Book Talk: Spoilers allowed!

[Wicked Biscuit]

On 10/24/2020 at 11:44 PM, Michichick said:

I don’t mind that she beat Borgov, that seemed inevitable from the first time they mentioned him. Maybe it rang a bit false to me that Benny suddenly was on the phone giving her advice, when he’d pretty decisively told her to take a hike earlier. And not sure why Harry still cared enough to help her against Borgov, either.  Ultimately their help didn’t pay off since Borgov went a route that none of them had anticipated. I did like that she beat him on her own, really, and it wasn’t some coaching of a specific move from Benny that did the trick.

Hopefully this is okay to post here - this particular storyline differed from the book. In the book, it's implied that Benny and Beth are still a viable couple by the end (Beth at least has a bunch of internal monologues about how much she misses Benny, and has gotten over her crush of Townes because of him). Townes doesn't show up again, and it's Benny who takes the initiative to gather two other high level players (neither of which is Beltik) to work out what Beth could do to win against Borgov. I'm assuming they wanted to push the whole "teamwork" angle in the miniseries as well as emphasize how Beth really isn't alone, so they brought back all the male characters she interacted with. Unfortunately, it does sort of make it weird in the miniseries because honestly, some of the players they brought back weren't supposed to be all that good. Why would they be able to see a path out that she couldn't?

By the way, the book is excellent.

Edited October 27, 2020 by Wicked Biscuit

[dubbel zout]

Talk about the book—and how it differs from the series—here, to your heart's content.

[ClareWalks]

Thanks for letting me know that this was based on a book! I ordered it yesterday 🙂

[Umbelina]

36 minutes ago, ClareWalks said:

Thanks for letting me know that this was based on a book! I ordered it yesterday 🙂

Where did you find it?  By the way, several books by several authors with that name.  The Tevis book on Amazon (paperback/used) is up to about $50 now.  

ETA Better World Books has one copy left for $28, new, paperback.  WOW, popular.

Edited October 28, 2020 by Umbelina

[ClareWalks]

12 minutes ago, Umbelina said:

Where did you find it?  By the way, several books by several authors with that name.  The Tevis book on Amazon (paperback/used) is up to about $50 now.  

ETA Better World Books has one copy left for $28, new, paperback.  WOW, popular.

I ordered the paperback on Amazon, it was like $15. It had a delivery delay originally but was updated and should be here in a day or two!

Edit: just rechecked and you're right, they're out! I'm guessing they are temporarily sold out. Glad I got my order placed before they ran out.

Edited October 28, 2020 by ClareWalks

[kieyra]

Interesting about difficulties finding it. You’d think they’d time a new edition. Maybe they didn’t expect #1 on Netflix.

[Umbelina]

2 minutes ago, kieyra said:

Interesting about difficulties finding it. You’d think they’d time a new edition. Maybe they didn’t expect #1 on Netflix.

Also interesting how many books have that name!  

Yeah, not paying $28 for a paperback.  I'll wait.

ETA Better World had a bunch, but they've all sold out now except one.

Edited October 28, 2020 by Umbelina

[ClareWalks]

4 minutes ago, Umbelina said:

Also interesting how many books have that name!  

Yeah, not paying $28 for a paperback.  I'll wait.

ETA Better World had a bunch, but they've all sold out now except one.

You might be able to sneak in and get it at your library before it's gone!

[dubbel zout]

If the book is long out-of-print, which seems likely here, there can be rights issues to resolve before reprinting it. Though since Netflix expressed an interest in adapting the book, you'd think whoever they talked to (the author/agent/publisher) would have a head's up that maybe there will be an uptick in demand.

[Umbelina]

19 minutes ago, ClareWalks said:

You might be able to sneak in and get it at your library before it's gone!

High risk, I'm not going anywhere unless absolutely critical.

[ClareWalks]

1 hour ago, Umbelina said:

High risk, I'm not going anywhere unless absolutely critical.

Good point, our library does contactless curbside but a lot of them probably don't! Good news is I think they're doing another run of the books soon since demand has skyrocketed!

[msmarjoribanks]

I read this book when I was 12 or so, and it has been one of those books I've vaguely recalled and wanted to read again, but couldn't remember the title or author.  I would occasionally google the plot, but had no luck.  As soon as I heard about this show I thought "I bet it's based on the book" and ordered it.  I got it on Kindle since I wanted to start it immediately, although I am trying to read roughly what each episode seems to cover before watching each episode, rather than allowing myself to read straight through.

[kieyra]

Finally got around to checking out Amazon:

Kindle edition is ten bucks.

USED paperback can be gotten for about $13.

I still don't 100% understand how Audible works, but I recently signed up for yet another free trial and it says it's included 'with my membership'. 

https://www.amazon.com/The-Queens-Gambit-Walter-Tevis-audiobook/dp/B07KX49PDT/

[Umbelina]

8 hours ago, kieyra said:

Finally got around to checking out Amazon:

Kindle edition is ten bucks.

USED paperback can be gotten for about $13.

I still don't 100% understand how Audible works, but I recently signed up for yet another free trial and it says it's included 'with my membership'. 

https://www.amazon.com/The-Queens-Gambit-Walter-Tevis-audiobook/dp/B07KX49PDT/

I don't find the used paperback for that price.  About the cheapest I see is 17.96 with free shipping, or 16.71 with 3.99 shipping.  The others are either "notebooks" or by a different author.  

I'm sure price will go down eventually.

[ClareWalks]

Got my copy of the book a couple days ago! I haven't read much but I'm glad the series omitted some things from the book. Like Jolene molesting Beth, and Jolene and Mr. Fergusson having a sexual relationship when she was still a child. On the plus side, I learned how to spell Mr. Shaibel's name!

Edited November 4, 2020 by ClareWalks

[Mabinogia]

8 hours ago, ClareWalks said:

Like Jolene molesting Beth, and Jolene and Mr. Fergusson having a sexual relationship when she was still a child.

The molesting comes as a shock, but I did wonder about the relationship between Fergusson and Jolene, since there seemed to be a tinge of not exactly flirty but maybe "familiarity" between them. But WOW about the molesting. Adds a very different layer to Jolene and Beth's relationship and yeah, glad they left that out. I still can't tell what age Jolene was supposed to be during Beth's years at the orphanage. She looked about 20 but I know that can't be right. lol

[ClareWalks]

24 minutes ago, Mabinogia said:

The molesting comes as a shock, but I did wonder about the relationship between Fergusson and Jolene, since there seemed to be a tinge of not exactly flirty but maybe "familiarity" between them. But WOW about the molesting. Adds a very different layer to Jolene and Beth's relationship and yeah, glad they left that out. I still can't tell what age Jolene was supposed to be during Beth's years at the orphanage. She looked about 20 but I know that can't be right. lol

In the book Jolene is 12 and Beth is 8 when she arrives. But Jolene is described as being tall/athletic and having already started puberty.

[AZChristian]

We belong to three library systems.  Only one of the three even has the book in their catalog.  Only one person ahead of me in the "hold" queue.  Can't wait!!!!

[ClareWalks]

It's awesome how closely the series follows the book. Benny in the book is described as thin and very young-looking. Spectacular casting!

[CherryMalotte]

Just got this from the library yesterday, had to wait almost two months for it.  So far so good but I'm only a couple of chapters deep.

 

[chitowngirl]

I always have trouble reading a book after I’ve seen the adaptation. I can go from book to TV/movie, but not vice versa.

[chocolatine]

On 11/7/2020 at 1:22 PM, ClareWalks said:

It's awesome how closely the series follows the book. Benny in the book is described as thin and very young-looking. Spectacular casting!

Yes, the show follows the book pretty closely, but there are also meaningful differences:

• The book says very little about Beth's birth mother. She does die in a car accident, but Beth isn't with her at the time. IIRC, her father had already died by that time. I liked the backstory that the show added; it felt organic.
• The show aged Beth up a bit. In the book she was eight when she entered the orphanage, 13 when she was adopted by the Wheatleys, 17 when Alma died, and 19 when she won the tournament in Moscow. The show made her 15 when she was adopted, probably because they couldn't sell Anya as a 13-year-old.
• Jolene molesting Beth was very sad. It wasn't written as Jolene being evil or predatory, more like in Jolene's mind that was the only way she knew how to show affection (most likely because she herself had been molested). She stopped when she saw that Beth was uncomfortable, and the two of them eventually reconciled as friends.
• It was mentioned that Jolene was "friendly" with Fergussen, but when Beth asked her about it after they reconnected as adults, Jolene said it was "wishful thinking." I wasn't sure whether she meant on her part or his.
• In the book, Beth used the tranquilizers to be able to sleep. Sometimes she needed them to stop playing chess in her head, which was the opposite of how the show presented it. In the book, Beth never stopped taking the tranquilizers, she just learned how to ration them so it doesn't get out of control.
• Townes doesn't show up in Moscow; he doesn't show up at all after that time in Vegas when he took her picture. He was friendly but not flirtatious. Beth still had a crush on him, but she was only 15 or 16 at the time. Townes either wasn't attracted to her, or didn't want to do anything because she was so young. Having him appear in Moscow on the show was quite a stretch, as I doubt a local Kentucky newspaper would have had the budget to send someone to Moscow.
• The twins aren't in the book. The dialog at Beth's first tournament where the men at registration wanted to put her with the beginners really does happen, but the characters don't appear again.
• Beth's relationship with Harry seemed much less meaningful in the book. He never expressed any feelings for her (nor she for him), and when he left I got the impression that it was because his ego couldn't take it that she was so much better at chess than him and that he had nothing more to teach her. In the book, Harry doesn't show up again after that, not at the local tournament to express concerns about Beth's drinking, and certainly not with Benny in NYC to coach her over the phone.
• Cleo doesn't exist in the book. There was a woman who showed up with the two other chess players at Benny's apartment, and she was nice to Beth, but she never appeared again. Beth wasn't drunk or hung over when she lost to Borgov in Paris. She played very well, but he played better. I thought it was a mistake to change that part of the story. It would have been more impactful to show that even when Beth was at her best, there were still players who were better.
• In the book Beth doesn't just bail on the local chess tournament, she plays one game and loses (and then bails). That's her rock-bottom and when she decides she needs help to quit drinking. That was one of the best-written parts of the book for me, so I wish the show hadn't changed it.
• Beth is the one to look up Jolene, not the other way around. She calls Methuen and begs Mrs. Deardorff for Jolene's information. Jolene becomes Beth's personal trainer of sorts and gets her on an exercise routine and a healthier diet.
• Beth pays for the trip to Moscow out of her own money after she refuses the offer from the Christian group; Jolene doesn't offer to lend her any.
• The Moscow tournament in the book takes place in July, not in December like it did on the show. That may seem like a small nitpick, but Moscow is *very* cold and snowy in the winter. The show didn't depict that adequately. Beth would have needed a much warmer coat, plus boots, a scarf, gloves, and a hat that covers her ears. There are also less likely to be people sitting in the park playing chess; it's the kind of cold that keeps everyone moving.

Edited December 22, 2020 by chocolatine