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A review by whysoserious
Chess Story by Stefan Zweig
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I had never read Zweig before this short novella. He has never been on the top of my personal list of "must reads" but I must admit the style in which this gentleman writes is beautifully simple. There is no pretentiousness here; similar to his relative contemporary Ernest Hemingway, Zweig uses simple language that gets straight to his point without any convoluted phrases or meandering paragraphs. At around 80 pages it is no surprise that conciseness is the flavour of the day and it works perfectly.
What more can a person ask for in such a short tale? A likeable protagonist. A mysterious unknown. A cool, aloof antagonist. What I didn't expect was the depth in which the author goes with the almost secondary plotline (see spoiler tag). We get a parallel plot involving Hitler, the Gestapo and interrogation - something I wouldn't have predicted picking up this work in the local charity shop.
Zweig is masterful at creating characters with depth in short form. I have read many a novel that doesn't achieve this level of detail in 300 pages let alone 80 or so pages with a wafer thin (but intriguing) plot.
In sort I loved it. I read VERY slowly. The average 250 page novel takes me 3 weeks. I read this in one day. It is a testament to the ability of the author that he was able to hold my attention as much as he did as I have huge issues with attention and interest. Well done Mr Zweig!
What more can a person ask for in such a short tale? A likeable protagonist. A mysterious unknown. A cool, aloof antagonist. What I didn't expect was the depth in which the author goes with the almost secondary plotline (see spoiler tag). We get a parallel plot involving Hitler, the Gestapo and interrogation - something I wouldn't have predicted picking up this work in the local charity shop.
Zweig is masterful at creating characters with depth in short form. I have read many a novel that doesn't achieve this level of detail in 300 pages let alone 80 or so pages with a wafer thin (but intriguing) plot.
In sort I loved it. I read VERY slowly. The average 250 page novel takes me 3 weeks. I read this in one day. It is a testament to the ability of the author that he was able to hold my attention as much as he did as I have huge issues with attention and interest. Well done Mr Zweig!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement and Mental illness