Interesting books that include chess

[Hans Jung]

So during some mid winter reading I got entranced with another Patrick Leigh Fermor book called "Mani - Travels in the southern Peloponnese". The book has many vivid descriptions, great historical details, and interesting adventures. On page 26: " The schoolmaster said that Kolokotronis, when he was here with his klephts before the outbreak of the Greek War of Independence, would play human games of chess in this very courtyard. The flagstones were chalked out like a board and his pallikars took up their positions in squares while Kolokotronis, in his kilt and his fabulous fireman's helmet, would stand on the wall and shout the moves, his opponent doing the same at the other end. The loser was condemned to take the victor for a ride on piggy-back." So who was Patrick Leigh Fermor? At nineteen he was living a debauched students life in England when he got the inspiration to walk across Europe. He started in Holland and made his way thru Germany and then followed the Danube into Bulgaria and then south thru Greece and Turkey. He parlayed his experiences into a wartime adventure as an agent in the OSS, was knighted and then settled down to write his travel memoirs. Captivating reading. I recommend all his many books.

[Hans Jung]

Also in The Game is Afoot Parodies, Pastiches, and Ponderings of Sherlock Holmes there is a short story called The Moriarity Gambit by Fritz Leiber. Mr. Leiber apparently wrote many brilliant short stories about chess. Vlad Dobrich shared one several years ago here on chesstalk about Morphy. I am just going to share the entertaining game between Holmes and Moriarity in the algebraic notation. The game was published in the original descriptive notation and those who want to read the short story and game with all its mood and atmosphere will have to look it up. Holmes - Moriarity
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.cxd5 cxd4 5.Qxd4 Nc6 6.Qa4 exd5 7.Nf3 d4 8.Nb5 Bd7 9.Nbxd4 Bb4+ 10.Kd1 Nxd4 11.Qxb4 Nxf3 12.exf3 Ba4++ 13.Ke2 Qd1+ 14.Ke3 0-0-0 15.Bd2 Qxa1 16.Ba6 Re8+ 17.Kf4 Re4+ 18.fxe4 g5+ 19.Kg3 Qxh1 20.Qxb7+ Kd8 21.Qc8+ Ke7 22.Bb4+ Kf6 23.Qf5+ Kg7 24.Qxg5 checkmate

[Fred Henderson]

Also in The Game is Afoot Parodies, Pastiches, and Ponderings of Sherlock Holmes there is a short story called The Moriarity Gambit by Fritz Leiber. Mr. Leiber apparently wrote many brilliant short stories about chess. Vlad Dobrich shared one several years ago here on chesstalk about Morphy. I am just going to share the entertaining game between Holmes and Moriarity in the algebraic notation. The game was published in the original descriptive notation and those who want to read the short story and game with all its mood and atmosphere will have to look it up. Holmes - Moriarity
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 4.cxd5 cxd4 5.Qxd4 Nc6 6.Qa4 exd5 7.Nf3 d4 8.Nb5 Bd7 9.Nbxd4 Bb4+ 10.Kd1 Nxd4 11.Qxb4 Nxf3 12.exf3 Ba4++ 13.Ke2 Qd1+ 14.Ke3 0-0-0 15.Bd2 Qxa1 16.Ba6 Re8+ 17.Kf4 Re4+ 18.fxe4 g5+ 19.Kg3 Qxh1 20.Qxb7+ Kd8 21.Qc8+ Ke7 22.Bb4+ Kf6 23.Qf5+ Kg7 24.Qxg5 checkmate

Maybe Moriarty was a criminal mastermind, but here he 'plays ''like a cretin''. Holmes once described him as a 'great schemer', but here he looks like a street hustler who never read a proper chess book. I am sure that even ''Holmes must have smiled'' when he saw 4...cxd4.

Thank-You