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Letters About Literature

Essay Contest for Grades 4-10


Essay Contest

Students in grades 4-10 are invited to enter the Letters About Literature contest. The student needs to write a letter to a favorite author, living or dead, explaining how the author’s book changed the student’s way of thinking. There are three competition levels: grades 4-6; 7-8; and 9-10.

Winners in each level in Texas receive $100 and transportation for the winner and a parent or guardian to travel to the location of the Texas Library Association Conference, where the winners read their letters before the Texas Association of School Librarians.

For more information about the Letters About Literature contest in Texas, contact The Texas Center for the Book at the Dallas Public Library at (214) 670-7818.

Sponsored by The Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, Texas Center for the Book at the Dallas Public Library, Texas Association of School Librarians.

Letters from Prior Years

Dear Judy Blume,

I have read nearly all of your books, but the one I love the most is Tiger Eyes. When I read the summary on the back on the newly bound book, I knew I could read it within an hour or so because it sounded so interesting and it hit so close to home. My father and Davey's father were both artists and we both loved them very much. My father died in a car accident six years ago. His death was sudden and I didn't have time to say good-bye like your character Davey. We were not ready for our fathers' deaths or really know how to handle it.

Amanda Vanderwarker, Cornith, NY

Dear Ray Bradbury,

The summer after freshman year, I lay on my couch at 1 AM, reading Fahrenheit 451. It was a required reading assignment and I had a week to read 6 novels. I had never heard of the book, but I assured myself I could never appreciate literature that was "forced" upon me. I picked it up, and . . . never set it down.

Dan Rashid, Dearborn, MI

Dear Sharon Creech,

About two years ago I read your book, Walk Two Moons. At the time I found your book very interesting. I was never able to understand how one girl my age, your main character Sal, could go through so much. It wasn't until this last summer that the reality hit me.

Else Castro, El Cajon, CA
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