This critically acclaimed novel from a master of contemporary American fiction is a story of genius, performance, and the psychological forces that drive the competitive spirit Brian Stoppard is blessed with prodigious natural talents. Howard Cohen, less so. Starting in middle school in New York, Howard watches Brian effortlessly win at everything he tries: He's a natural chess champion, a perfect athlete, a brilliant student. As the two move through life as friends and competitors, Brian's easy success is a constant source of envy, awe, and inspiration for the ambitious but less-gifted Howard. Told with great humor and style, The Game Player is a story of those born to greatness and those who must strive for it. This ebook features a new illustrated biography of Rafael Yglesias, including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from the author's personal collection.

I should have told. Julie's right: I would have saved dozens of others. Jeff, Julie, Sam, the academy kids, the Huck Finn boys, everyone else was ignorant or greedy or scared or confused or overwhelmed by bullies, but I was strong enough—I could've pushed him away. I did push him away. I saved myself and let everyone else suffer. Me and the god of creation—we're the villains of this story. Brian and Jeff were best friends, growing up together in New York City in the late 1960s. Then something happened that drove a wedge between them, ending both their friendship and their childhood, something that neither ever spoke about . . . at least until their shared secret resurfaced some forty years later, forcing them to reunite and, along with Jeff's cousin Julie, to face the consequences of their years of silence. In The Wisdom of Perversity, Rafael Yglesias, the critically acclaimed, bestselling novelist and screenwriter and the author of...