Essay competition announced

As part of this year’s One Book Villanova program, Falvey Memorial Library is sponsoring an essay contest for current undergraduate students. Students are invited to submit a written response to this year’s book, Tim Tyson’s Blood Done Sign My Name. Submissions should be prose works and can include papers or essays prepared for course assignments, but the essays may also be less formal, more personal pieces.

Essays are not limited with respect to theme, form or style, though the pieces should take as their point of departure some dimension or aspect of Tyson’s book. Embedded within Tyson’s narrative is a powerful coming-of-age story, as well as a memoir about his own father-son relationship. These aspects of Tyson’s project reflect some of the range of perspectives from which one can approach the book.

Submitted essays can range in length from 1,000 to 3,500 words. Length itself will not be a primary criterion for assessing essay quality. A panel of faculty from various disciplines, along with members of the One Book Villanova steering committee, will judge the entries.

There will be several prizes, and a public ceremony honoring the winners will be held in the Library on February 15, 2007. For more information, contact Darren Poley or call 610-519-6371.

Submissions should be sent by February 7, 2007 to the address below:

One Book Undergraduate Essay Contest
Director’s Office
Falvey Memorial Library