Snyder Book Collecting Contest open for student submissions

KU Libraries’ Snyder Book Collecting Contest, celebrating 67 years of encouraging student book collections, is now accepting entries through March 25. The annual contest recognizes KU undergraduate and graduate students for their collections of books and complementary pieces – such as digital items, music, and film – that share a particular subject, topic, or theme. 

This year, winners in the undergraduate and graduate divisions will receive a cash prize of $500 and a gift card from co-sponsor Jayhawk Ink, with additional prizes for second place and honorable mention. First place winners in each division are eligible to compete in the National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest, which awards a top prize of $2,500. In the last decade, KU has had three collections receive national honors, including the top prize in 2014.  

Finalists’ collections will be displayed and winners announced at a celebratory reception at 4 p.m., April 24 on the third floor of Watson Library. Although free and open to the public, reception RSVPs are encouraged.     

“This is one of my favorite events every year,” said Beth Whittaker, associate dean for distinctive collections and director of Spencer Research Library. “Collections often show the power of following one’s own curiosity and the importance of exploring new ideas. Each collection highlights the significance and the importance of the freedom to read. They celebrate what happens when you find your own inspiration and follow your own passion.” 

Elizabeth Morrison Snyder established the Snyder Book Collecting Contest in 1957, endowing the prizes for the future to provide permanent funding for the competition. Though she claimed she was “really not much of a collector,” she built many remarkable collections including one on A.A. Milne, creator of Winnie-the-Pooh, and an H.L. Mencken collection that includes inscribed first editions and letters written by Mencken—Snyder donated both collections to KU Libraries as part of multiple generous donations made over the years. Until her death in 2004, Mrs. Snyder attended the awards ceremony to share her enthusiasm for book collecting.   

KU Libraries collection development efforts remain a central pillar of its academic mission to advance research, teaching, and learning at the intersection of people and ideas. KU Libraries is one of the top 50 libraries in the Association of Research Libraries by volumes held, and the largest library in Kansas with more than 5.6 million items in seven campus locations.