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2018 State Winners
Three National, three National Honor and three National Honorable Mention letters (one in each level) were chosen from the tens of thousands of entries.
Yellow indicates winner of the National Prize; Blue indicates winner of a National Honor Award.
| State | Level I | Level II | Level III |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Faith Swanson, Daphne, wrote to Louisa May Alcott, author of Little Women | Morgan Streeter, Hoover, wrote to Noelle Stevenson, author of Beware the Kitten Holy | Zionne McCrear, Birmingham, wrote to Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird |
| Alaska | Meredith Duhrsen, Anchorage, wrote to Katherine Applegate, author of The One and Only Ivan | Brooklynn Reed, Kenai, wrote to J. K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | Lawton Skaling, Anchorage, wrote to Andy Weir, author of The Martian |
| Arizona | Peyton Dennis, Glendale, wrote to Katherine Paterson, author of Bridge to Terabithia | Yash Devendra Wadwekar, Paradise Valley, wrote to Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird | Irene Franco Rubio, Phoenix, wrote to Sandra Cisneros, author of The House On Mango Street |
| Arkansas | Brett Gaffney, Rogers, wrote to R. J. Palacio, author of Wonder | Alexa Riales, Searcy, wrote to R. J. Palacio, author of Wonder | Sean Roades, Jonesboro, wrote to Eric Blehm, author of Fearless |
| California | Beth Davids, Los Angeles, wrote to Alex Gino, author of George | Annie Do, San Diego, wrote to Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give | Victor Liu, Saratoga, wrote to Eddie Huang, author of Fresh Off the Boat: A Memoir |
| Colorado | Ainsley Carr, Parker, wrote to Gill Lewis, author of White Dolphin | Elliet Faust, Boulder, wrote to Robert Frost, author of the poem “Birches” | Kelsea Sibold, Frederick, wrote to Markus Zusak, author of The Book Thief |
| Connecticut | Dominic Roussos, West Hartfield, wrote to Dr. Seuss, author of The Kings Stilts |
Katherine Van Tassel, New Haven, wrote to Markus Zusak, author of The Book Thief | Brielle Cayer, Middletown, wrote to Sarah Dessen, author of Just Listen |
| Delaware | Natalie Lewis, Camden, wrote to Lynne Cox, author of Swimming To Antarctica | Krista Silon, Wilmington, wrote to Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Speak | Sophie Kennedy, Wilmington, wrote to Sean Covey, author of Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens |
| District of Columbia | John Noguchi Reeves, Washington, wrote to Amy Lee-Tai, author of A Place Where Sunflowers Grow | Siraj Carter, Washington, wrote to William Golding, author of Lord of the Flies | Christian Herald, Washington, wrote to Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give |
| Florida | Sophia Lopez, Pembroke Pines, wrote to J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series | Brennan-Pierson Wang, Orlando, wrote to Ralph Ellison, author of The Invisible Man | Malavika Kannan, Oviedo, wrote to Kurt Vonnegut, author of Slaughterhouse-Five |
| Georgia | Ella Schulz, Roswell, wrote to Phoebe Gilman, author of Jullian Jiggs | Aviv Newman, Roswell, wrote to Chris Grabenstein, author of Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library | Jamila Pellum, Fayetteville, wrote to Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give |
| Hawaii | No state winner selected this year | Emily Heyler, Honolulu, wrote to David Boudia, author of Greater Than Gold | Katelyn Schmisseur, Honolulu, wrote to Kerry Cohen, author of Loose Girl: A Memoir of Promiscuity |
| Idaho | No state winner selected this year | Madalyn Lee, Boise, wrote to Victoria Aveyard, author of King’s Cage | Sophia Burchfield, Boise, wrote to R. J. Palacio, author of Wonder |
| Illinois | Akosua Haynes, Chicago, wrote to Margot Lee Shetterly, author of Hidden Figures | Rylee Paige Johnson, Hoffman Estates, wrote to Gabrielle Zevin, author of Elsewhere | Sakura Fagan, Petersburg, wrote to Margery Williams, author of The Velveteen Rabbit |
| Indiana | Yehuda Noff, Indianapolis, wrote to Sheila Cole, author of Dragon in the Cliff | Yael Cohen, Indianapolis, wrote to Marcus Samuelsson, author of Yes, Chef | Sophie Ball, Jasper, wrote to Mitch Albom, author of Tuesdays with Morrie |
| Iowa | Daniel Pierick, Des Moines, wrote to H. G. Wells, author of The War of the Worlds | Anthony Shamrell, LeClaire, wrote to Tim Green, author of Lost Boy | Joey Fisk, Carlisle, wrote to William Henley, author of the poem “Invictus” |
| Kansas | No state winner selected this year | No state winner selected this year | No state winner selected this year |
| Kentucky | Maya Gehlhoff, Ft. Mitchell, wrote to Sharon Draper, author of Out of My Mind | No state winner selected this year | Mahala King, Mt. Vernon, wrote to Rick Riordan, author of The House of Hades |
| Louisiana | Kadra Bates, Zachary, wrote to Chris Colfer, author of The Land Of Stories: The Wishing Spell | Jenee Brown, Zachary, wrote to Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give | Khoa Pham, Breaux Bridge, wrote to Haruki Murakami, author of Norwegian Wood |
| Maine | Jasmine Lockwood, Dover-Foxcroft, wrote to Mary Lou Carney, author of Too Tough To Hurt | Olivia Martin, Sanford, wrote to Shannon Hale, author of Dangerous | Sylvette Dupé-Vété-Congolo, Topsham, wrote to Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give |
| Maryland | Lucy Virgilio, Knoxville, wrote to Melissa Caughey, author of How to Speak Chicken | Parker O’Brien, Leonardtown, wrote to Katherine Applegate, author of The One and Only Ivan | Max McKenna, Catonsville, wrote to Ta-Nehisi Coates, author of Between The World and Me |
| Massachusetts | Maya Echambadi, Needham, wrote to Trish Cook, author of A Really Awesome Mess | Owen Fitzpatrick, Hopkinton, wrote to Oscar Wilde, author of The Picture of Dorian Gray | Katherine Yang, Northborough, wrote to Jeffrey McDaniel, author of the poem “The Quiet World” |
| Michigan | Victoria McCabe, Grosse Pointe, wrote to Cynthia Lord, author of Rules | Madison McKerchie, Sault Sainte Marie, wrote to Christopher Paul Curtis, author of The Mighty Miss Malone | Nicklas Miller, Canton, wrote to John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars |
| Minnesota | Theodore Finnegan Benz, Mendota Heights, wrote to J. K. Rowling, author of Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix | Naw Nay Blu, Washington, wrote to Ishmael Beah, author of A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier | Lydia Meier, Willmar, wrote to Matthew Quick, author of Every Exquisite Thing |
| Mississippi | Sha’laisha Darden, Scooba, wrote to Kate DiCamillo, author of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane | Lucy Braud, Pass Christian, wrote to Maurice Sendak, author of Where the Wild Things Are | Katherine Prochnow, Ocean Springs, wrote to Mary O’Hara, author of My Friend Flicka |
| Missouri | Lucy Elizabeth Biermann, Platte City, wrote to R. J. Palacio, author of Wonder | Amy Weston, Chesterfield, wrote to R. J. Palacio, author of Wonder | Knight Hrehor, Ava, wrote to Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma |
| Montana | Ryan Maeve Howell, Missoula, wrote to Maurice Sendak, author of Where the Wild Things Are | Lily Easton, Missoula, wrote to John Green, author of Looking for Alaska | Sage Crawford-Kahrl, Bozeman, wrote to Albert Camus, author of The Myth of Sisyphus and other Essays |
| Nebraska | Avery Yosten, Norfolk, wrote to Rob Buyea, author of Because of Mr. Terupt | Caleb Hans, Omaha, wrote to Trenton Lee Stuart, author of The Mysterious Benedict Society | Harper Wells, Axtell, wrote to Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird |
| Nevada | Elise Choi, Las Vegas, wrote to Victor Hugo, author of Les Misérables | Katelyn Lee, Las Vegas, wrote to Plato, author of Ion |
Gus Pappas, Henderson, wrote to Connor Franta, author of Note To Self |
| New Hampshire | Julianna Kajka, Hampstead, wrote to Sara Pennypacker, author of Pax | Brianna Leo, Milford, wrote to Ben Mikaelson, author of Touching Spirit Bear | Stephanie Chambers, Alton, wrote to Stephan Chbosky, author of The Perks Of Being a Wallflower |
| New Jersey | Veronica Ma, Plainsboro, wrote to William Carlos Williams, author of the poem “The Red Wheelbarrow” | Daisy Hutnik, Pennington, wrote to Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy | Maya Mau, Plainsboro, wrote to Helen Keller, author of The Story of My Life |
| New Mexico | Kaelyn Siefkes, Moriarty, wrote to Rachel Renée Russell, author of the Dork Diaries series | Allie Vice, Albuquerque, wrote to Sharon Draper, author of Out of My Mind | Steffen Ortiz, Sandia Park, wrote to Markus Zusak, author of The Book Thief |
| New York | Maya Tratt, Scarsdale, wrote to Anne Frank, author of The Diary of a Young Girl | Pepe Baselga-Garriga, New York, wrote to Ishmael Beah, author of A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier | Lila Villasenor, West Nyack, wrote to J. D. Salinger, author of The Catcher in the Rye |
| North Carolina | Hunter Nelson, Greenville, wrote to Natalie Lloyd, author of The Key to Extraordinary | Emma Lyle, Morehead City, wrote to Catherine Ryan Hyde, author of Take Me With You | Joshua O'Brien, Waxhaw, wrote to Becky Albertalli, author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda |
| North Dakota | No state winner selected this year | Mikaela Woodruff, Garrison, wrote to Andrew Peterson, author of The Monster in the Hollows | Kalyn Schalesky, Hettinger, wrote to Cassandra Clare, author of the The Mortal Instruments series |
| Ohio | Sara Goodlive, Dublin, wrote to Cynthia Lord, author of Rules | Lauren Kelly, Canton, wrote to Natalie Richards, author of We All Fall Down | Sandy Shen, Solon, wrote to Celeste Ng, author of Little Fires Everywhere |
| Oklahoma | Allison Turner, Jenks, wrote to J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series | Anna Boevers, Oklahoma City, wrote to Kiera Cass, author of The Selection | Christine Nguyen, Edmond, wrote to Lisa Yee, author of The Kidney Hypothetical: Or How to Ruin Your Life in Seven Days |
| Oregon | Jason Nuesa, Portland, wrote to Eleanor Coerr, author of Sadako and a Thousand Paper Cranes | Taylor Gagnon, Tualatin, wrote to S. E. Hinton, author of The Outsiders | Griffin Cameron, Eugene, wrote to Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give |
| Pennsylvania | Owen Wagner, Elizabethtown, wrote to Erin Entrada Kelly, author of Hello, Universe | Claire Venanzi, Pottstown, wrote to Misty Copeland, author of Life In Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina | Ellen Poplavska, Allison Park, wrote to Stephen King, author of Mr. Mercedes |
| Rhode Island | Dahlia Weller, Barrington, wrote to Lois Lowry, author of Number the Stars | Abigail Klein, Providence, wrote to Sabaa Tahir, author of An Ember in the Ashes | Anastasia Coclin, Cranston, wrote to Malala Yousafzai, author of I Am Malala |
| South Carolina | Kiran David Singapogu, Clemson, wrote to Anna Claybourne, author of The Story of Inventions | Demi Del Monico, Mt. Pleasant, wrote to Courtney Peppernell, author of Pillow Thoughts | Anastayja Gladfelder, Beaufort, wrote to Rupi Kaur, author of Milk and Honey |
| South Dakota | No state winner selected this year | No state winner selected this year | No state winner selected this year |
| Tennessee | Serenity Donnell, Christiana, wrote to Francesco D’Adamo, author of Iqbal | Hamna Tameez, Memphis, wrote to Andrea Davis Pinkney, author of The Red Pencil | Sukanya Barman, Memphis, wrote to Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Catalyst |
| Texas | Adam Kesselman, Addison, wrote to Tim Howard, author of The Keeper | Baxter Lowrimore, Austin, wrote to Rick Riordan, author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series | Vicki Lozano, San Antonio, wrote to Fredrik Backman, author of And Every Morning the Way Home Gets Longer and Longer: A Novella |
| Utah | Cami Carver, Bountiful, wrote to Brandon Mull, author of Fablehaven | Aaron Wang, Salt Lake City, wrote to Kate DiCamillo, author of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane | Sydni McAllister, Herriman, wrote to Sharon Draper, author of Out of My Mind |
| Vermont | Tiahna Hallock, Berlin, wrote to Bobbie Pyron, author of The Dogs of Winter | Kylie Gledhill, South Burlington, wrote to Malala Yousafzai, author of I Am Malala | Kaitlyn Phillips, Montpelier, wrote to Katherine Paterson, author of The Day of the Pelican |
| Virginia | Nathan Saunders, Richmond, wrote to Ben Mikaelson, author of Touching Spirit Bear | Avery Crumlish, Richmond, wrote to Jacqueline Woodson, author of Brown Girl Dreaming | Tiffany Ha, Woodbridge, wrote to Maxine Hong Kingston, author of The Woman Warrior |
| Washington | Annabelle Yan, Medina, wrote to Grace Lin, author of Dumpling Days | Riya Sharma, Redmond, wrote to Katty Kay and Claire Shipman, authors of The Confidence Code for Girls | Amina Khan, Gig Harbor, wrote to Yann Martel, author of Life of Pi |
| West Virginia | Paisley Kathryn-Mae Tabor, Hurricane, wrote to Malala Yousafzai, author of I Am Malala | Marlee Johns, Wheeling, wrote to Jane Yolen, author of The Devil’s Arithmetic | Kayla Strickland, Spencer, wrote to John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars |
| Wisconsin | Devin Cass, Glendale, wrote to Sharon Draper, author of Out of My Mind | Joyce Essuman, Glendale, wrote to Veronica Roth, author of Divergent | Charlie Bock, Oshkosh, wrote to Brad Gilbert, author of Winning Ugly |
| Wyoming | Ayla Barton, Cheyenne, wrote to Daniel Keyes, author of Flowers for Algernon | Sophia Saint, Douglas, wrote to Cassandra Clare, author of the The Mortal Instruments series | D’Andre Stroman, Worland, wrote to Dave Pelzer, author of A Child Called “It” |
