Chess Rumble
Chess Rumble
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Lee & Low Publishers
Annotation: A story in free verse about a troubled boy who learns to use his mind instead of his fists through the guidance of an unconventional mentor and the game of chess.
 
Reviews: 3
Catalog Number: #6640139
Format: Paperback
Copyright Date: 2016
Edition Date: 2007 Release Date: 05/31/21
Illustrator: Watson, Jesse Joshua,
Pages: 62 pages
ISBN: 1-620-14189-2
ISBN 13: 978-1-620-14189-2
Dewey: Fic
LCCN: 2007010772
Dimensions: 24 cm.
Language: English
Reviews:
ALA Booklist

"Lotsa things make me mad," says young African American Marcus, who gets into fights at school and at home. Violence is all around: "In my hood, / battles is fought every day." And when he is hassled by bullies or by his little brothers, Marcus responds with his fists. Then his teacher sends him to the library, where he meets CM, a local chess master who teaches students to fight their battles on the board instead of the streets. In this strong debut, Marcus' authentic voice narrates in potent, free-verse poetry. With minimal, direct words, Neri makes clear, without overstating, how Marcus' sense of being misunderstood amplifies his frustrations and how, through chess, he learns to take responsibility for his feelings and actions. Watson effectively echoes each scene's mood in small gray-tone paintings that employ dramatic shading. A deeply shadowed portrait of Marcus' absent dad is particularly moving. Readers of all backgrounds will find themselves here, but this will have particular appeal among reluctant readers and young, inner-city teens.

Kirkus Reviews

"Battles is fought every day" in 11-year-old Marcus's 'hood. Not only has his father abandoned the family, but his sister has recently died, leaving him frustrated, angry and ready to fight—even with his worried, red-eyed mother and his younger twin brothers. Just as his volatility starts to get him into real trouble, Marcus meets a Yoda-like chess master and ex-con in the school library who challenges him to a game of chess. At first, Marcus's "opening move" is to hurl the chessboard groundward, but in time, he learns to master the game—and his temper. Marcus tells his story in street slang, in a conversational first-person voice. (While the narrative is presented as free verse, the lines break more randomly than poetically.) The acrylic black-and-white illustrations are particularly effective at capturing natural expressions and the concrete-gray inner-cityscape, though the abundant chess imagery that surfaces in unlikely places feels overdone. There's plenty of powerful emotion here, but the heavy dose of life lessons leaves the overall effort a few moves short of a checkmate. (Fiction/poetry. 9-12)

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8-"In my 'hood, battles is fought every day," quips Marcus, an angry middle schooler on the brink of big trouble. His words, rife with frustration, tumble across page after page in free-flowing verse as he paints a picture of his quickly fading innocence. In the short time since his sister's death, memories of eating ice cream and giggling have been replaced by the bleak reality of a persistent bully, fist fights, and an absent dad. After begrudgingly meeting CM, Chess Master, the school's "bad dude" chess club adviser, an extended "battle" metaphor unfolds, concluding as Marcus takes responsibility for his own actions and moves his fighting off the street and onto the chessboard. While the plot undeniably follows a certain predictability, Chess Rumble works, and works well. Neri expertly captures Marcus's voice and delicately teases out his alternating vulnerability and rage. The cadence and emotion of the verse are masterfully echoed through Watson's expressive acrylic illustrations. Blacks, whites, and grays echo the concrete world of Marcus's urban home and, even more so, his despairing mood. Scattered chess pieces evoke the crescendo of the boy's temper. The closing scene tenderly catches tough-guy Marcus in a smile as he pounds fists with CM before sitting down to do battle, a stark contrast to his opening image, one dominated entirely by his fist. This book will become a standby pick for reluctant readers, who will be pulled in before they know it by the story's quick pace and the authenticity of Marcus's voice and experience.-Jill Heritage Maza, Greenwich High School, CT Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

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ALA Booklist
Kirkus Reviews
School Library Journal
Word Count: 5,612
Reading Level: 3.5
Interest Level: 3-6
Accelerated Reader: reading level: 3.5 / points: 1.0 / quiz: 120831 / grade: Middle Grades
Reading Counts!: reading level:3.7 / points:4.0 / quiz:Q43368
Lexile: 690L
Guided Reading Level: V
Fountas & Pinnell: V

Three moves is all it takes to change the outcome of the game. In Marcus's world, battles are fought everyday--on the street, at home, and in school. Angered by his sister's death and his father's absence, and pushed to the brink by a bullying classmate, Marcus fights back with his fists. One punch away from being kicked out of school and his home, Marcus encounters CM, an unlikely chess master who challenges him to fight his battles on the chess board. Guarded and distrusting, Marcus must endure more hard lessons before he can accept CM's help to regain control of his life. Inspired by inner-city school chess enrichment programs, Chess Rumble explores the ways this strategic game empowers young people with the skills they need to anticipate and calculate their moves through life.


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