Tournament of Books discussion

It's the finale, the face-off between two undefeated books: Let Us Descend vs. North Woods. We have 10 judges casting votes today (our 8 from the bracket plus two alternate volunteers). I wondered to myself how to decide what order to post results, and decided to just go in the strict order they were turned in. I'll put one vote per post, so you can scroll through to up the tension!!

First up, from Gwendolyn Dawson, alternate judge:

"This is a hard decision. What wonderful books! I am choosing North Woods to win because I loved its unique structure: a book of stories revolving around a specific place. I’ve always loved books that are deeply rooted in a specific place. Let Us Descend is beautifully written and tackles important issues, but I don’t think it’s Ward’s best book. Also, the supernatural elements didn’t work well for me."

Vote: North Woods 1, Let Us Descend 0

Second judge, Kyle:

"Though I admired "Let Us Descend," I didn't love it the way I did "North Woods." I'm going to be thinking about those woods - and that house - for a long time yet."

Vote: North Woods 2, Let Us Descend 0

Next up, Care (aka BkClubCare):

"North Woods had everything I love in a book - fabulous writing, interesting characters, comedy AND sadness - - I call it heartfeltness. The sense of setting was incredible. TIME was sweeping and epic. Of course, the genre-bending fusion was astonishing! I gave both of these books 5 out of 5 for a rating but my vote here goes to North Woods. I even liked the bookcover."

Vote: North Woods 3, Let Us Descend 0

Fourth vote, Bryn Lerud:

"Let Us Descend is a devastating story of a young girl, a slave, and how she is separated from her mother and taken to New Orleans to be sold. But it still didn’t have the emotional impact of the long history of a piece of land in Western Massachusetts. Each generation to live on the land is described with loving detail and I was very invested in each one of them. Each left a mark and lived on in both concrete and ghostly ways. I loved this book."

Vote: North Woods 4, Let Us Descend 0

(At this point in the voting, I thought it would be a run-away!)

Fifth judge, Alison/RidgewayGirl:

"Both novels featured stellar writing and an evocative historical setting, but Ward's novel had the emotional heft that left me gutted."

Vote: North Woods 4, Let Us Descend 1

Chrissy wrote: "It's the finale, the face-off between two undefeated books: Let Us Descend vs. North Woods. We have 10 judges casting votes today (our 8 from the bracket plus two alternate volunteers). I wondered ..."

The "post in the order they were turned in" logic is sound! Over here in B-School Land, we refer to that as the Power of Incentives. ;-)

Sixth judge, Elizabeth:

"As I started North Woods I was so excited by the hype, and had such high expectations. And now I’ve read it I fully understand that hype, why it’s loved by so many and has made it to the finals. It was well written, and I love the theme of echoes from the past leaking into the present; the linking between stories over time—including the use of non-human characters—was certainly interesting, the structure far more complex and sweeping than the structure of Let Us Descend. But when I’d finished I found myself wondering, What is this story actually trying to say? What is the point? And with all the switching between characters across time, I never was immersed in the story in the way I cared about Annis and her story. Let Us Descend made me feel, and despite the relative simplicity of the plot, a novel that makes me feel will always get my vote. "

Vote: North Woods 4, Let Us Descend 2

Seventh judge, Adam S:

"While these are very worthy works, sky-high expectations (from other readers here for one and from loving prior books by the author for the other) led to this judge being lightly disappointed with both. That being said, the clear winner for me is Let Us Descend, for the tenacity for survival and depth of relationships and humanity even in the horrors Annis and the other characters experienced as a result of slavery, as well as for Jesmyn Ward's excellent prose. While North Woods was well-written and had a very strong sense of place, it ultimately left me cold, though I am happy so many others seem to have been utterly enchanted by it. May Let Us Descend ascend to the victory!"

Vote: North Woods 4, Let Us Descend 3

It's getting interesting...

Eighth judge, @marika:

"Both North Woods and Let Us Descend are worthy contenders for the ToF title. North Woods grew on me (pun intended) as the book’s vignettes went on and I could see the connections between them. Some of the vignettes seemed hackneyed; several reminded me strongly of other short stories and films. Let Us Descend didn’t require an on-ramp; it grabbed me right away with the dynamic between the protagonist and her mother and its connection to a long history of women’s relationships. And it continued as it began; Let Us Descend engaged me deeply, both through the story and through its evocative and lyrical writing. It offered a nuanced and complex thesis that resulted in a satisfying ending."

Vote: North Woods 4, Let Us Descend 4

And they're neck and neck with 2 votes to go!!!
From Caroline:

"These are two excellent books that I didn’t always get along with. I advanced “North Woods” in the first round because its ingenious structure blew me away, but the individual bricks of its ramshackle house are sometimes tedious to get through. “Let Us Descend” gripped me with the story of an enslaved woman navigating the journey from Virginia to the Deep South and then to something like freedom. The novel’s immersive descriptions of its narrator’s world and exploration of the complex relationships among the characters drew me in, but the book lost me when its focus turned to ghosts and goddesses and frequent allusions to Dante. These passages are poetic and beautiful but I had trouble integrating them with the parts of the novel that worked best for me. Ultimately, while both novels explore big themes in a powerful way, “North Woods” feels like a more complete achievement."

Vote: North Woods 5, Let Us Descend 4

And with the deciding vote, Bob Lopez:

"The premise of North Woods is energizing and clever, and I found the writing quite excellent, but it is Let Us Descend that takes my final vote. I found Ward's novel intelligent, emotionally resonant, and inescapably vital."

Final vote count: North Woods 5, Let Us Descend 5

For the second year in a row, the Tournament of Favorites ends in a draw. Last year, we were happy as a group to let both winning books take "the prize", so hopefully that vibe is still true because I don't have a good solution for tie-breaking!

Yes! I love this! A tie is the perfect symbol for our harmonious group of dedicated readers.

THANK YOU to all who helped to organize, to all who helped judge, and to all who commented. Long Live the ToF! Let's do this again, please.

Risa wrote: "Yes! I love this! A tie is the perfect symbol for our harmonious group of dedicated readers.

THANK YOU to all who helped to organize, to all who helped judge, and to all who commented. Long Live ..."

This almost made me tear up. Yes!

Thanks everyone, I’m so thrilled by this decision. This has been so much fun, and it’s brought me to wonderful books I wouldn’t have read otherwise (including North Woods, which I initially DNF’d.) This is one of my favorite places on the interwebs, with some of the most discerning readers I’ve ever met. I’m honestly looking forward to next year’s TOF tourney, whatever form it takes, even more than I’m looking forward to March.

Woo! Haven’t been able to be too active this time around but loved reading everything. Glad others found so much to love in North Woods, will have to check out Let Us Descend!

Lol, I love when it ends like this.

If this ending was in a book I'd probably say it was too on the nose - but for real life it couldn't be more fitting!

Echoing thanks to everyone - for establishing the list, for organizing, judging, commenting, and being such a thoughtful community of readers. I too look forward to the next edition!

And finally, from the comments on my judgement I am taking away that as readers Caroline and I are basically matter and anti-matter and that we should be careful not to accidentally meet in a bookstore or library lest the fabric of the universe be torn asunder!

yes, Marika, that was very funny!

A tie! I thought that 'Let Us Descend' would have won the real TOB if it had been given the chance, when I turned the last page. So to see it almost win here, when I thought 'North Woods' had the popular vote before this even started, I can feel a little bit right in my guess. Thanks everyone!

Chrissy wrote:
"Final vote count: North Woods 5, Let Us Descend 5

For the second year in a row, the Tournament of Favorites ends in a draw. Last year, we were happy as a group to let both winning books take "the prize", .."

YAY! I am delighted with a tie. I also want to thank everyone for their kind comments on my judgment - I was terribly nervous for months. Thank you Chrissy and Emily for running this edition.

I know what you mean, I was a judge last year and felt like an impostor the whole time. People are really thoughtful and smart, and accepting of everyone’s best efforts, I feel.

Cheers to both books winning in the end! Great vibes with that and the judgment posting order provided great anticipation. Huge thanks to all who put in the work for this!

Thanks Chrissy for all your work. I love the way this ended. Yes! To next year!