The Queen's Gambit

Was it a blessing or a curse that Walter Tevis's first two novels, The Hustler and The Man Who Fell to Earth, were turned into memorable movies? He didn't publish again for nearly two decades, but late in his shortened life he released a flurry of novels that have developed followings of their own, including the wonderful Queen's Gambit. In it, Tevis takes what could be a flighty premise—an orphan girl who becomes a chess prodigy—and grounds it in thrilling believability: in the everyday details of the 1960s Midwest, in the complex, driven character of young Beth Harmon, and, best of all, in chess games that turn out, even for someone like me who knows almost nothing of the game, to be both understandable and exciting.