Barbara Eckholdt Johnstone, '66

Barbara Eckholdt Johnstone, '66, Grove City, OH, was honored to receive fourth place (Honorable Mention) in the Children’s Mystery division of the 2026 Readers’ Favorite® International Book Award Contest for her novel, "Cemetery Ridge." The organization receives thousands of entries from all over the world and separates each into categories, so every book competes only with others in the same genre. Submissions include those from publishing giants and New York best-selling authors, as well as independently published books or those by small publishing houses. Johnstone’s publisher, Proving Press, submitted her work for this contest. Johnstone, a retired teacher, wrote "Cemetery Ridge" with middle-grade students and teens as the original target audience. However, this suspense novel captures the interest of adults with a plot that brings back memories of school days and mysterious twists involving the disappearance of a young girl. "Cemetery Ridge" is available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and all bookstores.  Learn more about this recognition.