“In the darkest hours of history, the need for refuge to catch our breath and honor the Spirit is sorely felt. My example was Hermann Hesse, who wrote the great book The Glass Bead Game during World War II. She teaches the subtle art of stringing - the ability to read the world by eras and cultures, to see behind the author his school, enemies and neighbors. So I wrote two dozen games. They are a kind of tennis with a library that ricochets back to the author's challenge. The success of each Game depends on how long we can last it without leaving the field and without reducing the force of the blow” {Alexander Genis).