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First Round Complete! [World Cup of Literature]

The first round of the inaugural World Cup of Literature is complete! Over the past two weeks, we’ve seen sixteen books eliminated from the competition for a variety of reasons. (Click here to read all of the pieces from the first round.)

The second round starts—and finishes—next week, so for those of you following along at home, here’s an updated bracket:

And you can download a PDF version here.

Looking ahead to next week, here are the match-ups (and judges) for Round Two:

Brazil vs. Chile 6/30 – Jeff Waxman

Japan vs. Italy 6/30 – Rhea Lyons

Honduras vs. Bosnia & Herzegovina 7/1 – Stephen Sparks

Germany vs. Algeria 7/1 – Florian Duijsens

Mexico vs. Australia 7/2 – Chad W. Post

Ivory Coast vs. Uruguay 7/2 – Elianna Kan

France vs. Argentina 7/3 – Tom Roberge

USA vs. Belgium 7/3 – Lori Feathers

And once again, here’s the updated bracket:

Which matches are you most excited about? Bunch of intriguing match-ups this round: Houellebecq vs. Aira is definitely one, but so is Buarque against Bolaño. Ferrante—who has become a Twitter favorite to win it all—is taking on 1Q84. Will upstart Australian entry Barley Patch continue its winning streak? Or will Mexican Valeria Luiselli put a stop to that? No one knows. (Actually, I do, since I’m judging that match.)

Come back on Monday for four days of second round action!



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