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Middlemarch Madness

Middlemarch Madness: The 64 Contenders

After a great week of voting, we’ve narrowed down all four of our divisions to the top sixteen badass ladies of literature.  March is going to be so much fun, as long as we don’t have Turtle fans shiving Katniss fans in the comments.  Or maybe even if we do…

We’ll start voting on the individual brackets on March 1, continuing until we reach the last badass standing on March 31.   Start your campaigns for your favorites now, it’s going to get ruthless in here pretty quick.

Sci-Fi/Fantasy Youngs

1. Hermione Granger v. 16. Tally Youngblood
2. Meg Murray v. 15. Sabriel
3. Katniss Everdeen v. 14. Lucy Pevensie
4. Lyra Belaqua v. 13. Tiffany Aching
5. Eowyn v. 12. Vicky Austin
6. Coraline v. 11.  Alice
7. Alana v. 10. Cimorene
8. Luna Lovegood v. 9. Ginny Weasley

Sci-Fi/Fantasy Olds

1. Anathema Device v. 16. Elspeth
2. Morgaine v. 15. Tarma and Kethry
3. Esmerelda Weatherwax v. 14. Charity Carpenter
4. Viviane v. 13. Adora Belle Dearheart
5. Susan Sto Helit v. 12. Phedre
6. Karin Murphy v. 11. Harry
7. Grytha Ogg v. 10. Kerowyn
8. Fran v. 9. Angua

Fictional Youngs (determined by putting them in alphabetical order by first name)

1. Anne v. 16. Turtle
2. Claudia v. 15. Scout
3. Emily v. 14. Remy
4. Frankie v. 13.  Ramona
5. Harriet v. 12.  Nancy
6. Jessica v. 11. Melinda
7. Karana v. 10.  Margaret
8. Laura v. 9. Lesley

Fictional Olds

1. Jo March v. 16. Claire
2. Offred v. 15. Jordan Baker
3. Lisbeth Salander v. 14. Portia
4. Hester Prynne v. 13. Kate
5. Scarlett O’Hara v. 12. Celie
6. Mulan v. 11. Lady MacBeth
7. Irene Adler v. 10. Sethe
8. Francie Nolan v. 9. Nora

By [E] Selena MacIntosh*

Selena MacIntosh is the owner and editor of Persephone Magazine. She also fixes it when it breaks. She is fueled by Diet Coke, coffee with a lot of cream in it, and cat hair.

15 replies on “Middlemarch Madness: The 64 Contenders”

Coraline vs. Alice is kind of cruel, especially since Coraline is based on Alice. I love Coraline, but how can she compete with her inspiration?

Luna vs. Ginny is a tough one, too. I’ll probably vote Luna, as I’m sure the majority also will, but I don’t think Ginny really gets the credit she deserves.

Anne v. Turtle?? It’s like my soul is being torn in two!

And as much as I love A LOT of those scifi/fantasy youngs — I’m sorry, there is already one clear winner. Tiffany Aching. All the way. She is super bad-ass and super-real at the same time. RECOGNIZE. I’m just worried not enough people will have read her books to know.

(Also, I still want to grow up to be Granny Weatherwax. Although I think I’m headed more toward Nanny Ogg.)

As a children’s lit junkie (well, actually, I’m more than a junkie since I have a graduate degree in the subject!), I am LOVING this! I’m kind of curious whether new, more immediate favorites (Katniss, Coraline) or older, more cherished favorites (Ramona, Harriet) will win. Also, I’m right in the middle of that line with HP characters, since I was with them from the beginning, but was in my late teens when the series started. I don’t have the nostalgia, but I have the loyalty.

But Lyra gets my vote for anything, ever, and I’m so happy she made it to the final 64.

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