Ben Smithgall

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Interactive News Developer at the New York Times. Previously with Spotify, U.S. Digital Service, and Code for America.

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The Luzhin Defense

By Vladimir Nabokov

Finished reading on January 4, 2019

A sobering portrait of a genius reduced to madness by his inability to separate the game from reality. The scenes in the middle and towards the end when Luzhin is completely overrun with madness are completely engrossing.

★★★★☆