Thanks to efforts of the Writers' Union of Armenia, last week Yerevan hosted a book festival. For four years in a row, an all-Armenian festival "Present Books" is held in the country on February 19. By tradition, a book exhibition was organized this year too. Edit Print Publishing House also displayed a wide range of books of various genres, including books for children and travelers. The final stage of the First Republican Contest "Don't Waste Time, Read" organized by Edit Print took place last week. Among the participants were children of two age groups: fifth-seventh graders competed on February 20, while second-fourth graders - on February 21. The final stage of the contest involved several sub-stages: during the first sub-stage the participants were given written tests on works of the great Armenian poet Hovhannes Tumanian. The written test consisted of ten questions, each of ten points. The contest organizers formulated questions based on the list of literary works assigned to the participants beforehand. After the first sub-stage the commission checked the written tests and announced the results: all the participants were admitted to the next sub-phase. The commission was headed by Lilit Ter-Grigorian and composed of 5 members, including 3 employees of the city municipality and 2 representatives of the Edit Print Publishing House. The second sub-phase was held in the form of a quiz. Each participant was asked ten questions (each of one point). Prior to this sub-phase, the participants were required to familiarize themselves with articles of some headings of magazines "Merry Train" (1st and 2nd age groups) and "My Planet" (2nd age group), based on which the questions were prepared. The quiz took place in the presence of parents and the commission members. The participants drew their tes papers by casting lots. Those present in the hall also had the opportunity to see the questions of the test papers. The contestants were required to answer one question within 30-60 seconds. After summing up the results of the first and second sub-stages, the commission announced that only 6 out the 26 participants reached the final sub-stage. At the third sub-stage, 6 contestants participated in a quick quiz on H. Tumanian's works: "The Dog and the Cat", "The End of the Evil", and "The Brother Lambkin." The three participants who managed to give correct answers to the greatest number of questions within 2-3 minutes took first, second, and third places. Marketing Director of Edit Print Publishing House Vanush Harutyunian said: "I highly appreciate the organization of such events since they help deal with the problem of encouraging reading among children. We should arouse a passion for reading in children from early childhood, and this contest is a striking example of this". "Don't Waste Time, Read" is one of those rare contests, which involve book-loving children from Armenian marzes (provinces). The aim of the contest organizers was to increase access to books for residents of provinces as it would be difficult to transport so many children to Yerevan. At first, contests were held in marzes to select the best book-loving pupils with the help of teachers. According to Vanush Harutyunian, children in marzes are well-read because of their limited access to computer. The publications of Edit Print publishing house are available in marzes as well and enable children to receive information. The closing ceremony of the contest and the award ceremony were held at Arno Babajanian Concert Hall on February 22 - the day after the final phase. All the participants of the final phase received a literary series released by Edit Print, as well as consolation prizes. The three winners in each age group were given a computer, a notebook, and a DVD, respectively. In the words of Gayane Soghomonian, Head of the Education Department of the Municipality Staff, the city municipality welcomes such events and will continue assisting with their organization. The award ceremony was followed by a concert for children. The Noyan Tapan Highlights

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