Netflix limited series The Queen’s Gambit — which follows orphaned chess prodigy Beth Harmon — has gathered quite a huge viewership and the latest to join in the crowd is author George R.R Martin. The Game Of Thrones writer recently shared the same in his blog where he recommended the series asking readers to watch it in case they haven’t already.
“It’s an adaptation of the Walter Tevis novel about a chess prodigy in the 60s and 70s. A very faithful adaptation (yay) of a very strong novel (yay), beautifully written, acted, and directed. I think you will all like it. If there is any justice, the series should contend for awards,” he wrote.
Commenting on the world created by The Queen’s Gambit, Martin shared why the show particularly resonated with him.
“It also resonated with me very strongly. I know that world. Chess was a huge part of my life in high school, in college, and especially in the years after college, the early 70s. Queen’s Gambit brought it all back to me vividly.”
“Like the protagonist, I learned chess when I was still quite young, and got pretty good pretty fast (though never nearly as good as her). I was the captain of my high school chess team, the founder and president of my college chess club. I wrote and edited the club’s newsletter, GLEEP. The first two great loves of my life were girls I met at the chess club (but that’s another tale for another time),” Martin wrote.
Martin revealed that chess continued to be a huge part of his life even after he stopped playing it. According to him, the show brought back memories of his time with the tactical board game. “It has been many many decades since I last ran a chess tournament or even played a game of chess, and the memories had faded… but Queen’s Gambit brought them all back.”
