Board Games Books

This is a very cute book that stars Bulbasaur. A boy and agirl want to use their money to buy something, but they each wantsomething different. The girl wants to buy a tulip, and the boy wants to buy a frog. Then, they find a Bulbasaur, which they think will solve all their problems. After all, Bulbasaur looks like a frog with a tulip on it's back. However, the boy tries to feed Bulbasaur flies, but Bulbasaur doesn't like flies. The girl tries to water the bulb on Bulbasaur's back, but the water's too cold(Not only that, Bulbasaur's bulb won't sprout until it evolves into Ivysaur, but the girl obviously didn't know that.). Finally, Bulbasaur has to go out into the forest and find a real frog and tulip to give to the boy and girl. This book teaches kids to use creativity to solve problems, which is why I'd recommend it to kids.

This is a cute board book that is appropriate for the toddler set. If your child is at all familiar with the characters of the Pokemon video series, he or she may be disappointed: "Bulbasaur's troubles" does not follow the story line of the series at all, rather, it tells a very simple story involving Bulbasaur. Probably a perfect book for a little sibling of a Pokemon crazed kid!

This is not a bad book; it's just not a very good one. There is a need for a monograph on the Sveshnikov. The books by Krasenkov (The Sveshnikov Sicilian) and by Neverov and Marusenko (New Ideas in the Sveshnikov Sicilian), though very good, were published in 1996.

Some of the games in McDonald's book have been taken from Neverov and Marusenko. This is legitimate since the games are of theoretical importance. Other games seem to have been taken from Chess Informant. Again legitimate. The notes McDonald provides are instructive. Quite a few of the games annotated were played subsequent to 1996 and therefore won't be found in the earlier books. All fine so far. But why only one chapter for the 9.Nd5 line? It merits more than 21 pages.The coverage is a bit too sparse. Perhaps the publisher put a limit on the number of pages.

In summary, an OK book, and one to add to your shelf if you're a Sveshnikov player. Pity it doesn't have more coverage.

What I like about Neil McDonald is that when he writes a chess book, he WRITES a chess book. I was inspired to throw in my two cents based on the three-star review which faulted the book for having sparse coverage of certain lines. I don't agree with that review, as 21 pages in this book is still a lot of coverage. McDOnald packs the book with text and variations, so one feels one can follow what is going on, even in this most "dynamic" (e.g. confusing) of variations. He is constantly striving to point out strategic "signposts" to help the reader follow the action. I find this very helpful for my general understanding of chess, as even in hair-raising lines like the Sveshnikov, the tactics somehow are based on the strategic elements. McDonald does a great job keeping this in mind and in never forgetting that he has an audience that might need help comprehending what is going on. The font is fairly small, meaning that each page is loaded with material. I think this is in fact the best book on the Sveshnikov that I have seen, and I have the ones by Krasnekow, Aagaard, and Sveshnikov.

Ce livre s'adresse probablement aux joueurs plus avancés que moi (17 kyu sur KGS). Il est dense, écrasant même. Je remets cette lecture à plus tard. Probablement que les joueurs en Shodan peuvent le lire comme s'il s'agissait d'un roman, mais pas moi.

Go Seigen is easily the best Go player of the 20th Century. Born Wu Qingyuan in Fujian province (1914). Go's father taught him the game when he was eight and he took of like a rocket. At the age of 11 he was winning against most of China's top players. Finally Go, the national champion of China in 1927, was offered the chance to play and study in Japan. His career in Japan was every bit as spectacular. In 1932 he reached 5-dan ranking. This was a period of some turmoil in Go. Many players, Go included, where trying new openings and breaking with tradition. In Japan, where the traditions around the game are intense this caused a great deal of argument. By the war, Go Seigen was and 8-dan, and already the most formidable player in Japan.

Go remained in seclusion during the war, but returned in force in 1947. Two years later, at the age of 36, Go Seigen was made 9-dan. The highest rank possible. His games throughout are marked by a crystal clear ability to grasp the workings of a game and turn them to his advantage. As a reader of his games one is constantly struck by how much of the game Go is able to see. It is if every move, no matter how tactical always has a strategic reason behind it. "Winning a Won Game" is the second in a series of lectures between the master and an anonymous player focused on how to create and keep an advantage at the Go board.

The style is to show the game at it's crisis point, then go back and play through the game (with heavy commentary), and the carry it through to the moment of decision. Go Seigen's pride is well earned, but he is not ashamed to reveal his mistakes as well as his moments of brilliance. Even though I am far from a 9-dan I found much to absorb, and intend to return to this volume many times. There are ten games, seven that were one and 3 that were lost. All are wonderful, and I am determined to track down the first volume in this series. There are great examples of 3-3 and 4-4 openings. Well worth the price.

The receiver of the gift was looking forward to trying the puzzles!

I have enjoyed working the puzzles in the mammoth book. So many to choose from. A real pleaser.

Nice size, colorful simple pictures and a nice font. Just wished it was laminated...cost me $50 to laminate it at Kinkos.

Some of the best art work that I've seen has come from this book. AD&D has has some of the most spellbinding pictures imaginable, and to see it all in one book is a very pleasing thing...

My baby loves looking at all the pictures in this book. She puts her fingers on different things for me to name them. Soon I think I'll be doing the pointing and she'll be doing the naming! These pages are plenty busy enough for even older preschoolers to have fun looking at.

This was the book I learned backgammon with in the 1970s. It doesn't have modern 1990s theory but still provides solid all-around advice on a variety of topics. The book's strengths are its discussions of probabilities, back games, late positions, and unusual plays. There is also a long history of the game and a lot of discussion of chouettes and other variations. The modern expert might not agree with the opening moves or the doubling theory, but all in all there's plenty there for newcomers to learn.

This game is alot of fun to play with close friends it helps you get to know them better and you see their acting talents come out