{"product_id":"centre-stage-and-behind-the-scenes-a-personal-memoir","title":"Centre-Stage and Behind the Scenes: A Personal Memoir","description":"Yuri Averbakh (1922) is a distinguished Russian chess grandmaster who has enjoyed a long and varied career. He has been a top player, a journalist, an editor, an arbiter, a trainer and a long-time member of the board of the Soviet chess federation.\n\nAverbakh won the USSR championship in 1954 ahead of players like Kortchnoi, Petrosian and Geller and was a leading Soviet grandmaster for two decades. In this personal memoir he looks back on his days as an active player on the centre stage of chess, but also on his experiences as a quintessential insider when chess was considered a vital ingredient of life in the Soviet Union.\n\nAverbakh observes the world of chess from the moment he walked into the Moscow Chess Club as a 13-year old boy and describes his personal successes, his secret training matches with world champion Botvinnik, the mechanisms and behind-the-scenes dealings in the Soviet Union, including his involvement in the famous matches between Karpov and Kasparov. A unique, revealing and well-told story, essential reading for everybody interested in the history of chess and the Soviet Union.\u003cbr\u003eASIN: 9056913646\u003cbr\u003eVSKU: BVV.9056913646.G\u003cbr\u003eCondition: Good\u003cbr\u003eAuthor\/Artist:Neiman, Emmanuel\u003cbr\u003eBinding: Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNote:\u003c\/b\u003e Any images shown are stock photographs and product may differ from what is shown.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition Notes\u003c\/b\u003e: The item shows wear from consistent use, but it remains in good condition and works perfectly. All pages and cover are intact  including the dust cover, if applicable . Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May NOT include discs, access code or other supplemental materials.  \u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Blue Vase Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43333431361597,"sku":"BVV.9056913646.G","price":236.26,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0589\/4225\/9261\/files\/9056913646-0.jpg?v=1783631619","url":"https:\/\/www.bluevasebooks.com\/products\/centre-stage-and-behind-the-scenes-a-personal-memoir","provider":"Blue Vase Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}