Jennifer Egan wins the Tournament of Books
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Jennifer Egan’s ‘A Visit From the Goon Squad’ was declared the winner of The Morning News’ annual literary competition, The Tournament of Books, on Monday. At left, a photograph of Ms. Egan.
Egan bested Jonathan Franzen’s bestselling ‘Freedom’ in a head-to-head contest at The Morning News, after each book climbed to a final berth.
As winner, Egan will not take home the tournament’s legendary, if fictional, golden rooster; instead, a donation will be made to Heifer International, which sends chickens and other livestock to families in the developing world.
The Morning News’ panel of 17 judges decided between the two books: Egan edged out Franzen in a 9-to-8 victory.
Egan also beat Franzen -- as well as Hans Keilson (‘Comedy in a Minor Key’), David Grossman (‘To the End of the Land’) and Paul Murray (‘Skippy Dies’) -- at the National Book Critics Circle Awards, held in New York in March.
Regular readers of the L.A. Times books coverage might recall a photo snafu we had at the time, when a photo of Jonathan Franzen initially ran with our coverage. This, as you can see, is Jennifer Egan, author of ‘A Visit from the Goon Squad.’
-- Carolyn Kellogg
