Winners of the 2013 Poetry Contest

Here they are! The winners of the 2013 Fresno County Public Library Poetry Contest. Thanks to all 234 poets who participated this year and our fabulous judges. The winners were formerly announced in a special awards ceremony for all the poets, family and friends with keynote speaker Lee Herrick - poet, author and professor at Fresno City College and James Tyner, Fresno's Poet Laureate. Everyone who participated received a certificate. The winners received Barnes & Noble gift cards. Enjoy reading all the poems!

3rd-6th Grade 

• 1st place ~ Blue by Delaney C.
• 2nd place ~ Pigs with Mustaches by Alexa B.
• 3rd place ~ It's Fun to Be Me! by Sarah E.

7th-8th Grade

• 1st place ~ This Is Just To Say by Prabdeep R.
• 2nd place ~ The Ballerina by Juliette Z.
• 3rd place ~ The Room... by Sarah G.

9th-12th Grade

• 1st place ~ Finish by Abagail B.
• 2nd place ~ Hush (My Favorite Books) by Stephanie D.
• 3rd place ~ Ouroboros by Gao Chia Y.

College

• 1st place ~ My Brother Snoring by Michael G.
• 2nd place ~ Ignorance by Sandra S.
• 3rd place ~ Beautiful Night by Philip P.

Thanks for All the Poems - Stay Tuned for the Winners

Well, this year's Poetry Contest is now closed for any new entries. All 248 poems will be posted to the site by May 8. Our 3 fabulous judges will review them and select the winners for each age group. Winners will be announced at the May 18 awards ceremony for all the poets and their families  (Woodward Park Library, 6 pm) . We'll post the names of the winners here on May 19. So stay tuned!

James Tyner Named Fresno's First Ever Poet Laureate

On April 22, James Tyner, one of the judges of this year's FCPL Poetry Contest, was selected as Fresno's first ever Poet Laureate. "The poet laureate's mission is simple -- do everything possible to preach the value of poetry, the talent of local poets and the stunning variety of life in Fresno."* James is a long-time FCPL staff member at the Gillis Branch. Listen as he reads the poem to commemorate this event: "Fresno, California. 2013". Continue watching as they interview James. We've posted the poem  here on the Poetry Contest site.



*Read more about James and his new position in this article from The Fresno Bee by George Hostetter. 

Charrolate

Once an abandoned
Cat in the bushes
Once a stray trying to find her way
Charrolate was and is
My light of day
Just a young boy
Heart easily stolern
Charrolate demanded my heart in every way
This cat that put a 13 year charm on me
was my best friend and if you will,
A sort of sibling
The cat that never Lost an ounce of my heart,
CHARROLATE.

--Austin M., 14

Egypt

No place for man in the egpytian land
Not a place that is truly a wonder
What makes this land so powerfully grand
Where storms leave people buried down under

Where moses had said "let my people go"

Go fishing in the stream to find some trout
The desert where plants hardly ever grow
Your always worried about a one year drought

Its oasis is a sight of greatness

Their pyramids reach as high as the sky
Egypts catuses grow with such fierceness
It's hard to wave your hand and say goodbye

Egypt is a place that will have no end

If werte metal it would never bend

--Elio A., 13