Only one week left in our Love of Reading contest! We're hoping to see a record-breaking week for the final week of nominations... so help us out and get your entry in today! If you're listed as a winner this week, go to the store you submitted your entry at with a picture ID after Monday to collect your $50 Bookmans gift certificate! If you submitted your entry online, we will contact you by e-mail regarding how to receive your gift certificate. Congratulations to our second week's winners, listed below:

 

Mesa Winner: Mandy H.

“Eyes of the Dragon” by Stephen King

I can't remember my first book, but one book that always comes to mind is "The Eyes Of The Dragon." My dad gave it to me when I was 13. The cover was beautiful and the story was suspenseful and full of excitement. A great dark fairytale.

 

Phoenix Winner: Debi S.

“Little House on the Prairie” by Laura Ingalls Wilder

When I was a child this book took me to a world I couldn't imagine. I could feel the cold floor of the house on that prairie!

 

Flagstaff Winner: Rich S.

“The Grey King” by Susan Cooper

Before I read Susan Cooper's “The Grey King” I had never even heard of it. It was just a title on a school reading list, but something made me pick it up and give it a try. Since then, I've re-read it several times, but there's nothing quite like the first time. The book comes in the middle of a series - I wanted to read everything I had missed, and see how it ended. It was set in a place I had never been - I wanted to go there and see all the places she wrote about. It hearkened back to Arthurian mythology, and it inspired a fascination with the King Arthur story that still exists in me now. This book more than any other encouraged an appetite for reading and for exploring new books and authors, a habit I've only expanded on since. Now I make it a point to try a book I've never heard of every once in a while - just because.

 

Grant Winner: Lorraine D.

“The Little Lame Prince” by Dinah Maria Craik

I was very ill with chicken pox and the highlight of my day was when my mother read a chapter of the book each night. I became so involved in the book. I forgot about the discomfort of my illness.

 

Speedway Winner: Cathy B.

“A Farewell to Arms” by Ernest Hemingway

I was a sophomore in high school and it was the first Hemingway novel I'd ever read.  I remember not being able to put it down and sobbing at the end.  I read it over and over again, so much so, that my English teacher gave me a copy of the book and the movie!  I had never felt so strongly about a book before, it was the first time I'd experienced a real connection and emotional investment in the characters. From then on, I saw books and reading in a whole new light!

 

Ina Winner: Kathy C.

“Love Medicine” by Louise Eldrich

The book weaves a tapestry of lives that take place in North Dakota. Each story stands on its own,but taken together, they present the landscape of the Native Americans, full of laughter and sorrow.

 

Online Winner: Delphi L.

“Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone” by J.K. Rowling

My name is Delphi and I am 11 years old. My love of reading goes back as far as I can remember. My mom says its because she read to me when she was pregnant but I dont know if I believe that. When I was about 7 or 8, I read the first Harry Potter book. I have read the whole series about 5 times and I love it. It was the first book that I really loved all by myself you know not because my parents told me I would like it. Now I read everything I can get my hands on. And I'm pretty sure I always will. Oh by the way, my home Bookmans store is in Flagstaff. Could you hurry and fix it please?

 

Check back with us next Friday morning for next week's Love of Reading Contest winners... if you weren't a winner this week, try again! Just head in to your favorite Bookmans location to fill out an entry form, or e-mail us at loveofreading@bookmans.com with your full name, your favorite Bookmans store, the title and author of the book that you're nominating, and how it inspired your love of reading. Good luck and keep the entries coming! Thank you to everyone participating.