The Somers Library Battle of the Books 2014! Congratulations on a job well done!

Earlier this year, we asked for Somers volunteers from grades 4^th through 9th to represent the Somers Library in the Westchester Library System first annual Battle of the Books.  The Battle of the Books is a book-based trivia tournament for Westchester youth with the goal to promote a love of reading in kids and teens, to expose them to titles and authors that they might not encounter otherwise, to encourage them to think of their local public library as a resource for entertainment and to inspire teamwork and good sportsmanship in an atmosphere of friendly competition.  The battle teams are broken down to 2 levels:  one with teams from grades 4^th-6^th and the other from grades 6^th-9^th.  Each team was expected to read five books, practice with their teammates for the battle and then represent the Somers Library on October 18^th 2014 at the Battle of the Books! 

Early on, we knew we had some bright, eager, enthusiastic kids willing to take this challenge! During the summer, each team member was given copies of the 5 books for their team, which were generously sponsored by the Friends of the Somers Library. We met as a large group during the summer as well to get to know each other, to think up team names, to create our distinctive tee shirts, and to participate in team building exercises.   

The Somers Library Battle of the Books Team 2014

When the start of the new school year began, each team split up to work as separate groups.  The Lightning Books, the 6^th-9^th grade team, and the Lightning Books Jr, the 4^th-6^th grade team met 8 times during the 6 week period from the start of school to the battle date! On the evening before the battle we had a Pizza Party and Pep Rally to show them how much we appreciated their hard work.

On Saturday morning October 18^th, our teams showed up at 9:00am at the Scarsdale Middle School where they battled against teams from other libraries in Westchester County.  Both teams made a good showing!  The Lightning Books were only eliminated after a grueling third round and the Lightning Books Jr. were eliminated only after a challenging fourth round!  Although the Ossining Library team won for the older bracket, and the Bronxville team won for the younger bracket, the two teams from the Somers Library are winners in our book!!! We could not have asked for a more hardworking and dedicated group.  The Somers Library would like to thank the team members, as well as their parents, volunteer coach Holly Rivlin, and the Friends of the Somers Library. 

The Lightning Books Jr.

The Lightning Books

Lightning Books (6^th-9^th team):  Alex Chuang, Sara Chuang, Max Caron, Jordan Cowie, Mackenzie Curcio, Matthew Kushner, Dominique Pugliese and Sofia Toledo.

Lightning Books Jr. (4^th-6^th team): Braeden Barry, Carleigh Carbonaro, Leigha Carnow, Hunter Rose Duffy, Keira Ferretti, Zoe Hopper, Maria Klimentova, Maggie Parsons, Hannah Roth and Jay Wilkinson