TUESDAY 2: Two Bookmarks

As part of Children's Book Week celebration in my community I agreed to judge the Catawba County Library's annual bookmark contest. I said "yes" to this rather casually over the phone last fall. It seemed like something I could handle.

But honestly! Judging contests is hard. The theme was Picturing America. That helped me a little - to narrow down the possibilities.

In the end, I chose as runner up, this lovely lady who in so many ways embodies America. She has the requisite torch and also the book. But most of all, I love that she has such a free spirit! To me, she represents a graceful, joyful America.

by Annie Walshak

And the winner is...
by David R. McCoy

Ah, maybe it is just the history lover in me. But I kept coming back to this one. It shows us where we've come from. It pictures America in progress. It also implies that books can travel anywhere with us. If you look closely on the images you can find a small child reading a book on the top of the train and the words "Books Rock" on the automobile. And check out those clouds in the last scene!

I love that both of these bookmarks used iconic American imgages and also included books!