Word: scipio
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Dates: during 2002-2002
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Iain Pears' The Dream of Scipio (Riverhead; 398 pages) ticks along at a slower, statelier pace, more like a grandfather clock. Set in Provence, it tells three stories from three eras that unfold in parallel: a 5th century Roman sophisticate faces the fall of his empire; a Renaissance man stares down the Black Death; and a French classicist watches as his country is overrun by the Germans in World War II. The thread connecting these three men is an ancient philosophical manuscript that each man encounters, but the real bond among them is that they face a common paradox. Civilization...
...finished only when one player had won six games. Such matches could take months, because great chess masters are so evenly matched that 80% of tournament games end in draws. Victories come at rare intervals; six wins can take forever. Not this time. Fischer conducted a campaign unrivaled since Scipio Africanus leveled Carthage. He beat two challengers six games in a row, which, combined with wins before and after, produced a streak of 20 straight victories against the very best--something never seen before and likely never to be seen again...
...DREAM WEAVER: Penguin Putnam is solidly behind "The Dream of Scipio" by Iain Pears (Riverhead; June 3), the author of the runaway success "An Instance of the Fingerpost." We even received a note from Susan Petersen Kennedy, the president of Penguin Putnam: "I feel compelled to write you about Iain Pears' brilliant new novel. In the midst of everyone in the arts questioning what they're doing, every person questioning the world we live in, this book reminded me of why it all matters." Kirkus agrees, giving the book a starred review. "A brilliantly constructed historical novel...This imposingly intricate...