Emporia ? A story about a girl who steals a dog to claim the anticipated reward and a tale of a soldier bonding with his bomb-sniffing dog have won William Allen White Children’s Book Awards.

Emporia State University announced the winners in a news release this past week.

About 40,000 third- through eighth-graders participated in the selection process.

“How to Steal a Dog” by Barbara O’Connor won in the third- through fifth-grade category.

“Cracker! The Best Dog in Viet Nam” by Cynthia Kadohata won the sixth- through eighth-grade award.

The authors have been invited to participate in the Oct. 2 awards presentation in Emporia.

The university has given the award for more than 50 years.