Letters About Literature, 2009 Awards
Congratulations to the students listed below, who were awarded 1st place, 2nd place, and Honorable Mention awards at the state level in the 2009 Letters About Literature Contest.
Letters About Literature is a national reading-writing contest offered by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, in partnership with Target Stores and in cooperation with affiliate state centers for the book. Readers in grades 4-12 are invited to write a personal letter to an author, living or dead, from any genre—fiction or nonfiction, contemporary or classic, explaining how that author’s work changed the student’s way of thinking about the world or themselves. There are three competition levels: Level I for children grades 4-6; Level II for grades 7 and 8, and Level III for students in grades 9-12.
In addition to the national sponsors named above, the Letters About Literature contest in Maine is sponsored by the David Royte Fund. The David Royte Fund, created in 2006 by Merle and Leonard Nelson and Dr. and Mrs. Paul Royte, honors the father of Merle and Paul, Mr. David Royte. Mr. Royte served as a valued member of the Board of Directors of the Maine Humanities Council for many years.
Level I (grades 4-6)
First place winner: Lucy Sternbach, Grade 6, Camden Rockport Middle School, Cmaden. Rules by Cynthia Lord
Second Place Winner: Tess Hinchman, Grade 6, Center for teaching and Learning, Edgecomb. Does My Head Look Big In This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah
Third Place Winners: Ashley Burr, Grade 6, Appleton Village School, Appleton. Thank You, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco
Jenny Herrman, Grade 6, Scarborough Middle School, Scarborough. Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pies by Jordan Sonnenblick
Level II (grades 7-8)
First Place Winner: Elyce Oliver, Grade 8, Biddeford Middle School, Biddeford. Night by Elie Wiesel
Second Place Winners: Clarice Diebold, Grade 8, Cape Elizabeth Middle School, Cape Elizabeth. My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult
Emily Carter, Grade 7, Scarborough Middle School, Scarborough. That Girl Lucy Moon by Amy Timberlake
Third Place Winner: Blake Huerfano, Grade 8, Waterville Junior High School, Waterville. The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper
Honorable Mention: Calvin Butler, Grade 7, Marshwood Middle School, Eliot. Facing the Lion by Joseph Lekuton
Level III (grades 9-12)
First Place Winner: Kenyon Fraser, Grade 9, Oak Hill High School, Wales. Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewen
Second Place Winner: Una Huand, Grade 11, Maine School of Science and Mathematics, Limestone. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Third Place Winner: Nick Moore, Grade 11, Noble High School, North Berwick. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
Honorable Mention: Hina Hashmi, Grade 10, Bangor High School, Bangor. The Lives of a Cell by Dr. Lewis Thomas
Caleb Shortt, Grade 10, Bangor High School, Bangor. Ishmael by Daniel Quinn
Nora Willauer, Grade 9, Watershed School, Rockland. The Glass Harmonica by Louise Marley
Complete List of Semi-Finalists (Listed by School)
Leila Musavi
Caleb Shortt, honorable mention
Keji Xu
Jillian Kitchen
Ambureen Rana
Shawn Williams
Alex Cooley
Clarice Diebold, second place
Courtney Guerette
Tess Hinchman, second place
Patrick Jackson
Graydon Nuki
Kenyon Fraser, first place
Taren McGray
Peter O'Brien
Emily Craft
Fatuma Haji
Klass Pruiksma
Calvin Butler, honorable mention
Mica Sophia Perruzzi
Clover Slagle
Quinn Campbell
Peyton Dill
Mitchell Jacques
Emily Carter, second place
Jenny Herrman, third place
Brenda Reddy
Nora Wilaver, honorable mention
