Chess Books

In General about Trap Books: Books on chess traps should be an excellent way to learn tactics and openings at the same time. This is because you see all of the moves leading up to the actual tactic being employed (unlike books that give a diagram and the tactic starts from there). You can learn important ideas in specific openings also knowing how to avoid traps as well as well as executing them.
"Winning Chess Traps for Juniors": Has 64 short games with often numerous traps within a single game (unlike numerous other trap books that will create separate traps and use up space for nothing). They are arranged by type of opening (openings can be looked up quickly in the table of contents). The analysis is very accurate (I have computer checked the analysis and wow! Perfect in every respect, unlike some of the other traps and tactic books I have seen that contain faulty analysis). There are a nice variety of openings containing your most common type of traps and tactics. There is an analysis of moves leading up to the trap (unlike numerous trap books I have seen that have most if not all of the analysis when the trap is reached) and where the player went wrong along with the improvement is pointed out. This book fits in well as part of a series by the author with material being consistant (however, you don't need the author's other books to get full use of this book as this does just find as a stand-alone book).
Who this book is for: Written is easy to understand language, it is at about a fourth or fifth grade reading level. If you are an adult, don't let the easy language snub this book - it is perfect for adults! Once you know the very basics of chess (know how the pieces move, and have just been introduced to the ideas behind the openings) this book becomes very useful. However, it contains analysis that an advanced beginner or intermediate player will very extremely useful.

Author Robert Snyder plead guilt to charges of molesting one of his former students! (I also like how he ripped of the title of Chernev's classic book!)

I have finally found a book on opening traps that gives an explanation of the ideas behind the moves from the very beginning of the game (covering ideas behind the openings) to the end of the tactical trap. No cheap tricks! Good, solid analysis is given for both common and less common openings (very well rounded when it comes to having a variety of different openings).

You will learn the important tactics found in the opening such as, Legal's Mate, analysis of Philidor's Legecy, Noah's Arc Trap, Classic Bishop Sacrifice, Poisoned Pawn, Double Rook Sacrifice, with all of the usual forks, pins, skewers, and much, much more. Seeing the moves leading up to the tactics makes this a more effective way to learn traps and tactics than a book that has just diagrams with problems to work on. Within the sixty four short games there are actually hundreds of traps covered. The reasons why a weak move is weak and what should have been played in its place is explained. You have detailed analysis!

This is a book for any age. It is good for a beginner who has perhaps read an introductory book and now wants to learn tactics and openings. I also would recommend it for intermediate players or for chess teachers to use as material with students. Throughout the book the reader is asked to find the best move at critical points (makes it a fun challenge).

The traps are organized by type of opening with a good table of contents allowing you to quickly find different tactics you might be looking for or to focus on a specific opening. Where a lot of detail is covered in one of the author's other books the reader is told which other book and where it can be found. Most traps average 2-3 pages. This is a solid book with lots of material that is made clear and easy to understand. There are nearly 400 diagrams making so that an intermediate player can usually follow without a board.

I give this book my highest recommendation!

I just got this book (in the new LARGE PRINT edition that is exactly the same book, except it is super-sized and is like a big workbook) and have not been able to put it down! Instead of just being given a position and trying to find the solution like lots of tactics books, in this book you get to see everything that happened before the tactics happen. This book also tells the ideas behind the moves and you are learning about the openings that have the tactics. You are asked to "find the best move" and there are plenty of diagrams to make it easy to follow along. You can use a sheet of paper to cover up the next moves so you do not accidentally see the answer. This is a fun book and I think it is one of the best ways to learn tactics and improve your understanding of the ideas behind the openings.

As a chess teacher (and tournament player) who has been teaching grades 3 through 8 in local schools "Winning Chess Traps for Juniors" has been a lot awaited book.

When given a short period of about 20 to 25 minutes for instruction a chess teacher needs to maximize the use of time with the most efficient way to teach a variety of important ideas to the students. With this book I can cover the most important tactics along with teaching opening concepts at the same time - kill two birds with one stone! The students like being shown how a tactic is reached before it is executed! So, here we go with these 64 mini-lessons (each often containing many tactics and traps on the side - clearly pointed out) that the students enjoy.

This book has a nice lay-out making it easy to read. The language is clear (I certainly feel than an upper level elementary school student could easily understand the reading level). The games being are in order of openings with the main theme shown in the title (also covered in the table of contents). Therefore, a teacher (or student) can select games based on type of opening or type of trap/tactic and find them quickly. The 196 pages contain a lot of extremely useful information. There is a nice variety of openings (1. e4, 1.d4 and others) without an over emphasis on any one type.

The level of this book is ideal for children or adults who are just past having grasped the basic rules and maybe know some very basic strategy, right on up to the average tournament player. Because of the material being covered and the way it is presented this book is for beginning players rated from 500 up to intermediate players rated 1600.

I have seen most of the other books on chess traps. None of them provide the detail and quality of analysis found in this book (and most others are not up to date). I also have found going through a short game containing a tactic to be a far superior way of providing instruction as opposed to using a book that only has the tactic, but not how it was set up.

I am looking at this book from a "chess teacher's" point of view and highly recommend it for anyone running a chess class or for students of all ages who want to simultaneously improve their knowledge of tactics and openings.

This book is broken down into sections covering a variety of attacking themes and prerequisites for launching decisive attacks on your opponent's king. By playing through the many fantastic examples presented in the book, one sees over and over the beauty of sacrificial, tactical chess. I enjoyed this book very much and would recommend it to anyone who loves the game.

First id like to say that my opinion on this book is quite emotional. This book is simply beautifull in the way it shows so clearly the main elements necesary to carry and attack on the king from one of the greatest attackers if not the greatest. To give some objective information for the buyer the book is divide by stages ( as much as an attack can be divided in stages ) and carrys the reader through them quite clearly , even if you didnt understood the explanations , you would get the knowledge from doing your homework of analisying yourself along with the analisys of the authors. Mikhail Tal died before finishing this book and therefore theres one chapter missing on queen sacrifices , but nevertheless the book is great , specially if you find yourself toothless when the matter in hand is carrying an efective attack on the king and in general. To be honest i had to read the book twice , the second time i read it backwards ( it simply clicked when i did it that way ). I carry the book most of the time with me to do some quick reviewing when ever i can. At the time i read the book i was already the champion on my club , but mostly in account of the poor positional and tactical decisions of my oponents , now im just bringing them to their knees. Last game i played ( against a german player ) i threw an attack on the kingside ,even though there was no outposts or lines (based on the assault ration concept Tal exposes in the book ), and then after making my oponent become completely passive i redirected an attack on the weakenesses left on the queen side and winning an important piece and the game. The diference in that game is that i was so clear and what was there and was not that i was able to come up with a more complete plan and enjoy more thorough understanding of my attack posibilities. Enjoy

Even from reading the first few pages my abilities as an attacker on the board has gotten better. To those who ever wonder how he manages to find the right time to attack, this book will show you how. my only complaint is that the book does not discuss attacking on the queenside.

There comes a point in a tournament chess player's development when they are familiar with the "standard" tactical [and positional] themes: they know to go for the kill on, say, f7/f2 against a king stranded in the center (to me a "stranded" king is a stronger precondition for an early attack than an "uncastled" one). They can find (or at least know when to look for) "King's Field" sacrifices and combinations. They can find "Mate in X" when the position requires it.

To me, this brilliant work is about COMPENSATION for sacrificed material in the form of much greater COORDINATION of one's forces than the opponent has of his. And often, the disparity of coordination that pops up is not immediate; rather, the attacking side has a greater ABILITY to develop/coordinate their pieces in the ensuing battle. The opponent's pieces may find themselves sealed off on one flank, or unable to rush to the defense in time.

The thread running through Rudolph Spielmann's THE ART OF SACRIFICE IN CHESS (which I reveiewed previously) is the notion of COMPENSATION when the sacrifices are not of a decisive nature. Upon looking at his examples, the reader can rationalize the material investment as being entirely justified.

With ATTACK WITH MIKHAIL TAL, however, this notion of COMPENSATION is much less clear for, I suspect, most of us. The 8th World Champion (1960) was adept at "Making it Work." The defensive resistance put up by Morphy's opponents was, generally, pathetic. By contrast, Tal stormed his way to the top by hacking to pieces many of the greatest chess players the world has ever seen (for example, he went 4-0 against Bobby Fischer in the 1959 Candidates Tournament, and beat Mikhail Botvinnik by 4 points in the 1960 World Championship Match).

The attacking prowess of the Magician from Riga becomes understandable when reading this work, because he and Damsky explain the thought process behind it so well. All of this said, it takes a great amount of study and boldness to try and integrate this into one's own play! I know I certainly haven't been able to do it yet, but will continue to try!

This book is structured into nine chapters.
1. Enemy King in the center - shows how to keep the king in the center and to attack it.
2. Breakthrough in the Center - The theme still revolves around trapping the enemy king in the center for material sacrifice.
3. The Assault Ratio - Shows how to tear apart the enemy fortress
4. Invasion trajectories - Shows how to attack on the diagonals
5. Lines of Communication - Shows how to break the enemies lines of communications to set up an attack.
6 Outposts - Shows how a piece outpost beyond the 4th rank is a thorn in the enemies army.
7. Eliminating Defenders - Shows how to get rid of those pesky defenders when attacking.
8. At the Royal Court - Shows how to break apart a castled position.
9. Destroying the Fortress walls - summs up with bxh7+ and double bishop sacrifices when the enemey pawn cover has not been touched. Also nxf7 and nxg7 sacrifices.
There is a chapter missing on queenside sacrifices, but alas the magician from riga passed away before completing the book, so it's not his fault.

Obviously written for us "average" patzers but probably an entertaining and illuminating review for our more talented adversaries. I was very much taken by use of fictional club players and the welter of diagrams makes it easy to read without resort to having a board all the time.

I have the original edition from the '70s. This is a very enjoyable book. Although my rating is about 2000 USCF, I still find much of the material to be enlightening and simply fun. For the price there is a LOT of nice chess packed into this book. You won't finish it in a week. And the sense of fun and humor are great.

I'd say any player from about 1200 USCF up to high expert level (maybe 2150) would find this a good book, with perhaps those around 1400-1700 getting the most benefit. And like I said, it's priced well and covers a lot of ground in an enjoyable fashion.

I may buy another copy to see what's been changed since the '70s. The extra copy will make a great gift.

This is a very good book for the average chess player who is looking to improve with a short, well rounded book. Topics covered include Attack, Defence, Planning, Positional Play, and Endings. I particularly enjoyed the sections on Planning, Positional Play, and Endings.

If you often find yourself struggling in roughly level, but quiet, positions and wondering what to do next, then you may find the antidote in here. The book contains a very good section on how to assess a position and then create a logical plan based on that assessment.

The Ending section is also very well done, and manages to cram quite a bit of essential endgame knowledge into very few words and pages. While this portion of the book is by no means exhaustive, or in itself a complete course, those who read it will have a better idea of how to approach the endgame and may even be inspired by it to tackle one of the many books dedicated to this phase of the game.

Construction is typical Dover quality, with easy to read text and diagrams, and algebraic notation.

It's a bit dated (they even warn about this in the new preface). It's a bit silly/overdramatic at times. It doesn't have 500 pages of puzzles, and doesn't promise instant results. It wasn't written by a big-name grandmaster.

But it's quite useful for someone who knows how the pieces move, has probably played in a tournament or two, and just wants some simple, practical ideas on how to become a better player. I really appreciated Mr. Harding's down-to-earth advice, and anyone who's gotten past the "dropping pieces in every game" stage will find something of value here. It's impressively readable for a chess book, and I learned something useful from every chapter.

Let's face it, we all know what we need to do: study effectively, and play chess. Better Chess for Average Player will help with both.

I read this book twice and have no doubt that I will use it in the future. It is full of experience and suggestions that would be very beneficial for any serious chess player. I will recommend this book to any one because of the following reasons:

1. It is well organized. Different topics (small topic) are divided into units. Each unit is only a few pages long. Therefore, I only need about one hour to get the idea of each unit.
2. It is well diagrammed. You must have the experience that when you replay a game, there is only one diagram for the entire game. But in this book, a diagram is given after about 7 or 8 moves so that you can play the in-between moves in your head and check the diagram. You don't need a board for most positions. How convenient!
3. It is well written. There is no deep theory, complicated analysis, nor frequent refering to other games. The author clearly explains each position and his language is like a normal human being instead of a chess machine. Occational stories about their chess clubs enhances the readability of this book.

Need I say more?

One reader complains that only 250 positions is given and not 300 positions. I think I know why. These positions are derived from the opening repetoire ! Since the readers have different opening repetoire, the author cannot provide these postions. The reader has to find out what these position are based on his opening repetoire.

On the surface, the book seems to be a philisophical tome on strategy from Tzun and the art of war along with 240+ chess diagrams with 59 games without annotation. Many will take a superficial look at this work and toss the book without knowing that they merely saw the TIP of the iceberg.

A deeper analysis of the book reveals that the positions provided (which includes ESSENTIAL endgame and middlegame positions), are in fact carefully chosen and each illustrates an important aspect of chess strategy, tactics, and endgame. Are the answers given? Absolutely NOT! It is your job to do the proper research to come up with the answer yourself. Utilize any resources you can (ie. Fundamental Chess Endings / Along with books on chess strategy will help...using a chess engine is another option). The author wants you to be intimately involved with the each and every position: what if its "Black to move"? What if i change the position of some of the pieces? What about only one? What tactical motifs are availible? If you come up with a solution yourself, and you do an honest amount of research into each of the particular positions, you are well on your way to mastery. You are not at a total loss however, since the Classical Games provided at the end of the book included all the middlegame positions. So you can see what moves/plans were in the positions provided.

As far as my results are concerned, I understand chess a LOT more and have gained about 200 rating points 1600 to 1800 USCF. Ive only been through a mere fraction of the problems, and there is always more to learn from most of them. I reccomend this book to students of the game who are go-getters and look at this book as if YOU are completing the work.

I too reacted as did other reviewers, with an emphatic "What's THIS?" when confronted with page after page of diagrams that don't even indicate which side is on move, and then further pages of master games with nary a hint of an annotation.

I bought the book, initially, to have a collection of positions to use in doing "Stoyko" studies--- briefly, rich middlegame positions to analyze deeply. This book will certainly provide that, but as I'm learning, it will provide still more.

Willing to at least give the author's approach a try, I took the first master game and played over it again and again until I had it memorized. And a funny thing happened. At each replaying, I found myself asking more, different, and deeper questions. Then, I found the diagram in the book that was taken from this game, and it suddenly all clicked.

What it's all about is doing your own analysis, and doing it deeply and repeatedly, taking and revising copious notes as you go along, a la the Stoyko method. Eventually, you will have to check your results with a strong computer program (or a teacher of a least IM level, if you're fortunate enough to have one). But you need to put a minimum of several hours into each game or position before you even think about checking your results. Then you need to put in more hours understanding the computer analysis (or your teacher's guidance). I'm thinking about 10 hours per position or game is required here (that's about where I am), maybe even more.

So what the book is all about, on the bottom line, is hard work. The author provides the raw material--- positions and games that have great teaching value and presumably practical play value. You then put in the hours and the labor (and though it's hard I'm finding it quite enjoyable and rewarding).

It might take you literally a couple of thousand hours to fully work through the book. But I can't help but believe that will lead to serious mastery of many aspects of the game. Stoyko himself claims a potential improvement of about 100 rating points for doing a single deep position study. Obviously there will be diminishing returns, but doing over two hundred such studies, as contained in the book, has simply got to make you into a solid player.

The book (at present writing) can be obtained quite inexpensively on the used market. If (and only if) you're willing to put in the effort, it will be money very well spent.

When I decided to dig my heels in and get serious about chess, this was the first book I bought, mainly because the author connected chess to language (I'm a painter, using "visual languge", so I was intrigued by the annalogy).

After a few introductory pages on "Chess as Language" and a very interesting chapter linking chess to the strategies of Sun Tzu (another interest of mine), the book finishes with its basic positions: king and pawn endings, minor piece endings, rook endings, etc. This is followed by key tactical middle game positions, along with about 60 classical games from which the middle game positions are derived. You are expected to memorize the games!

Now, these positions have no explanations (except for a few rook endings used as an example of how well you need to know each position.) The book, then, is essentially useless unless you have the End Game books Ziatdinov used to gather the positions (they are listed in the book's bibliography).

What is one to make of this? The answers are not given. There is so much work to do! You have to memorize games? Nearly 300 positions? Well, this is one of the most honest chess books ever. The author makes no appologies: this is the work you must do to master chess.

Between 1997 and 1999 Ziatdinov won 200 tournaments (about two a week) and was the winner of the USA Grand Prix. He currently has 5-7 Grand Master Norms, so do not let his title of "IM" fool you!

I should mention after working very hard, I fell flat on my face in chess and was about to quit. I decided to try to contact Mr. Ziatdinov--he is one of the most generous teachers I have ever encountered, and I believe his method of teaching (and playing...every game, every move he uses the positions in "GM: RAM") is the best. His way is challenging, but as he often says, "There is no King's Road in chess," no easy fix.

So far, I have found using "GM: RAM" in conjunction with "Fundamental Chess Endings" to be _very_ beneficial. My favorite part of "GM RAM" is the fantastic collection of classic games.

"GM RAM" is _not_ an instructional book. To me, it is almost a puzzle unto itself, yes, a challenge. Track down the positions, or even similiar positions that illustrate the same key _ideas_, analyze them with a teacher or a powerful chess program (like Fritz). These positions are the basic building blocks GMs use in all their games--learn them _cold_.

Good luck!

The title is short for "Grandmaster - Random Access Memory" suggesting that its contents are all those bits of knowledge that the chess greats have at their fingertips. The meat of the book consists of 256 "essential" endgame and middlegame positions, plus 59 classic games (none later than 1936!). The positions are drawn from the games. The author asserts that by completely understanding these essential positions, as well as memorizing the games, the reader will achieve grandmaster level ability. The author is an accomplished tournament player and trainer. He has now achieved the Grandmaster title himself.

I am skeptical of the "300 essential positions" idea, which apparently has its roots in Russian folklore, but then the success of Soviet chess in the past two generations cannot be denied. I have also read elsewhere that memorizing a large volume of master games somehow "primes" the brain for a great leap in chess skill; perhaps another explanation is that in order to memorize a game the reader has to understand it well, too.

Here's the catch: The book does not actually give any answers. The positions are there, without even an indication of whose move it is. The games are accompanied by the barest annotations - just a few Informator-type symbols (not even in all games). It could be that a highly motivated reader could put in the long hours to work out the solutions, and benefit thereby. However, the same reader would do all the better to have immediate feedback available to correct any errors or to furnish deeper insights. Ultimately, I think that the reader would be better much served to have solutions in the back as in traditional puzzle books (or on the right side pages, which are blank).

The first 136 positions are important endgame positions, which I agree to be essential for the tournament player. The middlegame positions include a mix of straight tactical problems to questions of a strategic nature. It is harder to evaluate whether they constitute an "essential" set. In any case it is hard to imagine that any collection of merely 120 middlegame positions could suffice for mastery. I noticed that sometimes positions from the same game appear in close proximity, giving the reader an unintended hint as to the right course of action.

The game collection is interesting, but I question the value of using such ancient games. Surely the author could have come up with 59 recent games that illustrate the modern dynamic style, and use theoretically fresh openings.

With these considerable reservations I can recommend the book to any fairly advanced chess enthusiast who is willing to work through the material with the help of a strong computer engine (or better yet, a strong player or coach). Other readers might find a natural and superior alternative in Lev Alburt's marvellous "Chess Training Pocket Book". Alburt also takes the "essential positions" theory, but gives you 300 of them, as well as good instructive solutions. Those not yet wishing to memorize the games (I have not attempted it) might instead try to annotate the games themselves, then comparing their notes to material already existing in other literature. That is a very useful exercise, and might make later memorization easier.

There are some disposable introductory prose chapters concerning a "language of chess" justification for the author's approach, and the wisdom of ancient Chinese warrior-philosopher Sun Tzu.

A book for those who want to improve your chess in a high level!

I love to solve problems, so I bought a lot of books on combinations, tactics etc. For some classics, like " combinative motifs ", I even bought two. One use as exercises ( I think most reader would do the same, after finishing one question, one would take it ). The second book for collection. Today I receive with thrill to this book, but on seeing those questions, I only manage to solve one or two without *!!! I have already finished John Nunn's Learn chess tactics, about two third of those two stars questions of " Sharpen your tactics". I think the name of this book should be called, "tactics, stretgy or puzzles for advanced players!!! But I still give it 5 stars for author's enthusiasm.
Also, I think I should work harder!!!

I agree with the previous reviews but I wanted to emphasize(unnecessarily? perhaps) their point that this interesting and worthwhile collection of problems does not have much in the way of actual text demonstrating "how to think creatively and avoid foolish mistakes" - this is primarily a tactics collection. Solving the tactics exercises would require you to apply your creativity and probably learn to avoid mistakes by not allowing these situations to go unexploited, but honestly, if you have a tactics book already, then you have the basic idea already: practice, practice, practice.

I'm glad I have the book nonetheless because these problems do require imagination to solve and are not "composed" problems, they're from actual games.

Four stars for the reasons other people have given: the instructions are rather sparse and the book doesn't indicate beforehand that these problems are for intermediate players or better.

Gaprindashvili's examples are exceedingly difficult (I wouldn't recommend this to players under USCF/FIDE 1800), but it's an extremely well-done collection of critical positions ORGANIZED BY THE THOUGHT PROCESS NECESSARY TO SOLVE THEM EFFICIENTLY.

In many cases, the obvious move doesn't work, but the obvious move suggests a move that wasn't one of the original candidates.

We are not computers--we can't possibly look at every move three moves deep. Gaprindashvili's method is to drill the student in a METHOD of finding critical moves and analyzing them in an efficient fashion.

Valeri Beim's How to Calculate Chess Tactics teaches a similar approach, somewhat more accessibly.

Serious players should read both books (Beim first). Both books demand serious effort--both books will make you a much stronger tactician.

This book is a collection of chess problems. "Imagination in Chess" is for the chess player who has worked through Reinfeld, Combination Challenge!, and the other problem books by Emms, Nunn, and Archangelsky. The problems in here are very difficult. The only reason that this book fails to get five stars is because of the inaccurate title. This book has very little about imagination and thinking creatively--it is almost all chess problems.

This book is a classic. It goes through numerous starting middle game positions that arise out of the different openings and explains the strategies of each middle game position before illustrating some representative examples. I highly recommend this book for anyone who likes to learn more about the middle game.

I guess classic is the right word for it, for better and for worse.
it has quite an old attitude, before the modern chess (sacrifices are not even considered an option, if there is no immediate benefit).
good for beginners (say up to 1700), but I think that's about it.

you can see a remark on this book in the introduction of Watson's book:
Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy

This book is outstanding if you want to get better at chess,
buy both volumes of this book.
Forget the opening until you've gone through this book.
It may take some time to go through,but believe you me ,it
we be more than worth it.

These are wonderfully instructive books. Full games are used to illustrate specific points. If enjoy Euwe and Meidens's Chess Master vs. Chess Amateur, let these be your next books on strategy. (I suggest sticking with an author you like.) These are probably most helpful for someone rated between 1600 and 1800 USCF. (Never waste time on chess books that are over your head.)

If you have trouble with the binding, search the web for the books in ChessBase format. They are encrypted, and the key is found in the books themselves. So once you have bought the books, you can read them in ChessBase at no extra charge.

4 stars for the books, plus one for the files.

(NOTE: For some reason Amazon sells te two volumes of this book--"Static" and "Dynamic" features-seperately. This review refers to both volumes.)

Buy this book. It is well-written, instructive, and will help your rating. It is also... honest, modest, and civilized. With the reader's permission, I will explain these three less common features first.

By "honesty" I mean that this book--by a world champion (Euwe) and a strong gradnmaster (Kramer) is obviously not the case of the world champion lending his name to the book and letting the other author do all the work. Clearly--as can be seen by the inclusion of many deeply-annotated games by Euwe (as well as by Kramer), he did a lot of the work himself. By "modesty" I mean that the book often includes lesser-known games that both Euwe and Kramer *lost*--as long as their opponents played in an instructive fashion. The authors don't try to make themselves look like invincible supermen; they only care about teaching the reader. By "civlized" I mean that the writing style is sober and to the point. The English translation (and presumably the original Dutch) is refreshingly free of slang and superlatives. So is the analysis itself: when the authors speak--for instance--about different pawn formations in the center, they note which type of formation usually arises from what kind of opening and how to play it, and give instructive games as examples. C'est tout. They do not include any waffle about "development" or "the center" in general as space fillers, explicit or implicit promises that if you only learn to play these formations you will become an expert/master/grandmaster/world champion (as some unscrupulous authors do), or games full of "!!" punctuations for moves that merely follow the correct general plan.

So much for style. What about the chess content itself? The book is divided into a few large topics, each of them excellently presented. The first volume is wholly occupied with "static" features: pawn formation, material imbalance, etc. The second deals (first of all) with two types of "dynamic" issues--that is, issues that depend not so much on the *number* or *formation* of the pieces but on their *activity*: the initiative, second, attack and defense against the king.

These issues are crucial to becoming a better chess player. What's more, Euwe and Kramer deal with the matter in severely practical style. They concentrate on the "problem-solving" issues players face: "when to exchange pawns or lock the center, and when should I keep the tension?" "what are the most important goals a defender must keep in mind?", "when I have two rooks for the queen, what should I do?", and so on. This is a far more practical way to improve than merely learning general strategic principles, since it connects directly to features of the common positions amateurs can actually recognize over the board in their actual games. In particular, the initiative is not seen as some mysterious, Grandmaster-only feature of the game, but defined clearly and distinguished from the *attack*--something amateurs very, very often confuse. How to correctly turn the initiative into an attack--a crucial feature of master chess that's utterly lacking from most amateur games--is dealt with in a particularly enlightening fashion.

The latter sections of the second book is worth the price of both books all by themselves (without diminishing the importance of what comes before). They deal with two exceedingly important issues for amateurs: when and how to exchange pieces, and how to avoid the two most common strategic mistakes amateurs make (snatching material and premature attack) in a very enlightening fashion. Most amateurs know vaguely some general principles of the "exchange pieces when ahead in material", "don't grab pawns", or "attack only when ready" but there is a *lot* more to both subject than that. Read the book and learn.

The only section of the book that may be a bit over the head of most amateurs is that of "style". In it, the games of various greats are examined in terms of their preference for positions with one type of feature over another (say, master X prefered piece activity to solid pawn formation, while master Y was best in positions with two bishops, etc.) The one problem is that the student better know VERY well what these elements of the middlegame are before he can begin to understand what preference for one element over another really means (I haven't reached that stage, myself.) That said, this section, as all the others, avoids superlatives (e.g., the "genius" of Capablanca and Morphy, etc.) in favor of concrete games and examples of their style.

I got a copy of this some time ago, I read is several times. It is a superb beginner's book. I recommend it highly.

It's been about fifteen years since I first picked up this book and was introduced to the fantastic game of Shogi. I don't think I've played a game of chess since then. Unlike chess, when an opponent's piece is captured it becomes yours to place on the board as a future move. In this way all forty pieces remain in play until the last move. The board is 9x9 giving it 81 squares as opposed to the 64 on a chess board. Most of the pieces can become more powerful by entering the opponent's "camp" and making another more. This book brings you into game carefully and shows you many of the unlimited ways to create a good defense, work on undermining your opponents, and how to go in for the kill. There are also many quotes on shogi strategy and end game puzzles that are good for honing skills.

If Shogi suddenly became your obsession, do not look any further. This is the best introduction and you will not just flip through its pages, but spend time thinking and going back and forth. I can rave more, but what is the point? Just get it and start reading. You won't regret it.

Just the other day I came across the copy of this book I bought 4 years ago. It brought back so many memories. A Japanese friend bought be a shogi set as a gift, and out of codependent tendencies I felt obligated to learn how to play the game. Its a fascinating game because unlike chess, when you capture the pieces you can reverse it and use it against your opponent, so you not only have to think about "position" (also envisioning drops) but exchanges in the *literal*

sense of the world.

Anyway, at the time it was the only book I could find... I read it, I played it, I beat him... he stopped returning my phone calls. Within a year I wound up going to Japan, playing at the local Shogi dojos... I even became friends with some famous shogi players... reached sho-dan level. The definitely set me on a journey... Thinking about it, I'm almost depressed to think I haven't played in about a year or so. Still, looking back I can say that this book set me on the right path. Your next step is to learn how to read Japanese numbers, then go to your local Japanese book store. You can buy books that show shogi matches move by move or have problems. Though you won't be able to read the explanations, you definitely won't be in the dark.

Anyway, when you finish this book, if you're thinking of becoming an English teacher in Japan, the good news is you *will* be able to wip most your students. Its not as popular as young people as it used to be, and if you play with an adult, they'll think you're a "henna gaijin" and buy you a drink !

P.S. No, this isn't the same thing as GO ! ! !

I am a B USCF chess player, but have been interested in shogi(and other chess variants). I knew how to play shogi before, but this book gives good guidelines on proper play. I like the 3-move-mate problems (mate in 2 for yall westerners) because by the time i went though them, I was more comfortable with the movement of the pieces and had memorized the japanese symbols. This book also has a full game taken apart and analyzed so that you can "see" what's going on. This book also has whole chapters on strategy and tactics. If you're interested in this game, and are still at the learning stages, and I assume you are because good shogi books in english are hard to find, this this the book to show you the way.

This is a wonderful book that every chessplayer should own. When I was a teenager, I read a comment by a chess bookseller who mentioned a master who had played through every game in this book in his youth, and had said what a great book it was. At first I snorted derisively, but I decided to look at the games myself. Over a period of several years, I played through, analyzed, and annotated the first 800 or so games in the book. I also became a master, and this book is a significant part of the reason why.

Chernev loved chess, and said that he had probably played over more chess games than anyone in history. (This book was published in 1954, long before the days of chess databases, or even Chess Informant; Chernev had to read through thousands of chess books and magazines, some quite obscure, to assemble these games.) The games Chernev has selected are very entertaining and some are quite beautiful. The games are very lightly annotated by Chernev, so for the most part it is up to the reader to figure out where the loser (and often both players) went wrong. Careful study of the games in the book will acquaint you with practically every tactical idea there is, and will help you avoid mistakes yourself, and exploit those of your opponent. I see tactical ideas very quickly, and I think this book is part of the reason why.

Several reviewers have stated that the book is a pricey collector's item these days. It is indeed possible to spend a lot of money for it, but several booksellers here are selling it for $13-14. New chess books today cost about twice that, and are usually a lot smaller than this tome, so this book is quite a bargain. I bought the paperback over 30 years ago when it was still in print. A couple of pages came loose over the years. I've since bought another paperback and a hardcover copy of the book, copied my original annotations into the paperback, and given away my original dog-eared paperback to a friend. I couldn't bear to throw out any copy of a book for which I have such affection!

This is a really fine book with well-selected and commented miniatures, the study of which is both a real pleasure and a fine learning tool. I am using this book to try to learn to play without a board ("blindfold"). The games are short enough to attempt to play mentally, and since the book starts with short games and goes up in length it's just the right kind of exercise.

I highly recommend this book if you can get it at a price below $50 (I paid over $30 for a very beat-up trade paperback). This is a real classic but unfortunately seems to have become both rare and in demand, and therefore expensive.

This is the best chess book for anybody who wishes to improve their results. Play through all the games and u will internalise lots of tactical ideas which will boost your playing strength. The book is a collection of miniature games ranging from 4 moves to 24 moves long in order of length of games (lots of fun to play through). Not only do u get to learn lots of tactical ideas effortlessly but also get to see the principles of good chess in action like rapid development, weakening the king or weak colour complexes etc. I am surprised nobody has ever thought of putting it back in print!

1000 BEST SHORT GAMES OF CHESS: A Treasury of Masterpieces in Miniature (c.1955) by Irving Chernev is more than just a collection of quick chess games, it contains the games of several important historical figures such as: Leo Tolstoy; Jean Jacques Rousseau; and Napoleon Bonaparte.

It also contains the game made famous in Stanley Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey', known as the POOLE vs. HAL 9000 game to Kubrick fans - it is game #322, Roesch v. Schlage in 1910 Hamburg, Germany, 0-1, on page 148 in the c1955 Chernev edition.

By using short games as played throughout chess history, the reader can follow chess before popular defences were invented, such as the defence (#167) Remusat used against Napoleon, 0-1,1802 Paris; and readers can also learn solid chess moves such as dazzling sacrifices, picturesque long range mates, and epaulette mates. The book also contains some interesting blind folded plays, correspondence chess, and a few checker games thrown in.

The 1000 SHORT GAMES OF CHESS (c.1955) by Irving Chernov is useful enough and interesting enough for modern chess players that they might want to browse through second hand book stores to add this copy to their chess libraries, or keep it close to the recliner for a learned reading at night.

This is a very useful book in that it gives you 1000 games won in the openings. This is really a book on opening traps. You will find games impossible to find elsewhere. I know this is a hard to get classic but my dad has a copy from many years ago and it is fun to go through the different short games. It doesn't have much analysis unlike "Winning Chess Traps for Juniors", but it does have more games than any single book I have seen. I think the tactics in the openings found in this book will really help you improve both what you know about openings and what you know about tactics in action!

Fred Wilson's 101 QUESTIONS ON HOW TO PLAY CHESS is an explanation of the basics of the game in, as one can imagine from the title, question and answer format. Wilson starts from the very beginning, listing how the pieces move, how the board is arranged, and the rules of check and checkmate. He introduces the concept algebraic notation very early, and then proceeds to use it throughout. The book runs through some very basic strategy, and then ends with some guidance on periodicals and joining a club.

If you are a total beginner at chess, this book may work as well as any other introduction to the game. However, you'll want to pick up Tim Harding's Better Chess for Average Players (New York: Dover, 1996) because Wilson's book doesn't really prepare you to hold your own against stronger players. If you are no longer a total novice at chess, this book may still be worth buying. There's a totally annotated game here that holds some interest, as well as a bibliography of various useful books for players from beginning to intermediate. Since the book was published priced as low as the Dover Thrift Editions, it may be worth it.

I got this book in combinatation with "Chess For Juniors". Wow! I really improved. These books go very good together for a new player or person who has been playing but has not read much on chess before.

Everyone complains of not spending enough time with their children. We are constantly involved with electronic pursuits. For less than four dollars you can buy a passport to an hour of thoughtful pursuit and conversation with your child. Chess improves thought patterns and encourages long term thought. The book is easy to read, helpful, concise and you can buy the game of Chess on Amazon. Nuf said.

If you are a scholastic chess coach I highly recommend that you by a stack of these and give them to your kids. At this price anyone can afford to get a good start at chess!

This is an excellent beginner's book as well as a quick refresher for intermediate players. Fred Wilson poses and answers 101 questions ranging from "4. Is there a special way the board should be placed?" and "26. How does the knight move?" to "73. What exactly throws off beginners in the endgame?"

The book is only 76 pages and, as a Dover publication, costs about a dollar. I give one of these away to every friend and acquaintance I teach chess to, and so far I've always been thanked for it. Of course, I also keep one for myself, to help me remember the important points of endgames and what terms like "fianchetto" mean. Fred Wilson covers a great range of beginning chess topics in a very small and inexpensive volume. There's no reason not to buy a copy or two.

As Fischer's "My 60 memorable games" only cover up the 1967, but the period making him a legend is the period 1970 to 1972, in fact some of the greatest games also produced in this period, e. g. the most exciting game I have ever seen, that is the first game of the semi-final candidate match with Larsen, that game whenever I play it again and again, it still make my heart beating!! Especially when Larsen's Queen and Rook on the second and third rank, preparing for mate, on the otherhand, Fischer's Queen is caught by Larsen rook, then comes one the greatest move of all time ( from my own point of view ), Bc5!!! That suddenly solved all the problems!!! One must think that, this is not just finding on the board at that moment. Fischer had already seen it 5 or even 7 moves before, combined with all the possible variations, who can say ( Kasparov says ) that Fischer is not excelling in complicated positions??? Also Wade's complete collection of Fischer's games were out of print for a long long time, I think one should needs Soltis book to fill the gap. I do not agree some of the readers said that Soltis' job is just to fill to one hundred games. What I complain is why Soltis does not annotate more games. I think one hundred games of Fischer to his chess fans are not enough. I hope in the future, someone should publish all the games of Fischer with annotations. Of course, one need not annotat all games in details, but at least to lay out all the games and then annotate those games which are instructive and important.

I have always admired Fischer's razor sharp play, positional understanding, tactical abilities, and his indominable will to win. His style has always enchanted me and this book displays it in 100 games. This book doesn't bogg down in masses of variations, but it gives just enough to keep the game and notes to it interesting and enjoyable to read. Some of the games he includes I had never seen before, which is a bonus. It was also interesting to read about some of Soltis' personal anecdotes when he met Fischer in the 60's at the introduction of the book, and before each game he gives a short lead in that gives some interesting insights and humorous anecdotes.
The only thing I can criticize is a few times he gives a ! or ? to a move and doesn't follow it with a note even when it isn't so obvious what made the move good or bad, and occasionally (although rarely) he makes some minor oversights. But on the whole the book is very well writen and researched. It is definately a must own if you are a Fischer fan like me, and even if you aren't it is a great book anyways!

If you enjoy the games (not...necessarily the opinions...) of Bobby Fischer- get this book and find yourself pleasantly engaged in interesting and exciting games and ideas. Soltis mends his annotations with Fischer's old Chess Life comments as well as interesting quirks of individuals and historic play/innovation sidelines. Quite frankly; for those whom enjoy annotated games and still maintain that 1970s Fischer nostalgia...this book is just great. That said, purchase and enjoy.

Soltis presents 100 games chronologically spanning Fischer's career, from his evergreen game against Donald Byrne in 1956 to a memorable win with white against Spassky from their 1992 rematch. This collection also covers the important years leading up to Fischer's first match with Spassky--select games from Monte Carlo '67, Skopje '67, Sousse Interzonal '67, Netanya '68, Vinkovci '68, Rovinj-Zagreb '70, Buenos Aires '70, Siegen '70, Palma de Mallorca '70, Candidates Matches. It also includes six games from both of his matches with Spassky.

I've always enjoyed Soltis' column in Chess Life. He brings a similar treatment to BFR--establishing historical context for a game, insight into players' motivations, milestone moves (those which dictate the games direction or outcome) and germane variations of sufficient number and depth when needed. Game threads are not lost as in some texts due to copious analyses. Only on a few occassions did I feel coverage was inadequate (Tukmakov(80)[22..Bxe4] and Spassky(100)[17..Bxa1]).

This is a much more satisfying experience than Timman's "Curacao 1962" (vapid) or the Euwe/Timman "Fischer World Champion!" (I prefered Gligoric/Wade coverage in "The World Chess Championship".) Of course what I really want are Fischer (and Evans) to collaborate on "Another 60 Memorable Games", but that's not likely. Until then, these 100 notable games will do.

If you are looking for a book that easily show you Fischer's greatest games and contributions to chess... this book is a excellent option.

The book combines very nicely stories about Fischer with his amazing games. The games are not deeply analyzed as they are in other books ("M60MG" or "Kasparov on Fischer"). Instead, Soltis mainly analyzes (providing a few lines) the most critical moves or those that, by the time that the games were played, were a Fischer's novelty. Sometimes, brief but interesting anecdotes or historical references are provided before each game. Also, Soltis quotes some Fischer's comments extracted from the articles that Fischer wrote for Chess Life (and of course from M60MG).

In the book, Soltis points out some Fischer's chess contributions. Also, Soltis provides very interesting comments about Fischer's style. For example, Soltis highlights that Fischer developed a materialistic approach (he used to accept pawns sacrificed by his opponents, keep the pawn and win the ending) in order to defeat the Russian School (during the 50's, Russians used to sacrifice material to take the initiative).

You shouldn't buy this book if you are looking for a book that very deeply analyzes each Fischer's game. But, you should buy this book if you are looking for a book that easily show you many relevant aspects about Fischer (anecdotes, contributions, famous games, etc).