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Content snapshot
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Violence
None
No violence
Language
Barely any
Mild language throughout
Sexual Content
Some
Some sexual content in the adult literary register
Substance Use
A lot
Significant tranquilizer and alcohol addiction — the novel's central psychological subject alongside chess
Emotional Intensity
A lot
Strong psychological content: addiction, isolation, the loneliness of genius, and the self-destruction that threatens to consume extraordinary talent
What this book is about
Beth Harmon grows up in a 1950s Kentucky orphanage, where she discovers chess in the basement and an addiction to tranquilizers provided by the state. The novel follows her rise through the male-dominated chess world — competing against Soviet grandmasters — while her addictions to pills and alcohol threaten to derail the extraordinary talent that gives her life meaning. Walter Tevis's precise, propulsive novel is the source material for the acclaimed Netflix series.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Tranquilizer and alcohol addiction depicted throughout
Isolation and psychological effects of a childhood institution
Sexual content in the literary fiction register
Reader Verification
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