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Ah, but did you know that he plays chess? Israeli psychologist and FIDE Master Amatzia Avni, who has frequently graced the Chessville pages (see “Inside Avni’s Mind” as well as reviews of Chess Tips for the Improving Player, The Grandmaster’s Mind, Practical Chess Psychology: Understanding the Human Factor and, Devious Chess How to Bend the Rules and Win), has previously written about Munchausen’s over-the-top exploits in the royal game for the British magazine CHESS, and in his new The Amazing Adventures of Baron Munchausen he culls the best of those exploits and adds a collection of new undertakings to baffle the minds of readers. Take a peek at Chapter Two, for example:
Each astonishing adventure is covered in a few pages, with diagrams and a special position or game. For example, let me present Avni presenting Munchausen presenting a game that the Baron played against Garry Kasparov. To make it fair, of course, the Baron was playing blindfolded. The match came up as the Baron was discussing the fact that, a while back, he had engaged an instructor to teach his chess pieces how to dance properly, to increase their flexibility and quickness. But, of course. The following position in Munchausen – Kasparov arose with White to move:
Of course, to protest that such things are impossible (even for the Baron) is to be in on only part of the humor. After each story Avni gives the inspiration of each chess undertaking (the example above is a study by A. Belyavsky, 2007); many are compositions, but a good part are actual games. It seems that when it comes to creativity, Munchausen has very little on very good chess players, after all. The Amazing Chess Adventures of Baron Munchausen is a delightful romp through the 64 squares, led by a likeable, preposterous figure who is sure to amuse and entertain readers of great and modest chess skill alike. The book is very nicely laid out, as can always be expected from Mongoose Press, with good use of diagrams, fonts, bolding, italics and white space. The colorful and fanciful illustrations by the author’s niece lift the book well beyond a mere collection of chess tales or puzzles. (Although I rankled a bit at the corpulent “Zulu” with grass skirt and bone tied into the hair; perhaps that is my Yankee sensitivity.) As the bleak winter
weather drags on, at least where my keyboard sits, the attraction of staying
warm inside and reading a thoroughly entertaining book that I can dip into
for a short stay, or revel in for many tales at a time – Ahhhhh, now
that’s a great idea. Come, sit, and explore some adventures that are
truly amazing… For more chess insights, look Inside Avni’s Mind. From the Publisher's website:
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