Milford Student a NH Winner in 'Letters About Literature'

The New Hampshire State Library announced the winners May 12. Salina Chadbourne of Pembroke and Leah Stagnone of Litchfield were also named state winners, and each will receive a cash prize. 

Their letters are now entered into the national Letters About Literature competition.

Ten Milford students were named as semi-finalists in the contest last month.

More from the New Hampshire State Library press release announcing the winners:

Letters About Literature is a reading and writing promotion program of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress which is coordinated in New Hampshire by the Center for the Book at the New Hampshire State Library. To enter, young readers wrote letters to authors explaining how that author’s work changed their view of the world or of themselves.

This year, there were 50,000 Letters About Literature entries nationwide; 560 were from New Hampshire students. Forty-seven New Hampshire semi-finalists were selected across three competition levels: Upper Elementary, Middle School and High School. State winners were selected from this group of outstanding letters. A full list of New Hampshire semi-finalists is available at lal.nhbookcenter.org.

Salina Chadbourne, a sixth grader at Three Rivers School, wrote to Patricia Reilly Giff about her book "Pictures of Hollis Woods." In her letter, Chadbourne explains how she identified with the character of Hollis and concludes that, "It’s amazing what a book can do to change a life and this one changed mine."

Anna Meldrum, an eighth grader at Milford Middle School, wrote her letter to Ben Mikaelsen. Poet Roger Martin, one of this year’s state judges, said, "Anna Meldrum’s perception of anger and how ‘Touching Spirit Bear’ enabled her to accept her anger and her responsibility to manage it in a productive manner impressed me most. I sense she now will stand up for someone being bullied – even a bully who, as she notes, was himself the victim of bullying."

Leah Stagnone, a senior at Campbell High School, wrote to "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" author Stephen Chbosky. One of the New Hampshire judges, writer Eric Pinder said, "Leah’s thoughtful, eloquent letter impressed me with its stark honesty and strong voice. She’s keenly observant, as all good writers must be. Her letter about discovering the right book at the right time shows how powerfully influential the experience of reading a good book can be."

Dr. Mary Kate Donais, a professor at St. Anselm College, was also one of New Hampshire’s judges this year. She said, "In a reflective and shockingly honest way, Leah allows the reader to hear her thoughts about herself, relationships, and life."