by Christina Vazquez–“Children of the Candy Corn” was the first place winner and fan favorite of Hickman-Johnson-Furrow Learning Center’s 3rd annual Edible Books contest.
Sara Alexander, of group E=MC Hammer, was “shocked” that her entry won. “I mean, I knew the cake was rad but I didn’t expect to win twice,” says Alexander. “Actually, I didn’t think I’d win at all and wasn’t even going to do it.”
The winning cake was inspired by Stephen King’s short horror story “Children of the Corn.” “I love Halloween and wanted to do something in reference to a scary story, and Stephen King is the best with stuff like that,” says Alexander. “I love the story of the ‘Children of the Corn’ and wanted to do a pun with it.”
The reception of the tiered cake was an almost unanimous appreciation for the genius behind it.
A love for stories is a driving force behind the event. Rin Payte, a Learning Center employee and second place winner with “The Lion, the Kitch(en), & the Wardrobe,” says that they were inspired by “a love for books, mostly… I made the poster and I got pumped.” As for feelings regarding the results of the contest, Payte was “excited mostly. I was worried about my cake because my trees kept falling over.”
Circulation manager Karen Wascher, who helped organize the event, thinks that it will definitely continue in Morningside’s future. Edible Books contests originally began as April Fools’ event at other libraries, although when the HJF Learning Center instituted it, they hosted it in the fall as to avoid possible conflicts with Easter break and test season.
Wascher says one of the hardest parts about organizing the event is getting enough people to participate. “Everybody thinks it’s a fun idea, but [the trouble is with] getting enough people with good ideas that will follow through.”
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