The Flanders Panel *
by Arturo Perez-Reverte
- How many people here today play chess? Do you think it is necessary to know the rules of chess in order to enjoy this mystery? Did you find the use of chess metaphors an effective tool? How closely did you pay attention to the chess diagrams/clues? Did they detract from the rest of the story? Could the mystery have been set up without the use of the chess diagrams?
- On page 210 Munoz said that women, “tend to play chess badly”, making it clear that not “all” women play chess badly. Would you agree with that statement? Why? (He said that maybe chess requires too much indifference to the outside world).
- The Flanders Panel was ranked among the best crime novels of 1994 by The New York Times Book Review, and was awarded France’s Grand Prize for Detective Literature. Did you like this novel? Would you rate it as highly? Did you find it suspenseful? How would you classify it is a mystery? Were enough clues provided? Were enough different scenarios presented? What parts of the novel surprised you? Were you surprised by the ending - did you figure out the mystery? Was the mystery solved convincingly - was it believable?
- Did you learn anything about art, history or chess from reading this novel? Do you think the combination of the three made for a good mystery/good story?
- Was Julia’s analysis of the painting equally as helpful as the chess clues?
- On page 13 Menchu said, “A picture is just canvas, wood, paint and varnish. What matters is how much it leaves in your pocket when it changes hands. The rest is just fairy tales.” What was Julia’s purpose in initially solving the mystery? Was it for the money? Did her purpose change as she got deeper into the mystery?
- Why did Julia keep the painting in her apartment? Do you think this is typical of an art restorer and a valuable painting?
- What did you think of the characters? Were they fully developed? Which characters did you like - which didn’t you like?
- Did you like the way the relationship between Julia and Cesar was developed? Did your opinion change at the end?
- What did you learn about the different pieces in the game of chess?
King - the father - the most vulnerable
Queen - mother and wife - provides the most efficient defense of the king
Bishop - blesses the union and helps in the fight
Cesar - was both Beatrice of Brandy (Black Queen) and Roger de Arras (Knight - his masculine, chivalrous side loved Julia) - what he embodies was not the knight, but the elegant white bishop. The bishop is the piece that best embodies homosexuality.
Munoz - White Knight
Julia - White Queen
Menchu Roch - Rook - For those of you who read The DaVinci Code, did you find similarities between the two books? Why do you think The DaVinci Code was more of a success than The Flanders Panel?
*Questions written by Mount Prospect Public Library Staff
Published 1990
