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1st Place
Matthew Evans - New Mexico
A 7th grade home-schooled student from Albuquerque, Matthew enjoys hiking and playing basketball.
He has participated in the National Spelling Bee for four consecutive years and in 2006,
placed 14th in the nation. His favorite book is Watership Down by Richard Adams because he
likes Bigwig’s valiant courage.
Favorite Word: “bewusstseinslage” because he likes the way it sounds.
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2nd Place
Hannah Brown - South Carolina
A 7th grade student at J. G. McCracken Junior High School in Spartanburg, Hannah
likes to write and enjoys creating poetry. She also likes to draw cartoons.
A favorite book is Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien. Aragon stands out
because he is the king of the middle earth and marries Arwen, an elf.
Favorite Word: “mathom” a made up word that is very useful.
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3rd Place
Camille Guillot - Louisiana
An 8th grade student at Mandeville Junior High in Mandeville, Camille enjoys
reading and knitting. She is good at math but prefers English. A favorite book is
Cyrano De Bergerac by Edmond Rostand because Cyrano has a great sense of humor.
Favorite Word: “dwell” because she likes the way it sounds.
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2006 Reader's Digest
National Word Power Champions
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1st Place
Joe Shepherd - Georgia
An 8th grade home-schooled student from Sydney, Joe's favorite period in history is the 16th
century because of his facination with broadsword battles. One of his favorite book character
is Doc Savage from The Man of Bronze by Kenneth Robeson because he is the ultimate
action hero.
Favorite Word: “hamadryad” because of its very diverse meanings.
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2nd Place
William Johnson - Virginia
An 8th grader at St. James Catholic School in Falls Church, William loves
to read. He also enjoys playing football, computer games and hanging out
with his friends. A favorite book character is Persnickety from The Scarlet
Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy.
Favorite Word: “avuncular” which means of or having to do with an uncle because when he was little, his parents made him spell it.
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3rd Place
Christopher Molini - Nebraska
An 8th grader at St. Pius X in Omaha, Christopher loves to read. He also
plays the piano, runs track and enjoys drawing. A favorite book character
is Aragon from Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkein because of his history
and complex nature.
Favorite Word: “veritable” because it is fun to say.
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2005 Reader's Digest
National Word Power Champions
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1st Place
Ming-Ming Tran - New Jersey
A 6th grade student at Thomas R. Grover Middle School in Princeton Junction,
Ming-Ming plays the piano and violin. She is an avid reader who likes books
about magic, especially dragons. A favorite character is Princess Cimorene
from Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede because she does all the improper
things and is actually a smart princess.
Favorite Word: “hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia” which means the fear of long words.
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2nd Place
Billy Dorminy - Georgia
An 8th grade home-schooled student in McDonough, Billy enjoys organic
farming, computer programming, mathematics and daylily breeding. His favorite
book is Holy Cows & Hog Heaven by Joel Salatin. Joel is a real character
and a role model for responsible farming.
Favorite Word: “poecilonym” because it rolls off your tongue so easily.
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3rd Place
Levi Foster - Arkansas
An 8th grade home-schooled student from Fayetteville, Levi is an
avid reader who is also interested in the Welsh language and culture.
A favorite character is Boromir, son of Denethor from the J. R. R. Tolkein’s
Lord of the Rings series because he is a paragon of sacrificial courage.
Favorite Word: “eisteddfod” which means a Welsh arts festival.
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2004 Reader's Digest
National Word Power Champions
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1st Place
Spencer Gill - Michigan
A 7th grade student at Summit Academy in Flat Rock, Spencer plays the clarinet
in his school band and participates yearly in speech competitions. He is on
the Lego Robotics team and this year his team won for creative presentation.
He is also a voracious reader and his favorite author is Orson Scott Card.
Favorite Word: “woebegone” because it is fun to use.
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2nd Place
Jeffrey Siegel - Maryland
An 8th grade student at Julius West Middle School in Rockville, Jeffrey’s
hobbies are reading, creating stories and playing computer games.
He also enjoys history and he has traveled all over the world with his older brother, Steven.
Favorite Word: “stubborn” because he and his family tend to be stubborn!
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3rd Place
Ajay Ravichandran - North Carolina
An 8th grade student at Wilmington Academy of Arts & Science in Wilmington,
Ajay enjoys reading fantasy, science fiction, political/espionage thrillers and history.
Favorite Word: “flamboyant” because its inclusion in a sentence can conjure up a colorful image of a person, place or event.
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2003 Reader's Digest
National Word Power Champions
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1st Place
William Brannon - Virginia
An 8th grade student at Herndon Middle School in Herndon, William
loves to read, is interested in language and studies German.
Favorite Word: “luddite” because it is the word that he won the VA state championship with.
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2nd Place
Gordon Bourjaily - Iowa
An 8th grade student at Northwest Junior High in Coraville, Gordon enjoys
hunting, target shooting, Boy Scouts and writing poetry. Reading is his
favorite activity.
Favorite Word: “fundus” because it is fun to say and it’s a word for something hardly anyone would talk about.
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3rd Place
Richard Lyford - New York
An 8th grade student at St. Mary’s in Amsterdam, Richard enjoys reading
and playing the piano. His favorite subjects are social studies and science.
Favorite Word: “crystal” because it sounds as elegant as the object it represents.
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