The Pearson Prize
The Gifts of Hockey by Tom Holmes (Fiction) published by Lulu.com
Shadowchild by C.E. Thornton (Fiction) published by Lulu.com
Nowhere Feels Like Home by LK Gardner-Griffie (Fiction) published by Shanlian WordLit Press
Under the Yellow and Red Stars by Alex Levin (Non-Fiction)
The Pearson Prize Teen Choice Awards, founded by award-winning educator and writer Michael Ernest Sweet, aim to bring small press and self-published books into public school classrooms. Each year 100's of books are received by the student jury at Lester B. Pearson High School and actual students read and select the winners. There is no fee to enter the contest, authors must simply send copies of their title to the prize jury by May of each year.
"I wanted students to be exposed to some of the brilliant writing out there which does not necessarily make the shelves at Barnes and Noble or Chapters. I wanted students to know that there are 1000's of great writers who live right next door to them. In fact, this year, one of our winners, Tom Holmes, is in fact from Montreal! How exciting for everyone involved. Tom gets a prize which carries the weight of being chosen by real students and the students get free copies of books sent to them. Everyone is a winner in the end." Said Sweet, the prize's founder.
"Mr. Levin's story is truly touching, horrifying, inspiring and memorable. It is a piece of literature that can change a life, it certainly changed mine." Sarah Di Iorio, 2010 student juror.
"That book is a darn good book." Said Marc Anthony Defronzo of Holmes' "The Gifts of Hockey".
More about this year's winning titles as well as information about how to enter the 2011 Pearson Prize can be found at www.PearsonPrize.org.
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The Pearson Prize Teen Choice Awards are run annually from Lester B. Pearson High School in Montreal, Quebec to celebrate and recognize self-published and small press books.
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
