Each spring Williamsburg Regional Library hosts the Battle of the Books, a book-based, Jeopardy-style trivia competition played by local and regional school teams. WRL librarians select 12 great books each for grades 4 – 5 and ­6 – 8. Multiple copies of these books are available at both library locations throughout the year. Public and private schools and homeschool groups form teams in the fall or winter to practice for competitions run by their local libraries; the winners from each region then compete at WRL for the glory of the regional championship trophy.

The participating regions are Williamsburg/James City County (includes Magruder ES, Waller Mill ES, and Queens Lake MS), York County, Newport News, Hampton, and Poquoson. If you are interested in joining or forming a team at your school, please contact your school media specialist.

Here are the battle books for the 2023/2024 school year!
Battle Books Grades 4-5
Battle Books Grade 6-8

Want to track your progress and see what your friends and teammates are reading? Join the Battle of the Books reading challenge in Beanstack! If you are in 4th – 8th grade, you can participate in the reading challenge even if you aren’t on your school’s team. If you already have an account, just search for available challenges. If you don’t already have a Beanstack account, it’s easy to register at the link below. Use Friends and Leaderboards to see what your friends and family are reading — and who’s on track to read all the battle books!

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2022 Battle of the Books Winners

Congratulations to the 2023 Battle of the Books winners!

4th – 5th Grade: Coventry Elementary

6th – 8th Grade: Tabb Middle School