Julia Marcus, 13Culver City, CA My Room Julia Marcus, 13 Four faded white walls, two open windows, two closed doors, three paintings, one whiteboard, and just one human being. That would be me. Me sinking into the cushions of the couch, me curled on my left side in my bed, me sprawled out across the floor. Staring at the three pictures on the wall, or the various little items pinned to the corkboard, or rereading a book from the bookshelf, or scribbling something with an Expo marker. This is where I have spent most of the past five months. And where I have lived for four or five years. Where I have come for solace and where I have celebrated small victories. It is a place embedded with my personality and could show anyone with a single glance around the room who this person named me is. What I am. And most importantly, where I am.
Three Days till EOC by Abhimanyu Sukhdial
Welcome to the Book Page for Three Days till EOC, a cli-fi thriller by Abhimanyu Sukhdial, age 12, winner of the 2019 Stone Soup Annual Book Contest, published on September 1, 2020 by Children’s Art Foundation–Stone Soup Inc. Awards & Listings 2022: Three Days till EOC was recognized by the 2021-22 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards in the novel writing category. As per the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards “This year the Scholastic Awards received nearly 260,000 entries nationally; 20,000 entries were from the Remote* Programs alone! In the Remote Programs, only 9 percent of all works received a Silver Key. And only 12 percent of all works submitted to our Remote Programs received an Honorable Mention. Receiving a Silver Key or Honorable Mention is an incredible achievement.” * Remote or Region-at-Large (RAL) is the regional level program for students who live outside of areas covered by Affiliate Partners. Abhi was recognized as Oklahoma recipient of the Young Promising Writer Award from the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and Promising Young Writer Awards, which specifically recognizes 8th grade writers. To qualify, students must first be nominate by their teachers, and they must submit 2 pieces of writing – a “best” piece no more than 6 pages, and a “theme” piece no more than 4 pages. Abhi selected an excerpt from Three Days till EOC for his “Best” writing and for his second piece, wrote a personal essay around the NCTE 2022 themed prompt: Exploring Boundaries. Oklahoma hadn’t had a student place for the last several years. Abhi was the sole honoree within the state this year. He was among 66 students out of total 116 nominated students in US/Canada and American schools abroad that were recognized with the Promising Young Writer Award for 2022. 2021: Three Days Till EOC was named the Honor Award Winner for the 2021 Green Earth Book Awards in the Young Adult Fiction category. This is a national award administered by The Nature Generation that recognizes children’s and YA literature that best promotes the message of environmental stewardship. As part of Abhi’s Honor Award win from the 2021 Green Earth Book Awards, he also recorded a riveting video in which he advocates for immediate climate action. You can watch this video, here. The NextGen Under 30 Oklahoma program selected Abhi as an honoree in the category of ARTS. The goal of the program is to mentor and nurture the next generation of achievers and leaders with the hope they will continue to give back to their local communities and the state. To be selected for such an honor is an incredible achievement in its own right, but Abhi’s inclusion as a teenager is especially rare! Enjoy these photos of Abhi taken at the NextGen Under 30 awards ceremony. The state of Oklahoma decided to reward Abhi and other 250 winners of the Next Gen Under 30 award with a grand event at the Embassy Suites Convention Center in Norman, OK. Enjoy a photo of Abhi and his assistant principal—also an awardee—below! 2020: Abhi’s book was selected for listing amongst the “books received in November” in Locus Magazine: it’s pretty cool to appear on a list that also includes Margaret Atwood, H.G. Wells, and J.R.R Tolkien! Reviews Adam Rex, author of The True Meaning of Smekday (2007), and the NYT bestselling Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich (2006). Adam Rex wrote an enthusiastic and generous review of Abhi’s book, which you can read in full here. “…there’s something especially arresting about a story of global warming catastrophe written by an author who just may be young enough to see it come about in his own lifetime. Three Days till EOC is special because author Abhimanyu Sukhdial makes you feel an urgency he no doubt feels himself. And because, after walking you to that edge, he also has the wisdom to imagine a way we all might take a step back.” Zillah Bethell, author of The Shark Caller (2020), The Extraordinary Colours of Auden Dare (2017) and A Whisper of Horses (2016) “I was gripped from start to finish. Abhi is an extraordinarily talented writer and I look forward to following his career.” Dan Bloom, Editor, The Cli-Fi Report We mailed of a copy of the book to Dan Bloom, inventor of the term “cli-fi,” and he sent us a wonderful letter of recommendation. You can read his complete letter here, and the quotes below give you an idea of how much he enjoyed the book! “I couldn’t put the book down. It’s that good.” “Teens and sci-fi geeks will love it, and so will YA readers and adults, too. It’s a novella that combines science fiction with climate fiction, and I at the age of 71-going-on-72 enjoyed every single page. This is a young writer to watch!” “Bravo!” UNAI (United Nations Academic Impact) “Why We Care,” a review of the book by Ramu Damodaran, Chief, United Nations Academic Impact. Available as a PDF: Why We Care – 3 September 2020 | Academic Impact; or at the UNAI website. Press, Interviews & Events Stillwater News Press Abhi’s selection as an honoree for the ARTS by NextGen Under 30 Oklahoma was publicized in the local paper. KOSU NPR Abhi was interviewed by KOSU, the regional NPR station, for an article and radio segment published on Earth Day 2021. Photo courtesy of Chelsea Stanfield / KOSU India Association of Oklahoma Meet the Author – interview and Q&A with families and students. Duke TIP Newsletter Coverage in the newsletter of Duke University’s Academic Talent Search program, TIP. Click the image to read the full article and review. Author interview with Stone Soup Intern Anya Geist Abhi and Anya have an in-depth conversation about Abhi’s writing process, the development of EOC, and the experience of writing for and winning the contest. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-susnKavHLY&t=26s Morning Edition program on TV 31 Stillwater The link to Facebook below will take you direct to the video of the show on 29/10/20. The interview with Abhi runs between minutes 12:44
Invasion, a poem by Luca Butler, 12
Luca Butler, 12Austin, TX Invasion Luca Butler, 12 It began from some bats They say It will pass with time They say Stay indoors Dont go outside They say In China it began Some panic ahead No one knew It would come to this They ran They hid But soon it spread Everywhere there’s panic Not knowimg what to do There’s nowhere to hide There’s nowhere to It is everywhere People are sick Some are dying Hospitals overwhelmed People not knowing what to do Presidents in lockdown No friend for reasurance No visits from your grandma Grocery stores getting mobbed No food left for us Homeless in troube No going out of town Schools cancelled Doors shutting People turning on each other At the time when we need each other most of all And here I am Right in the middle Worried for my family Worried for my school And most of all Worried for Me
