Chess has always hinted to the intellect of the players. Most individuals consider those who play chess to be brilliant, even though the game has slowly lost its popularity within most societies of the Western World. Jonathan Rowson, Ph.D., illustrates the beauty of chess, and shares insight on how this ancient pastime can aid in one’s overall understanding of life in his book, The Moves That Matter. Rowson, a chess prodigy himself, relates the complexities of the game to describe different aspects of life and an individual’s role in the world.

Rowson’s work is filled with different stories and examples. Throughout the book, the author relates each story to the understanding of one’s life by highlighting the parallels between chess and significant life experiences. Rowson relates to a wide range of readers, by encompassing almost every culture. Although the book is clearly written from a Western, Christo-centric perspective, Rowson makes a point to include multiple examples from the Eastern hemisphere. 

Most stories emphasize a specific theme illustrated in each chapter. For example, Rowson presents a story from Zen Buddhism concerning a wrestler’s desire to be the best at his sport, ultimately relating to the chapter’s emphasis on the effort needed to remain entirely focused on a specific task, no matter its magnitude (p.26-27). Rowson does an excellent job adding profound meaning to seemingly simple anecdotes that make specific sections of the book very easy and enjoyable to read. Rowson attempts to imbue his work with insight and significance, with some of these attempts being incredibly profound. However, other attempts are not as successful.

Although Rowson incorporates multiple stories, he makes many digressions, which adds complexity that cause the reader to lose focus of the chapter’s central point. This extraneous detail hinders one’s ability to easily understand the overall idea of each chapter. Many of Rowson’s stories reflect events from his personal life and specific chess metaphors that the reader cannot relate to. For example, Rowson ruminates on an experience of being wounded while frequently mentioning specific chess masters and grandmasters the average reader would be unaware of (p. 77-79). He also describes a chess tournament in meticulous detail, leaving the reader bored. In most cases the reader will not understand who the characters in the stories are or the impact of the stories, as they are not a professional chess player or fan. Assumedly, most of Rowson’s readers are novices or have some experience playing chess, at best. Therefore, the chess stories and innuendos that only experienced chess players could understand leave the average reader lost until the author explains more in his closing remarks on how that story serves to support his central idea.

Overall, the book is a wonderful piece of writing that leaves the reader inspired and appreciative of what they have in their life. It discusses and connects to all major aspects of one’s life.  I highly recommend the book for those experienced in chess and those committed to learning chess. For an individual to appreciate the full breadth of Rowson’s metaphorical prose, it is suggested that they have an elevated understanding of chess. Other individuals can read the book; however, it may not serve as such an inspiration guide. 

Brian Morreale is a graduate student in the Data Analytics in Social Sciences program at the University at Buffalo. He is currently working in a Social-Personality Psychology lab researching various topics related to Metacognition.

Categories: General

Keywords: chess