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Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the ShipApril 22, 2009
Dear reader, it was miserable. I still feel, as I type these words, as if perhaps I am making the wrong decision. Of course, I know it's all for fun. But still, I hated choosing. I finally settled it last night in discussion with my wife, who just kept saying, "You recognize this isn't a REAL AWARD, right?" And I do recognize that, which only makes me more anxious never to decide a REAL AWARD, because I suspect that I would find the whole process paralyzing. The problem here, and the problem with all book awards, is that one is not only asked to compare apples to oranges. One is asked to compare apples to elephants. And how can you choose between the best elephant ever and the best apple ever? Before I try, let me respond to something that keeps cropping up in comments, and indeed is always in the air when we discuss awards for YA literature. Should we, or should we not, consider "teen appeal"? By the way, I hate that phrase. It sounds to me like the name of the worst magazine ever. I may be alone in thinking this, but I believe that teenagers are far better readers than we often assume. (For example: I have received hundreds--not an exaggeration--of emails from teenagers telling me how much they love Octavian Nothing. You will recall, as I do with considerable consternation, that I did not write Octavian Nothing.) So, I'm not going to stand here as an adult and pretend that I have some special insight into "teen appeal" just because I talk to a lot of teenagers about books. I'm just going to assume that teenagers are smart, that they are curious, and that they can read great books well. So, then, I assume that they will marvel at the brilliance--as I have been for the past several weeks--of Kadir Nelson's We Are The Ship. Here we have a book that uses first person plural narration so seamlessly that several reviewers thought it first person singular. We Are The Ship beautifully integrates the history of the Negro Leagues with the history of baseball and America. The writing in the book is so good (of Satchel Paige, Nelson writes, "Even his slow stuff was fast") that it seems wrong to say that the paintings are even better, but they are. The fields-eye perspective of many of the paintings makes imposing heroes out of not only the players but the organizers of the Negro Leagues. The paintings are to me the best work Nelson has done in his hugely accomplished career: They do not merely give the Negro Leagues and its players their rightful due; they also remind us that within the African American community, these men once WERE given their due, that there was a time when someone who said, "Josh Gibson is the black Babe Ruth," could expect to be reminded, "More like Babe Ruth is the white Josh Gibson." It is a wonderful--and to my imperfect eye, flawless--book. And it loses. I choose The Hunger Games, the most fun I've had reading in years. Part of crediting young readers with intelligence, I think, is knowing that they can enjoy a roaring ride and still read thoughtfully. The Hunger Games features the best world-building I've seen since Scott Westerfeld's Uglies series, and the plotting is just magnificent. And I don't mean its purportedly unoriginal premise. Premises aren't in the business of being original; they're in the business of intriguing Hollywood executives. I mean the plot: the things that happen and the order in which they happen. The murders Katniss must commit and those she is spared. Her affection for the baker's son, and the tension between its existence and its fictionality--which is, of course, precisely the same tension we all feel when we read speculative fiction. Much has been made of the "issues" raised by the novel--questions about the wealthy exploiting the poor, and about the sick schadenfreude of reality television. Those questions are interesting and important, but not as interesting or as important as Katniss herself. Here is a young woman, who seems as real to me as anyone I've known in my life, who must decide to what extent she will betray her values in a bid to survive. We all make such calculations in less dramatic fashion day after day after day, and in that sense, her quest is ours as well. If you don't think teens can recognize and be transformed by the complex relationship that Katniss (who lives in District 12) has with us (who enjoy cable and high speed internet), I believe you're underestimating teens and Katniss alike.
 Yes! Yes! Yes! Katniss lives to fight another day! Right on, John. Video Girls are loving it! I’m loving it! We’re all loving it! Well, all the millions of us that voted in the poll, anyway. I’m not sure that this is the best written novel of the year, but it was certainly the most enjoyable read of the year—and that has to count for something, right? And any nagging doubt I might have that We Are the Ship might actually be the better book is quickly assuaged by the fact that it has won so many awards already that had it continued on to win this contest the only place we could have put that spiffy Big Kahuna sticker is on the back cover. But this means that Team Nonfiction must now place all its hopes on The Lincolns . . . Posted by Battle Commander on April 22, 2009 | Comments (11)
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Lauren Downey commented: YES! THANK YOU!
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Battle Commander commented: Good catch, ladies! It has been corrected.
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Diane commented: Triumph! This would have been a torturous call, and I'm so glad John Green made it. I absolutely adore Kadir Nelson, (oops, I mean his work) and We Are The Ship is immensely popular in my school. Yet, during this week of testing for hours, students are begging teachers to open The Hunger Games and read just a bit more. Plot is driving them, too.
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Miri commented: and the likelihood of a Katniss vs. Katsa battle grows larger.
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Sondy commented: Thank you, John, for explaining how truly wonderful We Are the Ship is. It is a completely magnificent nonfiction book, but I can still understand that plot wins out. Still, I hope your glowing review of the "
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Sondy commented: 'losing book' gets a few people to read it. Now I simply must place a hold (finally) on The Hunger Games.
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Gwenda commented: I will be so torn if this comes down to Katsa vs. Katniss.
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Bonny Becker commented: >>the most fun I've had reading in years.<<
April 22, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Lisa Yee commented: HUNGER GAMES is the definition of a page turner. I loved it, my kids loved it, my hubby loved it.
April 27, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Library Lady commented: My remaining hope is that Katsa will kick Katniss's butt back where it belongs. What an overrated book.
July 6, 2009
In response to: Round 2 Match 3 The Hunger Games vs We Are the Ship Simo commented: Katnis should be pitted against Wolverine in an anime version! She's awesome!
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