The Evergreen Game
The idea: a forced chain of checks turns a good position into a won one.
Read it
The same game for older readers
- The annotated game · ages 15-18
- For grown-ups · for grown-ups
Who is in this book
-
Captain Castle Castling — tuck the king away and bring the rook into play from GambitTales -
Twin Knights of Fork Hill A fork — one knight jump attacks two targets at once from GambitTales -
Merle the Gleaner A hanging piece — a piece with no defender is a free piece (and the bait that only looks free) from GambitTales -
Gable & Garrett Rooks in straight lines, doubled on an open file from GambitTales -
Siren Lyra Attraction — lure a piece onto the square where your next move wins from GambitTales -
Veil & Vow A discovered attack — one steps aside and reveals the threat behind from GambitTales -
Kester the Finisher Checkmate — a check the king cannot escape, block or capture from GambitTales -
Inkling a child of the Green Names what she notices
Every recurring character has a short tune, so you can tell who is on stage before a word is said. The tunes play only when you tap, and the Reading Access sound switch turns them off.
The Honest Page
Which parts of this story are true, stretched or made up?
True
- Every move in this story is the game as it is usually published: Adolf Anderssen against Jean Dufresne, twenty-four moves, mate.
- From 20.Rxe7+ to the end, every White move gives check.
- Wilhelm Steinitz gave it the name, calling the game an evergreen in Anderssen's laurel crown. Source
Stretched
- The story plays the finish out move by move. What we simplified: The first printing just said White mates in four. Players then often announced a mate instead of playing it out, so the last moves are a reconstruction. Source
- Black's 19...Qxf3 looks like the losing mistake. What we simplified: Later analysts found defences such as 19...Rg4 that may hold a draw. The story picks one moral; the experts still argue. Source
Made up
- Captain Castle's academy, the re-staging and chess pieces who talk are made up.
Tell it back
Tell the story in your own words: who was there, what went wrong, and what they found out. Then the Evergreen Game score sheet goes on your belt.
On your belt: the Evergreen Game score sheet.
Your belt lives on this device. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Ring the hammer for someone
Pick this book for someone younger. The link carries only the book, and it will wait for them on the Green.