Two Port Matilda students named among winners of book contest through county library

In the 34th annual Youth Author and Illustrator Contest through the Centre County Library, two third-grade students from Bald Eagle Area School District placed among a total of 183 entries. Kinsey Clark placed third and Tanner Gilbert was given an honorable mention among third-grade students. Both are students in Sarah Stere’s class at Port Matilda Elementary School.

“It takes a lot of time, but you have to in order to make it a good book,” Tanner, 8, said.

According to children’s librarian Laura Sarge, all winners were notified and honored during an award ceremony on May 8.

Kinsey, 9, wrote and illustrated a book called “Horses” inspired by her love of the animal. She’s also involved in 4-H where she shows horses and enters other competitions. In her book, she said she told the story about all aspects of the animal including types of breeds, how to properly handle and ride horses, and what equipment is used.

Tanner created what he called a “realistic fiction” book called “My Discovery,” based on a real experience he had while searching through the Google Sky application on the computer. Tanner said the book is about a star cluster he discovered while using the online tool. During his research, he found a star call Regulus in a nearby star cluster.