Pawn Who Would Be Queen

In 1922, eleven-year-old Josephine "e;Joey"e; Marchetti spends her afternoons sweeping floors in her grandfather's failing chess parlor on Ash Street — until she finds a dog-eared copy of Chess Fundamentals tucked behind the counter and everything changes. Taught by a World Champion's own words, Joey begins mastering openings, tactics, and endgames with startling speed, but her grandfather's parlor is about to be shut down unless she can win enough to save it. Standing in her way is the Bellmont Chess Academy, a gleaming club for rich boys who think a girl with a secondhand chess book doesn't belong at the board. Packed with strategy, underdog grit, found mentorship, 1920s historical charm, puzzle-solving, checkmate combinations, and the electric thrill of a city-wide chess tournament, this is a rousing coming-of-age adventure for ages 9–12 about outthinking bigger, richer opponents one calculated move at a time — and discovering that the smallest piece on the board can still become a queen.