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"To be able to give such a generous gift to his or her hometown or school library is an empowering experience for a young person," said Catherine Gourley, L.A.L.'s national project director. "The goal of these grants is not only to recognize our young readers but also to bring personal reading experiences to other young people across the country."

Deadline for entries: December 10, 2010

Have you ever read a book that changed your life? Has some authors words touched you in such a personal way, altering how you view your world or yourself? If so, the Library of Congress wants to hear all about it!

Letters About Literature is a national reading and writing promotion program for young readers in grades 4 through 12, sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress in partnership with Target and sponsored locally by the West Virginia Center for the Book. To enter, readers write a personal letter to an author, explaining how his or her work changed their view of the world or themselves. Young readers can select authors from any genre—fiction or nonfiction, contemporary or classic.

LEVELS OF COMPETITION
Letters About Literature welcomes entries from all readers reluctant as well as enthusiastic readers. Entrants must be at least 9 years old and fall into one of the following categories:

Level I — Grades 4–6, Level II — Grades 7 — 8, Level III — Grades 9–12

Judges representing each state center for the book will select the top essayists in the state. Entries will be assessed on three criteria: content, or the writers achievement in addressing the contest theme; exposition, or the writers use of language skills; and voice, the writers style and originality of expression.
 
AWARDS
Top honors on the state level each receive a cash award as well as a $50 Target Gift Card presented at an awards ceremony in April at the Culture Center in Charleston, West Virginia. Each state winner will then advance to the national competition. A panel of judges for the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress will then select six national winners (two per competition level) and 12 national runners-up (four per competition level). Each national winner will receive a $500 Target Gift Card. In addition, they will win a Reading Promotion Grant of $10,000 for their school or community library. National winners will be instrumental in deciding how the library funds will be spent. The 12 national runners-up will win a $100 Target Gift Card, plus they will win a Reading Promotion Grant of $1,000 for their school or community library.

Teachers who wish to involve their students can access free teaching materials and contest information at www.lettersaboutliterature.org/. Winning letters from this past competition can be read at www.lettersaboutliterature.org/winning_letters. For information on how to enter the contest, go to www.lettersaboutliterature.org/how_to_enter. Deadline for entries is December 10, 2010.

HOW TO ENTER
Download Competition Guidelines with entry coupons, Teacher's Guide, and Official Rules, then be sure to submit an entry coupon with each letter. Class letters can be submitted in one envelope but please remember to attach one coupon for each entry. Be sure to fully complete entry coupons so that award winners can be contacted.

To obtain the required entry coupon and a copy of the how to enter guidelines, young readers can visit the Letters About Literature webpage at the Library of Congress, www.lettersaboutliterature.org/, visit the West Virginia Center for the Book website, www.wvcenterforthebook.org, or contact lori.l.smuthkochorn@wv.gov. L.A.L. also offers free teaching materials to schools, libraries and home school partnerships, including lesson plans, blackline masters, writing samples and assessment checklists. These are available by contacting the program director at lal@epix.net.

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.