Merced County middle schoolers compete in literary challenge. Here's who won

Merced County middle schoolers competed in a literary challenge last week, according to a news release from the Merced City School District.

Multiple teams of students from five middle schools, Cruickshank, Hoover, Rivera, Tenaya, and McSwain, competed at Tenaya Middle School Friday for the school districts Battle of the Books Invitational.

Students answered questions on 10 novels, including “A Ring of Endless Light” by Madeleine L’Engle, “Bud, Not Buddy” by Christopher Paul Curtis, and “On the Far Side of the Mountain” by Jane Craighead George.

A team of four girls from Rivera Middle School received a perfect score and took first place in the small group contest, the statement said. Rivera Middle School also won the most overall points.

“It was thrilling to see all of the students so excited and knowledgeable about literature,” said Paula Heupel, assistant superintendent of educational services for MCSD, in the news release. “The teacher librarians from each of our schools did a tremendous job of organizing this inaugural event, and we look forward to the continued success of this competition in the future.”

This story was originally published April 23, 2018 at 3:11 PM with the headline "Merced County middle schoolers compete in literary challenge. Here's who won."