Sasha Chapin

I am a chess player. So a memoir by an average player like myself about their chess exploits has my interest. I enjoyed the author's description of various tournaments or games. I could relate to this, enjoying hearing about the author's triumphs and failures over the board. But the author is so prone to hyperbole that I never really felt I understood him. The writing was so full of literary flair, that I never got to know the real person underneath all that flair. Still, I loved reading about his chess life and games, nonetheless.… (mehr)

Sort of a depressing book about a young man traveling around the world trying to come to grips with chess, love and obsessions. Although his obsession with chess is believable. it really isn't understandable nor explained well. Sasha Chapin describes his encounters with chess tournaments in Nepal, India and in the US, as he tried to push up his chess ratings. Chapin hires a chess master, Ben Finegold, to teach him some skills at the game. He describes several chess games with people better or worse than him, and how he tried to take on higher rated opponents in order to game the system.
Of all the types of writing I've seen, this most resembles therapy writing where people try to analyse and explain their own behavior to a therapist.
Recommended for larger chess and game collection libraries, but not for others.… (mehr)