false 62022 8 Eight year-old orphan Beth Harmon is quiet, sullen, and by all appearances unremarkable. That is until she plays her first game of chess. Her senses grow sharper, her thinking clearer, and for the first time in her life she feels herself fully in control. By the age of sixteen, she&#8217;s competing for the U.S. Open championship. But as she hones her skills on the professional circuit, the stakes get higher, her isolation grows more frightening, and the thought of escape becomes all the more tempting. Engaging and fast-paced, <b>The Queen&#8217;s Gambit</b> speeds to a conclusion as elegant and satisfying as a mate in four. 522779 book 1983 The Queen's Gambit total:176|5:68|4:70|3:29|2:7|1:2| 176 723 265 46 4 0 false false Sat Jan 31 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 25 20:27:22 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 31 16:08:48 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jul 23 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 17 08:52:48 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 17 21:18:20 -0700 2009 The Queen's Gambit after reading favorable (gushing, actually) blurbs from Michael Ondaatje and Jonathan Lethem on the back cover. The novel traces the coming of age of its protagonist, Beth Harmon, orphaned at the age of eight, who turns out to be a chess prodigy and is pla...more...]]> 3 0 false true Mon Jul 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 01 11:45:43 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 23 19:58:55 -0700 2009 The Hustler-lite featuring a young girl chess prodigy, instead of a hungry young pool player. Tevis cops to this in his "about the author" statement; at least, in the the 1984 edition I checked out of the library. The dustjacket features an icy girl playing chess, as a cat looks over the g...more...]]> 0 0 false false Fri Mar 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Mar 21 04:42:00 -0700 2009 Sat Mar 21 04:45:47 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 01 09:05:13 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 01 09:11:20 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Dec 20 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Aug 18 11:39:02 -0700 2008 Sat Dec 20 15:40:34 -0800 2008
It seems to me that the underlying story is that she has daddy issues (her own mother and father, prior to ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jul 12 15:13:20 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 12 15:13:34 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Mar 29 13:33:20 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 29 13:35:49 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Sat Aug 29 12:49:19 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 29 12:50:16 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Fri Jan 09 06:54:24 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 09 07:10:30 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 1984 Mon Oct 19 18:14:47 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 19 18:21:27 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Mon Oct 05 13:17:23 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 05 13:18:03 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 15 07:45:12 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 15 07:47:55 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sat Jan 31 12:21:52 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 01 04:31:38 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sat Jan 31 10:19:28 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 24 15:12:52 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 31 10:19:28 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1992 Tue Nov 11 22:27:13 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 11 22:40:21 -0800 2008
Amazing novel that keeps you riveted over chess, ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu May 21 11:38:25 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 23 12:02:13 -0700 2008 Thu May 21 11:38:25 -0700 2009
The plot is surprisingly brisk, surprising for a person who cares little to nothing about chess,
and there is a lot of chess; games, moves, plotting, etc.

There is a a definite bleakness about this...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Oct 11 20:39:35 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 24 10:24:21 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 11 20:39:35 -0700 2009 2 0 false false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Nov 01 18:44:14 -0700 2007 Mon Nov 12 10:46:46 -0800 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sun May 27 11:54:43 -0700 2007 Fri Jun 29 15:03:56 -0700 2007
Except for how the pieces move, I knew nothing about chess when I began this book. I've finished the book, and still know nothing about chess. But wh...more...]]>