tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post9089391935788267498..comments2023-06-02T02:21:22.033-07:00Comments on Chessaholic: Here Are Some Beach Reads For YouChessaholichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14017751874951993598noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-68042383367319227112008-05-03T14:41:00.000-07:002008-05-03T14:41:00.000-07:00anonymous: Searching for B. Fischer has been on my...anonymous: Searching for B. Fischer has been on my list for a long time, I hope to get around to reading it soon. Thanks for the feedback on The Flanders Panel. I read a few reviews and I don't think it's for me.Chessaholichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14017751874951993598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-43547219248898275282008-05-02T20:29:00.000-07:002008-05-02T20:29:00.000-07:00I really liked the chess artist, I thought it was ...I really liked the chess artist, I thought it was quite entertaining, I'll have to pick up king's gambit if you think its better!<BR/>Bobby Fischer goes to war is good, but a little dry at times.<BR/>If you don't read novels, you won't like Flander's Panel, its a little thick, like most of that guys books, and the chess is sketchy, at best. (similar to The Eight, by Katherine Neville, don't bother if you don't read fiction)<BR/><BR/>I recommend Searching for Bobby Fischer by Fred Waitzkin... I know it was turned into a popular movie , which I enjoyed, but the movie strays a long way from the book (a long long way at times) and the book is very good.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-74184136761634947182008-05-01T22:24:00.000-07:002008-05-01T22:24:00.000-07:00Hank: Thanks for the feedback and the recommendati...Hank: Thanks for the feedback and the recommendations, I will take a look at those books. My "to read" list is growing and growing...Chessaholichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14017751874951993598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-21546782182783198882008-05-01T15:53:00.000-07:002008-05-01T15:53:00.000-07:00Hi folks. I have a lot of these books on my "to re...Hi folks. I have a lot of these books on my "to read" list... Three other recent books that I don't think have been mentioned so far here are Joel Benjamin's "American Grandmaster: Four Decades of Chess Adventures", "Engaging Pieces: Interviews and Prose for the Chess Fan" by Howard Goldowsky, and "Hooked on Chess: A Memoir" by Bill Hook...<BR/><BR/>-- HankAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-89082836433332938312008-05-01T10:47:00.000-07:002008-05-01T10:47:00.000-07:00peteydaddy: Thanks for the suggestions. "This Craz...peteydaddy: Thanks for the suggestions. "This Crazy World of Chess" has been on my radar, but I never heard about "The Flanders Panel". While I don't really read many novels, this sounds interesting so I will take a look at it.<BR/><BR/>nemo: Thanks for the feedback, I've heard a lot about the two books you mention and I will probably get them sooner or later - especially the Kasparov one, I'm a sucker for all things Kasparov.Chessaholichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14017751874951993598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-17039452387873889942008-05-01T08:40:00.000-07:002008-05-01T08:40:00.000-07:00Bobby Fischer goes to War and The King's Gambit ar...Bobby Fischer goes to War and The King's Gambit are great books. Two of my favorites. You should also check out The King's of New York and How Life Imitates Chess by Kasparov. Great books all around.Sir Nemohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00972839009295755023noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-77258292089458365602008-04-30T20:22:00.000-07:002008-04-30T20:22:00.000-07:00Two recommendations:This Crazy World of Chess, by ...Two recommendations:<BR/><BR/>This Crazy World of Chess, by Larry Evans - a collection of his essays from his 30+ years of chronicling the chess world. <BR/><BR/>The Flanders Panel by Arturo Perez-Reverte - a fiction mystery novel that revolves around a deadly chess game. <BR/><BR/>I've reviewed these in more detail in the chess library section of my blog.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-14944932188694852722008-04-30T14:21:00.000-07:002008-04-30T14:21:00.000-07:00you're welcome likesforests :)you're welcome likesforests :)Chessaholichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14017751874951993598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-1889806828825769192008-04-30T14:18:00.000-07:002008-04-30T14:18:00.000-07:00lol... well I think he's using hyperbole to make a...lol... well I think he's using hyperbole to make a point. While that description may not be universally applicable to all club level players and games, I do see (passive-)aggressive behavior among some members of my club. For some people, chess seems to be a way to assert themselves, especially if they lack other channels of self-assertion...Chessaholichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14017751874951993598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-73930686236405722962008-04-30T14:05:00.000-07:002008-04-30T14:05:00.000-07:00Thanks for the reviews, now I have plenty to choos...Thanks for the reviews, now I have plenty to choose from for my next flight!likesforestshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12363355892919115087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4262508907395023327.post-63376344566407779062008-04-30T13:37:00.000-07:002008-04-30T13:37:00.000-07:00I planned to read The Immortal Game on an airplane...I planned to read The Immortal Game on an airplane, but his descriptions of chess didn't agree with me. For example, upon visiting a chess club, he wrote this:<BR/><BR/>"I was also repelled, frankly, by the forbidding atmosphere of unforgiving rules, insider jargon, and the general aggressiveness and unpleasantness that seemed to accompany even reasonably casual play. I recalled one of Bobby Fischer's declarations: "Chess is war over the board," he proclaimed. "The object is to crush the opponent's mind." Fischer was not alone in his lusty embrace of chess's brutality. The game is often as much about demolishing your opponent's will and self-esteem as it is about implementing a superior strategy. No blood is drawn (ordinarily), but the injury can be real. The historical link between top chess play and mental instability stands as yet another intriguing feature about the game and its power. "Here is nothing less," writes recovering chess master Alfred Kreymborg, "than a silent duel between two human engines using and abusing all the faculties of the mind. . . . It is warfare in the most mysterious jungles of the human character."<BR/><BR/>This may be an apt description of Fischer's games, but this is how he views casual games at a club?? ;)likesforestshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12363355892919115087noreply@blogger.com