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Southwest Side Stories: The Game of Go

From: Paul Roldan
Length: 02:54

Paul makes his weekly trip to to the game of Go. Read the full description.

Golarge_small Paul makes his weekly two-hour trip from the southside to the northside of Chicago for only one thing: the game of Go. With only a wooden board and a bowl of cool stones between him and his rival, Paul pours everything he has into this battle. And even losing brings satisfaction.

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Piece Description

Paul makes his weekly two-hour trip from the southside to the northside of Chicago for only one thing: the game of Go. With only a wooden board and a bowl of cool stones between him and his rival, Paul pours everything he has into this battle. And even losing brings satisfaction.

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Review of Southwest Side Stories: The Game of Go

"The Game of Go" starts off with some very pleasant white noise in the background - the sound of a train arriving at the station. After that, our narrator takes us the on a short but intriguing journey - from the school in his South Side neighborhood to a North Side cafe where he plays Go every week.
The piece provides a good sense of place, and makes the setting easy for the listener to imagine. Small aspects of the setting and event are told in great detail, and complemented nicely with simple sound effects of Go pieces being placed on the board. The storytelling is excellent too - the narrator speaks poetically, and uses words like "combatants" and "battle" to give the reader a more intimate sense of his own feelings.
Though this story is short and relatively simple, it is elegantly told, and the youth perspective on such an old game is refreshing and well told. This piece is probably too short to stand on its own, but it would fit in well with other stories about games, hobbies, or neighborhoods.

Related Website

http://curiehs.org/curie_youth_radio