Winter advisories in central, northeast Minnesota; blizzard warning northwest 

MPR News helps you turn down the noise and build shared understanding. Turn up your support for this public resource and keep trusted journalism accessible to all. 

Turn Up Your Support

Tears have been shed, pages have been torn — the March Madness Battle of the Books is over. 

(No actual books were hurt in the writing of this piece.)

After the first round, we said goodbye to "Harriet the Spy" and "The Giver." The second round saw "Charlotte's Web" get wiped away and "The Phantom Tollbooth" sent packing. In our final four, "Where the Red Fern Grows" got another thing to cry about (as if it needed it).

And in our last round, "A Wrinkle in Time" went head to head with the Harry Potter juggernaut. While Meg and Charles Wallace hung in there, they couldn't overtake The Boy Who Lived and his Hogwarts compatriots. 

It was a close fight, but Potter grabbed the Golden Snitch of victory by a narrow margin — the final count was 46% for "A Wrinkle in Time" and 54% to Harry Potter.

Your favorite classics will return to duke it out next year. Until then, catch up on your reading!

 There's too many great books to fit in one bracket. Tell us your favorites below and we'll keep a list for next year.

Arts and Culture

The Thread® - Books and Literary News

When your favorite childhood books go head to head, who will win? "Harriet the Spy" or "Harry Potter"?

March Madness: Battle of the Books

Go Deeper.

Like this?