SLJ's Battle of the Books Round Two

I am loving the battle this year so much. I don't love many of the books, and I don't agree with all the decisions. BUT. The decisions themselves have been amazing. The judges are setting a new standard this year for sure. I usually pick a favorite quote from each decision, and it is often hard to find one I like. This year it would be impossible to narrow it down to one. Read them all. They are all so good.

Match One, March 21

The Animal Book versus Boxers & Saints

Judge: Tonya Bolden

My Pick: Boxers & Saints
I really loved Boxers & Saints. I like the way the two stories overlap and intertwine, the history, the different perspectives, and the mixture of mediums. I enjoy The Animal Book, but as I said before story will win over books like this for me every time.

Match Two, March 24

Eleanor & Park versus Far Far Away

Judge: Rae Carson

My Pick: Eleanor &Park
I enjoyed Eleanor &Park for the characters. Both Eleanor and Park are great characters that pull you into their story and make you feel. The only thing Far Far Away made me feel was a desperate need to get far far away from it.

Match Three, March 25

Hokey Pokey versus P.S. Be Eleven

Judge: Joseph Bruchac

My Pick: P.S. Be Eleven

In his decision Tom Angleberger talked about feeling Hokey Pokey was about children rather than for children. I think that sums it up perfectly and I believe P.S. Be Eleven is a both so it is my pick to go on to round three.

Match 4, March 26

The Thing About Luck versus The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp

Judge: Katherine Marsh

My Pick: The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp
Oh it is wretched to have to see the MG books go up against each other. The True Blue Scouts is such a delightful story and one that will appeal to many kids. It is a perfect read aloud book and I can't wait to read it to my son in a couple of years. While The Thing About Luck is technically a good book from a literary standpoint, I didn't enjoy it. At all. It bored me. People keep going on about the amazing characters, but I didn't find them all that amazing. I thought they were rather flat and lost in all the talk about wheat harvesting.

Which of these books should be the winner? Two of my three favorites are out so I'm cheering on P.S. Be Eleven all the way!

Comments

Anonymous said…

I see that you aren't growing any fonder of Far Far Away as time goes on. :) I usually agree with you, but I really liked that one. I guess it goes to show that everyone has different tastes.

March 20, 2014 at 11:32 AM

Brandy said…

If I don't care about the characters in a book then you've lost me. Since Jacob was such a pretentious windbag and all my character info was coming from him, it just didn't work at all for me.

March 20, 2014 at 6:59 PM

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