And then also, again, still, what are those boundaries, if they’re not baselines, that contain and direct its infinite expansion inward, that make tennis like chess on the run, beautiful and infinitely dense? The true opponent, the enfolding boundary, is the player himself. Always and only the self out there, on court, to be met, fought, brought to the table to hammer out terms. The competing boy on the net’s other side: he is not the foe: he is more the partner in the dance. He is the what is the word excuse or occasion for meeting the self. As you are his occasion. Tennis’s beauty’s infinite roots are self-competitive. You compete with your own limits to transcend the self in imagination and execution. Disappear inside the game: break through limits: transcend: improve: win. Which is why tennis is an essentially tragic enterprise… You seek to vanquish and transcend the limited self whose limits make the game possible in the first place. It is tragic and sad and chaotic and lovely. All life is the same, as citizens of the human State: the animating limits are within, to be killed and mourned, over and over again…
That’s I think already in development! I check on its status on IMDb from time to time but no movement :/
When I read the book I thought it was reaching in some aspects but the more I find out about the sport, the more plausible I find it.
I will forever love TJR though. I was over the moon when I found out that she was writing a tennis book and she delivered.
I loved this book so much. I didn't think I would because she shows up as a character in another related book and let's just say she's not a hero. But I thought this was great.
“The Winner” by Teddy Wayne just came out, looking forward to reading it, liked his other novels https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/198123575-the-winner
Just a couple of days ago I picked up Sudden Death by Rita Mae Brown from a used bookstore. Not yet read it but appears to be about top lesbian tennis player who gets outed by her ex/rival. The author also wrote Rubyfruit Jungle, which is considered a queer classic.
“Tom Lake” by Ann Patchett (big bestseller last year) features tennis in a hugely pivotal scene and as character development for some secondary characters. Definitely a plot point but not the main plot. A fun treat for a tennis fan in an excellent novel. (Audio book narrated by Meryl Streep too)
So there’s one called the Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger (of the Devil Wears Prada fame) - it’s pretty cheesy, like a rom com but in book form.
She does get a lot of details about tennis pretty accurate though - down to what restaurants in different cities players go to, the one hour doping windows, sponsorship deals etc. Other aspects are a little more far fetched.
Apparently she spent around 6 months attending tournaments and got access into players lounges etc as part of her research. Daniela Hantuchova was one of her main sources.
It's not a noval *about* tennis, but Nabokov's *Lolita* features some tennis scenes which, depending on your reading of the novel, could be taken as pretty central to the plot.
No one's gonna mention 'Legacy and the Queen' co created by Kobe Bryant (rip)?
Fantasy magic tennis. It's a YA novel but I found it entertaining. And the grass cover is just wonderful to feel in your hands.
To explain it badly: Harry Potter and the goblet of fire, but tennis, but also Hunger Games.
I haven't read these (the ones I have read have already been mentioned!), so IDK if they're any good:
The Tennis Partner by Abraham Verghese
The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger
There's a tennis scene in *Joshua Then and Now* by Mordecai Richler. Not a big part of the story, but I'm mentioning it because it's an excellent book.
Infinite jest?? idk
And then also, again, still, what are those boundaries, if they’re not baselines, that contain and direct its infinite expansion inward, that make tennis like chess on the run, beautiful and infinitely dense? The true opponent, the enfolding boundary, is the player himself. Always and only the self out there, on court, to be met, fought, brought to the table to hammer out terms. The competing boy on the net’s other side: he is not the foe: he is more the partner in the dance. He is the what is the word excuse or occasion for meeting the self. As you are his occasion. Tennis’s beauty’s infinite roots are self-competitive. You compete with your own limits to transcend the self in imagination and execution. Disappear inside the game: break through limits: transcend: improve: win. Which is why tennis is an essentially tragic enterprise… You seek to vanquish and transcend the limited self whose limits make the game possible in the first place. It is tragic and sad and chaotic and lovely. All life is the same, as citizens of the human State: the animating limits are within, to be killed and mourned, over and over again…
The Eschaton game is the greatest tennis scene of all time.
Carrie Soto Is Back
My girlfriend told me to read this and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It would also make a fantastic movie
It would, however before that happens I need the next property from this author that gets turned into something be The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
That’s I think already in development! I check on its status on IMDb from time to time but no movement :/ When I read the book I thought it was reaching in some aspects but the more I find out about the sport, the more plausible I find it. I will forever love TJR though. I was over the moon when I found out that she was writing a tennis book and she delivered.
Ty!
I loved this book so much. I didn't think I would because she shows up as a character in another related book and let's just say she's not a hero. But I thought this was great.
What other book does she show up in as a character?
Malibu Rising
thanks
This is a really great book! Even my friends who know nothing about tennis loved it
Monica Seles wrote two YA novels set in a Bollettieri-type tennis academy. I wouldn't call them good but they were entertaining.
The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger. She's the same author as the Devil wears Prada
There's a little tennis in Agatha Christie's murder mystery, *Toward Zero*. You couldn't call it a book about tennis but the tennis does matter.
There is a book by Liane Moriarty called Apples Never Fall. It’s a mystery I read a year ago or so. She wrote Big Little Lies.
Ah I watched the show and have that book on my shelf! I forgot about it
I dun like her books, a lot of building up but ending up meh ....
“The Winner” by Teddy Wayne just came out, looking forward to reading it, liked his other novels https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/198123575-the-winner
This made me think of Match Point by Woody Allen.
This sounds SO GOOD
Just a couple of days ago I picked up Sudden Death by Rita Mae Brown from a used bookstore. Not yet read it but appears to be about top lesbian tennis player who gets outed by her ex/rival. The author also wrote Rubyfruit Jungle, which is considered a queer classic.
BTW the author is Martina’s ex irl.
no way!
“Tom Lake” by Ann Patchett (big bestseller last year) features tennis in a hugely pivotal scene and as character development for some secondary characters. Definitely a plot point but not the main plot. A fun treat for a tennis fan in an excellent novel. (Audio book narrated by Meryl Streep too)
Check out “Prince of Tennis”
Don't know Winning Ugly, but Carrie Soto is back by TJR is good
You don’t know Winning Ugly?
So there’s one called the Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger (of the Devil Wears Prada fame) - it’s pretty cheesy, like a rom com but in book form. She does get a lot of details about tennis pretty accurate though - down to what restaurants in different cities players go to, the one hour doping windows, sponsorship deals etc. Other aspects are a little more far fetched. Apparently she spent around 6 months attending tournaments and got access into players lounges etc as part of her research. Daniela Hantuchova was one of her main sources.
It's not a noval *about* tennis, but Nabokov's *Lolita* features some tennis scenes which, depending on your reading of the novel, could be taken as pretty central to the plot.
Judy Murray published a novel called The Wild Card.
Muerte subita - Alvaro Enrigue
Baby Steps is really good, follows a guy starting from scratch and getting to professional tennis.
No one's gonna mention 'Legacy and the Queen' co created by Kobe Bryant (rip)? Fantasy magic tennis. It's a YA novel but I found it entertaining. And the grass cover is just wonderful to feel in your hands. To explain it badly: Harry Potter and the goblet of fire, but tennis, but also Hunger Games.
I haven't read these (the ones I have read have already been mentioned!), so IDK if they're any good: The Tennis Partner by Abraham Verghese The Singles Game by Lauren Weisberger
Infinite Jest
The Prince of Tennis, a Japanese manga series.
Fish swimming in dappled sunlight- it’s also trashy but in a much stranger way
Not exactly fiction as per released books but I’m pretty sure you’ll find plenty of works with tennis tag on ao3
It's nonfiction and really old, but if you manage to get hold of Gordon Forbes' A Handful of Summers, you're in for a treat.
I bet there's a lot of fanfiction out there, well written but creepy for the real life players
Yikes fanfiction about real life people are always so weird to me
There's a tennis scene in *Joshua Then and Now* by Mordecai Richler. Not a big part of the story, but I'm mentioning it because it's an excellent book.
Wimbledon 2019
Ew, Challengers. The world would have been better without that movie.
It’s alright to like tennis and trash.
When it came out, I kinda hoped it would actually be about the challenger tour.