes with John Lennon, Hilburn writes about the most famous rock and pop stars that he interviewed over the years. We learn a great deal about the real people behind the interview. Hilburn does a wonderful job in revealing the human side of music legends such as Johnny Cash, Elton John, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Janis Joplin, Bono, Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jackson, Kurt Cobain and of course, John Lennon, among others.

As one of the top music critics of the time, and having launched the careers of Elton John and others, Hilburn was given a great deal of access to rock celebrities. He befriended many of them but was still always a tremendous fan. He was passionate about music. One of the more interesting reveals in Corn Flakes with John Lennon is that many of these legendary rock stars were such big fans of each other.

From Bono's introducation to Corn Flakes with John Lennon:

"The book documents Robert Hilburn's love of performers in country, rock and pop, with early hustles of Elvis and The Colonel; his love of words, with writings about Leonard Cohen, Hank Williams, Kris Kristofferson and Bob Dylan; the chemistry set that is band membership, from the Beatles to U2 to Nirvana.  All documented by his gracious person and unforgiving prose."

What a great book for parents and teens to share. Teens can learn more about the early rockers that their parents listen to and parents can learn about more recent musicians such as Kurt Cobain, and share their memories from the past. With The Beatles Rock Band and various versions of Guitar Hero already helping parents and teens connect through music, Corn Flakes with John Lennon comes along at the perfect time.

See also: 
 Nowhere Boy Review, John Lennon's Birthday and the Quarrymen Perform
Beatles Video on Why Music Matters
 

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Do you like movies? If so, you need to check out Jinni, the movie taste engine. Jinni does for movies what Pandora does for music. It does a great job helping you find movies that suit your tastes.

Chosen by CNET as the best movie recommendation on the web, Jinni allows you to search for movies by plots, mood, titles, people; almost anything you want. From the Jinni about page: "Jinni is powered by the Movie Genome, a big, ongoing project with the Jinni community to describe video more complexly. Using proprietary semantic technology, a Jinni search takes you inside plot, mood, style, praise and more - for search that reflects how we think and talk about movies." Jinni can also be used to search for television shows.

This video will show you just how Jinni works:



Another benefit of Jinni is that once you find a recommended movie, you can click directly from Jinni to Hulu, Netflix, Amazon, iTunes and other sites to find the movie. Other features on Jinni include finding your movie personality, a social community, and the ability to share searches and interesting pages on Facebook, Twitter and other sites. To celebrate their public launch, for every person that signs up for Jinni's FREE registration, Jinni will donate money to the Best Friends Animal Society. All the more reason to try out Jinni now.

See Also: Movie Review Intelligence - Rotten Tomatoes has Competition

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Do you remember how popular the Rubik's Cube was back in the 80s when it first launched? We would spend hours trying to solve a puzzle that seemed impossible to solve. A new program called You Can Do The Rubik's Cube was recently developed as a way of improving self-esteem in teens and tweens.

With electronic games so popular now, we don't hear much about the Rubik's Cube anymore. However, there exists a Speed Cubing community of people that can solve the cube but try to do it faster each time. The record time in which a Rubik's Cube has been solved is 7.8 seconds. Hard to believe, but true.

I spoke to Scott Mercer, the campaign director of "You Can Do the Rubik's Cube" to find out more about this campaign. It is believed that solving the Rubik's Cube would instill a sense of self-esteem in anyone that is able to do so. He spoke to a few of the most well-known speed cubers to find out how they do it. What are their hints and secrets and best practices? The campaign then made their own Solution Guide, tested it on kids, and reworked it.

Will solving the puzzle still help self-esteem if you use a solution guide? Yes. The guide still requires thinking. Everyone starts the puzzle from a different point, Even when following the guide, the solution isn't simple. But it does become solvable for the average person. There is still a great feeling of accomplishment in solving it.

The campaign also decided that "You Can Do the Rubik's Cube" would be a great program for groups, such as schools and youth groups. There are many educational opportunities that can be found in the cube. They designed a "Solution Kit" that can be purchased for use by groups. The kit is made up of Rubik's Cubes, Solution Guides in pamphlet form, posters, stickers and certificates.

Individuals just need to purchase a Rubik's Cube and then they can download the Solutions Guide from the You Can Do the Rubik's Cube website for free. The website also contains community forums for participants to share the experience, a blog and information for teachers and youth organizations.

This would be a great activity for parents to do together with their teens and tweens. Imagine learning something for the first time along with your child. One teen, upon solving the Rubik's Cube with this guide, said "I learned that I'm smarter than I thought I was". Eventually you will be able to solve the cube without needing the "You Can Do the Rubik's Cube" guide.

See also:
LEGO Life of George Combines Digital and Physical Gaming
3 Teen and Tween Logic Solitaire Games

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Growing up in our current environment, teens today are much more aware of the problems we face with the Earth's climate and ecology. Many companies and websites have responded by helping teens go green by giving them information and chances to help our planet.

10 Websites for Eco-friendly teens:

1. Teens Turning Green - National movement of teens transforming the world by investigating, advocating and educating. The goal of the site is to inform teens about an all-encompassing eco-lifestyle through peer to peer education and outreach programs.

2. Your Environment. Your Choice. - An EPA website to provide teens with the information they need to make environmentally sound choices. The website includes news, tips, careers, resources and games.

3. Friends for Change - This Disney website might be more tween friendly. A great informative site for younger teens and kids to learn about the environment through the use of videos and tips.

4. Eco Company - Both a video website and national TV program, Eco-Company encourages teens to make their own videos on any aspect of being green and upload them to the website. The TV show is hosted by a diverse group of teens that are enthusiastic about preserving the planet they will inherit. There is a list of local stations that Eco-Company TV appears on.

5. High School Environmental Center - Another EPA website, it includes not only information on all aspects of the environment, but also features careers & internships, community service projects a student center and teaching center among others.

6. Climate Classroom for Teens - Created by the National Wildlife Foundation in partnership with Al Gore and the makers of An Inconvenient Truth. They create curricula to educate high school students and also have information on the website directly for teens.

7. Alliance for Climate Education - They spread awareness of global warming through educational assemblies in school.

8. Humane Teen - Everything a teen needs to learn and get involved with humanity towards animals.

9. Earthwatch Teen Teams - Teens can actually work in the field where they can make a difference, for the health of the planet, and themselves.

10. It's Getting Hot in Here: Dispatches from the youth climate movement - A blog that features student and youth leaders from the movement to stop global warming.

See also:
Change My World Now Website Empowers Youth
T-shirts made from recycled bottles
Colbert Report video on global warming
The Green Teen: Review of Teen's Guide to Saving the Planet

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The Lovely Bones has been one of the most highly anticipated movies of 2009. Why? It is an adaptation of the 2002 best-selling novel, The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold. The book sold over a million copies and was on bestseller lists for over a year. The movie is directed by Peter Jackson, director of the hugely popular and successful Lord of the Rings trilogy. The cast is full of A-list actors. And, I think people are curious how a novel with a dead teenage girl narrating from heaven can even be successfully adapted into a movie.

The Lovely Bones movie stars Saoirse Ronan (Atonement) as Susie, the 14 year old narrator, Rachel Weisz as her mother, Mark Wahlberg as her father, Stanley Tucci as the killer, Susan Sarandon as Susie's grandmother and Michael Imperioli as the investigating police detective. The story, in a nutshell, takes place in 1973, when Susie is raped and murdered. Susie watches both her family and the killer from heaven.

Here is a preview of the 2009 Peter Jackson film "The Lovely Bones":



The Lovely Bones opens on December 11, 2009. Don't be surprised if it gets nominated for a slew of Oscars. The Lovely Bones should be a movie that both adults and teens will be lining up to see.

See also: Top 20 Fall Movies for Teens

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What do you get when you combine a safe social networking site for tweens, with fun collectibles? You get FaceChipz, a new website in which your tweens have to exchange collectible friendship tokens to friend each other online.

FaceChipz was created by parents who were concerned about tweens online. These tweens, both boys and girls, had aged out of children's websites but weren't ready for sites such as Facebook or MySpace because of safety concerns. With the FaceChipz website tweens can only be friended by a real life friend. Tweens exchange FaceChipz, which look like poker chips but have an emoticon on one side and a code on the other. Your kids can only communicate with others that they've physically exchange chips with, no strangers allowed.

Many other safety features have been integrated into the FaceChipz website. To read about these safety features and their Code of Conduct, go to Kids Safety page on FaceChipz. FaceChipz is monitored by the Entertainment Software Rating Board and is a participant in WiredTrust's Socially Safe program.

FaceChipz is also about fun. Features on the website include customizable profile pages, instant messaging, photo uploading, status updates, Secret Message box, a list maker and a personal profile FaceChipz collection viewer. This last feature is for tweens to keep track of their chipz collection. Making chipz fun objects with various colors and emoticons is part of the fun of FaceChipz. Kids will want to collect all varieties. Since each chip costs only about a dollar apiece, it is a fun, inexpensive collectible.

The chips can be purchased on the FaceChipz website store and from a few retailers such as ToysRus. I love that these take up almost no room, unlike past collectibles such a beany babies that are still collecting dust in my house. More FaceChipz will be made in different colors and designs, and possibly special ones will be made around holidays and events. FaceChipz truly is something that both parents and tweens should love. It is extremely safe, a great social networking website and has a fun, inexpensive collectible component.

For more info: FaceChipz page for parents and educators

See also: My Secret Circle - Secure Social Networking for tween girls

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