Bobby Fischer Goes to War
How the Soviets Lost the Most Extraordinary Chess Match
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Bobby Fischer Goes to War
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Narrated by:
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Sam Tsoutsouvas
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Written by:
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David Edmonds
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John Eidinow
About this listen
In the summer of 1972, with a presidential crisis stirring in the United States and the cold war at a pivotal point, two men, the Soviet world chess champion Boris Spassky and his American challenger Bobby Fischer, met in the most notorious chess match of all time. Their showdown in Reykjavik, Iceland, held the world spellbound for two months with reports of psychological warfare, ultimatums, political intrigue, cliffhangers, and farce to rival a Marx Brothers film.
Thirty years later, David Edmonds and John Eidinow, authors of the national best seller Wittgenstein's Poker, have set out to re-examine the story we recollect as the quintessential cold war clash between a lone American star and the Soviet chess machine, a machine that had delivered the world title to the Kremlin for decades. Drawing upon unpublished Soviet and US records, the authors reconstruct the full and incredible saga, one far more poignant and layered than hitherto believed.
Against the backdrop of superpower politics, the authors recount the careers and personalities of Boris Spassky, the product of Stalin's imperium, and Bobby Fischer, a child of post-World War II America, an era of economic boom at home and communist containment abroad. The two men had nothing in common but their gift for chess, and the disparity of their outlook and values conditioned the struggle over the board.
Then there was the match itself, which produced both creative masterpieces and some of the most improbable gaffes in chess history. And finally, there was the dramatic and protracted off-the-board battle, in corridors and foyers, in back rooms and hotel suites, in Moscow offices and in the White House.
A mesmerizing narrative of brilliance and triumph, hubris and despair, Bobby Fischer Goes to War is a biting deconstruction of the Bobby Fischer myth, a nuanced study on the art of brinkmanship, and a revelatory cold war tragicomedy.
©2004 David Edmonds and John Eidinow (P)2004 HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.What the critics say
"Tsoutsouvas turns in a steady, suitably understated performance of this eminently engrossing account of the 1972 world championship chess match." (Publishers Weekly)
"Tsoutsouvas...manages to keep it light and play the humor while laying back the more sensational passages. His handsome, barrel-chested voice is a delight to listen to." (AudioFile)
What listeners say about Bobby Fischer Goes to War
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Tony
- 2020-11-28
Feels unsatisfying
This book feels like it was written by spending a little time researching a scrapbook. There are scenes, and you can kind of picture these scenes in your head as they are being described. But it always seems to stop short of going into the interesting details. The writer sets the stage, gives you the "and this was a very interesting turn of events", and then the chapter ends and we don't get more details. It's a series of semi informative events that took place, if they were washed of all the things that made them compelling or exciting.
I'll give you an example. "I went to the park today to do some photography. There were kids playing all over the place and I captured many in youthful displays. One of children scrapped themselves on something and I was happy to help fix them up. Kind of proud of acting on the opportunity to help, I made my way out of the park and started to head back home. Before I had left the park however, I noticed my dad had just gotten there. So, I went back and we had surprisingly profound conversation that I don't think I will ever forget." and that's where I would end the conversation, and then never bring up either my dad, or the conversation or anything we talked about again.
That's what I mean by scrapbook. You get a few images, but you never feel like you get the whole picture. And when things start to pique your interest, the book just seems to drop them. I honestly can't say I know a whole lot more about the book after finishing it, than I did from reading the description. You end up with a lot of "wait, but why, or how, or wait what does that mean, or what happened after that"? It just feels unsatisfying.
The book isn't written poorly. It just seemed to lack focus, or didn't follow through on a story that it started to tell. Like an uncle or coworker who always trails off during a story they are telling you.
Well I guess there was one really interesting part of the book, and if you're like me then this is the reason you would buy it. There was this one scene where they set up the chess board and something fell. I won't say what it was, what impact it had, or if there were any more details about it than that. And the problem with that is the book might not tell you either.
I would get it on sale and read it if you are bored or you would like to learn some details of the lives of the main characters, but don't expect much more than that. Otherwise, I would pass this one by.
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