Letters About Literature Anthology 2017 Letters About Literature
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2017 Letters About Literature Anthology Letters About Literature 2017 Winning Letters by Indiana students 2017 Indiana Center for the Book www.in.gov/library/icb.htm book cover LaL.indd 1 Mar/16/17 1:01 PM Letters About Literature 2017 Winning Letters by Indiana students Indiana Center for the Book Director Suzanne Walker Indiana State Librarian Jacob Speer IA IND NA S T Y A T A R E LI B R Published 2017 Indiana State Library 140 N. Senate Avenue Indianapolis, IN 46204 Letters About Literature Letters About Literature is a national reading-writing contest for readers in grades 4 through 12 sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, the Indiana Center for the Book in the Indiana State Library and The James & Madeleine McMullan Family Foundation. We hope you will participate in the 2017–2018 contest! What is a Center for the Book? Are there any books in the Indiana Center for the Book? Not really…Starting in 1984, the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress began to establish affiliate centers in the 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These Center for the Book affiliates carry out the National Center’s mission in their local areas. Programs like this one highlight their area’s literary heritage and call attention to the importance of books, reading, literacy, and libraries. The State Centers gather annually at the Library of Congress for an Idea Exchange Day. 2017 Letters About Literature Congratulations from the Indiana Center for the Book We are excited to honor your work in our 2017 book. We offer a special thanks to the James and Madeleine McMullan Family Foundation for supporting our Youth Literary Day and Letters About Literature Award Ceremony that was held on April 29, 2017 at the Indiana State Library. Our Youth Literary Day was a great event that included writing workshops, author signings, and readings of several of the award winning letters. We also offer a special thanks to the Indiana State Library Foundation, whose support we are constantly thankful for. Every year we do our best to keep the works in this book true to what the child submitted. Sometimes there are grammatical errors, but we like to think that these errors remind us of the youthfulness of our writers. Later in life students will be able to look back at their young writings as a testament to how far they’ve come in their writing journeys. It should also be noted that several letters won prizes and are not included in this book due to lack of permission by the parent at the time of printing. The letters in this collection are heartfelt interpretations from young writers that touch on a variety of difficult themes including gender equality, growing up, losing a loved one, adjusting to a move, cancer and health, being adopted, racism, body image, war, and other serious topics that our Indiana youth struggle with daily. Millions of writers create new worlds for us to explore every day. Sometimes those writers have the honor of touching a young life. These letters tell those stories. Enjoy these letters. They are a gift. Suzanne Walker – Director, Indiana Center for the Book iv 2017 Letters About Literature Contents Level I Finalists 2 1st Place: Nithya Murthy – Riverside Intermediate School, Fishers 2nd Place: Olivia Hasenkamp – Sugar Creek Elementary, New Palestine 3rd Place: Elise Crecelius – Castle North Middle School, Newburgh Level I Honorable Mentions 8 Alexander Boeckmann – Park Tudor School, Indianapolis Elizabeth Pavey – Blair Pointe Elementary, Peru Morgan Schaffer – Hasten Hebrew Academy, Indianapolis Kyla Stalbaum – Zionsville Middle School, Zionsville Glen Taylor – Riverside Intermediate School, Fishers Mia Wilhite – Zionsville Middle School, Zionsville Level I Semifinalists 20 Emma Ahern – Zionsville Middle School Paige Leman – Zionsville Middle School Samantha Arendt – Castle North Middle Ethan Lindeman – Zionsville Middle School School Zach McEwen – Riverside Intermediate School Rory Barnard – Sugar Creek Elementary School Michelle McLaughlin – Zionsville Middle Will Bowen – Zionsville Middle School School Emma Chamberlain – Zionsville, IN Ben Olsen – Southern Indiana Bella Colon – Zionsville Middle School Lara Rahman – Park Tudor School Ian Davis – Northview Elementary Lillie Recker – Benjamin Franklin Middle Yael Ehrlich – Hasten Hebrew Academy School Brayden Emery – Greensburg Elementary Jacob Rose – Salem Middle School Megan Gilmour – Castle North Middle School Nate Sapp – Riverside Intermediate School Ellie Hahn – Zionsville Middle School William Schell – Zionsville Middle School Mallory Heerdt – Zionsville Middle School Jack Schlueter – Zionsville Middle School Eli Hocking – Castle North Middle School Emma Schwartz – Northview Elementary Shelby Hunn – Zionsville Middle School Lainee Sellers – Northview Elementary McCullough Jordan – Park Tudor School Carolyn Williams – Union Elementary Cookie Kaur – Zionsville Middle School Maya Yaari – Hasten Hebrew Academy Alayna Lautner – Castle North Middle School Cora Zink – Fall Creek Intermediate v 2017 Letters About Literature Level II Finalists 74 1st Place: Yael Cohen – Hasten Hebrew Academy, Indianapolis 2nd Place: Shay Orentlicher – Hasten Hebrew Academy, Indianapolis 3rd Place: Arianna Sia – Greensburg Jr. High, Greensburg Level II Honorable Mentions 80 Barakah Abdo-Baari – West Lafayette Jr./Sr. HS, West Lafayette Samarrah Denney – Central Middle School, Columbus Tal Friedman – Hasten Hebrew Academy, Indianapolis Brooklyn Halsey – West Noble Middle School, Ligonier Anastazja Krostenko – Stanley Clark School, South Bend Madelyn Long – Clark Pleasant Middle School, Greenwood Katie McLean – Greensburg Jr. High, Greensburg Grayson Russ – Jasper Middle School, Jasper Level II Semifinalists 96 Amelia Ahner – Jasper Middle School Sophie Mariacher – Wisdom Builders Hannah Allen – Jasper Middle School Caroline McCance – Jasper Middle School Kinsey Bruder – Lebanon Middle School Jackson McPherron – Southridge Middle School Peyton Bryant – Central Middle School Madison Morgan – West Noble Middle School Adrian Buczkowski – Klondike Middle Herschel Nathan – Hasten Hebrew Academy School Desiree Null – West Noble Middle School Rivkah Bunes – Hasten Hebrew Academy Ty Ofer – Jasper Middle School Lyrika Burman – Salem Middle School Addison Reed – Salem Middle School Macy Clark – Southridge Middle School Truly Reffeitt – Wisdom Builders Taylor Cooney – Greensburg Jr. High Ethan Solomon – Hasten Hebrew Academy Rachel Curry – Belzer Middle School Samrawit Solomon – Hasten Hebrew Academy Emmy Gottsman – Brownsburg East Middle Emilie Sondhelm – Hasten Hebrew Academy School Madison Songer – Southridge Middle School Jordyn Hagerman – West Noble Middle Sarah Springmeyer – Greensburg Jr. High School Mya Stiles – Jasper Middle School Gabbie Haviland – Greensburg Jr. High Tatton Strassheim – Wisdom Builders Vianai Herrera – West Noble Middle School Konner Thyen – Southridge Middle School Kendalyn Hurm – Jasper Middle School Millie Tredway – Southridge Middle School Tanner Kane – Southridge Middle School vi 2017 Letters About Literature Level III Finalists 168 1st Place: Bronwynn Woodsworth – University High School, Indianapolis 2nd Place: Luke Schirmer – Four Seasons Academy, Lizton 3rd Place: Sarah Smith – Northwestern High School, Kokomo Level III Honorable Mentions 179 Shelby Giffen – Centerville High School, Centerville Mikayla Miller – Centerville High School, Centerville Sheena Tan – West Lafayette Jr./Sr. High School, West Lafayette Level III Semifinalists 187 Emilie Deibel – Centerville High School Emily Krieger – Taylor High School Brooke Minch – Switzerland County High School Marlon Robertson – Centerville High School Jolie Rusznak – Centerville High School Alex Shukri – Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School Abby Stewart – Centerville High School vii Level I 2017 Letters About Literature Level I 1st Place Nithya Murthy Riverside Intermediate School, Fishers Letter to Gloria Whelan Author of Listening for Lions Dear Gloria Whelan, There are sometimes in life where everything seems to be going perfectly, and then suddenly, everything changes. This happened to Rachel Sheridan when both of her parents died of influenza. A similar thing also happened to me when my grandmother died of a heart attack. In one beat she was alive, and in the beat that failed to come, she was gone. After reading the book, I realized that every moment is precious, and we have to cherish everyone we love, for they could be gone in an instant. Your book, Listening for Lions, has touched my heart in ways no book ever has. The life of Rachel is truly a magnificent one, full of adventure, sorrow, joy, realization, and courage. Learning about the life of Rachel, I wished that I could have a life as exciting as hers. Living in Africa, helping out in her parents hospital, it makes my daily routine look as fun as watching paint dry. Eventually, I got to the part where her parents died, and I realized that I should be thankful to be living the life I’m living, with both of my parents alive and well. As I read Listening for Lions, I didn’t just follow the life of Rachel, I experienced it. I felt what she felt: her grief when her parents perished, her homesickness for Africa, and the relief that flooded through her when she revealed the inheritance plot to Grandfather. All the emotions she felt I felt as I turned each page, my excitement growing with every word printed in the book. As a girl growing up during a time of female segregation, Rachel came to England on account