Game Seven

A group biography of seven enduring and beloved games, and the story of why—and how—we play them. Checkers, backgammon, chess, and Go. Poker, Scrabble, and bridge. These seven games, ancient and modern, fascinate millions of people worldwide. In Seven Games, Oliver Roeder charts their origins and historical importance, the delightful arcana of their rules, and the ways their design makes them pleasurable. Roeder introduces thrilling competitors, such as evangelical minister Marion Tinsley, who across forty years lost only three games of checkers; Shusai, the Master, the last Go champion of imperial Japan, defending tradition against “modern rationalism”; and an IBM engineer who created a backgammon program so capable at self-learning that NASA used it on the space shuttle. He delves into the history and lore of each game: backgammon boards in ancient Egypt, the Indian origins of chess, how certain shells from a particular beach in Japan make the finest white Go stones. Beyond the cultural and personal stories, Roeder explores why games, seemingly trivial pastimes, speak so deeply to the human soul. He introduces an early philosopher of games, the aptly named Bernard Suits, and visits an Oxford cosmologist who has perfected a computer that can effectively play bridge, a game as complicated as human language itself. Throughout, Roeder tells the compelling story of how humans, pursuing scientific glory and competitive advantage, have invented AI programs better than any human player, and what that means for the games—and for us. Funny, fascinating, and profound, Seven Games is a story of obsession, psychology, history, and how play makes us human.

Originally published: New York: Viking, 2015.

After seven games and 13 days, the outcome of the 1962 World Series hung on the final pitch, thrown by a pitcher for the New York Yankees to a hitter for the San Francisco Giants. The teams had been evenly matched, alternating victories until the final, winner-take-all contest. One more out would give the Yankees the championship. A hit would almost certainly win the Giants their first Series title since moving to San Francisco. Despite its breathtaking climax, the '62 Series has seldom been chronicled among the most dramatic Fall Classics. This book provides an unprecedented in-depth examination, describing in detail each game of the Series and the events that led up to it, including the Giants' thrilling playoff with the Dodgers for the National League pennant. The author compares common game strategies used in the early 1960s vs. today and explores possible factors that made this Series historically underrated in the annals of baseball.

A fresh take on assessing your priorities – both professionally and personally – to ensure you are in the best position to make a positive difference to the people and places around you, and in the process to transform your own life. The disruptive moment in which we find ourselves living demands that we are our own agents of change. The Seven Games of Leadership is a guide for readers through seven key phases of personal and professional development, with the aim not of climbing a corporate ladder but of finding true and lasting satisfaction in what they do. It encourages the realization that revolutionary change is not about destroying the current status quo, but about co-designing and rebuilding different paths for individuals to thrive, and go on to have a positive impact on society at large. The objective is to allow people to identify a career that is better aligned not only with their individual values, but with a broader purpose centred on a wider sense of humanity and sustainable prosperity for all. The Seven Games of Leadership provides the tools and practical advice you need to reassess your priorities and take the steps necessary to refocus your life, your career and the issues of the world around you.

The seventh game of the World Series is about to be played, and more than the world championship is at stake. A man's destiny is on the line. Johnny Longboat, one of baseball's greatest pitchers, is taking the mound for the New York Mohawks in what may be his final game. With millions of eyes upon him, only he is aware of the conflicts tormenting him. At forty-one, Johnny is a man trying to make sense of his past while fearing what the future could bring when his playing career ends. As the deciding seventh game of a bitterly fought World Series suspensefully moves, inning by inning, toward its dramatic climax, and before the seventh game is over, Johnny Longboat is ready to make some hard choices. He's ready to find out just how much strength is left in his arm—and in his soul. Praise for Roger Kahn: "As a kid, I loved sports first and writing second, and loved everything Roger Kahn wrote. As an adult, I love writing first and sports second, and love Roger Kahn even more." —Pulitzer Prize winner, David Maraniss "He can epitomize a player with a single swing of the pen." —Time magazine "Roger Kahn is the best baseball writer in the business." —Stephen Jay Gould, New York Review of Books "A work of high moral purpose and great poetic accomplishment. The finest American book on sports." —James Michener on The Boys of Summer "Kahn has the almost unfair gift of easy, graceful writing." —Boston Herald

Homicide detective Levi Abrams is barely holding his life together. He's reeling from the fallout of a fatal shooting, and his relationship with his boyfriend is crumbling. The last thing he's prepared for is a serial killer stalking the streets of Las Vegas. Or how he keeps getting thrown into the path of annoyingly charming bounty hunter Dominic Russo. Dominic likes his life free of complications. That means no tangling with cops -- especially prickly, uptight detectives. But when he stumbles across one of the Seven of Spades's horrifying crime scenes, he can't let go, despite Levi's warnings to stay away. The Seven of Spades is ruthless and always two moves ahead. Worst of all, they've taken a dangerously personal interest in Levi and Dominic. Forced to trust each other, the two men race to discover the killer's identity, revealing hidden truths along the way and sparking a bond neither man expected. But that may not be enough to protect them. This killer likes to play games, and the deck is not stacked in Levi and Dominic's favor.