A tradition on the North Olympic Peninsula since 2013, the Battle of the Books is back.

Fourth-grade students from Clallam County schools take part in this trivia-style competition at the Port Angeles Library, 2210 S. Peabody St., on Friday, March 24.

The competition, set for 6:30 p.m., is the culmination of a school-year reading program. It is designed to encourage reading, expose kids to a wide range of genres, inspire teamwork and help students build a home library, said representatives with the North Olympic Library System.

During the 2022-2023 school year, 225 fourth-grade students at 15 schools and three homeschools across the North Olympic Peninsula participated in the program.

Each student received four books to keep, and NOLS youth services librarians visited classrooms monthly, November through February, to facilitate book discussions.

In Sequim, students at Five Acre School, Greywolf Elementary, Helen Haller Elementary and Olympic Peninsula Academy participated.

The schools in Port Angeles and Joyce that participated in the reading program are Crescent Elementary, Dry Creek Elementary, Franklin Elementary, Hamilton Elementary, Jefferson Elementary, Pacific Northwest Discovery Academy (Pac West), Queen of Angels Catholic School, and Roosevelt Elementary. On the West End, Clallam Bay Elementary, Forks Elementary, and Quileute Tribal School participated.

Though similar programs are hosted throughout the country, local librarians select books specifically for the program in Clallam County. This school year, the students read “Stepping Stones” by Lucy Knisley, “Power Forward” by Hena Kahn, “Lena and the Burning of Greenwood” by Nikki Shannon Smith, and “A Wish in the Dark” by Christina Soontornvat.

The trivia competition on March 24 test students’ understanding of the characters, story and concepts in these books.

Family members and library visitors can watch the competition — and see which school team walks away with the Battle of the Books trophy — in the main room of the library. All competing students must check-in with library staff in the Carver Meeting Room by 6:15 p.m.

The Battle of the Books program is made possible through support from the Friends of Sequim Library, Port Angeles Friends of the Library, Friends of the Forks Library, and Clallam Bay Friends of the Library.

For more information about this program, visit nols.org/BoB, call 360-417-8500 or email to Youth@nols.org.