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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Like a cross between a linguistic spy and a lexicographic Olympic athlete, journalist Stefan Fatsis gave himself a year to penetrate the highest echelons of international Scrabble competition. His aim was to progress from the casual living room player to get into the elite club of international Scrabble pros. Word Freak is the account of his journey. It's a wacky grab bag of travelogue, history, party journal and psychological study of the misfits and goofballs whose lives are measured out in Scrabble tiles.
Fatsis gives us all the facts about Scrabble--from the story of the down-on-his luck architect who invented the game in the 1930s to the intricacies of individual international competitions and the corporate wars to control the world's favourite word game. He is a good storyteller and keeps the reader turning the pages as we get involved in the lives of the Scrabble obsessives: men and women who have a point to prove against the world and have chosen Scrabble as their playground and their pulpit. As Fatsis goes on his own quest to attain the coveted 1600 rating we actually get obsessed with him as he lies awake at night pondering moves and memorising lists of words. For anybody who is interested in words and has ever been captivated and fascinated by Scrabble, Word Freak provides a compelling, entertaining and absorbing read. --Dwight Longenecker --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Review
'Within two pages I was hooked. This is an enthralling and wonderfully written elegy' Daily Telegraph; 'A quirky account of a most peculiar practice' Glasgow Herald; 'An amiable memoir of self-inflicted obsession' Times Literary Supplement
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
That's the best anagram of the title that I can manage. And that's why I'm no good at Scrabble (or crosswords). This is an illuminating account of competitive Scrabble - and also of the addiction of games. In addition, there's plenty on the origin and history of the game, the personalities involved, and techniques to improve your play. It almost made me want to play the game. My only objection is that the book was a little over-long, and I would have liked to have learned more about why the author became suddenly so addicted. It just seemed to happen. Perhaps that's the way it is.
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Anyone who ever cared a bit too much about a game will love Stefan Fatsis' fascinating book about the world of 'professional' scrabble players. The book is both a sequence of pen portraits of the world's (mostly Americans actually) top scrabble players and also the story of Fatsis's own growing obsession with the game.
I've never been a big scrabble lover but off the back of this book I ended up buying a new deluxe set, a set for some friends and getting back into chess! Do yourself a favour and read this book ...
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I loved this book, i've always enjoyed the occasional game but nothing more than that (although i was pretty jarred off in my last game when someone did not allow me to have 'quested' as they thought quest was only a noun!) However i never realised that there was this whole world of competitive scrabble inhabited by such infectious weirdos! although politics and bickering amongst the hierarchy obvious goes on, is it Fatsis love of the game that truly comes out in his writing. Theres whole chapters devoted to strange words that i never knew existed and lots of stuff that i'm now very pleased i now know about - pub quiz question - who invented scrabble - ans ALFRED BUTTS!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
You don't have to be a Scrabble expert to enjoy this book.
I originally bought this book intending to give it to my brother-in-law who's a skilled Scrabble player. I read it first, and ended up keeping it. Read more
Published on 17 Jan 2008 by Mrs. J. Proctor
EEIRVW
If you liked this, and you love games, you might also like ABDEGIL by AHNNOTY DEHLNO (especially if you like EKOPR), which is a slightly better written book about a similar theme.
Published on 24 Mar 2006 by MR BRIAN BALLANTYNE
Interesting, but hardly hilarious
As a fan of "Fever Pitch" and "Things can only get Better" I bought this book hoping for another funny and moving tale of obsession (and I also hoped to get some tips to improve my... Read more
Published on 17 Oct 2002 by Paul Perro
strangely gripping tale of quest to become a Scrabble expert
I found this book throughly enjoyable and informative. A highly recommended read for anyone who enjoys Scrabble, or simply those who have an interest in the language (like myself)
Published on 23 Nov 2001
A must for all Scrabble players.
A record of how the game of Scrabble became the most important thing in the authors life. As well as explaining the history of the game, various tactics and strategies it also... Read more
Published on 16 Oct 2001
A fascinating insight into the world of serious Scrabble
What really makes this book work for me is that Stefan writes as a member of the competitive Scrabble community, not just an observer. Read more
Published on 19 July 2001
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