Letters About Literature - Winner's List for 2000

NATIONAL WINNER LEVEL I

Candice Brooke Halk, Cherry Valley, AR, for her letter to Bette Greene, author of The Summer of My German Soldier

NATIONAL WINNER LEVEL II

Helen Comber, Clarkstown High School North, New City, NY, for her letter to Rudolfo Anaya, author of Bless Me, Ultima

NATIONAL FINALISTS

LEVEL I

Amanda Vanderwarjer, Cornith, NY, for her letter to Judy Blume, author of Tiger Eyes

Hannah Richman, Kittanning, PA, for her letter to Melba Patillo Beals, author of Warriors Don't Cry

Melanie Beasley, Pompton Plains, NJ, for her letter to Lurlene McDaniel, author of Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep

Jonathan Wells, Jacksonville, FL, for his letter to Maya Angelou, author of the poem "I Rise"

Lisa M. Weiner, Yardley, PA, for her letter to Gary Paulsen, author of Hatchet

LEVEL II

Zuri Rice, Clarkston, GA, for her letter to Toni Morrison, author of Beloved

Jessica Tomer, Hollis, NH, for her letter to Amy Tan, author of The Joy Luck Club

Nicole DiLello, Congers, NY, for her letter to J. D. Salinger, author of Catcher in the Rye

Allison Jerabeck, Skaneateles, NY, for her letter to Theodore Seuss Geisel, author of The Sneeches

Diana Alberti, Pittsburgh, PA, for her letter to Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird

FIRST PLACE WINNERS AWARDED BY PARTICIPATING STATE CENTER FOR THE BOOK AFFILIATES

(Level I on first line and Level II on second line under each state unless otherwise noted)

ALASKA

Lindsey Reyes-Rufelli, Girdwood, AK, for her letter to Mary Pipher, author of Reviving Ophelia
Jennifer Lewis, Palmer, AK, for her letter to Stephen Crane, author of The Red Badge of Courage

ARIZONA

Lindsey Haines, Phoenix, AZ, for her letter to Robin Jones Gunn, author of Close Your Eyes
Paula Phelps, Cottonwood, AZ, for her letter to Richard Bach, author of Jonathan Livingston Seagull

ARKANSAS

Candice Brooke Halk, Cherry Valley, AR, for her letter to Bette Greene, author of The Summer of My German Soldier
Ryan Charles Sajder, Mt. Home, AR, for his letter to Mitch Albom, author of Tuesdays with Morrie

CALIFORNIA

Elise Castro, El Cajon, CA for her letter to Sharon Creech, author of Walk Two Moons
Patricia Liao, Diamond Bar, CA, for her letter to Joseph Conrad, author of Heart of Darkness

COLORADO

Brad Shepard, Aurora, CO, for his letter to Jack London, author of The Call of the Wild
Juilia Kirsch, Littleton, CO, for her letter to Laura Esquivel, author of Like Water for Chocolate and
Emily Pond, Littleton, CO, for her letter to Dr. Seuss, author of The Sneeches*
*A second winner in Level II

CONNECTICUT

Adam Silverman, West Hartford, CT, for his letter to Daniel Keyes, author of Flowers for Algernon
Jessica Wakeman, Fairfield, CT, for her letter to Elizabeth Wurtzel, author of Prozac Nation

ILLINOIS

Paul O'Connor, Peoria, IL, for his letter to Shel Silverstein, author of The Giving Tree
Ran Tyrell, Carbondale, IL, for a letter to Amy Tan, author of The Kitchen God's Wife

INDIANA

Michelle S. Bulin, Greentown, IN, for her letter to Ji Li Jiang, author of Red Scarf Girl
Rachel McColly, Lake Station, IN, for her letter to Danielle Steele, author of His Bright Light

KANSAS

Ashley Prichard, Riley, KS, for her letter to Stella Pevsner, author of How Could You Do It?
Sara Lee from Wichita, KS, for her letter to Alexander Solzehenitsyn, author of One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

LOUISIANA

Katie Stockton, Ruston, LA, for her letter to Astrid Lindgren, author of Pippi Longstocking
Jamie Allien, Monroe, LA, for his letter to Leo Buscaglia, author of The Fall of Freddie the Leaf

MARYLAND

Deanna Zook, Chesapeake Beach, MD, for her letter to Barbara Park, author of Mick Harte Was Here
Jessica Nauright, Ellicott City, MD for her letter to George Orwell, author of Down and Out in Paris and London

MINNESOTA

Amber Karjala, Shakopee, MN, for her letter to Eva Burke, author of Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul
Michael Newland, Zimmerman, MN, for his letter to Caroline Cooney, author of Among Friends

MISSOURI

Maurianna Randazzo, Glencoe, MO, for her letter to S.E. Hinton, author of The Outsiders
Samuel Warren Grabill, Harrisonville, MO, for his letter to Ray Bradbury, author of Farenheit 451

MONTANA

Jenni Love, Hudson, MT, for her letter to Louisa May Alcott, author of Little Women
Sonja Fields, Reed Point, MT for her letter to Richard Adams, author of Watership Down

NEBRASKA

Emily Benes, Raymond, NE, for her letter to Mildred Taylor, author of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
Matt Pieper, North Platte, NE, for his letter to John Grisham, author of The Chamber

NEW MEXICO

Nilsa Delhghany, Las Cruces, NM, for her letter to Betsy Byars, author of Cracker Jackson
Caitlin Goss, Silver City, NM, for her letter to Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird

NORTH CAROLINA

Ginny Moye, Mt. Olive, NC, for her letter to J. K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Kimberlyn Hickman, Wake Forest, NC, for her letter to Alan Paton, author of Cry, the Beloved Country

NORTH DAKOTA

Samantha Olson, Bismarck, ND, for her letter to the anonymous author of It Happened to Nancy
Morgan Reese, Bismarck, ND, for her letter to David Pelzer, author of The Lost Boy

OHIO

Max Bindernagel, Cleveland, OH, for his letter to Betsy Byars, author of Trouble River
Mary Schartman, Cincinnati, OH, for her letter to John Steinbeck, author The Grapes of Wrath

OKLAHOMA

Shannon Kranich, Edmond, OK, for her letter to J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Hobbit, and
Zachary Garrett, Broken Arrow, OK, for his letter to Arthur Ransome, author of Coot Club*
Adam Roll, Tulsa, OK, for his letter to Stephen Crane, author of The Red Badge of Courage
*A second winner in Level I

OREGON

Caitlin Turner, Wallowa, OR, for her letter to Sharon Creech, author of Walk Two Moons
Dannah Shuval, Tualatin, OR, for her letter to Ray Bradbury, author of Fahreneheit 451

TEXAS

Heather Anne Cale, New Caney, TX, for her letter to Anne Frank, author of Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl
Jessica Brier, Austin, TX, for her letter to Anne Frank, author of Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl

VERMONT

Witt Foster, Burlington, VT, for his letter to Paul Fleischman, author of Bandit's Moon
Jennifer Davis, West Hyde Park, VT, for her letter to Rinker Buck, author of Flight of Passage

VIRGINIA

Anthony Vorce, Appomattox, VA, for his letter to Wilson Rawls, author of Where the Red Fern Grows
Vladimir Tenev, Alexandria, VA, for his letter to Sinclair Lewis, author of The Jungle

WASHINGTON

Erin Voss, Mt. Vernon, WA, for her letter to Elizabeth Craft, author of Love Bytes
Emily Piro, Seattle, WA, for her letter to Louis Sachar, author of Holes

WISCONSIN

Melissa Vacha, Stevens Point, WI, for her letter to David Pelzer, author of A Child Called It
Megan Harney, Wauwatose, WI, for her letter to Richard Bach, author of Jonathan Livingston Seagull

WYOMING

Caryn Runnels, Cheyenne, WY, for her letter to William Shakespeare, author of Romeo and Juliet
Chris Cauwenberghs, Worland, WY, for her letter to Dean Koontz, author of Intensity