The Chess Gladiator

Asa is a character, in the very best sense of that word. (For example, Asa would probably prefer that you buy this book from him, as he usually has some copies of it around.) It's very hard to capture his essence in written form. This book is a good substitute for meeting him in person. His games are full of gritty fighting chess, with somewhat obscure openings. He is a master of psychology, both when playing at the board and when playing rapid chess for money.

Asa dispenses with the traditional match history and tournament crosstables, prefering to let the games speak for themselves. The first two chapters contain tactical slugfests, the latter six contain more positional battles. He is honest in his analysis, if somewhat terse. (Sitting with him at the Marshall Chess Club in Manhattan would show you the exact opposite; Asa is a very voluble guy.)

The pages are packed with information; not much dead white space in this book. So don't be fooled by the small number of pages in this book.


An Inspiring read for young chess hopefuls   March 20, 1999
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

Asa Hoffmann's 'Chess Gladiator' is a book that is truly written from the player's point of view. The author details his games with carefully structured notes; the games are never the simple one-side efforts you see in many other books of this type, we see the ups & downs of being a regular tournament competitor and the rigurs of preperation one need do, too become good at the game. Chess is a game where total exposure is necessary and we see Asa's lifetime of chess knowledge expressed in the games given. Art & Sport as one. Having played Mr. Hoffman on a number of occassions in the last 25 years, its obvious to me that he would have become a Grandmaster had he had some of the 'breaks' that are typically available to the young player's of today. For studying, this book is an excellent way (apart from playing Mr Hoffmann in a tournament, which is no problem if you live in NY!), of aquiring some important strategic chess lessons that are available no where else...


An excellant book full of beautiful,albeit not perfect games   September 20, 1998
jskahn@earthlink.net (New York, USA)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

Asa Hoffmann, my chess coach is an incredible man. A legend in his own lifetime in the chess scene this book is almost the culmination of his life's work. One can not fail to be impressed by the beauty of the games featured in this book. This book contains games with openings and positions that one is not likely to see in many years of chess. Thus, these unknown openings cannot fail to enrich one's chess knowledge. True, the book is small but it is large in its content of fascinating games, strange openings, and beautiful annotations.


Good biographical detail   September 15, 1998
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

Asa Hoffmann is a NY master with the reputation for skinning $$ from unsuspecting opponents. He was also poorly portrayed in the movie 'Seraching for Bobby Fischer'. Once you read this book however you may have a different opinion of him. No doubt somewhat eccentric his games here display the fighting spirit we all associate with the typical underdog. A slim volume but with fine games, photographs [which I love to see in all chess books] and some insights into the psyche of a master player. Recommended.