Bobby Fischer’s Final Years

About the book:
Bobby Fischer’s Final Years

The author of this book, Gardar Sverrisson, was Bobby Fischer’s closest friend in the last years of his life. Their friendship began while Bobby was incarcerated in Japan in 2004 and grew increasingly close until his death after a difficult illness in 2008.

In the book, Gardar discusses Bobby for the first time and offers a unique perspective on this controversial genius, a solitary man who avoided sharing his joys and sorrows with other people. Gardar’s writing not only provides a vivid portrait of what Bobby was really like, but also delves into the intellectual and emotional motivations that lay behind his words and deeds. The result is a detailed description of a man who has long been a mystery to the world.

Having helped Bobby to receive asylum in Iceland, Gardar finds himself becoming Bobby’s most intimate confidant in almost every aspect of the eleventh World Champion’s life. Gardar’s family apartment soon becomes Bobby’s second home, and Bobby turns to Gardar and his family with most matters. He travels with them in the countryside on numerous occasions. We experience Bobby’s joy over his newfound freedom in Iceland. With his friend he reminisces about memorable moments from his unusual life, from his bittersweet Brooklyn childhood to his exile from the United States. Their countless everyday interactions span a range of experiences, amusing and awkward, joyous and sorrowful.

The book presents a wider-ranging and more complex picture of Bobby than has previously been recorded. We meet a curious and passionate man with a range of interests and an unusual perspective on life. Apart from his opinions on current affairs, culture and history, art and religion, we are exposed to his rare but carefully considered perspective on life and death – convictions that no human power could shake. In the book we encounter Bobby Fischer as a sincere and generous friend, temperamental and witty, contemplative and shy. We meet Bobby the bookworm, the nature lover, the rebel and the mother’s boy. Last but not least, we encounter the great chess genius, become acquainted with his dramatic memories of his own career and his colorful reflections on other masters past and present.

In the latter half of the book, the narrative is increasingly dominated by the grave illness that overwhelmed Fischer in the final year of his life. Since he passed away, many hypotheses and assertions have been floated about this period, the time when he isolated himself almost completely from other people. Now his closest friend finally lifts the veil of secrecy and reveals what really happened and how Bobby responded to his agonizing fate. The book ends with a dramatic account of the circumstances that arose when Bobby passed away and the difficulties Gardar faced as he tried to organize his friend’s funeral in accordance with his wishes.

You can order the book "Yfir farinn veg með Bobby Fischer" by Gardar Sverrison here.
Price: 5,999 ISK (= €42 or US $47). The book is is due to appear in English in the next year.
The publisher is not yet fixed. Interested parties should contact the Icelandic publisher Skrudda.

About the Author Gardar Sverrisson (Icelandic: Garðar Sverrisson) was born in Reykjavík in 1959. He worked as a journalist from an early age, and his writings include two biographies, a novel and several short stories. One of his books has been published in Germany under the title Wohnt hier ein Isländer? Gardar has been active in public life, serving as the general manager of a parliamentary group of socialdemocrats, a member of the board of the Icelandic Human Rights Centre and for many years as the president of the national coalition of people with disabilities in Iceland. He holds degrees in political science and economics from the University of Iceland and an MFA in creative writing and literature from the University of Arizona. In 2004, Gardar was part of a group that pressed for Bobby Fischer to be released from detention in Japan and granted asylum in Iceland.

Frederic Friedel Editor-in-Chief of the ChessBase News Page. Studied Philosophy and Linguistics at the University of Hamburg and Oxford, graduating with a thesis on speech act theory and moral language. He started a university career but switched to science journalism, producing documentaries for German TV. In 1986 he co-founded ChessBase.

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