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During a trip from New York to Buenos Aires, travelers of a ship find that on board in their company is the world champion of chess.
Since I am not an expert of chess game, I wasn't able to follow the tactics proposed by a mysterious passenger to the travelers of this ship. ...more
Since I am not an expert of chess game, I wasn't able to follow the tactics proposed by a mysterious passenger to the travelers of this ship. ...more

Stefan Zweig wrote a complex and thought-provoking story in only 84 pages, and structured it around one game of chess. The world chess champion, Czentovic, is playing an amateur while traveling the seas on board a ship. The amateur claims not to have played the game in twenty five years but is a skillful, practiced player. The story of his life is revealed during the game, and it explains his great love for (obsession, perhaps) the game.
Zweig uses this structure to reveal a deeper and more meani ...more
Zweig uses this structure to reveal a deeper and more meani ...more

Sep 12, 2010
Heather
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
1001-books,
20th-century,
psychological-lit,
wwii,
translated-german,
philosophical-lit,
austria,
read-2010,
own,
nyrb

Sep 25, 2010
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