Tournament of Books discussion

Welcome to Round 1 of Alternative Tournament of Books!

Our judge for Round 1, nomadreader, drew TWO books that are on the TOB long list, Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta, and The Story of My Teeth by Valeria Luiselli.

Here is a link to nomadreader's decision:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1t...

And here is a link to our Tournament Brackets:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Y...

Thanks nomadreader! I've also copied your decision in the next to messages, below.

Under the Udala Trees v. The Story of My Teeth

by

nomadreader:

When I saw I was tasked with comparing The Story of My Teeth and Under the Udala Trees, my first thought was to try to find the similarities between them. Both are the second work of fiction by a young woman whose first work of fiction received acclaim. (Luiselli’s first novel Faces in the Crowd was a National Book Award 5 Under 35 pick, while Okparanta’s story collection Happiness, Like Water was a Young Lions Fiction nominee.) Both women were born in other countries but now live in the United States. Both women set this book in the country of their birth. After reading them, I’ll add that both are talented, adventurous writers who take very different approaches to writing.

I read The Story of My Teeth first. There was something bizarrely poignant about reading a novel about teeth while Hawthorne, my one-year-old, was getting his first molar. That one tooth turned our household upside down for a week, and The Story of My Teeth haunted my reading life most of that week. It’s a slim novel, but it consumed me and demanded I take time to stop and think and make sense of the narrative.

On the morning I started The Story of My Teeth, I was about twenty-five minutes early for a meeting. I pulled out my book and began reading. Perhaps partly because I was reading in a hotel lobby rife with distractions, more than once I said, “wait...what?” and re-read a paragraph. The Story of My Teeth is a book to start slowly. To say it is an unconventional narrative is a bizarrely conventional statement that doesn’t fit this slim novel. As I read for twenty minutes, I found myself wanting to put the book down before my colleagues arrived and asked me what I was reading. The Story of My Teeth is not a book I wanted to talk about with anyone but the most adventurous readers of literary fiction. It is not a book I’ll ever recommend to a casual reader. The opening line alerts the reader this book is something different and hard to quantify: “I’m the best auctioneer in the world, but no one knows it because I’m a discreet sort of man.” There is so much at play in this novel, and this sentence manages to capture much of it.

After that sentence, I read with the presumption that our narrator was unreliable. I’m drawn to unreliable narrators, yet I found his storytelling uneven. The auction descriptions quickly grew dull. Luiselli is being intentionally clever, I thought, but after a few, they didn’t add anything new to the story and killed its momentum. After the auction, things got convoluted and weird to the point I wasn’t entirely sure what was happening. As a reader, it’s hard for me to admit that, yet what Luiselli does next is so brilliant and unexpected, I’m not ashamed to do so.

My favorite part of the book was the part not written from the narrator’s point of view. The shift in language was initially jarring, which made me realize how engaged I was in the novel, even as I didn’t think I was. The pictures and artifacts elevate the novel to a fascinating, multi-layered piece of art. I was pleasantly surprised to have some of the ambiguity removed, and this section forced me to reevaluate my earlier thoughts. It’s a rare experience for a novel to completely change course that way, and I enjoyed the surprise immensely.

Was this book a worthwhile reading experience? Yes. Did I enjoy reading it? Not particularly. Did its risks excite me for what else Luiselli will do in her career? Absolutely.

(continued in the next post...)

Under the Udala Trees v. The Story of My Teeth, Part 2

by

nomadreader:

The Story of My Teeth captured my attention in the first sentence; Under the Udala Trees didn’t really make me sit up and pay attention until Part Two. Yet I began highlighting passages on the second page: “This was the way things were before the war: our lives, tamely moving forward.” Okparanta’s writing is fluid and wise, and she drops hints from the beginning that she is writing this story from the future. I am drawn to stories told in this way, as they can offer both the immersive storytelling experience as well as the wisdom time brings. Particularly in coming of age stories, the reader can both remember the emotional weight of youth while sharing the experience of looking at those events with the perspective of hindsight.

Part One sets the stage, and it makes sense it comes first. It is the story’s beginning, and it helps acclimate the reader to Nigeria and the shift into war. When the action jumps to Part 2, I realized Okparanta is a bold storyteller telling a bold story. She has a clear point of view. It’s one that fits beautifully into Ijeoma’s story, but one whose impact can be far greater. Here, Ijeoma and her mother read the Bible and discuss each passage relevant to homosexuality. The import of these discussions exists on many layers. They serve to move the story forward and provide a key moment of conflict for the main character, but they also serve a larger role of allowing Okparanta a forum to address homophobia. As a contemporary American reader, I was struck by the connection to today’s world. We’re having the same conversations today, in many parts of the world, as Igeoma has in 1970’s Nigeria. This symmetry’s poignance will linger for a long time.

Part Three shifts back to the time between Parts One and Two. It’s an interesting storytelling decision, and it helps elevate this novel to much more than a chronological coming of age novel. Okparanta is taking risks to tell the story in this order. I found the events in Part Three to be somewhat slow, but there continue to be moments of beauty. When the time shifts again in Part Four, to high school, where Ijeoma and Amina are at the same boarding school, the novel really takes off. Okparanta’s storytelling becomes more aggressive as the stakes are raised for Ijeoma. She covers more time as Ijeoma’s story stretches into an adulthood that is both expected and unexpected. In the novel’s final pages, we discover Ijeoma is telling the story from 2014, which helps give this novel its impressive scope. The second half of Under the Udala Trees left me breathless. It begins as a coming of age lesbian love story set against the backdrop of the Nigerian civil war, but this novel stretches into so much more. The scope of the novel is immense: social justice, coming of age, life, love, motherhood, sexism, homophobia, and religious fervor. It is perhaps a less obvious ambition than in The Story of My Teeth, but it is more successful and ultimately more satisfying.

My verdict was obvious to me as soon as I finished reading, but it took me a few days to articulate my reasons. The Story of My Teeth is most concerned with trying to do something new, while Under the Udala Trees is most concerned with trying to say something. Both are worthy causes in literature. For me, the most enjoyable reading experiences are brilliant and ambitious, but they are also enjoyable. The Story of My Teeth has flashes of brilliance and an abundance of ambition, but it wasn’t particularly enjoyable to read. Under the Udala Trees manages that reading trifecta, and it not only gets the win, it is one of my favorite reads of 2015.

(crossposted at http://nomadreader.blogspot.com)

Thanks nomadreader for giving us so much more to think about with these two novels.

This match had possibly the most contrasting books of all. Under the Udala Trees is possibly the most old fashioned novel in our alt tournament. Its straightforward use of fiction to enlighten, instruct, and shed light on real social realities reminds me of Steinbeck or Upton Sinclair.

And then in contrast you read The Story of My Teeth which keeps deliberately thwarting any sort of connection a reader might try to make with any sort of reality--a novel that doesn't fit any definition of "novel" I've ever read before.

I can't say what I would have done in your shoes. I like both these books but for really different reasons. Thanks for the fair read and for sharing your thoughts and experiences. Especially about Hawthorne! Hope he's feeling better.

Wheeeee the tournament is on!!

Thank you, nomadreader, for your thoughtful comments. I have not read either book so have nothing to say other than you've confirmed I want to read them and I'm glad to be getting close to end of long library queues. I'll be sure to come back to your comments after I do.

I agree with you that for me, the best books must be enjoyable to read, in addition to being brilliant etc, so I understand why you chose as you did. Though something tells me I'm going to really enjoy The Story of My Teeth....

What a great write-up and explanation for your pick. I've only read The Story of My Teeth so I can't compare them, but I agree that I was more in awe of Luiselli's ambition, experimentation, and humor than I was engaged with the story or character. Great way to kick off the alt.ToB.

Great write-up, and I agree with your verdict, nomadreader. I found much to admire in The Story of My Teeth, and found parts of it hysterically funny, but it was ultimately too "out there" for me to really connect to it.

What a terrific write-up (the bar has truly been set, judges). I'll admit that I haven't gotten to either yet, although I have The Story of My Teeth and it will probably be the next book I read after my book club book -- which is The Buried Giant, which is, of course on the longlist. You make me want to read Under the Udala Trees, though, when I'd previously been uninspired. Thanks, nomadreader.

Interesting! I haven't read the Okparanta, so I can't say what I might have thought of it. I'll admit, though, that I am very biased towards the Luiselli and almost certainly would have picked it to win -- although one never knows! I'm drawn toward books that try to do something new with the form, and so I loved The Story of My Teeth. Yes, it was a challenge to get into and it was uneven in terms of the amount of engagement I brought to it. But I think, in the end, it's a novel about novels and storytelling, and I like thinking about those things.

Ellen wrote: "What a terrific write-up (the bar has truly been set, judges). I'll admit that I haven't gotten to either yet, although I have The Story of My Teeth and it will probably be the next book I read aft..."

For anyone who has more time for listening to audio than for a read-in-your-lap book, Robin Miles's rendition of Under the Udala Trees is magnificent. Downpour has a sample I like a lot, where Ijeoma explains the meaning of her family members' names:

http://www.downpour.com/catalog/produ...

poingu wrote: "Ellen wrote: "What a terrific write-up (the bar has truly been set, judges). I'll admit that I haven't gotten to either yet, although I have The Story of My Teeth and it will probably be the next b..."

Now that gets my attention, as I have been tempted to listen to Under the Udala Trees on audio but just haven't gotten to it yet.

Awesome job, Nomadreader, and Poingu, thanks for highlighting Robin Miles' fantastic narration of the audio book!!

Jan wrote: "Awesome job, Nomadreader, and Poingu, thanks for highlighting Robin Miles' fantastic narration of the audio book!!"

I have no idea if it's an authentic Nigerian accent but it sounds great to me, and she has to speak in Igbo in a few places too...even though I read this on paper already,, I'm planning to listen next because the story has always struck me as an oral testimony vs. a polished piece of writing. It seems the people who don't like Udala Trees at least are reacting to a certain artlessness of the prose, but as spoken word it becomes masterful storytelling.

I'm not particularly drawn to the audio version of The Story of My Teeth, though. Somehow, weird, I thought it should be narrated by the author, or if not, then narrated by a female voice. Obviously the protag is male-identified but it's not really HIS story, because he's barely a "character" at all--instead it's the author's story, and Luiselli is the presence I hear in the language.

What a wonderful thoughtful and very reflective write-up!

I have read both books and thought you captured the essence of both books and agree that they are both very talented writers. Definitely looking forward to read more from both in the future.

While I enjoyed both books (and for the reasons you stated) I too would have picked Under the Udala Trees.

I will say that I liked The Story of My Teeth enough that if it had been paired with a different book in alt-TOB (one that I was not necessarily a fan of) for me it would have advanced to the next round.

Ellen wrote: "What a terrific write-up (the bar has truly been set, judges). I'll admit that I haven't gotten to either yet, although I have The Story of My Teeth and it will probably be the next book I read aft..."

Agreed! Although now my judgment seems painfully puny.

I haven't read TSoMT yet but loved UtUT so much I immediately handed it off to a friend who I thought would enjoy it.

poingu wrote: "Jan wrote: "Awesome job, Nomadreader, and Poingu, thanks for highlighting Robin Miles' fantastic narration of the audio book!!"

I have no idea if it's an authentic Nigerian accent but it sounds gr..."

That's so interesting about the Okparanta possibly meant as, or best experienced as, oral testimony vs. a polished piece of writing. I come to novels generally AS polished pieces of writing, and looking FOR polished pieces of writing, but obviously that's not the only way to approach a book, even one in print. I was going to say that this approach seems like the opposite of what Luiselli is doing, since that book seems very visual to me, with the images that are included, and it's also very writerly, in my mind. Except, as Luiselli explains in her afterword, her book was written to be read out loud as well -- to the factory workers.

thanks Nomad Reader! looking forward to 'reading' these both on audiobook! Appreciated your reasoning... I think I would have had a similar decision had I been judging Round Two!

I'm so pleased with this start to the Tournament! I loved Under the Udala Trees and have recommended it to others several times in the last few weeks, but this judgment has me fairly curious about The Story of My Teeth

As for Under the Udala Trees' being "old fashioned" (a la poignu) I don't necessarily disagree, but I do hope that this quality helps it reach a wider audience than it otherwise might given the geographical setting and subject matter. I'd love to see it on the "Book Club Favorites" table at my local bookstore.

Vanessa wrote: "As for Under the Udala Trees' being "old fashioned" (a la poignu) I don't necessarily disagree, but I do hope that this quality helps it reach a wider audience than it otherwise might given the geographical setting and subject matter. "

I think it will, Vanessa.

btw I didn't mean "old fashioned" in a pejorative way--Udala Trees was one of my favorite reads in 2015. It's just that this novel reminds me of past cycles in literary history, times when fiction was meant to be a vehicle for illuminating social wrongs...everything from The Pilgrim's Progress to The Grapes of Wrath. There are still "message" novels getting published but more in the YA category I think. It feels, I don't know, as if we want our adult fiction just now to be morally ambiguous, and that we look mostly to non-fiction or memoir for social criticism.

Very well done. I am almost finished with The Story of My Teeth, and have not read Under, but I quite enjoyed your judgment and the reasoning behind your decision.

This is what I would have picked as well. I've read both and enjoyed both. The reasoning you gave was completely warranted and thoughtful.

Loved the critique of both books. I haven't read either and my New Year's resolution went out the window as I immediately downloaded Under The Udala Trees (so much for restraint in book buying while my TBR pile is so high!!).

Funny thing Amy(thanks Nomad Reader! ... I always read nomadreader as No Mad Reader rather than Nomad Reader.

I just finished reading The Story of My Teeth. Elements of the writing reminded me of 2666 and Haruki Murakami. It was a fun read. (Okay, 2666 isn't exactly fun but the style ....)

Under the Udala Trees will, deservedly, receive more attention for its treatment of sexuality.

Don't know that I can make a choice here. Both books were more enjoyable than others I have read. My gauge is going to be, "Would I purchase this book?" The library provided the books for round one. I would recommend both books to other readers but not to the same people.

your teeth? :)

Thanks for all the nice comments. It was so fun to read these two books and write about them, but it's been killing me to not talk about them until today!

Beverly, I agree with you--if The Story of My Teeth had been paired with something else, I may have advanced it. I didn't love the reading experience, but it's such an interesting book to read and think about, and I typically appreciate bold choices in literature that challenge convention, even if I don't always like them.

Funny thing Amy(thanks Nomad Reader! ... I always read nomadreader as No Mad Reader rather than Nomad Reader. ."

Ha! It is indeed Nomad Reader, although one publisher sends me emails as Noma Dreader, which always amuses me. It comes from my frequent moves (now behind me), love of travel and obvious love of reading.

Jason wrote: "your teeth? :)"

Ha! Was using app on my phone and my hand slipped!

Well done, Nomadreader. Thank you for putting together such a well-rendered and thoughtful decision and explanation. With this being one of the few rounds in which I have read both books, I would echo the result although my reasons are more because of my dislike for Teeth as opposed to a love for Udala. While I enjoy experimental fiction on occasion, Teeth irritated me more than anything else. I initially enjoyed the unorthodox story of Highway but then.... the names; What's with the names? Is there a point here or is this just gratuitous cleverness? And I also found the actual auction portion tedious after the first few and then... the clowns...that's where she lost me... so much so that by the time I got to the afterword I saw it more as an attempt at salvage rather than illumination. I really wanted to like this but in the end I was just... irritated.
Udala on the other hand was more traditional in its storytelling with the language at times both beautiful and plaintive. While I couldn't quite get invested the way I wanted to (like a glass wall just kept things out of touch), I admired the book and found it a worthy read. (Although I did have some difficulty with the ending with both the mother and the husband inexplicably muted given their previous actions.) But Udala was also the clear winner here for me.

Under the Udala Trees is getting a lot of comparison to Half of a Yellow Sun ... is this due to style and serious subject matter or just because they are both Nigerian and Igbo (at least I think Okparanta is Igbo - not a lot on her on Wikipedia or GR)?

Well written review/comparison Nomadreader!

I listened to both audio books and agree with your assessment. Under the Udala Trees was one of my favorite reads this year. As you mentioned, there wasn't a connection with The Story of My Teeth (although the writing was ambitious).

thank you nomadreader for a lovely and thoughtful review of the two books! i like that you would not have wanted people to see you read Teeth in public (well, colleagues)!

What a lovely write up! I only read Under the Udala Trees so I can't compare, but I really enjoyed it and I'm glad it got the win here.

Wonderful write up nomadreader. I concur with your judgement, as I struggled with "Teeth" and enjoyed UtUT so much more.

I thought I had "Teeth" on my Kindle but was mistaken. After reading the comments, I am not disappointed. It sounds like a worthy book in its way but maybe not something I want to spend time on right now.

poingu wrote: "Vanessa wrote: "As for Under the Udala Trees' being "old fashioned" (a la poignu) I don't necessarily disagree, but I do hope that this quality helps it reach a wider audience than it otherwise mig..."

Good points .
I was just thinking last night as I was looking over "anticipated" book lists the number of "literary" and other fiction books that deal with the subject of grief and/or "dysfunctional" families. I wondered if this was always the case or I am just getting older so "grief" is something that is happening more often in my and age-mate friends lives.

Beverly, I agree with your observation. When I first started working in this community college library, I had two students return a book (can't remember what it was but it was something we'd all recognize as "literature") loudly proclaiming their distaste for it. One of them asked me, "Is all literature morbid?" I'm ashamed to admit I laughed them off but later realized it was their choice of words not the idea that caught me off guard. I wish I had thought to recite Tolstoy's quotation about happy families as that may have been more enlightening to them. That was almost 20 years ago and I, too, have noticed that grief and dysfunction are more a part of my life now - not that there's more dysfunction, but I've lived long enough to see plenty of it.

nomadreader -- thank you so much for your great judgment! this was an interesting match-up for me in my reading as i was fairly 'meh' on both books.

Huntleybrinkley touched on many of my same feelings about Luiselli's book, in comment #28.

regarding the names.... i kept thinking of The Crying of Lot 49, by thomas pynchon, and the totally ridiculous names used in that one. haha!!!

if i was choosing between the two books, i would have gone in favour of okparanta too, because i felt quite alienated as a reader by luiselli. and i have given thought to why i feel that way, and read so many articles... but it still has not helped change my response to the book.

if anyone is interested, we have a great radio program in canada called 'writers & company', hosted by eleanor wachtel. she featured valeria luiselli on her show, back in september, and you can listen to the episode:

http://www.cbc.ca/radio/writersandcom...

Thank you for your great review. I have only read Udala and I am grateful to know more about Teeth.

This is a great write-up, nomadreader! I love that you pulled out the first line of Teeth; I did love that line and really liked the voice for a while, but I was tapped out after the auctions. Not enough firm ground for me, especially since I was trying to read it in bits and pieces, not for long extended periods where I could immerse myself in its un-realness. If it makes the TOB shortlist, I'll probably give it another try, though.

I picked up Udala Trees from the library today, and I'm looking forward to reading it.

Megan wrote: "Not enough firm ground for me, especially since I was trying to read it in bits and pieces, not for long extended periods where I could immerse myself in its un-realness"

"Not enough firm ground," exactly. I like that idea. Also I agree about the need to "immerse yourself in its unrealness." I was thinking exactly that this morning about another book on the long list, The Game for Real by Richard Weiner. It reminds me of the Luiselli--simple language, nothing fancy in the sentences, and yet every sentence requires concentration because of the surprise of the illogic.

I totally loved its first two chapters of The Game for Real, then put it down to read other stuff, and when I came back I discovered I'd completely lost the train of thought in the story. Like Luiselli's novel it's surreal. It's on shaky ground.

I think for me at least these kinds of books that are so unexpected need to be read solo, without any other books getting mixed with them in my head. I've stopped reading Weiner's novel for now and will save it for a time when my reading is less peripatetic.

Exactly! I think when a lot of the pleasure of the book comes from how it plays around, especially with my expectations, I want to remain connected to it, to not break the dream.