It was an epic bracket. Booketology, the Library's March tournament of titles, began with 64 books representing eight genres. Over the past two weeks hundreds of voters narrowed the field down to just two: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and To Kill a Mockingird.

The two all-star classics met on the Booketology Championship court yesterday from noon to midnight. Sherlock wore his best tweed and deerstalker, and Atticus Finch sported his finest (slightly frayed) cream-colored suit.

Both books had fought their way across a worthy bracket. Starting out in Classics, Mockingbird tossed Pride & Prejudice, Slaughterhouse-Five, and The Great Gatsby out of its nest, then jettisoned Sci-Fi champ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Not so easy to dispatch was Final Four favorite The Fellowship of the Ring, which cut through Booketology like John Rhys-Davies through a pack of orcs – until it heard Mockingbird sing.

Meanwhile, Sherlock Holmes elementarily eliminated all comers in the Mystery division: The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Silence of the Lambs, and Dame Agatha’s Murder on the Orient Express. Coming at him like a four-inch-heel-clad Hound of the Baskervilles was Bridget Jones’ Diary, but fans weren’t feeling romantic, and Jones was dismissed. In the Final Four, Holmes mopped up Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood.

And so, going into yesterday’s final round, Booketology watchers hadn’t the faintest clue which of the two mighty contenders would win. (After all, it had been a surprising Booketology so far. At nearly every turn, the classics stampeded over massively popular newcomers like Twilight, The Hunger Games, and even not-so-rookie Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.)

In the end, however, it was a clear cut victory. To Kill a Mockingbird soared over Sherlock by 34 votes.

Congrats, Harper Lee! Your place in our Community Bookshelf is now doubly well-earned.

And now it’s time to announce the winner of our drawing. Anyone who voted in any round and provided a name and email address was entered in the drawing to win a prize package comprising the genre champions from the Elite 8 and a basketball signed by Kansas City novelist Whitney Terrell -- all wrapped up in a fetching Building a Community of Readers tote bag.

The hat, please, Dr. Watson…

Congratulations to Elizabeth Murray!

Thanks to everyone who voted in our inaugural Booketology. It was a blast – and it was rewarding to watch people cheer for their favorite books on Facebook and Twitter.

Because regardless of which book won the tournament, reading won the day.

Here's the final bracket. Stay bookish, friends.

About the Author

Jason Harper is the web content developer and social media manager at the Kansas City Public Library.