Dark squares : how chess saved my life / Danny Rensch.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rensch, Danny, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Chess--United States--History.

Chess.

Chess players--United States--Biography.

Chess players.

Ex-cultists--United States--Biography.

Ex-cultists.

Rensch, Danny.

Genre:

Autobiographies.

Biographies.

Physical Description:

viii, 356 pages ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : PublicAffairs, 2025.

Summary:

"Born into the Church of Immortal Consciousness, Danny Rensch spent his childhood navigating the isolated confines of a cult. Despite psychological manipulation, physical abuse, and neglect, he persevered. An international chess master and world-class commentator, Rensch's remarkable journey led him to being the face of Chess.com, one of the largest online gaming platforms in the world. With unflinching honesty, Rensch recounts his life, starting from the moment he discovered chess in the summer of 1995, all the way up to being at the center of the most explosive cheating scandal in chess history. He chronicles the traumas of being "special" in a cult that forced separation from his mother. Mentored by an alcoholic, Russian chess master, he found solace alongside suffering in his obsession for an ancient game, and chess became his only escape. Rensch rose through the chess ranks until a medical emergency nearly took him out of the game forever. And it almost did, until Chess.com came along. Deeply heartfelt, keenly reflective, and haunting, Dark Squares is the never-before-told story of Danny Rensch's resilience, survival, and his enduring love for the game that saved him"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Prologue

Part One. Village rat

Cults work

Chess gypsies

'McDonald's, Gary'

Faith

Unfit

A thousand deaths

A little beverage

The orphanhood of Danny Rensch

Sometimes with lotion

Shauna

Part Two. Washed-up

'Why is this Danny guy such a fucking ashhole?'

Secrets

Facing the music

The big lie

Existential crisis

Go home, mom

Pounding my chest

The dark years

Scandal

Epilogue

Acknowledgments.

ISBN:

9781541703285

1541703286

OCLC:

1483813971

Publisher Number:

90102619801