The Grandmaster: Magnus Carlsen and the Match That Made Chess Great Again
Written by Brin-Jonathan Butler
Narrated by Jacques Roy
2.5/5
()
Unavailable in your country
Unavailable in your country
About this audiobook
The first week of November 2016, as a crowd of people swarmed outside of Manhattan’s Trump Tower to rail against the election of Donald Trump, hundreds more descended on the city’s South Street Seaport. But they weren’t there to protest. They were there to watch the World Chess Championship between Norway's Magnus Carlsen and Russia's Sergey Karjakin—what by the time it was over would be front-page news and thought by many the greatest finish in chess history.
The story lines were riveting. The championship hadn’t been hosted in New York City, the de facto world capital of the sport, in more than two decades. With both Carlsen and Karjakin just 25 years old, the tournament organizers were billing it as a battle of the millennials—the first time the championship had been waged among the generation that grew up playing chess primarily against computers. And perhaps most intriguing were all the geopolitical connections to the match. Originally from Crimea, Karjakin had recently repatriated to Russia under the direct assistance of Putin. Carlsen, meanwhile, had expressed admiration for Donald Trump, and his first move of the tournament he played with a smirk what's called a Trompowsky Attack. Then there was the Russian leader of the World Chess Federation being barred from attending due to US sanctions, and chess fanatic and Trump adviser Peter Thiel being called on to make the honorary first move in sudden death.
That the tournament required sudden death was a shock. Oddsmakers had given Carlsen, the defending champion, an 80% chance of winning. It would take everything he had to retain his title. In doing so, he would firmly make his case to be considered the greatest player chess has ever seen.
Author Brin-Jonathan Butler was granted unique access to the two-and-half-week tournament and watched every move. In The Grandmaster, he aims to do for Magnus Carlsen what Norman Mailer did for Muhammed Ali in The Fight, John McPhee did for Arthur Ashe in Levels of the Game, and David Foster Wallace did for Roger Federer in his famous New York Times Magazine profile. Butler captures one of the world’s greatest sportsmen at the height of their powers, and attempts to decipher the secret to that greatness.
Brin-Jonathan Butler
Brin-Jonathan Butler has written for Esquire, Bloomberg, ESPN Magazine, Al Jazeera, Harper’s, The Paris Review, Salon, and Vice. His first book, The Domino Diaries, was shortlisted for the PEN/ESPN Award for literary sports writing and a Boston Globe Best Book of 2015. His work has also been a notable selection in both Best American Sports and Best American Travel Writing multiple times.
Related to The Grandmaster
Related audiobooks
The Grandmaster: Magnus Carlsen and the Match That Made Chess Great Again Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Soapy Smith: The Life and Legacy of the Wild West's Most Infamous Con Artist Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBobby Fischer Goes to War: The True Story of How the Soviets Lost t Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cricket: A Modern Anthology Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chess:: The Game for Peace and Prosperity Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Everyone Versus Racism: A Letter to My Children Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chess Opening Names - Volume 2 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Chess Opening Names - Volume 1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How Life Imitates Chess: Making the Right Moves - From the Board to the Boardroom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anderson’s Reality and the Arts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Toxic Travel Guide: Ireland as You’ve Never Seen It Before Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMind Games: The Ups and Downs of Life and Football Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow To Play Chess: Your Step By Step Guide To Playing Chess Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Belief: From prison to premiership glory; this is Marlion Pickett's extraordinary story Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJapan Is Very Wonderful: The Guide to Tokyo, Hakone, Kyoto and the Kumano Kodo Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Wrong 'Un: The Brad Hogg Story Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Devotion: A Memoir Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Jerilderie Letter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Flatland Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Establishment: And How They Get Away With It Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Of Arcs and Circles: Insights from Japan on Gardens, Nature, and Art Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Catan Strategy: The Complete Guide to Winning the Popular Board Game Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Opus Magnum I: Adventures in Mystical Humour Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFanny Hill Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Steve Hansen: The Legacy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Magic Is Dead: My Journey into the World's Most Secretive Society of Magicians Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Three Dimensions of Freedom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5That’s Your Lot Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Scotland’s Jesus: The Only Officially Non-racist Comedian Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Games & Activities For You
The Monsters Know What They're Doing: Combat Tactics for Dungeon Masters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sports Betting For Dummies Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Brain Training: Accelerated Learning and Focus Techniques Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Psychic Workbook: A Beginner's Guide to Activities and Exercises to Unlock Your Psychic Skills Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Why do we say that? - 202 Idioms, Phrases, Sayings & Facts! A Brief History On Where They Come From! Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How To Play Chess: Your Step By Step Guide To Playing Chess Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Play Poker Like The Pros Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Brain Training: Improve Focus, Self Confidence and Learn How to Think Faster. Discover Your Unlimited Memory Potential Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHarry Potter - The Ultimate Quiz: 400 Questions and Answers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Seven Games: A Human History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Kill an Earworm: And 500+ Other Psychology Facts You Need to Know Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Perfect Bet: How Science and Math Are Taking the Luck Out of Gambling Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The No-Prep Gamemaster: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Random Tables Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Cleaning Sucks: An Unf*ck Your Habitat Guided Journal for Less Mess, Less Stress, and a Home You Don't Hate Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/51500 Interesting Facts You Didn’t Know - Crazy, Funny & Random Facts To Win Trivia Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Moral Combat: Why the War on Violent Video Games Is Wrong Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Habits of Winning Poker Players Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Busting Vegas: A True Story of Monumental Excess, Sex, Love, Violence, and Beating the Odds Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Chess Opening Names - Volume 1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Embrace Your Weird: Face Your Fears and Unleash Creativity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Grandmaster
4 ratings0 reviews