25 Aug '21 16:10>4 edits
Just finished reading it, and have no doubt this impressive work by I. M. Donaldson will be the standard by which all other Fischer books will be judged. It contains an impressive collection of previously unseen notes, photographs, letters, and scoresheets that gives Fischer fans fresh insight into the life and mind of this chess genius.
Upon finishing this book my assessment of Fischer moved up a notch or 2; though I still think of him as a spoiled punk in a grown mans body, much of this was not really his fault, due to his mental problems that only grew worse with age, in addition he made it clear on several occasions his demands for perfect playing conditions was not solely for his benefit, but for his opponents, and others in the tournament halls as well.
This book left me with the impression of a man with a strong grandmasters understanding of chess, and a 12 year old's understanding of the world around him. His fight for more prize money and excellent playing conditions, though noble, were totally unrealistic considering how few people played or followed chess at all.
Donaldson spent relatively few pages on what he described at Fischer's "dark years" that period between the late 70's to the early 90's when Fischer dropped out of site for the most part. It would have been easy for the author to dwell on Fischer's mental ill's and his ridiculous statements such as believing Yasser Seirawan was a Jew and the games in the 2 Karpov - Kasparov matches were prearranged by the Soviet government, though they were briefly mentioned for the sake of historical accuracy, Donald took the high road and focused primarily on his tournaments, and contributions to chess.
The only minor drawback to this otherwise brilliant work, would be Donaldson's format of including Fischer's games (with annotations) among the biographical text, rather than placing them in the back of the book. Chess players will no doubt prefer Donaldson's format, but for those wanting simply a biography of Bobby Fischer, this will not be an easy read. Overall though, I'd give this one an "A" 🙂
Upon finishing this book my assessment of Fischer moved up a notch or 2; though I still think of him as a spoiled punk in a grown mans body, much of this was not really his fault, due to his mental problems that only grew worse with age, in addition he made it clear on several occasions his demands for perfect playing conditions was not solely for his benefit, but for his opponents, and others in the tournament halls as well.
This book left me with the impression of a man with a strong grandmasters understanding of chess, and a 12 year old's understanding of the world around him. His fight for more prize money and excellent playing conditions, though noble, were totally unrealistic considering how few people played or followed chess at all.
Donaldson spent relatively few pages on what he described at Fischer's "dark years" that period between the late 70's to the early 90's when Fischer dropped out of site for the most part. It would have been easy for the author to dwell on Fischer's mental ill's and his ridiculous statements such as believing Yasser Seirawan was a Jew and the games in the 2 Karpov - Kasparov matches were prearranged by the Soviet government, though they were briefly mentioned for the sake of historical accuracy, Donald took the high road and focused primarily on his tournaments, and contributions to chess.
The only minor drawback to this otherwise brilliant work, would be Donaldson's format of including Fischer's games (with annotations) among the biographical text, rather than placing them in the back of the book. Chess players will no doubt prefer Donaldson's format, but for those wanting simply a biography of Bobby Fischer, this will not be an easy read. Overall though, I'd give this one an "A" 🙂