Throughout the course of this school year, Olympia High School will be competing in Thurston county’s own Battle of the Books competition.

Battle of the Books requires groups of students to work together for a top spot in the county, and the winning team is invited to represent OHS in the exciting spring competition. Teams answer trivia questions related to the reading list to win. There are 8 titles in this year’s competition.

Stacy Udo, librarian at OHS, expressed how OHS has only been a part of the Battle of the Books for 6 years. “I didn’t know anything about Battle of the Books until my first year as the librarian here,” she remarked. “A group of students coming from Washington Middle School, who had won every battle…since elementary school, told me about their interest in these competitions,” Udo stated.

Verite Yanasak, a freshman and competitor since elementary school, explained how Battle of the Books has impacted her as a student, saying “you can really find a community. All kids who like to read come together in a way where you can find people who share your interests.”

Udo agrees that the experience is one to remember, because “by the time you get up to high school, there are so many different activities and the course load is so much more than you’re used to, that pleasure reading, for a lot of students, gets kind of pushed to the side because there is a lot of competing activities.”

Dwija Adamala, a first-year competitor, remarked that “Mrs. Udo does a really good job of making it open to everyone and making sure everyone feels included.” Adamala continued on the importance of participation,  saying “it gives you a good idea of how to manage your time and spend more time reading,” in reference to the skills competitions can enable a student with.

The range of books being read for this year’s competition appeals to many readers and allows everyone to find something they enjoy. Excited about the possibility for more members to sign up, Udo commented “it’s very fluid, if there are students that are still interested, it is very much appropriate to continue to sign up throughout November and December.”