The Librarianist v. Monstrilio
The 2024 Tournament of Books, presented by Field Notes, is an annual battle royale among 16 of the best novels of the previous year.
MARCH 22 • QUARTERFINALS
The Librarianist
v. Monstrilio
Judged by You
Rosecrans Baldwin: Oooph. Andrew, we’ve been here before.
Andrew Womack: Have we ever. If I recall correctly, this is the third time we’ve had a missing judgment. And at three times in 20 years, this is now practically a tradition.
The first time—back in 2006—the judge refused to choose between the books. (So we flipped a coin to determine the outcome of the match.) Then in 2020 we had a judge who read the books and decided which would advance to the next round—but then had to drop out before rendering a written judgment, so Kevin and John filled in.
Rosecrans: This year our judge was able to read the books and render a decision, but was unable, due to outside events, to complete a judgment. So, we reached out to the ToB community and asked for their thoughts on the books, if they’d read them—and we received an incredible response!
Andrew: However, because we needed to maintain secrecy for which books would win in the previous round, we asked for people’s opinions on all the books that had a path to this particular match. To everyone who responded, thank you. And to those of you who weighed in on the titles that didn’t end up making it to this match, thanks for playing along.
Below are portions of responses for each of the books, stitched together and edited for length. Following that, you’ll find the original judge’s decision for which of today’s two books—The Librarianist or Monstrilio—is headed to the semifinals.
And again, thank you!
Rosecrans: You, the Rooster community, for us, are drugs.
The Librarianist by Patrick deWitt
This was my book. It felt like a good Wes Anderson movie. I was entertained, curious about what was coming. I did not skim-read or quick-flip any pages.
Definite Wes Anderson vibes from some of the characters and that middle section, which is fantastic on its own, though it’s such a departure I’m still trying to decide if it’s a narrative misfit. I don’t know.
As with Asteroid City, I wanted to love it but could not.
I take notes on every book I read, mostly the passages that stand out as especially insightful or well-written. In this whole book, there were only four passages I marked (where I usually mark 20–50 in most books).
The formal voice put me off at first. At some point, I grew used to it and went with this eccentric narrator whispering in my ear. As I slowed down, I was more patient with the unfolding of Bob’s story.
One part is loaded with snappy repartee between two older women who are traveling entertainers—but despite its humor, it felt tacked-on, a bit unbelievable, and slowed the story down.
It felt disjointed, but I thoroughly enjoyed the whole reading adventure.
It’s one of those novels where the author tosses in a lot of clever ideas but never quite makes them gel. Patrick deWitt is such a talented writer, I will still consume that soupy Jell-O and like it, but understand if you don’t.
I suppose the message of the book could be that “sometimes one does not gain closure from the people that have wronged them, and that is OK.”
It was an easy, fast, pleasant read.
It ended up being fairly forgettable.
The writing is really solid but it felt like it wasn’t really sure where to go.
The book is enchanting. It’s a study in tolerance and living a life of wonder.
Introverts unite! In cozy armchairs! Wearing cardigans!
FROM OUR SPONSOR
Monstrilio by Gerardo Sámano Córdova
Oh, this is a creepy little book.
(Cue Pet Sematary.)
Monstrilio is your classic “boy dies, mom takes part of dead boy’s lung and nurtures it into a new child, new child causes havoc” story.
I would never have found Monsrillo if not for the Rooster. The opening had me hooked—the raw grief and the violence.
The book brings us into a family at their lowest and follows them as they raise the creature who was reborn from the lung of the first son. As Monstrilio grows into his own person, a choice must be made—is he a monster, a replacement son, or something in the middle?
While it seems absurd that a chunk of lung could grow into a creature, it’s written in a way that I bought it.
The blurb mentions horror but there is nothing to scare off the squeamish here, instead we have a study in grief, family, and finding where one truly belongs.
“There’s no adequate vocabulary to describe taste.” Monstrilio feels this deeply, and there’s also no adequate vocabulary to describe this book.
I had relatively high expectations for this one. Sadly, it only had a few notable moments, and while the final scene created some emotional pull, I ultimately found that the story lacked the heart I needed to be deeply invested in any of the characters or their experiences.
This was not my book. I quit reading it and started reading another book. But the other book was less interesting and nothing else was in my queue. So I read it some more.
I can’t really explain why, but this book captures the feelings of losing a child in all that experience’s monstrosity.
This book has so much heart without being the least bit twee or sentimental.
The family’s acceptance of M adds a fun element to the story which turns the novel into a morbid comedy of errors.
Monstrilio was one of my most anticipated reads of 2023. I didn’t want it to end.
To me this is a queer coming-of-age story, but I think to others it might be more generally about grief. Either way, man. Either way.
I loved this book. You must read it.
Advancing:
The Librarianist
Today’s mascot
Nominated by Kate, here is today’s mascot, Tarzana:
She was a non-pedigreed cat who looked like a Russian Blue and is, sadly, no longer with us.
Tarzana believed she was a person with the right to be grumpy when you infringed on her space (the entire house). She loved speaking to me when I came home from work, politely waiting for me to finish a question before she meowed detailed complaints. Our dialogue was always interesting.
Tarzana believed the best place for a cat was on top of any book being read. If pressed to choose a subject, it would have been serial killer books, with an emphasis on permanently removing the later-acquired cat from her residence.
She would have approved greatly of the felted objects offered up by the librarian in What You Are Looking for Is in the Library and would have been terrified of facing the Tournament’s Rooster. (Even a fast-moving ant would send her fleeing.)
Thank you for sharing, Kate. ❤️