James Mason in America

Few men are prominent chess players as well as esteemed chess writers. James Mason, in his lifetime, had the reputation of being both. This book chronicles Mason's early career in the United States, providing many details on his writings and annotations for The Spirit of the Times and The American Chess Journal, his participation in the Cafe Europa and Cafe International tournaments, his win in 1876's Fourth American Chess Congress, and his matches against chess greats like George H. Mackenzie, Eugene Delmar, Dion M. Martinez, Edward Alberoni, and Henry E. Bird. Mason's efforts to establish an American Chess Association and to arrange an international centennial congress in 1876 are also explored. In addition to the general index, the work also includes indexes of games, annotators, and openings.

the 1860s and 1870s were a golden time for chess journalism in the United States...a particularly nice touch is the reproduction of drawings of several chess clubs of the day...a first rate effort that will be fascinating reading for anyone interested in chess in 19th century America...a first-class productions effort with high quality paper and library binding...recommended"—IM John Donaldson (JeremySilman.com)"invaluable...excellent"—Manchester Chess Federation"invaluable"—The Compulsive Reader"exceptionally good"—ChessCafe.com"beautifully bound and printed. Flows like a novel, very much a 21st century book on a 19th century topic!"—British Chess Magazine"a rich look at the early career of a fine player and writer and the development of the American chess scene"—Chessville

Journalist Joost van Winsen lives in the Netherlands. He has previously written about American chess history of the Nineteenth century, and has contributed articles to ChessCafe.com and ChessArcheology.com.