11 April 2026
(PHOTO: Intent/Natalia Dovbysh)
The presentation of the book "Chess Odesa" by journalist Oleksandr Halias took place on the evening of April 10 at the Bookstore-Café at 77 Evropeiska Street.
The book includes publications by Oleksandr Halias related to some events in the chess history of Odesa.
In addition, the book contains stories about the successes of Ukrainian chess players in the international arena, an essay about the legendary 1974 Petrosian-Korchnoi match that took place in Odesa. The publication is also decorated with a selection of archival photographs, including little-known photos of legendary chess players.
Oleksandr Halias was born in 1952 in Odesa and lives in the city today. He graduated from the Odesa Institute of National Economy. He has been a professional journalist for over 30 years. He has worked for newspapers and magazines in Ukraine, the USA, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, and Uzbekistan. He is the author and co-author of 15 books, including Chess Odesa: Tournaments, Meetings, Scandals, 200 Interviews with Stars, KVN of Odesa Spill, and others. He is the winner of more than 120 journalism competitions, the Paustovsky Municipal Literary Contest, and the Utesov International Prize.
The author himself admitted that he got the idea for the book while sorting through his own archive. Oleksandr Halias noticed that he had accumulated a lot of newspaper clippings with his articles about chess, so he decided to put them together.
Since the opening of the Bookstore-Café in Odesa, book presentations, meetings with authors, and mini-performances have been held there every week. For example, the brochure "From Mykolaiv to Odesa and from Odesa to the Inland Empire" by nineteenth-century professor Edward Clarke was presented at the Odesa Bookstore-Café on March 3.
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