Young Readers League\u00a02016\u00a0Writing Contest<\/p>\n
Category 1 (Age 8-11)<\/p>\n
2nd\u00a0place<\/p>\n
by\u00a0Adam Kakuk
\n11 years old (Grade 6)
\nPalm Crest Elementary School<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As I walked down a dusty road, heading to the grocery store, I saw an enormous tent with a sign proclaiming in large, red letter, \u201cCIRCUS TODAY.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I frowned, knowing my mom would disapprove such \u201cshenanigans.\u201d She never let me do anything fun because of my feet – my feet that stuck to any surface at will, like a gecko\u2019s. It wasn\u2019t like I was suddenly going to run off with the circus, like my uncle \u201cSticky Pete\u201d or Grandpa Garibaldi, but my mom worried any way.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Finally, I couldn\u2019t help myself and bought a ticket. I was having fun until I noticed something that really bothered me: A man walking on a tightrope. He was just walking, as if that were amazing.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Without thinking, I climbed up the pole to the tightrope, ran onto the wire, then willed my feet to stick.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I flipped and twirled, jumped, and danced. Then, feeling hungry, I whipped out my egg salad sandwich and munched without dropping a crumb. The crowd oh\u2019d and ah\u2019d, but the tightrope walker was not amused.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d he growled. \u201cGet off – now!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWait,\u201d I replied. \u201cI need to finish my egg sandwich.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The man shook the wire, trying to send me falling into the net, but my feet gripped.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cImpressive! You\u2019re almost as good as the Great Garibaldi! He did fifty-five somersaults on a wire in a row.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThe Great Garibaldi?\u201d I wondered. I proceeded to do a quadruple backflip, then fifty-<\/span>six <\/span><\/i>somersaults in a row. The tightrope walker beamed; the crowd roared.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWhat\u2019s your name, kid?\u201d asked the man eagerly.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cJoe Gekko. I know Gekko is a strange name – don\u2019t ask how we got it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cWelcome to the circus!\u201d he cried, shaking my hand.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Okay, maybe I <\/span>was <\/span><\/i>going to run off with the circus\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n Contest info:<\/p>\n Tell us something about a new character joining a magical circus. What is their special ability? How did they come to join the circus?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Special thanks to our judges: \u00a0Allison Hill (Vromans), Nick Smith (Pasadena Library), Shauna Redmond\u00a0(Pasadena Library), Tiffany Duenas (Pasadena Library), Jean Penn (Pasadena Library)<\/p>\n Sponsored by the\u00a0Friends of the Pasadena Public Library<\/p>\n
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