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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
I always try to read the book on which a movie or a series is based before watching it, and I'm happy I did so in this case: I still haven't seen the Netflix show, but if it's half as good as the novel, I'm not surprised by its success. The Queen's Gambit, despite its theme, is a book that begged for an on-screen adaptation; masterfully constructed, if at times a little predictable, with not a wasted word, essential and concise; part bildungsroman, part sport thriller and utterly entertaining. Beth is a wonderful protagonist, clever and naive, as brilliant behind a chessboard as she is flawed in the rest of her life, and it's all but impossible not to take her part, even when she majestically screws up.
Chess is, of course, a crucial feature of The Queen's Gambit and having at least a passing knowledge of the game (as I have: whenever the topic arises, I say I don't know how to play chess, I know how the pieces move, and that's two very different things) is recommended, but, I think, not required: even in its most chess-heavy moments, it's always clear what is happening and what is at stake. But then again, even with the recent popolarity boost, I don't think that someone who don't even know what a rook or a pawn is would be very attracted to this book.
And now, off to Netflix!
//
Cerco sempre di leggere il libro su cui si basa un film o una serie prima di vederli, e sono felice di averlo fatto in questo caso: non ho ancora guardato la miniserie di Netflix, ma se è buona la metà di quanto lo è il romanzo, il suo successo non mi sorprende. La regina degli scacchi, nonostante il tema, è un libro che sembra nato per essere portato su schermo; costruito magistralmente, anche se a volte un tantino prevedibile, essenziale e conciso, senza una sola parola di troppo; in parte romanzo di formazione, in parte thriller sportivo e totalmente coinvolgente. Beth è una protagonista fantastica, intelligente e ingenua, tanto geniale dietro una scacchiera quanto imperfetta in tutti gli altri aspetti della sua vita, ed è pressoché impossibile non parteggiare per lei, anche quando si incasina catastroficamente l'esistenza.
Gli scacchi, ovviamente, sono una parte cruciale di La regina degli scacchi (duh) e una conoscenza almeno di base del gioco (come la mia: ogni volta che mi capita di parlarne, dico sempre che io non so giocare a scacchi, so come si muovono i pezzi, e sono due cose molto diverse) è raccomandata ma, secondo me, non indispensabile: anche durante le sequenze più scacchistiche è sempre chiaro che cosa sta succedendo e qual è la posta in gioco. Ma d'altra parte, anche considerando la recente popolarità del libro, faccio fatica a pensare che qualcuno che non sa nemmeno cosa siano una torre o un pedone sia particolarmente interessato a leggerlo.
E ora, Netflix!
Chess is, of course, a crucial feature of The Queen's Gambit and having at least a passing knowledge of the game (as I have: whenever the topic arises, I say I don't know how to play chess, I know how the pieces move, and that's two very different things) is recommended, but, I think, not required: even in its most chess-heavy moments, it's always clear what is happening and what is at stake. But then again, even with the recent popolarity boost, I don't think that someone who don't even know what a rook or a pawn is would be very attracted to this book.
And now, off to Netflix!
//
Cerco sempre di leggere il libro su cui si basa un film o una serie prima di vederli, e sono felice di averlo fatto in questo caso: non ho ancora guardato la miniserie di Netflix, ma se è buona la metà di quanto lo è il romanzo, il suo successo non mi sorprende. La regina degli scacchi, nonostante il tema, è un libro che sembra nato per essere portato su schermo; costruito magistralmente, anche se a volte un tantino prevedibile, essenziale e conciso, senza una sola parola di troppo; in parte romanzo di formazione, in parte thriller sportivo e totalmente coinvolgente. Beth è una protagonista fantastica, intelligente e ingenua, tanto geniale dietro una scacchiera quanto imperfetta in tutti gli altri aspetti della sua vita, ed è pressoché impossibile non parteggiare per lei, anche quando si incasina catastroficamente l'esistenza.
Gli scacchi, ovviamente, sono una parte cruciale di La regina degli scacchi (duh) e una conoscenza almeno di base del gioco (come la mia: ogni volta che mi capita di parlarne, dico sempre che io non so giocare a scacchi, so come si muovono i pezzi, e sono due cose molto diverse) è raccomandata ma, secondo me, non indispensabile: anche durante le sequenze più scacchistiche è sempre chiaro che cosa sta succedendo e qual è la posta in gioco. Ma d'altra parte, anche considerando la recente popolarità del libro, faccio fatica a pensare che qualcuno che non sa nemmeno cosa siano una torre o un pedone sia particolarmente interessato a leggerlo.
E ora, Netflix!
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, Alcohol
Minor: Death, Racism, Sexual assault, Car accident, Death of parent, Abandonment
Like many, I imagine, this book came to my attention after the Netflix adaptation starring Anya Taylor-Joy.
It turns out that the adaptation was commendably faithful to the source novel.
Orphan Beth Harmon grows up to be a chess prodigy, fighting first against being almost the only woman in the male-dominated world of competitive chess, and then fighting her own self-destructive impulses.
This is a compelling novel, even if you don't understand a huge amount about chess beyond the basic moves. During the book, Beth grows from a very young girl to the age of 19, and goes through all the rites of passage you'd expect, plus the small matter of becoming US Chess Champion.
Towards the end of the book, Beth starts seeing other, younger prodigies, and starts reflecting on how she could have been even better if she'd had an earlier start or more support. She sees players catching up with her skill level, worries about losing her gift and no longer being a startling young prodigy, and starts wondering what she'll do with the rest of her life. It's a train of thought familiar to anyone who was "gifted" at anything at school, and intensely relatable.
The Queen's Gambit is a pretty quick read, but has some lovely moments. I adored the simplicity of the final scenes. It's much better than its TV adaptation, but both are great pieces of work on their own terms.
It turns out that the adaptation was commendably faithful to the source novel.
Orphan Beth Harmon grows up to be a chess prodigy, fighting first against being almost the only woman in the male-dominated world of competitive chess, and then fighting her own self-destructive impulses.
This is a compelling novel, even if you don't understand a huge amount about chess beyond the basic moves. During the book, Beth grows from a very young girl to the age of 19, and goes through all the rites of passage you'd expect, plus the small matter of becoming US Chess Champion.
Towards the end of the book, Beth starts seeing other, younger prodigies, and starts reflecting on how she could have been even better if she'd had an earlier start or more support. She sees players catching up with her skill level, worries about losing her gift and no longer being a startling young prodigy, and starts wondering what she'll do with the rest of her life. It's a train of thought familiar to anyone who was "gifted" at anything at school, and intensely relatable.
The Queen's Gambit is a pretty quick read, but has some lovely moments. I adored the simplicity of the final scenes. It's much better than its TV adaptation, but both are great pieces of work on their own terms.
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I watched the TV series before reading this, so it is hard to disentangle how I feel about the book itself since I was picturing the show in my mind. The chess descriptions were actually more interesting than I expected (I know nothing about chess and find it boring) and conveyed the intensity of the games and Beth's thoughts and emotions pretty well. My lower rating is because the writing style is very sparse, and I suspect my enjoyment mostly came from filling in the blanks with the TV show.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use
Moderate: Sexual assault, Death of parent
dark
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a remarkable story. The details are excellent, but the author pared the important characters to a minimum. Male writers don't usually get the details on female characters right, but he spared us the mismatch. It is a story for any age.
I find it really interesting, that this book seemingly took until the 2020s to finally catch on. I know absolutely nothing about chess, and therefore did not understand any of the action, and yet, that did not matter one bit.
This book isn't very high up on the book club scene's to-read list, however, it 100% fits the bill. The Netflix adaptation runs pretty close to the book, save for a few small changes here or there.
So, there seems to be plenty to draft questions on and/or talk about.
This book isn't very high up on the book club scene's to-read list, however, it 100% fits the bill. The Netflix adaptation runs pretty close to the book, save for a few small changes here or there.
Spoiler
As my mother would say, Beth is "fast". She doesn't have anyone to require her to be more traditional so naturally, as a young person with money, she does whatever she pleases. Her childhood orphanage abuses her and gets her addicted to drugs, a habit that doesn't go away when she is adopted or when she becomes an adult. She engages in alcoholism, has a string a lovers, and generally otherwise goes against the grain of what traditional society expected of women in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The world of chess requires her to prove herself and the men she beats are frequently upset that they were beaten by a woman - as if that makes them less. Beth even turns down money because when the organization requires that she make a statement supporting Christianity in the face of Russian communism, something Beth doesn't see a reason to denounce.So, there seems to be plenty to draft questions on and/or talk about.
I know next to nothing about chess and yet I was drawn to this book before even hearing it is a Netflix series. Now I must watch the series because I thoroughly enjoyed this narrative