BookLife Review: The World Played Chess, by Robert Dugoni

Vietnam War, Vietnam Veterans, construction crew, mentor, PTSD, Long Island, summer job lessons

The World Played Chess, by Robert Dugoni, is a fitting pick for Veterans Day. By the author of The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell, The World Played Chess tackles the experience of a Vietnam War veteran and his impact on a young man a half-generation behind him who is coming of age the summer before starting college. The narration toggles between the veteran soldier's war journal, and the dual perspectives of the 18 year-old Vincent on the construction crew and the 49 year-old Vincent, father of an 18 year-old son of his own.

Mostly, it works. The sections of the soldier’s journal, like the construction crew, softball and knucklehead 18 year-old fake ID drunk-fest passages, do come to life and capture an era in time. That said, there are multiple unfortunate passages where the author tells or prostheletizes rather than letting the story and behaviors show, or speak for themselves (i.e, we can deduce that the post Vietnam Vet 18 year olds can't fathom hardship or death like a war veteran can, no need to say as much, outright, so explicitly so many times in the text). The book as a whole suffers from the inclusion of too many speeches and too much “telling” instead of showing, which is a shame because when the author sticks to showing, the book rivets.

Nonetheless, the book is also a perpetually needed reminder of the tribute and respect owed to those who rendered military service and the price paid by so many young men who served in this war.