A real life Queen’s Gambit, this captivating memoir tells the story of one of the most renowned women in chess history, Susan Polgar, taking on a sexist establishment and rewriting the rules of what women could achieve against the oppressive backdrop of Cold War Eastern Europe.
Born to a poor Jewish family in Cold War Budapest, Susan Polgar would emerge as the one of the greatest female chess players the world had ever seen—the highest rated female player on the planet and the first woman to earn the men's Grandmaster title. As a teenager in 1986, she became the first woman to qualify for the men's World Chess Championship cycle, later achieving the game's triple crown, holding World Championship titles in three major chess time formats.
Yet at every turn, she was pitted against a sexist culture, a hostile Communist government, vicious antisemitism, and powerful enemies. She endured sabotage and betrayal, state-sponsored intimidation, and violent assault. And she overcame all of it to break the game's long-standing gender barrier and claim her place at the pinnacle of professional chess, before going on to coach other players and build two separate college chess dynasties.
Before her improbable rise, it was taken for granted that women were incapable of excellence in the game of chess. Susan Polgar single-handedly disproved this belief.
Rebel Queen
The Cold War, Misogyny, and the Making of a Grandmaster
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
March 11, 2025 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781538757314
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781538757314
- File size: 57077 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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February 15, 2025
The allure of chess. Hungarian-born chess grandmaster Polgar, winner of the world's six most prestigious chess crowns, recounts a triumphant career that began when she was 3. Excited by a chess set she discovered in a beat-up cabinet, she was eager to learn how to play with the enticing new toys. Her father incorporated chess into her homeschooling, teaching her moves for one piece at a time, gradually building up to openings and strategies. Clearly a prodigy, Polgar entered her first tournament when she was 41/2, winning against older girls. In 1979, at age 10, she became the youngest person to earn official rating through the International Chess Federation. Although Hungary repeatedly refused to grant her a passport to leave the communist Eastern Bloc, publicity about her prowess soon led the government to relent. Competing internationally, she rapidly ascended in stature. In 1983, she ranked among the top 10 female players in the world. Polgar's two younger sisters also became enamored of chess, proving to be talented as well: At the 1988 Olympiad, the three staged a "gold medal coup." Besides striving to win, Polgar also devoted herself to publicizing chess and attracting new players. As a young mother in New York, she set up a chess school in her neighborhood; she took a position as a coach at Texas Tech University and Webster University in St. Louis, where, in November 2023, she was inducted into the World Chess Hall of Fame. Throughout her career, Polgar rose above considerable challenges: from those who believed that women shouldn't compete against men; from political threats to her and her family; from bitter animosity from a woman champion; and from virulent antisemitism at home and abroad. The game sustained her. A champion's engaging memoir.COPYRIGHT(2025) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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