Deaths Head Chess Club

The Death’s Head Chess Club is a deeply poignant debut about the extraordinary bond between Emil Clément, a Jewish former Auschwitz inmate known as The Watchmaker, and Paul Meissner, an SS officer. In 1962, at a chess tournament in Holland, they confront each other after nearly twenty years. The novel probes whether forgiveness is possible for crimes deemed unforgivable, as Clément and Meissner navigate memory, guilt, and the moral weight of their past. The story unfolds against the stark backdrop of Auschwitz, where chess became a life-or-death test, and follows their complex relationship as it forces both men to reckon with history and humanity. The work is authored by John Donoghue and was published in 2015 in a 400-page paperback edition by Atlantic Books.

A second angle on the narrative emphasizes the emotional resonance of a fragile, uneasy connection forged in the shadow of atrocity, and the power of memory to shape present choices.

Features

• Debut novel about an SS officer and a Jewish watchmaker
• Set in 1962 at a chess tournament in Holland
• Auschwitz survivor known as The Watchmaker
• SS officer forced him to play chess in camps
• Explores forgiveness and the unforgivable
• 400 pages, Paperback edition by Atlantic Books