This week’s book selection rose to the top of my reading queue last weekend for a couple of serendipitous reasons. First, “The Devil Wears Prada 2” is currently running in theaters and is in the midst of a blockbuster promotional blitz. Lauren Weisberger, the author of the book that movie series was based on, also wrote The Singles Game, a novel about tennis. Additionally, that book is firmly in the beach-read category, and I happened to be on a beach last weekend. In other words, it was perfect timing.
The Singles Game is centered on Charlie Silver, a rising professional tennis player who is transformed from a somewhat ordinary “girl next door” competitor into a heavily branded celebrity under the guidance of a demanding coach. Tennis is unquestionably present throughout the novel, but the book is more accurately characterized as a story about image, ambition, and authenticity, that just happens to be set in the world of professional tennis.
Other reviews often praise Weisberger’s behind-the-scenes research into the professional tennis environment, but I would describe that aspect as somewhat hit-or-miss. There are moments when the atmosphere of tour life feels authentic enough to resonate with tennis fans, especially the endless travel, the performative nature of athlete branding, and the strange bubble that elite players inhabit. At other times, the tennis itself and how the tours operate feel a little off. Readers looking for realism or competitive insight are probably reading the wrong book.
The narrative arc of the story is also blatantly telegraphed. It does not take long to see where Charlie’s journey is heading, and many of the major emotional beats arrive more or less on schedule. Even so, the book remains entertaining because Weisberger understands pacing and readability extremely well. The pages move quickly, the settings are glamorous, and the ending delivers a feel-good resolution that fits the story’s tone.
At its core, The Singles Game is really about staying true to oneself. Ironically, Charlie largely has to lose herself in order to figure that out. As the pressures of fame and external expectations build, the book repeatedly circles back to the tension between public image and personal identity. That theme lands more effectively than some of the actual tennis material.
This is not a book that will do anything for your competitive development. It will not make you a better tennis player. What it may do is remind readers that success without authenticity can become strangely hollow. As a light tennis-themed novel, I enjoyed it for exactly what it was trying to be. Sometimes that is enough.
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