[Steeplechase][BWF] Chess Story by Stefan Zweig, 4 stars

[NancyJ]

This novella has been on my tbr a long time, and it turned out to be an engrossing story, set on a ship between Europe and Brazil. The first chess player is a boy who was thought to be an imbecile until he surprised everyone with his chess ability. The book was written in 1942, but if it were written today we’d call him neurodivergent. The most interesting character was a private financial advisor who refused to help Hitler access his client’s funds. He was interrogated in between long periods of complete isolation that left him mad. His only book was a stolen chess manual. The psychological aspects of the story were riveting. I didn’t want it to end.

[Joy D]

I loved this one! Glad to see you enjoyed it too.