I was invited to judge the quarterfinal round of the Booktube prize and I came up with a series of questions to help me rate the 6 books that were contenders Below are the questions and my answers for each of the 6 books, in the order in which I read the books:
Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
On a scale of 1 to 5:
- Literary – are there references to other works (fiction or non fiction) 4
- Social commentary – are there political or historical references 3
- Allegorical – did the characters represent something bigger than themselves 3
- Readability – was it a page turner? 5
- Pacing – did it move along to share info but not dwell on anything? 4
- Would I recommend this book to other people as a drop-everything-and-read? 5
Crawdads Tally – 24/30
The Incendiaries by R. O. Kwon
- Literary – 2
- Social commentary – 5
- Allegorical – 4
- Readability – 4
- Pacing – 4
- Would I recommend? – 3
The Incendiaries Tally – 22/30
West by Carys Davies
West Tally – 25/30
The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
On a scale of 1 to 5:
- Literary – 3
- Social commentary – 4
- Allegorical – 3
- Readability – 4
- Pacing – 3
- Would I recommend? 3
The Great Alone Tally – 20/30
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
On a scale of 1 to 5:
- Literary – 3
- Social commentary – 5
- Allegorical – 3
- Readability – 4
- Pacing – 4
- Would I recommend? 2
The Tattooist of Auschwitz Tally – 21/30
The Book of M by Peng Shepherd
On a scale of 1 to 5:
- Literary – 4
- Social commentary – 4
- Allegorical – 4
- Readability – 4
- Pacing – 3
- Would I recommend? 4
The Book of M Tally – 23/30
Ranking
- West Tally – 25/30
- Crawdads Tally – 24/30
- The Book of M Tally – 23/30
- The Incendiaries Tally – 22/30
- The Tattooist of Auschwitz Tally – 21/30
- The Great Alone Tally – 20/30
Click to watch my video where I share what it’s like judging a bookish prize
