Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players
by Stefan Fatsis
|
|
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive Scrabble Players.
discuss this book
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
lists with this book
other reviews (showing 1-20 of 1074)
Read in January, 2006
Fatsis, a columnist for various NY magazines, took a year off to investigate the world of competitive Scrabble. As someone who makes a living with words, and who grew up playing Scrabble, Fatsis does more than investigate this world; he immerses himself in it. The book functions half as nonfiction documentary, and half as memoir, as Fatsis details both the professional circuit and his rise through its ranks. Fatsis does a good job of balancing details of Scrabble’s history (both the history ...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
1 comments
First of all I saw a film called "Word Wars" which quickly became one of my favourite documentaries of all time and then a friend of mine at work lent me this book - and if you haven't read this or seen the film they are probably priorities.
This is the sort of book that allows you to say to yourself, "Gosh, truth really is stranger than fiction." Or perhaps, "It really does take all sorts to make the world". Either way, one is stuck with cliches.
I've neve...more
This is the sort of book that allows you to say to yourself, "Gosh, truth really is stranger than fiction." Or perhaps, "It really does take all sorts to make the world". Either way, one is stuck with cliches.
I've neve...more
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
Read in July, 2007
Stephen Fatsis writes a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat book on the quirky, obsessive, very male-dominated world of competitive Scrabble playing. Although the cast of characters is fascinating enough, I was more interested in Fatsis' own transformation from "living room" player to a high-ranking qualifier in major tournaments. He describes his initial frustration at losing to the blue hair set to even more frustration at not grasping expert game strategies. He learns that in order to bec...more
Like this review?
yes
(2 people liked it)
1 comments
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
word nerds, Scrabble players, people who like to read play-by-play accounts of tournaments
7/8/08: Well, I quit this book to read another, more entertaining one - my ever favorite format, The Novel. But now I have finished the other and so I'm back to this book. Because I'm not a quitter! And the "characters" are starting to grow on me (they are actually profiles of real, live people, not fictitious characters). Also, I now desperately want to own a Scrabble dictionary and/or play Scrabble in the park with eccentric people. So, even though I don't think this is an improvemen...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in December, 2007
recommends it for:
the living room player of Scrabble
This book is about the obsessive and also likely for the Scrabble obsessive. If you get a kick out of anagrams and triple letter scores, you'll enjoy most of this book. You get play by plays, in depth personal info on the top Scrabble players in the nation (and world), tips and hints, separation of good and phony word plays. It's amazing to see some of the point scores they get. I'm talking triple digits on one play.
The only negative part of the book is that towards the end Fatsis gets uber ...more
The only negative part of the book is that towards the end Fatsis gets uber ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
Word Freaks
Who knew a book about the tournament Scrabble scene could be so interesting? I stumbled across this one at the bookstore a couple weeks ago. It caught my eye because the title "Word Freak" is spelled down the spine in distinctive wooden Scrabble tiles. I have always been a Scrabble fan, but only started playing the game again recently (it was the sole reason I initially signed up for a Facebook account). I sat down and read the intro and the first chapter while my 2-year-old played...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
i really liked the documentary about the competitive scrabble world, which mostly covered the same players, but this book was so much better. it almost made me want to devote all the time i currently waste procrastinating to memorising lists of words. somehow it seems easier to become obsessed with a fairly pointless goal, like scrabble, rather than anything more productive, like my research. the best parts of this book are the characters, those people for whom scrabble validates their existence...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Disclaimer: I love words. I have competed in spelling bees, I have a degree in Linguistics, and I love word games like Scrabble and Boggle. So it was, I imagine, completely predictable that I would thoroughly enjoy this book (that would explain why someone gave it to me :-).
That said, I am sure Word Freak would appeal to many people who have even a passing interest in either words or subcultures. The subtitle is "Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive SC...more
That said, I am sure Word Freak would appeal to many people who have even a passing interest in either words or subcultures. The subtitle is "Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive SC...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in March, 2008
I'm really enjoying this book and I'm only half-way through! It's by a journalist who wanted to report on the world of competitive Scrabble, but got sucked into it himself. So it's half reporting, half memoir. He tells the stories about the characters (and I do mean characters) that he meets in this world, but he intersperses it with linguistic wordplay; trivia about Scrabble and words and wordplay; some of the amazing plays and games; the history of Scrabble, and games in general in America; is...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
This is a book about competitive scrabble and the people that play it. The author became an obsessive player himself, and so the book is at times dry to the non-initiate. The players are bizarre and competitive scrabble bears almost no relation to the living-room version of the game. It is a strange subculture indeed, and the book gives a history of the game and tons of scrabble words and strategy along with its portraits of the players. To quote from the back of the book: "...stars range f...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in March, 2007
Books tend to spark mini-obsessions with me, so I have to be careful reading them, from time to time. Well, most anything sparks mini-obsessions with me, so a book is as good a thing as any.
"Word Freak" got me playing Scrabble, which I'd never done before in my life. It also convinced me very quickly that I would never be a championship Scrabble player, so I didn't have to worry about this obession becoming anything serious. Fastis's account of the depths to which Scrabble players ...more
"Word Freak" got me playing Scrabble, which I'd never done before in my life. It also convinced me very quickly that I would never be a championship Scrabble player, so I didn't have to worry about this obession becoming anything serious. Fastis's account of the depths to which Scrabble players ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in August, 2007
This book is just as fascinating as its subtitle implies. Whether or not you're into Scrabble, it's easy to get pulled into the author's first-hand account of the quirky Scrabble subculture and its kooky characters, especially as the author's journalistic foray turns into an all-consuming obsession with climbing the Scrabble ranks. I knew nothing about this classic board game before I picked up this book, but now I'm itching to get a board of my own. And I was reminded of the limits of my own vo...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in January, 2007
recommended to Nancy by:
Gwen GrayThis review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Read in July, 2007
This chronicles the author's attempt, a la George Plimpton, to join the ranks of competitive Scrabble players over the course of about 3 years.
First of all, competitive Scrabble bears little resemblance to the game most of us play at home. It mainly consists of untold hours spent memorizing word lists, anagramming, rack and board strategy, rack management, and boards that end up chock full of words that even well-read Americans have probably never heard of. The cast of characters is eclect...more
First of all, competitive Scrabble bears little resemblance to the game most of us play at home. It mainly consists of untold hours spent memorizing word lists, anagramming, rack and board strategy, rack management, and boards that end up chock full of words that even well-read Americans have probably never heard of. The cast of characters is eclect...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in February, 2008
recommends it for:
any fan of Scrabble
I am an avid fan of Scrabble, so there were many aspects of this book that made me smile, since I could relate. If you haven't played the game or don't play it often, the book probably wouldn't appeal to you. However, the book offers an interesting look into the world of competitive Scrabble. The author tells tales of the many eccentric personalities on the Scrabble circuit. At times it was a quick read and I enjoyed the sections of the book that documented the author's journey up the ranks....more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2003
For a solid month straight after completing this book I wanted to play scrabble, I wanted to score in the high 500’s and I wanted to just anagram the living shit out of everything. Then I realized I suck at scrabble, I should be happy to score 200, and I’m piss poor at anagramming. Regardless, this book, which focuses on the select few who play scrabble professionally, is an amazing read full of incredibly gifted individuals that are as eccentric and entertaining as any fictional character...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in March, 2008
I don't normally go for nonfiction, but I couldn't resist this book about the seedy underbelly of the competitive Scrabble world.
And I wasn't disappointed. Stephan Fatsis is a hell of a writer, keeping the narrative moving along at a brisk clip while working in an exhaustive history of Scrabble and the back stories of many of the characters he met in his quest to go from zero to expert.
And while I thought I had a pretty good vocabulary, it's clear to me now that I'm a cave dweller com...more
And I wasn't disappointed. Stephan Fatsis is a hell of a writer, keeping the narrative moving along at a brisk clip while working in an exhaustive history of Scrabble and the back stories of many of the characters he met in his quest to go from zero to expert.
And while I thought I had a pretty good vocabulary, it's clear to me now that I'm a cave dweller com...more
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
This is a great book for scrabble nerds who understand the orgasmic elation of getting 7 letter bingos on a triple word score, watching with sadistic fervor your score double the points of your opponent. Scrabble is a sub-world of cultural and social norms where the most otherwise awkward, less than average weirdos become more than accepted, they become glorified champions. And now thanks to this book and the subsequent documentaries that followed, scrabble is now covered by ESPN. It has risen...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in April, 2008
I feel a bit guilty listing this as "read," because I really only read the first third or so. I just couldn't get into it...I don't know if I'm just too distracted by life at the moment since I had a very similar criticism about another book that I was just reading, but I almost had to keep forcing myself to give this a try. Maybe I expected the real-life characters to be more likeable, kind-of like the documentary version of competitive Scrabble, Word Play. Anyhoo, I would love to ...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
3 comments
No, Word Freak is not just an excuse to make fun of people who take Scrabble THAT seriously. It's a history of the game, an examination of the professional (yes, that's right) players' lifestyles, a pretty in-depth study of the game's theory and strategy, a look at the line between determination and obsession, and a good, old-fashioned, inspiring underdog story: like the author, you'll be humming the Rocky theme as you read about his efforts in the Nationals.
A great read. My minor Scrab...more
A great read. My minor Scrab...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
