The Glass Bead Game

Alexander Genis' new book, the author of the bestsellers "Dovlatov and the Surroundings", "The Booklover's Kama Sutra", "Return Address", is, as always, written in an original genre perfectly suited for intellectual adventures. "In the gloomy hours of history, there is... a strong need for a refuge to catch one's breath and honor the Spirit. Hermann Hesse, who wrote the great book 'The Glass Bead Game' during World War II, serves as an example for me. It teaches the subtle art of stringing together—an ability to read the world through epochs and cultures, to see behind the author his school, enemies, and neighbors. Thus I have written two dozen games. They are a kind of tennis with a library, which ricochetingly responds to the author's challenge. The success of each Game depends on how long we can prolong it, without stepping beyond the field and without diminishing the force of the strike" (Alexander Genis).