4 Kids | And the Winners Are

....Well, you've probably already seen the names of the winners of the Children's Book Week Writing Contest. Before I list them here, let me say one thing:

You 4th, 5th and 6th graders rock!!! I read over 600 stories and they were all so very, very good. Some of them left me hanging (in a really good way). Some made me laugh. But they ALL made me want to stand up and raise some serious jazz hands.

It was tough to pick 3 winners because they were all so good, but we had to pick 3 winners, and we think we picked 3 really good ones.

Read the winning stories right here. Congratulations Sienna Smith (4th grade winner), Stephanie Mendez (5th grade winner) and Jacob Esplin (6th grade winner). Keep writing. Please!!!

And I can't thank our distinguished authors enough: Deborah Underwood, Bruce Hale, and Gennifer Choldenko. Boy let me tell you...you won't meet three cooler people anywhere. I was lucky enough to get to hear all three of them speak. Talk about some serious inspiration. And if you want to be inspired by the creative genius of these three authors, check out the library's catalog and type in one of their names. You won't be disappointed.

So now I must apologize that I haven't read any children's books this week because I was a little busy. But I'll be back to it soon and have some great reading recommendations for you next Tuesday.

Until then, happy reading!

4 Kids | 3,218

3,218 is the number of nights -- in a row -- that Alice Ozma and her Dad read together starting when she was 9 years old. That's three thousand, two hundred and eighteen nights in a row. Wow! (For you adults lurking who might be interested in Alice, check out her website or her book The Reading Promise.)

Can you imagine making -- and keeping -- a promise to read every single night? Alice and her Dad called it their reading streak. And if memory serves, they always read at least 10 minutes together. Every night!

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Reading is such a wonderful way to share time with someone you love. And it's fun to go back to the books we read when we were younger...you know, like all those great Dr. Seuss books!

I read Alice's book in one day and just loved it. I especially loved her mention of so many wonderful kids' books. So today I thought I'd share just a small portion of Alice's reading list. All of these are available at SSJCPL branch libraries; if you don't see the book you want at your local library branch, place a request on it!

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett: The story of 10-year-old Mary who comes to live in a lonely house on the Yorkshire moors and discovers an invalid cousin and mysteries of a locked garden. 

Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko: A twelve-year-old boy named Moose moves to Alcatraz Island in 1935 when guards' families were housed there, and has to contend with his extraordinary new environment in addition to life with his autistic sister.The story has a great twist at the end!

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg:
Having run away with her younger brother to live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 12-year-old Claudia strives to keep things in order in their new home and to become a changed person and a heroine to herself.

Read with someone you love!

And don't forget the Children's Book Week Writing Contest. Contest information and deadlines here! 

4 Kids | Your Chance to Meet Somebody Famous

That's right. In honor of Children's Book Week (May 13-19), the Library is hosting a special writing contest for students in 4th, 5th and 6th grades. We will select one winner from each grade, and a famous children's author will visit the winner (and his/her classmates) during Children's Book Week. 

I've got your attention now, don't I?

Oh, did I mention that each winner also receives a Kindle? Yep. 

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All you have to do is finish the story started by one of our famous children's authors. Your story should be no longer than 250 words, including the part started by the author.

Get creative. Let your imagination go wild. You can do this!!

You've got about 3 weeks. If you're going to mail in your story, it must be postmarked no later than May 1, 2013. If you email your story, the deadline is May 6, 2013.

Ok, ok. Click here for all the information on the Children's Book Week Writing Contest. And thank you to the Library & Literacy Foundation for San Joaquin County for their support of this fun contest! 

And to read books written by our famous children's authors, click on the following:

Books by Deborah Underwood, author of the 4th grade story starter

Books by Bruce Hale, author of the 5th grade story starter

Books by Gennifer Choldenko, author of the 6th grade story starter

Happy Writing! And good luck!