St. Louis County Library: Art @ Your Library

St. Louis County Library's Art@ Your Library Write Stuff 2014 contest is over. The entries have been read and the top two in each age group have been chosen.

This is always a fun, yet challenging time for us. We have to read the entries, choose our initial favorites and then go through the process again until we have our winners. We received more than 120 great entries this year so the competition was fierce. Judging was based on originality, story flow/continuity and mechanical elements. Judges decisions are final.

Thank you to all of our contestants and congratulations to our winners!

1st PLACE: AGE GROUP 8-10

RADICAL

by Ethan E.

Age 10

Prologue:

“Hurry it up,” Ronald Elson said in a gruff voice. His evil companion, Terry Haiser was breaking a lock on an amazing invention. When it finally opened, they heard, “Beep! Beep!...” Ronald was furious. “I thought you disarmed it, you fool!” “S-s-sorry,” Terry stuttered. Before they knew it, they were being searched. Ronald knew he had to do something. He quickly nabbed the futuristic looking ray gun and chucked it out of sight. They were cuffed and booked. They called their boss, explaining, “The cops didn’t find the ray gun. We’re going to jail, but if anyone asks, tell them we’re fine.”

The Story:

Mr. Thomason, a lab janitor, was cleaning the crime scene when he noticed something behind a crate. He picked it up and gasped. It looked like a toy gun, so he took it home and gave it to his son John.

John was a pretty normal kid; smart, had an Xbox, etc. Now he held one of the world’s greatest treasures. It had an HDMI cord, so he plugged it into his Xbox. He had no clue what it was or what it did. When his Xbox turned on, he picked up the gun and pointed it at his sister’s doll. He pressed the trigger, and a thin line of light shot from the gun to the doll. In an instant the doll disappeared. He looked at the TV screen in disbelief. The doll was alive in his game. He thought of an idea, a big idea, a wicked idea. He pointed the gun at himself and fired. Suddenly he was flying through new dimensions and finally landed with a thud. He looked around and saw he was within his favorite game: “Super Mario Galaxy 2”.

He jumped on a level starter button and began playing. He walked around smashing enemies and getting coins. Then a Goomba creature hit him and he fell back. He got revenge by leading the Goomba off the edge. His plan backfired. Another Goomba hit him, and he fell, barely grasping the edge of the platform. He hung on until he couldn’t any longer. He fell, fearing he would die, but thankfully, he slowed down and stopped back at the start.

John wanted to go home. He turned to find a way back when he saw a screen showing his sister holding the ray gun. John realized his sister was in danger. She pointed the gun at herself, and it looked like bad news, but she didn’t pull the trigger. She pushed another button John hadn’t noticed. Immediately, John was in the air flying hard and fast. As suddenly as it started, it stopped. John was standing in the living room. He rejoiced and hugged his sister. Then he threw the gun into his neighbors’ yard. John never told his story, but his neighbor would experience it…

Epilogue:

Ronald Elson and his companion never were fine. They spent the rest of their lives in cell #13.

1st PLACE: AGE GROUP 11-14

THE DAY OF LOSSES

By Gabriel D.

Age 11

“Take the basket and go!” Mom yelled.

“Mom, please come with us,” I yelled.

“Your dad will get you to the train now go!”

“Mom!”

My dad pulled me away, kicking and screaming. My sister followed like a dazed puppy; she didn’t know we weren’t coming back to the house we loved. I knew we were running from the soldiers, with their tanks and trucks, their helmets and guns. Dad rushed us along. We passed all of the shops and cafes I had known my entire life, the ones I loved. I knew that we were never going to come back to this town, or to our parents. When we arrived at the station I hugged Dad and cried.

Dad smiled sadly then said, “Son, take care of your sister, but if anybody asks, tell them we are fine in the carriage next door.”

I sobbed. My sister looked confused and sad, like she knew something was wrong but had no idea what. She was clutching the basket Mom had given us. Suddenly the train whistle rang out and my sobbing stopped. Dad rushed us to our seats and waited for us to get settled in. He then said goodbye and left the train.

“Why is Dada running away?” My sister asked.

“It’s okay, he's going to the train car next to this one,” I lied.

“I don’t wanna go away from Mama, when do we come back?” She asked, holding her basket.

I didn’t answer; I just sat there knowing we would never go back to Mom and Dad. I slumped in my seat, preparing to sleep. My sister was sleeping, her chest rising and falling. I watched her sleep, slowly my breath synchronized with hers and sleep enveloped me. I woke quickly as the train screeched to a stop. My sister still slept, her head in her basket. She woke when the conductor opened the curtain.

“Hey,” said the conductor “where are your parents?”

“They are fine, just in the next car,” I lied.

We hopped off the train and into the bustling city. There were more people than I had seen in my whole life. I picked a direction and we set off. We walked for a while before sitting on a bench. We had only a roll and some cheese, so we ate very little. I gave most of it to my sister. A woman and her husband walked up to us, I was nearly asleep.

“Where are your parents?” The woman asked.

“They are fine,” I said sleepily “they are just in the train car next door.”

I jolted awake, realizing my mistake too late, I had given away that our parents weren’t here.

“You’re orphans, aren’t you?” she asked.

I nodded, not bothering to correct her. She smiled and looked at her husband. He shook his head, but she gave him a look. I didn’t understand what was happening but eventually the woman said,

“Come with us, I know just the place for you.”

1st PLACE: AGE GROUP 15-18

CHILDHOOD ADVENTURES

By Jillian K.

Age 17

Grabbing my brother by the shoulders, I pulled him closer to me. As soldier’s mighty steeds thundered past, neither of us dared breathe. The sound gradually died away; relieved, our breath returned.

“Where are we?” Rueben asked.

“The hole of a badger I believe,” I leaned back against the dirt wall.

“What did we recover, Lydia?” his impish smile made me grin.

I pulled the item, wrapped in coarse sackcloth, out of my satchel. Rueben’s eyes grew wide with anticipation. Pulling back the cloth, we gasped. In my hands lay a book, almost too thick to hold. Strange vines with leaves and fruits scrolled across the dark leather. Had we been foolhardy enough to open the book, a great padlock on the side prevented us.

“The Great Tablet of Unknown Magic,” he breathed, “the most powerful spell book in the land.”

I nodded, “All the more reason for us to return it to the Iron Trolls, as quickly as possible.”

“How did they lose it?”

“Read these words, written in their notice to us.”

Rueben took the note and read it aloud.

“Lydia and Rueben,

Our most valuable possession has been stolen. Without it, all is lost. Retrieve it and bring it back to the Iron Mountains and you will be well rewarded. But beware! Our Enemy has spies everywhere in all shapes and forms; do not tell anyone of our plight! If any ask you, tell them we are fine. Do not fail us!

Signed,

King of the Iron Trolls.”

“The Evil Sorceress of the North,” I muttered. “She must be the Enemy they speak of.”

Rueben looked up at me suddenly fearful. “Their Enemy? Surely they were not foolish enough to make enemies with—with… her?”

I wagged my head from side to side, “We shall have to tread carefully.”

“Before we tread, can we eat?” Rueben quipped nervously.

He dug into his satchel and pulled out some cheese, bread, and meat. I took a drink out of our wineskin and then handed it to him.

“It will be safest to travel at night.” “We will rest here and then climb the mountain at nightfall.” I lay down while he finished eating.

Rueben then snuggled up next to me. I moved a blonde strand of hair away from his face. His large eyes shifted beneath their lids for a moment, and we soon drifted off to sleep.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The cold wind was determined to drive us off the mountain face as Rueben and I climbed; it bit at our ears and noses and whistled through our clothes. Three days of hard climbing in frigid cold numbed our fingers and nearly broke our backs. The powerful wind made visibility impossible. We were close to the Iron Trolls…or so we thought.

I called to Reuben below, “There is a ledge just above us. We shall rest there. But beware of the Whispering Willows; they grow wild on the mountain and will burn your flesh if you touch them.”

Rueben nodded, adjusting the clasp on his cloak. We struggled onto the ledge and laid there panting. After a few moments, we examined our surroundings; still being wary of the Willows.

“The rock is smooth here,” Rueben looked at me nervously running his hands along the rock wall.

I bit my lip and said, “That should not be.”

Rueben and I advanced, swords drawn. I looked at him; his face was gaunt with fear but beaming with resilience.

“Brother,” I reached out to him, “we have fought well together. If this be our last fight…”

“Then it shall be our greatest fight!” he said firmly.

A sudden brightness blinded us and we stumbled back. A door had opened straight out of the smooth place.

“THE SORCERESS!” Rueben bellowed.

“YOU WILL NOT TAKE US ALIVE!” I screamed.

We surged forward with a great war whoop.

“Benny Robert and Lindsey Grace, what are you doing?” a voice chided harshly.

I blinked stunned, “M-mom…you’re home from work?”

Mom set her purse down on the table and shut the door. She eyed us oddly, “What are you two doing with umbrellas?”

“U-umbrellas?” Benny and I exchanged looks. “Do you inquire after our weaponry?”

Mom pushed past us and went into the kitchen, “What is this? Lunch meat, cheese, white bread, and Welch’s grape juice?”

“Our victuals?” I suggested.

Her head popped back with an eyebrow raised, “Under the table?”

“Uh…,” Benny said, “that’s our badger cave. Not a table.”

“And look at this room!” she exclaimed crossing in front of us going into the living room, “my couch cushions are stacked into a tower and why are there t-shirts over these lamps?”

I gestured to the tower, “That’s the great Iron Mountain range.”

“And those are Whispering Willows. Beware!” Benny called as Mom was taking the green shirts off the lamps, “They are poisonous.”

Mom reached down and grabbed my satchel and dug around in it, “Why is there a bedazzled cereal box in your back pack?”

I snatched that from her, “That is The Great Tablet of Unknown Magic. It contains all the secret knowledge of spells from the past eight millennia.”

Mom smiled, shook her head, and walked out of the room. The room grew quiet and I shifted oddly from foot to foot. Benny tugged at the bath towel tied around his neck.

I got an idea, “Rueben…that was the Sorceress! She is trying to bewitch us!”

“Indeed!” He hefted his sword, “let us seize the witch and impale her head on a pike!”

With a nod, we crept back behind a few boulders. The Sorceress reappeared and looked around for us, murder was in her eyes. Her long finger nails dripped with blood, black strands of hair hung like spider’s legs.

“You are too quiet…”she called in a sing song voice. “I do not like it when you are so quiet.”

“Now!!”

We leapt upon the witch and destroyed her in the only way possible. Death by tickling!

St. Louis County Library is excited to present live theater in 2014 as part of our Art @ Your Library programs.

Rhyming Dust Bunnies: Ready for Fun!

Join us for a live performance inspired by the fantastic, comedic books of Jan Thomas. Kids will laugh out loud as they participate in this interactive theatrical event that combines puppetry
and acting. Recommended for ages 3-7.

Tuesday, January 14 10:00 a.m. Tesson Ferry
Thursday, January 16 10:00 & 11:30 a.m. Eureka Hills
Friday, January 17 10:00 a.m. Samuel C. Sachs
Tuesday, January 21 10:30 a.m. Thornhill
Thursday, January 23 10:00 a.m. Lewis and Clark
Friday, January 24 10:00 a.m. Indian Trails
Thursday, February 13 2:00 p.m. Natural Bridge
Monday, February 17 6:30 p.m. Meramec Valley
Tuesday, February 18 10:00 a.m. Cliff Cave
Tuesday, February 25 10:00 a.m. Weber Road
Tuesday, March 4 10:00 a.m. Florissant Valley
Friday, March 7 10:00 a.m. Headquarters
Monday, March 17 2:00 p.m. Oak Bend
Tuesday, March 18 10:00 a.m. Grand Glaize
Wednesday, March 19 10:00 a.m. Mid-County
Wednesday, March 26 6:30 p.m. Rock Road
Thursday, March 27 10:00 a.m. Prairie Commons

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Battle of the Bands will Rock!

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Battle of the Bands Voting Begins

Thursday, May 29, 2014

Battle of the Bands is on!

Monday, April 21, 2014

2014 Write Stuff Contest Winners

Monday, January 13, 2014

Rhyming Dust Bunnies: Ready for Fun!