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Local Youth Services Librarian Amber Creger is in to talk about teen read week. For the past 4 1/2 years Creger has served as a Youth Services Librarian with the Chicago Public Library. She is an active member of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association. Creger has worked with youth of all ages and cultures in a variety of capacities and places, from libraries, schools, and college, to cities, farms, and rural African villages. Before working in libraries, she spent time slinging coffee and working at a used bookstore. Teen Read Week is Oct 18-24th. The 2009 Teen Read Week theme is "Read Beyond Reality @ your library,"which promotes a variety of books from sci-fi, fantasy or alternate reality, to encourage teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it. As families navigate the worst economic crisis in decades, libraries provide a safe, free community center where teens can spend their free time and find fun, engaging materials to read for pleasure. Research shows that teens who read for fun - and not just for school activities - score significantly higher on reading tests, while those who don't lose critical reading skills important for academic and workplace success. With so many options for entertainment, not to mention the increased amount of schoolwork in the teen years, busy and distracted teens often overlook reading for pleasure. Whether it is a book, magazine, audiobook or graphic novel, young adult literature has become a rare bright spot in the world of publishing. As overall book sales stagnate, teen literature sales for both hardcover and paperbacks outpace sales for adult books. Teen literature is considered successful enough that Borders began dedicating space just for teen books in all of its stores in 2009.According to the Association of American Publishers, sales for children and young adult hardcovers soared in May 2009, with a rise of 41 percent for the month and 36 percent for the year-to-date. Paperbacks likewise sold well, with a 2 percent increase over the previous year. By contrast, adult hardcovers are down nearly 25 percent in the year 2009. During Teen Read Week, YALSA will announce the Teens' Top Ten, a "teen choice" list in which teens nominate and choose their favorite books of the previous year. The winners will also be announced during a Webcast featuring World Wrestling Entertainment Superstars and Divas. This year, teens cast more than 11,000 online votes for their favorite books. Teen Read Week 2009 Promotional Partners include ALA Graphics, Evanced Solutions, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Galaxy Press, Henry Holt, Listening Library/Random House, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and Walden Media. Nonprofit Supporters include Adlit.org, American Association of School Administrators, American Booksellers Association, Cable in the Classroom, Kidsnet, National Association of Secondary School Principals, National Council of Teachers of English, readergirlz, SmartGirl.org, National Education Association, National School Boards Association, Speak Up Press, International Reading Association, TeenInk and The N/Noggin. Since its inception in 1998, Teen Read Week (www.ala.org/teenread), sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA) has encouraged teens to visit their public and school libraries, select their own reading material and read for the fun of it.