Elementary school students participate in the annual Battle of the Books event Thursday at the Santa Barbara County Education Office. Students throughout the county answered questions based on books they read in school all year.
Elementary school students participate in the annual Battle of the Books event Thursday at the Santa Barbara County Education Office. Students throughout the county answered questions based on books they read in school all year. Credit: Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo

This is a story with a happy ending. Children are reading and loving it.

Hundreds of elementary and junior high school students gathered Thursday to share in the annual Battle of the Books event to celebrate literature.

“This event is really important because it really shows how much books can mean to you,” fifth-grader Amanda Ly said. “This is one way to show my passion for reading. “

She said she loves fantasy books because a person can “escape from reality.”

Amanda attended the Battle of the Books event at the Santa Barbara County Education Office in Santa Barbara. A group of other students participated in Santa Maria.

Students spent the past year reading 28 assigned books. They were quizzed at their schools on the books, and students who did well at school sites then competed at the countywide event. Some of the books on the list for this year included “The Last Mapmaker,” “Save Me a Seat,” “Fast Pitch,” “Mexikid”and “The Magic Misfits.”

It’s the 24th year of the event. A team of librarians sifts through a larger list of books and makes recommendations about which books to put on the list.

Amanda Ly, a fifth-grade student, participates in the Battle of the Books competition. Credit: Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo

Once students arrive at the venue, they are placed on teams from different schools. Every team of about seven kids competes against another team by answering questions about the book material. Eventually, two teams are awarded first and second place.

“The teams are mixed so students from different schools end up on a team together so they are starting to make new friendships and build that community,” said Megan Prando, coordinator of curriculum and instruction for the Santa Barbara County Education Office.

She said the competition element also gets kids excited about reading.

“We are just so grateful that kids are showing an interest in reading, especially in the age of technology and attention spans being impacted,” Prando said. “A big thank you to our librarians and literary specialists at all of our schools who work really hard to prioritize this event and get their students prepared.”

Megan Prando, coordinator for curriculum and instruction for the Santa Barbara County Education Office, leads Thursday’s Battle of the Books event. Credit: Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo

One of the attendees was Greg Trine, who wrote the Melvin Beederman Superhero series. He also wrote “Willy MayKit in Space,” which will be featured as one of the books in next year’s event.

“It’s exciting to see them excited about books,” Trine said.

He joked that he enjoys writing for young people because he is kind of juvenile at heart.

“I have always liked humor, and I definitely feel in touch with my own childhood, so for some reason that translates into writing for that group,” Trine said.

The Santa Barbara County Education Office also will host a Spanish-language version of Battle of the Books, Batalla de los Libros. The event invites dual-language immersion students from across Santa Barbara County to gather virtually on May 6 and compete in Spanish on a list of Spanish-language books they read throughout the year.

The reading lists for next year’s battles are scheduled to be released in late May at sbceo.org/battle.

A group of elementary school students participate in the annual Battle of the Books event Thursday at the Santa Barbara County Education Office. Students throughout the county answered questions based on books they read in school all year. Students made shields and named their teams. Credit: Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo

The Winners

The winners of the Santa Barbara-based elementary battle hosted on Thursday were:

First place in the South County went to team The Wishing Books with students representing:

Elementary school students from Canalino, Cold Spring, Ellwood, Foothill, La Patera and Washington won first place in the South County. The name of their team was The Wishing Books. Credit: Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo

First place in the North County went to team The Aluminum Pie Comets with students representing:

Students from elementary schools Bill Libbon, Manzanita Charter, Oak Valley, Rice and Tunnell won first place in the North County. The name of their team was The Aluminum Pie Comets. Credit: Joshua Molina / Noozhawk photo

— Noozhawk South County editor Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.