Chess With a Dragon

Humanity tries to escape enslavement by intergalactic aliens.

Grade 8-11 In a distant future in which only 12 of the registered 2017 sentient species are mammalian, the human species is at a distinct disadvantage. Yake Singh Brown questions the game which mankind seems to have lost and decides to ask the Dragon, a member of one of the fiercest and wisest species, if there is a way for humanity to survive. He learns that although there is a way, Yake and his friends must discover it for themselves. Using his hunch that the game encourages bluffs and cheating, Yake not only finds a way out of the trap but also negotiates two contracts that may put mankind in the position to ``retire'' two other species in a few years. Gerrold has written a fine but demanding science-fiction novel. Readers must follow a complicated series of narrative changes as the main story and a sub-plot unfold. However those with perseverance will enjoy the story's campy humor and unexpected plot twists. The old-fashioned pulp science-fiction feeling is reinforced by Torres' black-and-white illustrations with their deco settings and Dick Tracy-ish characters. Anne Connor, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.