Library Development Services Letters About Literature

Text Size: A+| A-| A | Text Only Site | Accessibility

Library Development Services

Department
- Library, Oregon State
- Divisions

Letters About Literature

About Letters About Literature

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, invites readers in grades 4 through 12 to participate in Letters About Literature, a national reading-writing contest. To enter, readers write a personal letter to an author, living or dead, 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 in grades 4 through 6; Level II for grades 7 and 8, and Level III, grades 9 - 12.  Oregon selects one winner at each competition level. The three winners then go on to participate nationally. Oregon's winners are announced in April and a reception is held in their honor.

Target Stores, along with its parent company Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT), gives back more than $2 million a week to its local communities through grants and special programs. Since opening its first store in 1962, Target has partnered with nonprofit organizations, guests and team members to help meet community needs

The Center for the Book was established in 1977 as a public-private partnership to use the resources of the Library of Congress to stimulate public interest in books and reading.   For information about its activities and national reading promotion networks, visit www.loc.gov/cfbook.

Download and print the Guidelines/Entry Form (pdf).

For more information email Katie Anderson or call her at 503-378-2528.

Prizes

Approximately 56,000 young readers across the county participated in the 2008 Letters About Literature competition. Judges for the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress selected six national winners (two per competition level) and 12 national runners-up (four per competition level). National winners receive a Target GiftCard of $500. In addition, they win for their school or community library a Reading Promotion Grant of $10,000. National winners are instrumental in deciding how the library funds will be spent. The 12 national runners-up win for their school or community library a Reading Promotion Grant of $1,000, and likewise are involved in the awarding of the grant.

In Oregon, one winner and one runner-up is selected at each competition level every year. Judges at each competition level select honorable mentions and semi-finalists at their discretion, therefore the number varies from year to year. In 2008, Oregon had 10 honorable mentions and 92 semi-finalists. The three winners received $100 in cash, a $50 Target GiftCard, and a $500 Oregon College Savings Plan scholarship; Oregon runners-up received $50 in cash and a $250 Oregon College Savings Plan scholarship; honorable mentions received a $25 bookstore gift certificate and a $250 Oregon College Savings Plan scholarship; and semi-finalists received a $10 bookstore gift certificate.

In 2008, one of the national winners from competition Level I (4th-6th grade) was from Oregon. Hunter Hastings selected the library at Cal Young Middle School to recieve the $10,000 grant from Target. Hunter's letter is an excellent example for students thinking about entering future Letters About Literature contests. It is well-written, but most importantly it is written straight from his heart.