Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life by Rensch, Danny
Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life by Rensch, Danny

Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life

In this "heart-breaking, hilarious, ultimately transcendent" (Jeannette Walls) memoir, International Master and Chess.com co-founder Danny Rensch describes...
$45.59 AUD
$45.59 AUD
SKU: 9781541703285
Product Type: Books
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Author: Danny Rensch
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Subtotal: $45.59
Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life by Rensch, Danny

Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life

$45.59
Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life by Rensch, Danny

Dark Squares: How Chess Saved My Life

$45.59
Author: Danny Rensch
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Description
In this "heart-breaking, hilarious, ultimately transcendent" (Jeannette Walls) memoir, International Master and Chess.com co-founder Danny Rensch describes his upbringing in an abusive cult - and how chess ended up saving his life

Born into the Church of Immortal Consciousness, Danny Rensch spent his childhood navigating the isolated confines of a cult. Despite psychological manipulation, physical abuse, and neglect, he persevered. An international chess master and world-class commentator, Rensch's remarkable journey led him to being the face of Chess.com, one of the largest online gaming platforms in the world.

With unflinching honesty, Rensch recounts his life, starting from the moment he discovered chess in the summer of 1995, all the way up to being at the center of the most explosive cheating scandal in chess history.

He chronicles the traumas of being "special" in a cult that forced separation from his mother. Mentored by an alcoholic, Russian chess master, he found solace alongside suffering in his obsession for an ancient game, and chess became his only escape. Rensch rose through the chess ranks until a medical emergency nearly took him out of the game forever. And it almost did, until Chess.com came along.

Deeply heartfelt, keenly reflective, and haunting, Dark Squares is the never-before-told story of Danny Rensch's resilience, survival, and his enduring love for the game that saved him.



Author: Danny Rensch
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Published: 09/16/2025
Pages: 368
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.32lbs
Size: 9.44h x 6.38w x 1.26d
ISBN: 9781541703285


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 07/15/2025
Booklist 08/01/2025

About the Author
Danny Rensch is an international chess master, world-renowned chess broadcaster and commentator, and chief chess officer for Chess.com. Rensch was a seven-time all-American chess player and a multiple-time national scholastic chess champion. He became the youngest chess master in Arizona history and today lives in Utah with his wife and four children.
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