chess

The Kings of New York: A Year Among the Geeks, Oddballs, and Genuises Who Make Up America's Top High School Chess Team -weinreb

I have never been a huge chess fan - the game appeals to me in concept, but i never seem to have anyone to play with, and it seems to take a lot of practice to enjoy. despite my lack of knowledge of the game, i was looking forward to this book, i always like a good read about the proverbial group of misfit kids who become famous and worthy of adoration from the masses through hard work and talent and perhaps even a dedicated teacher. this wasn't really much of that. a good summary of a particular new york school chess team, a few summaries of the players, but no real detail, and i didn't feel like we were following the life of any particular player. a good basic overview of the circuit, but i was not driven to finish it, and to see how any one kid would fare in competition.