Chess Books

I can't recall a chess book that I've found so instructive (okay, maybe Dvoretsky) and funny (well...Soltis might have him beat). Mayer takes on all the authorites...Steinitz, Chigorin, Tarrasch, Botvinnik, etc. Sometimes he agrees, sometimes he disagrees, but he always left me seeing things in a new way. And his command of the nuances of strategy and tactics is incredible...I don't know why he isn't a Grandmaster, because he sure writes better than 99.9% of them. Maybe it's time that we gave him a special award for "hardest working man in chess"! Okay, I guess Nunn beats him in that department, but still, this book is a blast and I give it my highest rating...you *will* learn boatloads from it and have a great time while you do it!

"Bishop v Knight: The Verdict" is an excellent book for intermediate level players. I am amazed at how different I look at the minor pieces now compared to how I looked at them before I ever cracked open the book. Definitely a recommendation for those that intend to take chess seriously, and that hope to reach expert or master level. Before reading this book, I always said "Bishops are always better than knights" and yet someone else I know, who hasn't read the book, always thought, and still thinks, that knights are always better for him. Today, I beat him at least 90% of the time because this book has really helped me manage my minor pieces better. Also, when given the choice to trade a knight or bishop away for a minor piece of his, I make the better decision more often now than I did before reading the book. Anyone who has even the slightest bit of trouble managing their minor pieces, either in a middlegame, an endgame, or both, needs to get this book. I can't say there is another book of it's type.

When a friend saw me carrying this book, he asked me, "So, what is the verdict?" Maybe I hold back my one-cent until the end. For now, let's review the book first. It has 17 chapters, detailing various aspects of the battle between bishop(s) and knight(s).
Chapters 2-4 show the traditional techniques to handle the bishop-pair and knight-pair. Chapters 5-8 clarify the problem and over-rating of minor pieces.
Chapter 9, 10, 12, and 13 provide us some tactics and strategies to change the position dynamics, and some sacrifice to gain some critical tempi.
Now, from personal experience. When I was a weak beginner, I often lost too early in the opening before the bishops could be fully utilized. Together with bishop's single color control, I felt the knights were stronger. Then from the teaching of Chernev's, I learned the strength of bishop-pair; and later learned two main themes. The first one is: in middle-game with packed center, the knights are stronger; with loose center, the bishops dominate. The other, generally in endgame: with pawns on both sides, the bishop is preferable; pawns on one side, bishop can at least hold a draw.
Most GM like Botvinnik, Smyslov, and more prefer bishop-pair; while Chigorin, Reshevsky prefer knight-pair. However, they all can handle any combination of minor pieces skillfully.
So, what is the verdict? The answer is their "relative space control with respect to other pieces" on the board. For example: without the queens, the long diagonal control of bishop(s) plus the rank and file control by the rook(s) (especially aiming at the enemy king) the bishop is stronger. Mayer mentioned this in chapter 16, the Grindable Ending. While in a crowded position (especially with many pawns) the knight is preferable. If somehow, the knight can established a strong outpost for a king-attack, with the penetration of the queen, the power of the knight can be decisive (Mayer: chapter 17, Capablanca's Theorem). Likewise, the position of the pawns (friends or foes) could magnify and/or neutralize the bishop's strength; and the pawns can dislodge the unprotected, far advance knights.
Therefore, my one-cent summary is:
a) Relative board control of the bishop and/or knight with respect to other pieces and pawns.
b) Knowledge/experience of different types of these positions.
c) Player's comfort and confidence in handling these minor pieces.
And this personal opinion is not totally conclusive either.

This is one of the first few books dealing solely with this difficult topic. I recall Pachman's Complete Chess Strategies having some sections dealing with this topic too. Both Mayer's and Pachman's books are for very strong (and master) players. Silman's Amateur's Mind gives lighter version and for single minor piece combat.
This is a five-star book.

i liked this book a lot. easy to understand. very original conclusions.

just when i thought all chess books were painful, along comes a book rife with enthusiasm, earthy description, and practical strategies. it's very original and insightful. i just love this book. when you read it you'll see what i mean.

If you play blitz chess or even 10 or 15 minute games regularly like me, this is definitely a good book. It includes invaluble lessons on what to do with certain amounts of time on your clock, and some different openings, that while not neccesarily the most sound opening to try in a slow game, are perfect for intuitive tactics to come out of in five minute games. Get this book if you like blitz chess!

I got this book in high school and studied it heavily for a few years. Then recently, I got it out again having had a reawakened interest in chess. My copy is so worn, corners bent, writing on the pages, coffee stains, and a cracked spine. All the telltale signs of a book that has been studied over and over.


I highly recommend this book to those learning chess and to those who like "real world" type chess problems. There is something for everyone in this book ranging from the beginner to the master.

Perhaps the best book on combinations that I have ever read. All the combinations are beautiful works of art! Watch out! These combinations are not easy to solve. Very lively written.

This book is wonderful for chess fanatics who want to improve their tactical endgame and middle game. Hunderds of situations on the chess board are given in the book which actually occured during tournament game. The readers are asked to find the blunders that the players overlooked in the given situation and find out a corresponding brilliant sequence which will lead to a win for the adversary. This books allows the readers to improve their analytical capability at the same time providing them with important text book manuevers in which they can exploit a given situation on the board......if u are a tactical chess player and haven't read this book then you should ..

The term "must read" is overused in book blurbs but this book is a must read for anyone who loves chess and is interested in its history, especially in its golden age of the 1930s and 1940s. Denker chronicles the doings and depicts the quirks and mannerisms of giants like Alexander Alehkine, Max Euwe, Isaac Kashdan, Fred Reinfeld, Reuben Fine, Sammy Reshevsky, and--of course--himself (but in a thoroughly self-effacing manner). Denker knew them all and they knew him. With selected games highlighting the Boswellian depiction of some of caissa's most colorful personalities, Denker's narrative earns its place in a patzer's library both as a biography and as a game collection. Reading about life at the Manhattan Chess Club in the early 20th century can only make a reader nostalgic for a time before data bases and the need to memorize hundreds and thousands of openings. I own over three hundred chess books but if I had to narrow my collection down to only five or six, this would make the cut.

This Damon Runyon-like work will be around well into the Twenty-first Century to inform future chess generations about such greats as Bobby Fischer and world champion Gary Kasparov as well as the "guys and dolls" of the New York chess scene during the fabled Golden Era of the 1930s and 1940s. In the Introduction, five-time U.S. Champion Larry Evans writes that the authors capture "some of the most raucous and colorful figures in 20th Century chess" with a "Dickensian precision." Yet there is plenty of hard chess in this big book - over 300 games and positions, many never before published, and which contain interesting opening ideas that have either been forgotten or neglected in the manuals.
Grandmaster Arnold Denker is known as the Grand Old Man of American Chess. In this memoir, GM Denker - who was U.S. chess champion from 1944 to 1946 - skillfully intertwines with his own life the stories of great chess men whom he knew and loved. Denker, who is renowned as a chess raconteur, was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame in 1993. His co-author is Larry Parr, a former Editor of Chess Life (1984-1988). Mr Parr has received more individual awards for excellence from the Chess Journalists of America than any other chess writer.

The chess community is full of fascinating stories and anecdotes and every once in a while we are treated to entertaining and informative compilations of adventures on and off the chessboard. This year we have been treated to two exceptional volumes. The first, "The Bobby Fischer I knew and other stories" by Arnold Denker and Larry Parr contains over 300 pages of stories, photos and games from the American chess scene. The book contains a tremendous amount of material that I'm sure you've never seen anywhere else.

The most difficult aspect of putting together such a book is to avoid the all too frequent concentration on stories about people who really haven't had any impact on the game, but simply happened to have been around the chess scene for a long time. It isn't easy to diligently select only material that really is of some interest to the majority of readers. Legendary American Grandmaster Arnold Denker, who lived one of the longest and most productive chess lives, and former Chess Life editor Larry Parr have done a magnificent job of presenting fascinating material and unknown games that are entertaining and instructive. I wish they had been presented in algebraic notation, but that's the only small flaw I can find in this book, reprinted by the firm of Hardinge Simpole, whose mission is to " rescue from oblivion any worthwhile publication by the pen of an acknowledged master of chess writing"

I can't even begin to list the varied contents of this wonderful book, but if you have any interest in the American chess world, go out and buy it. It will give you countless hours of entertainment and you'll learn about many fascinating figures, both famous and obscure, and how they have enriched our chess history. Many of the games in this book are not in databases and I hope that they will eventually be entered into our collective chess encyclopedia. As for the stories, each and every one of them is worth telling, and you'll likely be able to use them to entertain people even if they aren't chessplayers.

Correspondence players should know to buy this book, its all other players that need to be told - this is a great book. If you think correspondence players play glacial, grueling games of chess - think again. Edwards plays the Benko Gambit, the Alekhine-Chatard Attack, and a Knight sacrifice against the Najdorf as early as move eight! The game Edwards - Hayward features thirteen sacrifices and was chosen as the APCT's 1993 Game of the Year by GM Arthur Bisguier. Had the combatant's been Kasparov - Anand, instead of Edwards - Hayward, it would have been celebrated worldwide as the game of the millenium. Rather than be a little known game where the author asks to "take ten minutes and give it a run through" as it "took two and a half years to produce." If you think correspondence players only follow book lines - think again. Edwards is "out of book" sometimes as early as move five and often battling opponents who are specialists in their particular variation who "have studied and codified their systems." There are games aplenty that exemplify this. Edwards has won numerous APCT tournaments, has twice won the APCT Game of the Year award, and is the 10th United States Correspondence Chess Champion. All the games from the championship are given with brief introductions but no annotations. He comes across as an affable fellow whom you wouldn't want to meet on the wrong side of a theoretical novelty. His joviality is evident in his style of writing, in the humorous story "Uncle Fred's Gambit," and in some of the chapter titles, such as: "Don't Feed the Pelikan", "Splits Can Hurt", and "Card-iac Arrests." His ferocity is evident when you play through the games. The Chess Analyst is an appropriate title as Edwards; likely due to the time spent on each position, has a knack for explaining positions in the utmost detail. Often speaking in terms of general concepts, weak squares, or with just plain hard analysis. He gets to the heart of the position. It's all here. Including supplementary games and input from guest annotators - such as GM Bisguier, along with analysis from his opponents - somewhat in the style of Gerzadowicz' Duelin' Notes. There is an index of openings and opponents. The interior artwork prefacing each chapter is attractive and adds to the caliber of the book.

The experts say that CC (correspondence chess) is quite different from OTB (over the board) chess. I would go further and say that "books written by CC players are quite different from books written by OTB players".

Mr. Jon Edwards book is a good example on how deep a CC player can analyse a game. The chapters on the French Defense are instructive even for those that don't play it in either side of the board. His views on the hedgehog structure are also something not be missed.

I play CC and OTB chess and I'm sure this book is going to help me in both cases. A book that deserves to be read and consulted many times by the improving players.

I had to respond to the last reviewer, who doesn't get it. This is, in my opinion, one of the top 20 chess books of the past decade. I know, who's this Edwards guy. Just someone who has devoted himself to the game and who knows how to write.

This is a wonderful read, with great annotations in the genre of the great chess books: Zurich 1953 and Tal-Botvinnik, 1960. The last reviewer said that Edwards is smug. What comes through here is someone who actually UNDERSTANDs the game well enough to communicate clearly. That's VERY rare in chess and makes this an important book to own and read.

Finally, the last chapter, Uncle Fred's Gambit, is the funniest thing I have ever read in or out of chess.

Gideon Stahlberg was a Swedish Grandmaster who rocketed to fame when he won matches against Spielmann and Nimzowitsch in the early 1930s. Stahlberg went on to compete in the two World Championship Candidates Tournaments of 1950 and 1953. He was chief umpire for many World Championship matches in Moscow during the period of soviet hegemony. Those who knew him found him a witty companion who enjoyed good living and was also an expert bridge-player. His best chess games are marked by extreme elegance, as is his prose style. Chess and Chess Masters is a first hand account of the strengths and weaknesses, of the genius and foibles, of the world's elite, written by a man who met and played them all. This remarkable book is graced by the most elegant prose, courtesy of Stahlberg, improved, if anything, by Harry Golombek's superb translation. The book, full of telling and memorable phrases, consists of a series of brilliantly executed thumbnail sketches of such towering figures as Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Euwe, Botvinnik, Smyslov, Petrosian, Nimzowitsch and Keres, along with beautifully annotated examples of their play.

Written by a Swedish Grandmaster and translated with authoritative fluency, 'Chess and Chess Masters' by Gideon Strahlberg and Harry Golombek respectively, is a confident and interesting account of the great chess players which Strahlberg himself encountered and met. With a chapter on all the greats; Capablanca, Euwe, Botvinnik, Alekhine and Spielmann to name but a few, no chess library would be complete without it.

this book is in descriptive notation and it was written half a century ago by a swedish grandmaster who was a candidate for the world championship.the names are well chosen-alekhine capablanca nimzowitsch botvinnik reshevsky-all players the author knew and often played against.

the writer has been very well served by his translator grandmaster harry golombek probably the greatest stylist ever to write chess notes in english. the sketches are sometimes moving and poignant but always dramatic. the personalities really come to life.

the games are also a joy to play over and i like the notes which are literary gems in themselves. if you liked tartakower and dumonts 500 master games of chess you wil also want to read this book.

I've been playing chess for two years now, and until I found this book, I was very frustrated with the choice of chess books available. I've never seen a better book for both learning the game, and as handy guide to rules and basic strategies. In less than 100 pages Nigel Short shows how the game works, gives basic strategies lessons, and teaches chess notation. Both the written instructions and illustrations are superb, crystal clear and straight to the point! While I'm not a beginner at Chess, I'm no grand master either. I keep Chess Basics by my chess board as both a refresher if I haven't played in a while, and as a very handy reference to some of the more difficult to memorize rules (such as En Passant!). I highly recommend this as a "Chess Bible" both as an introduction for the beginner and a practical reference for the casual chess player.

I bought a Lego chess CD for my 6 year old son this past summer just for fun. At the time we were not chess players. We quickly got interested in the game. Basic Chess became the first book I read on this great game. This is truely an introductory book. It combines a little bit of history with an introduction to each of the pieces and their movement around the board. You are introduced to algebraic notation and other important terminology and symbols. Some tatical elements are dicussed such as forks, gaurds and skewers. They are however not given in any particular context (but that is not a big deal). Basic checkmate patterns and castling is covered. The most fundamental principles of chess are emphasized by Short which include: control the center, develop your chessmen and castle early. Other things included are the "en passant" rule and conditions for a draw. Many rules are not included but you can only do so much with 94 pages. It is easy to read and no real typo's to mention. Good sized font. My son now takes private lessons and does puzzles most days. I enjoy reading other chess books a may start taking formal lessons as well although I do play against the computer on Chessmaster 5000. For a "true" beginner it is a winner!!!

Nigel Short is very approachable when it comes to explaining the game of Chess. He has many sections on his book which explains the pieces and how they are used in the game. This book is only 96 pages long but don't be fooled nor discouraged in not purchasing it because you will learn alot if you get it(i know i have). The book is very friendly to read, you feel like if he is there with you explaing the game to you. Other books have distance, this doesn't. You will be surprised as i was that he cuts through the red tape and gets to the point quickly(but in a very friendly way). Very rare! It also has a section on learning Chess notation(this is very important for all Chess novice players to know). I never knew how notation functioned but Nigel explained it perfectly and now i understand (the letters and the numbers when i look at the board). The notation area is (on pages 26-through 31). The font and the Chess diagrams inside the book are friendly, positive, and understandable. It is very soft on the eyes. Yes, this too includes a picture of Nigel Short (you will see what he looks like)which is on page Seven and has a special message from him to you(on the game). The message is not one of politically correctness but one of sincerity. By reading this information again and again and with time practicing the game everything will become second nature. It is all about practice in the end, but this books(writing) information gives explains the game to you and gives you this very optimistic confidence to take up the sport/hobby. Like i said, very rare writing and attitude from a high ranking Chess Player such as Mr. Short. He takes the mystery out of Chess! Nigel Short lives in Greece,is Married, and has children. According to FIDE he is the 2nd number ranked player in England.Please look at his history(whenever you have the time, this person is a Legend(and he looks so young). This information deserves 10 stars,highly recommended book. Thanks Mr.N.Short.

If you like solitare chess, then this is very similar. Only you get the answers after you have completed all of your moves, then you get the game with annotated. The combats are extremely challenging, maybe too hard for most kids. To get prepared for this stage of training, I reccomend that you first work through the awesome "Chess for Juniors" books. Also, you should do a lot of tactics. Each combat will take a long time, but it's worth it.

If you enjoy playing solataire chess then this is a book you must have. Even if you dont use the rating scale, its a very fine collection of games with first rate analysis. Dont shy away becasue the ratings start at 1600. Anybody willing to put in the work will no doubt improve by going through this book. I own many books but these are the ones I cannot put down and usually finish within a month. My rating is right around 1800 but I have been scoring in the 2200's so the scale is very inflated.

The combat simulator consists of 50 grandmaster games, laid out like
Pandolfini's "Solitaire Chess" column in Chess Life magazine. Points
are earned for guessing the right moves. There is often more than one
choice, and partial credit is given. After the game is over and
scoring is complete, Bosch goes through the game again with full
annotations. Therefore this approach is a little less efficient than
Pandolfini's, but more realistic in terms of simulating true combat,
where there aren't artificial hints along the way. The scores are
converted to approximate ELO ratings, from 1600 up to 2500+. That
suggests that the book is targeted to fairly strong players, certainly
no lower than 1600, and perhaps even 1800 would be a reasonable lower
bound. I found the book to be extremely challenging, but also very
instructive. For those willing to put in some hard work, this book
will help you to sharpen your ability to analyze positions deeply.

With the remarkable increase in the number of tournaments and weekend congresses over the last decade, the understanding of the Laws of Chess, and the way they work in practice, is of paramount importance to all chess players. To date, organizers and participants have had no authority to which they could refer, but this gap has now been filled by Bozidar Kazic, the Chief Arbiter of FIDE, with contributions from Dragutin Djaja, a FIDE International Arbiter; Martin Morrison, past President of the FIDE Rules Commission; and Arpad Elo, creator and developer of the official FIDE Rating System. This book includes a detailed explanation of the FIDE Rating System and the method by which all International Titles are awarded. All controllers will benefit from the thorough coverage afforded to the various forms of the Swiss System and other tournament systems.

I am chess arbiter and I believe that this book can be available for basic knowledge of all the world's arbiters. Include a lot of real cases available for training, a complete description of ratings system, swiss system and others tournament regulations. My personal recommendation for all the arbiters.

With the remarkable increase in the number of tournaments and weekend congresses over the last decade, the understanding of the Laws of Chess, and the way they work in practice, is of paramount importance to all chess players. To date, organizers and participants have had no authority to which they could refer, but this gap has now been filled with this book. The book also includes a detailed explanation of the FIDE (World Chess Federation) Rating System and the method by which International Titles are awarded, and all tournament directors will benefit from the torough coverage afforded to the various forms of the Swiss System and other tournament expenses.

This book is well written. It has fascinating positions where Fischer may or may not be winning material wise. The downside is that the notation is quite antiquate. You have to remember K for King and Kn for Knight. I prefer N for the latter. The algebraic system is better.

Notation aside, this is a big book with lots of great games. I think you'll be surprised by the authors work.

The book shows the tactics of playing chess by Bobby Fischer . So one can easily improve the ways of playing chess by readtng this book.

The author collected about a hundred (I didn't really count them) of Fischer's games, together with some chess problems and some GM and master games to draw the parallel between Fischer's play and chess great players'. The author grouped the games in endgames, middle-games and openings. Fischer had many outstanding endgames, but also there were a few games he was lucky to draw it because his opponents missed the wins. There too were some games Fischer couldn't win because of lack of experience (the next time around he would win convincingly after reviewing the theory). The part of middle-games showed how much better and stronger-will he was compared to his opponents. About the openings we all know Fischer had a narrow repertoire, however his is deeper than anyone before and after his time. There had been some systems he was not lucky with, but he stuck to them throughout to prove his points. Then by his most important match, the championship match with Spassky, he sprung out the Queen Pawn opening, the Alekhine and some he seldom employed. And he won! There were not many drawn or lost games of Fischer's in this book, but they are instructive. (And it's good for us to know.)
The games in the book were not deeply analyzed but there are many of them. With a computer programs it is easy to improve the analyses. As the title said, "The chess of Bobby Fischer." It's all about the chess skills or the psychology that Fischer experienced during the games. For more of the personal aspect, the book by Gufeld is a good complement to this book.