CMDS Crowns Third Annual Book Madness Champion

Ruth Thompson, 4th Grade Literature & Language Arts

After a busy few months of reading for CMDS students, The One & Only Ivan pulled ahead to become the 2021 CMDS Book Madness Champion. Ivan was definitely an underdog; many expected Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone or Percy Jackson & the Lightning Thief to take the title. But the popularity of The One & Only Ivan prevailed amongst CMDS 3rd-6th graders who voted in this year’s tournament.

Book Madness is quickly becoming a beloved tradition for the CMDS student body. The theme this year was “6th Grade Favorites.” Sixth graders submitted their own personal “Final Fours,” and then the Upper School Literature teachers tallied the total votes to come up with the Sweet Sixteen. 

Aside from being a whole lot of fun, #cmdsbookmadness is a major reading motivator! Some of the most popular books in our book bracket became hard to find on campus. Students could be seen picking up a book to read whenever they had a free minute.

Many students found new favorites and several have continued reading a series that they discovered during Book Madness. Third graders got to join in on the Book Madness fun this year for the first time. Even CMDS 1st and 2nd graders were excited to see who would be crowned the champion. 

The Rules

First round voting began March 19 and followed each round of NCAA March Madness. For each matchup, students had to read both books in order to place their vote for their favorite in that matchup.  The book in each match up that received the most votes advanced to the next round. 

From the Students

“My favorite book was Harry Potter probably. I like the suspense of finding out who would win or go to the next round.” – Bennett  

“I really liked Book Madness because I found out about my new favorite book series called Keeper of the Lost Cities. I started the first one in March and thought it would be the most boring book ever, and now I’m in love with the series, and I’m on Book 7. I got to read so many new books because of Book Madness!” – Claire

“I found out that I actually like reading during Book Madness. I really liked some of the books that were in the book bracket. I found out that I love the Percy Jackson series, and I’m on the fourth book now!” – Jonathan

“I thought Book Madness was a fun way to read new books and get to vote for them. I loved getting to vote for my favorite books and finding out the winner! I found out that I love Harry Potter, which I had never read before!” – Gwyn