The Oklahoma Center for the Book in the Oklahoma Department of Libraries coordinates the My Favorite Book statewide writing competition for students in fourth through 12th grades. Students are asked to write a letter to the author of a favorite book, book series, short story or essay and explain how the literature or one of the characters impacted their life. Cash prizes are awarded to the first-, second- and third-place winner in each level, and first-place winners select their school library or public library to receive a $1,000 cash prize.
Evelyn Johnson, a sixth-grader at Riverfield Country Day School won first place in Division I (grades 4-6) and $500 for her letter to author R.J. Palacio for White Bird. Riverfield Middle School library will receive the $1,000, and Evelyn says she has the honor of choosing the books. All of the My Favoite Books winners will be honored at an awards ceremony on May 1, 2024, at the Oklahoma State Capitol.
TK: Tell me about the book you chose and why you chose to write a letter to the author.
Evelyn: The book is about a girl about my age. She’s Jewish and growing up in WWII France. It was recommended to me by my favorite teacher, Ms. Turner. She was my fourth-grade reading teacher. I trusted her choice and read it in one sitting over winter break. I think it appealed to me because I like stories about people who are unsung heroes – characters that are easy to connect with and that could be me.
TK: What do you like about White Bird in particular?
Evelyn: I love this book because Sara, the little girl, hides (from the Nazis) in the hayloft of a classmate’s barn. She dreams about a bird, and she’s the white bird who sees what’s happening to the town. She sees all of these horrible things. I like that she’s a strong female lead. I read this book over break, and I never saw Ms. Turner again. She got meningitis and passed away. She was the Willow Class teacher – our classes are named after trees – so I think of her as a willow tree. She loved nature. When we pass a willow tree, we wave.
TK: It must have been especially meaningful to win this contest. How did it feel when you found out you won?
Evelyn: It’s surreal. I didn’t believe it when my teacher said it was me. The principal is letting me choose the books for our middle school library.
TK: Do you think it’s important for young people to read? If so, why?
Evelyn: When you read, everything else doesn’t exist. In that moment the story is real. You can see all the characters as if they really exist if it’s good writing. The characters almost become your friends. You can learn a lot of life lessons. I think people kind of take books for granted, but they can teach you so much. They can teach you to hold your head high, to face danger or rude voices. So many strange or upsetting things can happen in a short amount of time, and you think, if this person handled a difficult situation, I can too.
TK: What advice would you give to people who say they don’t like reading?
Evelyn: Try reading for 20 minutes. Don’t spend on of the time on technology. You get to use your imagination.
TK: What do you think you might want to be when you grow up?
Evelyn: A writer. I’m in a creative writing class right now. I had a story published this year. It was one of 10 stories chosen last October in the Schusterman-Benson Library’s Spooky Story contest. If you write a story yourself, you get the experience, and you get to make up the story yourself. You get to decide what happens as you go along.
TK: What else do you like to do besides writing?
Evelyn: I’m in choir, Girl Scouts and gymnastics.
TK: Tell us a fun fact about yourself.
Evelyn: I’m a rhythmic gymnast.
Evelyn’s Letter to R.J. Palacio
29 November 2023
Dear Mrs. Palacio,
My name is Evelyn, and your book White Bird made a really big impact on me. I read it over winter break in fourth grade. It was recommended to me by my favorite teacher, Mrs. Turner. We called her The Book Fairy because we believed she had the ability to suggest the perfect book to a student. Every time she suggested a book to someone, they felt a strong connection to it from the moment that they began to read. So it was with White Bird.
She wanted both me and one of my friends to read it, but my friend borrowed it before me. She promised to bring it back to school before winter break so that I could take it home over the break. She kept her promise, and returned it the day before the break started. As I was leaving school with the book that day, Mrs. Turner gave me a hug and said, “Enjoy your book.” I responded with, “I will. See you in two weeks.”
I read the entire book in one hour. I loved every part of it. I laughed along with the characters, shed a tear for Julien, and wished with all of my heart that Sara could have back her fairytale life. I loved her having kept the carved bird after all those years, and I loved the moment at the end when the white bird flew past her window. It was a sign.
My tenth birthday was the day before we went back to school. My mom and I had a Harry Potter movie marathon. Before it started, I read White Bird again. It just called to me. I still cry every time I read it, but there was something about the story that made me really happy. Maybe it was when Sara saw her father again. Maybe it was at the very end, when Julian was protesting. It just filled me with a sense of joy. A sense of hope.
That evening, as I was about to go to bed, my mom stopped me. She told me that Mrs. Turner was in the hospital. She was sick. She had meningitis. She wouldn’t be at school for a little while, so we would have a substitute teacher in our reading class for a while. It was Mrs. O’Halloran. I remembered Mrs. O’Halloran. We called her Mrs. O. She was nice. When we went back to school that Monday, she didn’t teach reading class quite the same way that Mrs. Turner did, but that was ok. Mrs. Turner would be back soon.
Mrs. Turner died that Tuesday afternoon, January fourth. My mom told me after dinner, and I layed on her bed and cried for an hour. I thought of White Bird. I thought of how, now I could relate to Sara, how she left the house one day and then just never saw her mom again. I understand the pain of constantly being reminded of it every day. Of never being able to give her just one more hug. To say something more meaningful than just, “I’ll see you in two weeks.”
It’s been almost two years now, and now I can look back on the time that I was so lucky to get with her, and yes, it still makes me sad, but now I can also see all of the fun times that we had. Reading books in class, working on projects, just chatting. I can appreciate the time that I got, without yelling at someone because of sadness. If I think hard enough, then that still happens, but I can see the happy moments without being overwhelmed. But January 4th is still cursed, you can’t tell me otherwise.
Now, I have something kind of like a White Bird. I have a Book Fairy. I see signs from her in a lot of different ways, one of which is as a white bird. I don’t mean to steal your idea, but what with her death and reading the book for the first time being so close together, it just feels right. Another way is willow trees. When I was in fourth grade, all of the homeroom classes were named after trees. Mrs. Turner’s class was willow. It was strange when we remembered that willow trees are often signs of sadness. So now, when I pass a willow tree, I wave, and yell “Hi Mrs. Turner!” as loud as I can, like maybe if I yell loud enough, she’ll be able to hear me.
It’s nice to have a white bird. It’s also nice to have White Bird to read when I get sad. It instantly makes me feel better. So, thank you.
Sincerely, Evelyn Johnson.
The 2023-2024 My Favorite Book Contest Winners
Division I
First-place: Evelyn Johnson, Riverfield Country Day School, Tulsa, for her letter to author R.J. Palacio for White Bird.
Second-place: Jasmond Butler, Epic Charter Schools, Del City, for her letter to author Fracaswell Hyman for Mango Delight.
Third-place: Philippa Marie Deacon Wallet, Alcott Middle School, Norman, for her letter to author Jane Yolen for The Devil’s Arithmetic.
Division II
First-place: Tilley Wilensky, Terra Verde Discovery School, Norman, for her letter to author Lawrence Wright for The End of October.
Second-place: Caleb Bennett, Homeschool, Mustang, for his letter to Rick Riordan for The Lightning Thief.
Third-place: Saray-al Butler, Epic Charter Schools, Del City, for her letter to author Chris Gardner for The Pursuit of Happyness.
Division III
First-place: Ashley Barnhardt, New Lima High School, Wewoka, for her letter to Beatrice Sparks for Go Ask Alice.
Second-place: Brookelynn Weaver, Pawnee High School, Pawnee, for her letter to L.M. Montgomery for Anne of Green Gables.
Third-place: Emma Gavellas, Caney Valley High School, Ramona, for her letter to John Green for The Fault in Our Stars.
Betty Casey is the associate publisher and editor in chief of TulsaKids Magazine. She has been with TulsaKids over 20 years.