Tournament of Books discussion
2020 TOB General Topics
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2020 TOB Shortlist

1. All This Could Be Yours
2. Girl, Woman, Other
3. Golden State
4. Lost Children Archive
5. Mary Toft
6. Normal People
7. Overthrow
Which one do you guys think I should read next? Which of these 7 did you enjoy the most?

1. All ..."
I adored Girl, Woman, Other. It's almost like a collection of linked short stories but with heavy emphasis on the characters. I am in awe as to how the author was able to create 12 distinct voices to propel the novel. I also enjoyed seeing how these 12 individuals intersect as they navigate their lives as people of color in Great Britain. Technically it is one of the longest books in the tournament, but it didn't feel long reading it.

I have to second Girl, Woman, Other.


Another vote for GWO! I thought it was so well done, each story and character so engaging and likable, and the intertwining of narratives so interesting. My favorite of the tournament, by far (with the possible exception of LCA.)

I look at the first couple pages without punctuation and I shudder though. (Neighbors would LOVE this book.) Is the no-punctuation throughout the entire book?

Thank you Amy and ToB team! Any bit of ToB news/events is like Christmas. :D

It flows so well that way, honestly I didn’t even notice it after the first couple pages. I actually was intrigued by how the breaking of paragraphs flowed like thought, and after the first pages for me it wasn’t distracting at all.

Personally, I'd put Normal People and Overthrow at the bottom of the list.

@Bretnie, It's ok. I was planning to finish Overthrow either way, but yea, it was weird and I'm surprised they picked that one over other longlist gems (#stillrootingforAGirlReturned) ;)

1. All ..."
I also vote for GWO. I will finish it tonight and it might turn out to be my favorite from the TOB 2020. It will be up there, for sure.
Once you get used to the style, it is easy to read. And it is fun to try and figure out how the people are linked. There is one particular link that is hinted at and I wonder if it will be revealed at the end or if the reader will be allowed to make it on their under their own steam.

I completely forgot about the GWO punctuation situation, until it was mentioned. I also loved the way it generated flow.

I felt t..."
I personally found Overthrow completely underwhelming.

Personally, I'd put Normal People and Overthrow at the bottom of the list."
Thank goodness! Someone else who wasn't wowed by NP. I am mystified by all of the praise for it.

1. All ..."
I haven't read GWO -- saving it for last in the hopes that I will share the enthusiasm others here have for it. Of the rest you listed, I liked Lost Children Archive and All This, though I think I am a minority view on All This. I've not yet been wowed by most of this year's shortlist, but I still have The Testaments, Oval, The Water Dancer, and We Cast a Shadow to go, so ... Here's Hoping.

I have Your House Will Pay, Water Dancer, and Girl Woman Other lined up to read soon. Also kinda eyeing Mary Toft.


Thank you to those who recommended the audio edition of NtSH and the paper edition of Optic Nerve. I have acted accordingly. :-)


Then there are just six to go, although there is a strong chance I will skip Overthrow unless it moves forward in its bracket.


Will we be starting with The Testaments and Saudade? I finished the latter last night, but it will take some effort to get through my hard copy of Testaments in time - better start it today!
Update: I just got the email and see that we will be discussing the play-ins on March 6th and Testaments and Saudade on the 9th.


I say LCA against GWO. Bam! (But really it could go either way, and I’d be happy. I guessed in a different thread it would be those three.)

At least GWO has a good chance to zombie.
Yet I will still, as I usually do, create a bracket that has my favorite in the final, no matter how unlikely and ridiculous.

Same same Elizabeth - with Golden State and We Cast a Shadow also up against each other, my six favorites (so far) are all up against each other.
And the flip side, I'm quite nervous Overthrow or Normal People will manage to make it to the second round.
With the brackets out today, I'm realizing I still have a lot to read in six weeks. I still have 8 to go, but I guess there are three I'd already written off as not planning on reading...




we haven't usually done a bracket pool in GR because the TOB has a prize from their end but I'm certainly willing to figure something out. (I always end up getting the 'loser' prize in my office's March Madness pool which gets me my ante back!) Question is, do we use seeding to add point for 'upsets?' cause i have the spreadsheet tricks to do that. :)

Sure - sounds good to me!
And I didn't realize that The Morning News does a bracket contest for the commentariat - how do I submit my bracket for that one?


I'm just starting Mary Toft, and then I have We Cast a Shadow, Oval, All This Could Be Yours, Overthrow and Saudade to go.

hmmm, I'm not seeing a bracket comp so far on the bracket announcement but I checked previous years and don't see the competition announced just then either. let's keep our eyes open for it, in the meantime my excel OCD friend made me a bracket sheet that I'll convert to google sheet to share tomorrow for us to get our game on.
Amy wrote: "hmmm, I'm not seeing a bracket comp so far on the bracket announcement... "
There wasn't a bracket comp last year. If I remember correctly, Andrew said they, the ToB organizers, were too busy with the main tournament, prepping for the summer book club, and running The Morning News. I'm hopeful the bracket competition will make a comeback this year.
There wasn't a bracket comp last year. If I remember correctly, Andrew said they, the ToB organizers, were too busy with the main tournament, prepping for the summer book club, and running The Morning News. I'm hopeful the bracket competition will make a comeback this year.

Ok great - thank you!

You had me at "bet". If there is one way to separate me from my money it's by putting something in a bracket.

Haha, ok! We can figure out logistics when we see the spreadsheet Amy is working on. :)

My sentiments exactly Elizabeth. Of the twelve books I have read I have my predictions here - https://www.collinsbookblog.com/copy-...
However if it is anything like last years predictions they will probably mostly be wrong! hahaha :-)

Didn't you win something last year for having the most correct projections or was that the year before....life is going at warp speed. BTW I agree with most of your picks so we can be wrong together.


I agree with all but one of your picks...But the judges always surprise me, sometimes in a not-so-good way! (I love the ominousness of the moving clouds on that page, like the books are being executed, ha.)


edited to add: The difference between Zebra and the kids of Overthrow: Zebra went through a warzone, so I was willing to cut her some slack. Not to say I know what the kids of Overthrow have been through (I don't know much about the kids in Overthrow.. the book is detailed but also not the RIGHT details) but I KNOW Zebra had to walk many months through a warzone.
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Yay! I'm excited! (And scared, because it always turns out that two of my loves are up against each other in the first round...it's like watching two treasured kids duke it out and knowing one of them will have to die an early death, without getting a chance to properly plead his case. 😔)