The Bookworm presents short stories written by Eagle Valley students
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The Bookworm is proud to present its 11th collection of outstanding short stories written by Eagle Valley students. Inside the pages of “Ungoverned Children 2023” you will find sinking ships, rare creatures, and tests of true friendship, that will make you wish the stories never end.
The featured author of the 2023 edition was Kaela Rivera, who wrote the introduction to the book. “It is an honor to be part of such a moment captured in ink and printed with boldness,” Rivera writes. “This anthology, then, is in itself a story to find ourselves in.”
The winner of the third and fourth grades was Thomas Wyse from Stone Creek Charter School. Thomas wrote “You Can Catch It” about a boy on a quest to catch a giant fish. “There once was a nine-year-old boy named Alex who lived in Florida and knew there was a giant fish under the ocean,” Wyse writes. “It was seven feet long and it had sunk 16 boats in the last month.”
The first honorable mention third and fourth grade was Catherine Barney from Eagle Valley Elementary School. Catherine wrote “The Candy Land Adventures of Lolly Pops” about the princess of Candy Land. “Hi, I’m Lolly Pops and I’m the daughter of the King and Queen of Candy Land,” Barney writes. “Pretty cool, right? But it is not always perfect in Candy Land. This is how my story starts.”
The second honorable mention of third and fourth grade was Jane Wyse from Stone Creek Charter School. Jane wrote “Captured” about a captured beluga whale who fights to escape. “We are belugas of Alaska,” Wyse writes. “I am Ichika. I live with my pod. We hunt and play in the cool water. I love hunting with Akira, my brother.”
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The winner of fifth grade was Joshua Gregory from Eagle Valley Elementary School. Joshua wrote “The Seven Deadly Seas” about a pirate on a quest for revenge. “Journal entry 1: I am a boy named Seaser,” Gregory writes. “Currently, I am on the Red Dragon. In the world that I live in there are many pirates fighting over treasures and killing beasts.”
The honorable mention of fifth grade was Zoe Szcensy from Eagle County Charter Academy. Zoe wrote “Huskies (A Choose Your Own Adventure Story),” the first choose your own adventure story ever submitted to this contest about warring husky clans. “Once upon a time, huskies ruled the earth, and you are one of them,” Szcensy writes. “Huskies are more intelligent than humans, kind, loving, playful, and can talk. The bad thing is that there is one bad husky that makes other huskies turn bad.”
The winner of sixth grade was Sadie Weissman from Vail Mountain School. Sadie wrote “Wila’s Woods” about the saving power of friendship. “I breathed the sharp, sweet air, tinged with the smell of falling leaves,” Weissman writes. “I let the rays of sun bathe my face. Just for one minute. I allowed myself to stand there, with no other thought in my head but how good it was to be right there, right then.”
The honorable mention of sixth grade was Peter Mennen from Vail Mountain School. Peter wrote “Coming Up Short” about a boy who loves to run and has to prove he’s good enough to join the cross country team. “‘What is wrong with me?’ Quinn yelled in anguish,” Mennen writes. “He threw his cross-country shoes across the room, and they landed against his bookshelf. Quinn stared in horror as his bookshelf toppled over, with him in its way.”
The second honorable mention of sixth grade was Julian Ciszek from Vail Mountain School. Julian wrote “Tezcatlipoca” about a spy dog who gets recruited to defeat an evil cat. “I woke up in the middle of the night in my bed,” Ciszek writes. “It was dark, so it must have been the middle of the night. I heard footsteps, though they weren’t my owner’s. It was a four-legged animal.”
Copies of the full book are now available at The Bookworm. Check back next week for part two of teasers from the published stories from seventh through twelfth graders.
