jazzeum
Four Star General
- Joined
- Apr 23, 2005
- Messages
- 38,439
The Grand Budapest Hotel was inspired by Stefan Zweig, who was a very popular author in the 1920s and 1930s and who fled Naziism, eventually landing in Brasil where in 1942 he and his wife committed suicide.
Having been fascinated by the movie and knowing of Zweig, I recently read his only full length novel, Beware of Pity, which takes place in Austria right before WW I. Shortly before he died Zweig finished Chess Story, a novella about Naziism. It is his last work.
In Chess Story a passenger on a ship bound for Buenos Aires discovers that a famous chess-master Czentovic is also on board, who was an infant-prodigy peasant with no education or talent in other fields, a sort of idiot-savant.
Czentovic is challenged to a game by one of the passengers, an egotistical type, and the latter is easily roundly beaten. During the next game, a mysterious stranger the passenger and his group of chess advisors and offers advice, leading to a draw, much to the surprise of Czentovic.
The unknown stranger, known as Dr B, does not wish to play another game, despite his success. The narrator tracks Dr B down and Dr B tells the narrator his personal history and why he is so adept at Chess.
To say more would ruin the rest of this short some 80 odd page story but it says a lot about Zweig, the times he lived in and the Nazi scourge.
Highly recommended.
Having been fascinated by the movie and knowing of Zweig, I recently read his only full length novel, Beware of Pity, which takes place in Austria right before WW I. Shortly before he died Zweig finished Chess Story, a novella about Naziism. It is his last work.
In Chess Story a passenger on a ship bound for Buenos Aires discovers that a famous chess-master Czentovic is also on board, who was an infant-prodigy peasant with no education or talent in other fields, a sort of idiot-savant.
Czentovic is challenged to a game by one of the passengers, an egotistical type, and the latter is easily roundly beaten. During the next game, a mysterious stranger the passenger and his group of chess advisors and offers advice, leading to a draw, much to the surprise of Czentovic.
The unknown stranger, known as Dr B, does not wish to play another game, despite his success. The narrator tracks Dr B down and Dr B tells the narrator his personal history and why he is so adept at Chess.
To say more would ruin the rest of this short some 80 odd page story but it says a lot about Zweig, the times he lived in and the Nazi scourge.
Highly recommended.
