The
scent of a book
Review by Edwin Lam Choong Wai
Chess is a game played by an estimated 600 to 700 million worldwide and surely,
there is more to chess than just grandmasters, the Linares and Wijk aan Zees
or the chess openings and variations. There are many interesting people, charming
characters and intriguing aspects in the game of chess, which are just waiting
to be brought to life in a book.
This book promises just that! The author has done a great job in bringing to
life both the fictitious and real-life characters in the game of chess. When
I received my copy of this book, I took a quick look at the front cover and
noticed familiar names such as Jen Shahade, Mig Greengard, Hydra, Paul Hoffman,
Hikaru Nakamura and Michael Weinreb. But there are also names that are totally
alien to me, such as Joe Block, Mark Glickman, Charles Katz, and others.
Having been reviewing chess books for the past one year, this is the first
time that I have actually come across names of players who are alien to me!
As a chess journalist, I am both embarrassed as well as intrigued by this discovery
of the unknown! Embarrassed due to my ignorance of the chess and its characters
in the United States of America, but at the same time intrigued to find out
more about the stories behind these names!
So, off I went to read the book from cover to cover. The ten-page interview
article with Michael de la Maza on his success in chess improvement will be
quite inspiring for many average Joes out there. This is the story of the man
who increased his chess rating by 720 points in 730 days, and he offers practical
advice on chess improvement.
And, then there was the very “engaging piece” with Mig Greengard. Here, you
can read about his views on the development of chess commerce on the Internet,
on chess professionals’ attitudes, recycled materials in chess books ("…repackaged
database dumps…", in Mig’s own words), chess in the United States of America
and the importance of tactics for players under the 2000 Elo.
The next chapter is on Paul Hoffman, the man who helmed the airwaves together
with GM Seirawan in the Kasparov-FritzX3D chess match. Here, the readers would
get to hear Paul's views on faster time control, the complexity of chess as
a sport and his views on how PR activities can help to promote the game even
further.
Hikaru Nakamura’s interview article is one that would inspire potential junior
players and even their parents on what it takes to become a champion. And then
there are the interview pieces with Charles Katz, the co-founder of the now
defunct EDGE TV, and the Hydra team. And, of course, Michael Weinreb's piece
on the efforts that he went through in penning the book called the “Kings of
New York”.
There are many interesting ideas in the book for the chess entrepreneur, chess
organizer, chess promoter and chess player. For example, a chess organizer would
find the chapter on Greg Shahade to be of great interest. Greg is the President
of the United States Chess League and some of his ideas of running a chess league
and making it commercially viable in the United States can be reapplied in
many other countries without a deep chess culture like Europe. And then there
is Jen Shahade’s suggestion, on page 86, for chess players to have a publicity agent
– this is something that all top chess players should seriously consider.
All in all, this is a compilation of interviews and prose that has been put
together with the arbiter, chess organizer, chess coach, chess writer, journalist,
chess administrator, chess entrepreneur and most importantly, any passionate
chess lover in mind. This is one book that can make the chess entrepreneur or
the chess organizer or the chess player in you think hard – one can ponder over
some of the questions, issues and ideas raised by the interviewees.
But, aside from the heavy stuff, there is also a lightweight side to the book.
For the chess lover in general, how can one ignore the fiction pieces in part
two of the book. For example, the prose piece on the fictitious character, Anthony
Meters, is both fun and entertaining to read. Then, there is the personal aspect
as well. Surely, there are many boys out there, who could identify personally
with the hero character in the short story, En
Passant: An Opportunity Lost. This is a story that is absolutely inspiring.
While this is a compilation of all previously published chess writings (with
the exception of two unpublished short stories and the interview with Michael
Weinreb), it is still nevertheless worthwhile to get all these chess pieces
that demonstrate the various aspects of American chess in one book.
That said, the only opportunity area lies in the absence of other prolific American
chess figures such as Susan Polgar, Lev Alburt, Maurice Ashley, Pal Benko, Bruce
Pandolfini and Gata Kamsky as interview subjects. Howard, I urge you to consider
these subjects in your next book.
All in all, this book contains the sweat and blood of the author, who comes
across as someone who has researched deeply all his subjects and in fact,
some of the interviews here took months to complete (via email). And, the quality
of the articles presented on the people he interviewed shows how deeply the author has
managed to delve into each subject.
- Engaging Pieces by Howard Goldowsky,
Paperback, Daowood Brighton, 240 pp and it retails at the recommended price
of USD 20.95 on Amazon.com.
