Scholastic Writing Awards and Irish Arts Center Book Day

In January, I happily read scores of work by 7-12th graders who compete annually in The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. The competition starts regionally and then moves to the national competition. When the winners are announced I scan the list of titles to see if the work I loved received an award. As I am one of the judges and the entries I read are anonymous, this is when I learn the names of the writers. I'm jumping up and down as if I know them personally, and make a mental note to keep an eye out for them as they hopefully embark on a career as a writer. I imagine one day standing in line at their book signing and telling them that I loved the story/play/essay/poem they wrote when they were in school. 

This year, Yuzhen Zou, and Isabel Stronski (both 11th graders), received gold awards in the memoir/personal essay category. Award winning work from this year will be available to read HERE after April 15th. 

Congratulations to all the entrants. It was a privilege to read your work. For information about how to enter click HERE.  

IRISH ARTS CENTER BOOK DAY is an annual event around St. Patrick's Day. They partner with other cultural organizations to give away free books to the public at various locations throughout NYC. This year they partnered with the Asian Alliance to offer asian authors in addition to Irish and Irish American authors. There are different genres available: fiction, non-fiction, poetry, memoir, adult and children's books. It's great fun to help passers-by to find a new book to read. Cristian Verdugo picked up books for members of his family too, including a book by an Irish author translated into Spanish.

Cristian Verdugo

That's what's great about this program. From one person, several more can be exposed to new books as well. The books I added to my To Read pile:

 

The Irish Arts Center offers performances and classes in writing, music, dance and Irish language.