Marlborough’s LitFest celebrates ten years with a special children’s competition

As part of the ten-year celebration of the founding of Marlborough’s LitFest, over a thousand local children have entered a special competition.  The first schools to sign up for the competition have also been awarded £200 worth of books to be chosen from the White Horse Bookshop.

Pupils from Reception Class, aged four and five through to Year 6, aged ten and eleven, who entered the competition, were asked to design a new book cover for their favourite book.  This was to include the front cover design and the ‘blurb’ on the back of no more than one hundred words.

Gillian Macdonald, from the LitFest committee organised the competition.  “We have been overwhelmed with the number of entries and the standard is very high.  I have been very impressed with the range of different media used.  Some children have used the computer and there are also beautiful paintings and drawings.  Some entries are very professional.”

The most popular books are anything by David Walliams, ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Diary of a Wimpy Kid’.

Gillian is busy shortlisting the entries and the winners will be chosen by judges, Helen Sheehan and Lisa Gibbons, both of whom have been involved in publishing children’s books.

 

A winner will be chosen from each year group and they will each receive a £10 book voucher and a certificate.  Highly commended entrants will receive a certificate.  An overall winner will also be chosen.

Gillian told Marlborough.news:  “It will be very difficult to choose an overall winner as the judges will have to weigh up the age of the child with what they’ve produced.”

The overall winner will be presented with £20 and a gift from Haine and Smith Opticians, who are sponsors of the competition.  The presentation will take place at 3.30 pm in the Town Hall on Saturday September 28.

There will be a display of the entries in the Town Hall throughout the LitFest weekend September 27 to 29.

The schools lucky enough to receive the £200 award for new books are:  Marlborough St Mary’s, Shalbourne, Baydon, Kennet Valley, Great Bedwyn, Aldbourne, Woodborough, St Katharines and Ramsbury.