Apples of Gold — Finding

In Dramatic Reading, look for an action story that you enjoy. Make sure you remember these tips.

Love your selection. You'll be spending a lot of time with it, so you want to enjoy it.
Choose beautifully written material that will enhance you as a person. You're not just winning a contest here; you want to learn and grow.
Stick with the classics. Begin with well-known, time-tested authors such as O. Henry, Saki, Shakespeare, Longfellow, Byron, Tennyson, Hawthorne, or Kipling. The library is full of complete works of short stories and poems of the world's greatest authors. So much great literature has not even been tapped for contest material.
Good literature has entertainment value. It makes the audience sit up and listen. The best literature has inherent drama—a story made compelling by a central conflict and further complications. Devotional, philosophical, or meditative type literature usually does not play well to an audience. These types of literature are typically meant to be digested by the single reader.
Use age-appropriate selections. Literature that discusses life experiences that young people have never known seems like a poor fit. Even if the piece is moral and in good taste, ask yourself if it makes sense for a young person to perform it.
Just because a piece makes people cry does not make it a good piece of literature for a contest. Avoid overly emotional, melodramatic pieces.
As a coach, don't "come down" to the students' level; bring them up to a level of choosing the beautiful, lasting, and challenging.

Here are some specific literature suggestions.