Author Topic: "The Queen's Gambit," a discussion Possible Spoilers (Read 25378 times)

Penthesilea · « **Reply #30 on:** March 01, 2008, 07:42:10 am »

Quote from: Ellemeno on March 01, 2008, 12:15:57 am

There were a few phrases in the book that were surprisingly BBMesque. Did anyone notice any?

Yes! I'm happy you mention it, I thought I was picturing this. One I remember right now is on page 92, first paragraph. Mrs. Wheatley and Beth are on a plane and start to bond.

"She [Mrs. W] was high-spirited and confidential and amusing, and Beth would laugh a long time and look out the window at the clouds below them and feel better than she had ever felt, even during those times at Methuen when she had saved up her green pills and taken five or six at once.

Reiminds me of the time when Ennis thought he'd never had such a good time, felt he could paw the white out of the moon.

On the same note, Mrs. Weathley's first name is Alma, of all names! And then the Denver-thingie! Mr. Wheatley went to Denver (for a second, I contemplated whether he migh be gay

).

mariez · « **Reply #31 on:** March 07, 2008, 01:46:48 pm »

I imagine this picture is somewhere in the HHH thread already, but I copped it from an LJ this morning - the chess board caught my eye!

MaineWriter · « **Reply #32 on:** March 07, 2008, 06:27:43 pm »

That's a great picture, Marie, and I've never seen it before...I don't think it is on the HHH thread!

L

Penthesilea · « **Reply #33 on:** March 08, 2008, 04:45:13 am »

Marie, I second what Leslie said about the pic: I'm pretty sure it's not on HHH yet. Go over and post it there

.

belbbmfan · « **Reply #34 on:** March 09, 2008, 01:57:40 pm »

Quote from: mariez on March 07, 2008, 01:46:48 pm

I imagine this picture is somewhere in the HHH thread already, but I copped it from an LJ this morning - the chess board caught my eye!

And the hat! Great pic Marie, thanks for posting it.

mariez · « **Reply #35 on:** March 09, 2008, 07:05:36 pm »

Quote from: belbbmfan on March 09, 2008, 01:57:40 pm

And the hat! Great pic Marie, thanks for posting it.

Yes!!! The hat - absolutely caught my eye, too. As I mentioned on the HHH thread, there's a lot of interesting details in the picture.

Marie

Meryl · « **Reply #36 on:** March 18, 2008, 12:55:32 am »

I finished "The Queen's Gambit" last week but haven't had time or energy to catch up on this thread. Lots of good comments so far! Just one thought to get it started again...

***Spoilers***

I think one reason maybe Heath was drawn to this story, besides being a chess freak, is that Beth is an orphan and a loner, very private, needing love but not expecting it, much like Ennis. Obviously, he knew something about that kind of character and felt he could bring something to the movie as its director. Qualities in Beth that remind me of Heath are her intelligence, strong will and ability to concentrate when it's necessary, her innate integrity and ability to size people up quickly and her dangerous fascination with drugs and alcohol.

MaineWriter · « **Reply #37 on:** March 18, 2008, 06:23:21 am »

Quote from: Meryl on March 18, 2008, 12:55:32 am

I finished "The Queen's Gambit" last week but haven't had time or energy to catch up on this thread. Lots of good comments so far! Just one thought to get it started again...

***Spoilers***

I think one reason maybe Heath was drawn to this story, besides being a chess freak, is that Beth is an orphan and a loner, very private, needing love but not expecting it, much like Ennis. Obviously, he knew something about that kind of character and felt he could bring something to the movie as its director. Qualities in Beth that remind me of Heath are her intelligence, strong will and ability to concentrate when it's necessary, her innate integrity and ability to size people up quickly and her dangerous fascination with drugs and alcohol.

Some people just say things so much better than I ever could. Thanks, Meryl!

Meryl · « **Reply #38 on:** March 18, 2008, 09:33:01 pm »

Quote from: MaineWriter on March 18, 2008, 06:23:21 am

Some people just say things so much better than I ever could. Thanks, Meryl!

Shucks, Leslie, thanks! But you're certainly no slouch!

I learned a lot from this book about just how deep and complex chess is, and I loved the mystical passages where Beth saw the board as not merely physical game pieces, but as force fields with unlimited potential. It would be interesting to see that depicted on film with some sort of special effects.

The thing that I loved about Beth's character was how unstoppable she was. Once she saw that chessboard in the school basement, she refused to let anything discourage her from finding out just what it was and how it worked. She overcame the restrictive school schedule, the janitor's blunt refusal to let her play, his lack of cooperation in teaching her, and eventually even being banned from playing chess at all until she was adopted. Even then, she had to resort to theft and subterfuge to get the materials she needed. It was like she knew she had been born just for chess and went for it like a plant to sunlight.

MaineWriter · « **Reply #39 on:** March 18, 2008, 10:12:51 pm »

My son, the reader, is coming home from college for his spring break this next week (due home on Friday).

He is taking a lit course at school so he is totally overwhelmed with reading, ie, "Mom, I am supposed to read 'Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea' in a day!" But maybe he'll have a breather this week. I know he would love this book and I would love to talk to him about it. We'll see. I'll keep you posted.

L

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