HOOD RIVER — On Saturday, March 16, Wy’east Middle School is hosting grades 6-8 regional Oregon Battle of the Books (OBOB) tournament. Sixteen middle school teams from Gresham to The Dalles will meet in Hood River to battle over their knowledge of this year’s OBOB books for a chance to move forward to state competition.

OBOB is a state-wide, voluntary program for grades 3-12. OBOB is sponsored by the Oregon Association of School Libraries who form a team of educators and librarians to select book titles, write questions, connect school with grants, and organize play. OBOB titles cover a range of genres, reading and age levels, and have a balanced interest for boys/girls, while also having good reviews or being award winners to guarantee they are quality titles. The purpose of OBOB is to “encourage and recognize students who enjoy reading, to broaden reading interests, to increase reading comprehension, to promote academic excellence, and to promote cooperative learning and teamwork among students.”