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A review by chrissymcbooknerd
Grandmaster by David Klass
4.0
Starting with a confession. I was in the chess club, for one year -- in sixth grade. Okay, so I joined because I knew fully well that I would be the only girl in the room, and sixth grade is right about the time to start seeing a room full of boys as a tremendous asset. I did know how to play chess, on a very basic level, but I didn't know enough to ever win. Plus, the boys in chess club didn't turn out to be the type of boys who appealed to my sixth grade self anyways, so I ended up quitting chess club.
When I had the opportunity to review GRANDMASTER by David Klass, I wasn't sure how much I could really relate to a novel about really serious chess players. I mean, a Grandmaster, from what Google taught me, is a hardcore chess player of the ultimate caliber -- and it's a title that is set for life. So, I imagined that this little gem would be full of semi-tutorial descriptions on obscure chess moves that may not necessarily catch my fancy.
Luckily, I was wrong, and GRANDMASTER ended up being not only a coming-of-age story for a young, awkward teenage boy, but also a story of realization for his frail father, who turned out to be a closet Grandmaster who was hiding his skills from his family for mysterious reasons. So, when freshman Daniel Pratzer is given the opportunity to finally be somebody at school, through entering an intense parent-child chess tournament, he begs his father to reconsider his abandonment of the game. Will terrifying secrets from his past prevent Mr. Pratzer from facing his ultimate competition with his son?
I think for those who enjoy fairly quick reads with wholesome storylines, excellent character development, and a quieter focus on the characters themselves than on thrilling plot twists, GRANDMASTER may be a pretty good choice for your next read! I'm glad I had the opportunity to preview this novel for review purposes and thank the publisher for this consideration. :)
When I had the opportunity to review GRANDMASTER by David Klass, I wasn't sure how much I could really relate to a novel about really serious chess players. I mean, a Grandmaster, from what Google taught me, is a hardcore chess player of the ultimate caliber -- and it's a title that is set for life. So, I imagined that this little gem would be full of semi-tutorial descriptions on obscure chess moves that may not necessarily catch my fancy.
Luckily, I was wrong, and GRANDMASTER ended up being not only a coming-of-age story for a young, awkward teenage boy, but also a story of realization for his frail father, who turned out to be a closet Grandmaster who was hiding his skills from his family for mysterious reasons. So, when freshman Daniel Pratzer is given the opportunity to finally be somebody at school, through entering an intense parent-child chess tournament, he begs his father to reconsider his abandonment of the game. Will terrifying secrets from his past prevent Mr. Pratzer from facing his ultimate competition with his son?
I think for those who enjoy fairly quick reads with wholesome storylines, excellent character development, and a quieter focus on the characters themselves than on thrilling plot twists, GRANDMASTER may be a pretty good choice for your next read! I'm glad I had the opportunity to preview this novel for review purposes and thank the publisher for this consideration. :)