A comprehensive work about the magic world of endgames. For starters, 100 interesting and instructive examples on important endgame topics are thoroughly analyzed and extensively commented. Especially those in which not only many useful rules of thumb are ex- plained and illustrated, but above all their not uncommon exceptions. In the chapter 'Practice makes perfect', 100 exercises give the readers the opportunity to check their previous knowledge and what they have learned in the first part. In the following 100 exciting studies, it was ensured that they do not show any artificial constructs, but positions that could well have come from practical games and whose solutions are clearly comprehensible. You can either tackle the given exercises under tournament-like conditions, or you can use the book as a pure textbook and deal directly with the solutions, because even with this approach you can enrich your existing knowledge with many typical endgame motives. Readers can rest assured that the magic from the realm of endgames will cast its spell over them and that they will enjoy the fascination of the final phase of the game. 322 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

It's not revealing anything new that most players prefer to attack rather than defend. It's also not surprising that various authors have devoted a number of books to the popular topic of 'attack' for more than a century. In this book, the author tries to present the constantly recurring mechanisms of attacking play as compactly as possible by limiting himself to a few important motives and describing typical elements of the attacking strategy. Numerous clear and meaningful rules of thumb are formulated for the in-depth study of the various subject areas. With regard to practical play, however, the point is not neglected that in chess it's not so important to know this or that rule by heart, but rather to train your intuition to recognize as reliably as possible in which case you are dealing with a rule and in which case with an exception. Among the topics discussed are, for example, such indispensable as: 'Opposite-colored bishops favor the attacker', 'The attacker should not exchange attack potential', 'Typical attack structures', 'Attack on a complex of weak squares'. One of the chapters is devoted to Mikhail Tal, one of the greatest attacking artists of all time, whose genius in this regard is illustrated by reference to some of his striking and pointed quotes – such as 'Centralize and sacrifice', 'If the opponent attacks one of your pieces, attack two of his!' And last but not least there's a chapter on the mating attack in the endgame, a look at some of the author's impressive attacking victories and all sorts of topic-related exercises for the individual chapters. In addition, practical QR codes enable you to replay the game directly on your smartphone if there's no board at hand. 140 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

Since there is already so much literature about Magnus Carlsen, one wonders why the author added yet another book. – Because he found it extremely interesting to look at the strategic play of a genius through the lens of the so-called 'model of the four types of players'. And as a result, he actually managed to illustrate both the outstanding strengths and the universality of the 16th world champion. But even if the reader isn't necessarily interested in this approach, he might as well consider the book an extremely useful 'textbook on strategy' given how instructive Magnus Carlsen's games are. Because according to his style, he masters many strategically indispensable and effective methods (for example active prophylaxis, strategic pressure play, etc.) like no other. In order to go deeper, the author has formulated numerous clear and meaningful rules of thumb on the various topics. However, he does not fail to point out that in chess, knowing this or that rule by heart is not the most important thing. Rather, it's crucial to train your intuition to recognize as reliably as possible when you are dealing with a standard case and when with an exception. And since Magnus Carlsen's skills can also be described as absolutely brilliant in this respect, it goes without saying that any reader who delves a little deeper into Carlsen's games can learn a great deal about the subtleties of chess from one of the greatest players of all time Each chapter is rounded off with topic-related exercises. And practical QR codes make it easier to work directly on your smartphone whenever there's no board at hand. 156 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

Together with his longtime trainer Matthias Krallmann, GM Matthias Blübaum describes his path from his early youth to the title of European champion. According to his own statement, he particularly benefited from the 'Group of Princes' of the German Chess Federation, which was founded in 2008 by national youth coach IM Bernd Vökler. In this actually not so long journey of an outstanding young talent to the German top player, the reader is not only taken along, but he can also learn a lot for his own practice 'on the way' and is offered all kinds of instructive tips and tricks. In his foreword, IM Bernd Vökler writes: "...a special highlight has been achieved: Renowned endgame guru, Dr. Karsten Müller, dissects selected endgames by Matthias Blübaum ... A double delight for the reader! – In the next part, a look into the treasury of every grandmaster is granted, namely into his opening repertoire. Matthias Krallmann notes that even former world champion Alexander Khalifman once praised Matthias' complete and self-contained repertoire. – The following chapter offers some of Matthias Blübaum's games against the top stars of the scene, annotated by himself. It's mouth-watering! – At the end, the reader is once again challenged himself. The big tactics test invites you to puzzle and calculate. Matthias Krallmann and Matthias Blübaum don't offer easy reading! Typically East Westphalian, labour-intensive, exhausting, honest and straight – the portrait of the chess worker, the chess grandmaster, the chess practitioner Matthias Blübaum. You don't become number one in Germany in a sprint, but in a marathon!"304 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag

4 types of players with their strengths and weaknessesPlaying styles in chess are an important and often discussed topic. GM Dr. Karsten Müller and GM Luis Engel take up a model by GM Lars Bo Hansen based on 4 types of players – 'activists', 'pragmatics', 'theorists' and so-called 'reflectors'. Their respective strengths and weaknesses are explained based on many examples, complemented by numerous exercises to enable the reader to assign himself to one or the other category. "As part of the preparation for my opponents, I often try to research their typical player characteristics ... In this respect, it can be helpful to draw conclusions about the type of player, and thus about strengths and weaknesses, by looking at the openings they play – or to use the characteristics of certain players to infer the likelihood of which opening lines they might choose. These and numerous other considerations are presented in this book in a condensed and systematic form. The division of players into four prototypes is extremely helpful not only in terms of game preparation, but also to determine your own characteristics as a player. In addition, the book can serve as a helpful guide for amateurs and chess fans to get a more precise picture of certain players." (Excerpts from the foreword by GM Vincent Keymer) 248 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag     Review from Professor Barry Hymer, Former CSO, Chessable, May 2022 As someone who has had a lifelong professional interest in and scepticism about the value of ‘learning styles’ approaches (or their family variants, like ‘player types’), and who has even penned a savage takedown of their value in the chess world - I was intrigued to read The Human Factor in Chess by Karsten Müller and his fellow GM, Luis Engel. The title alone made me wonder if there’d be any similarities with one of my all-time favourite chessbooks – Fred Reinfeld’s The Human Side of Chess, from 1953 (Faber & Faber). There weren’t many, at least in terms of the book’s aims. Almost as prolific as Reinfeld, but with an even more consistent output in terms of quality, Müller’s stellar reputation as a chess writer and theorist needs little by way of introduction of course, and I was worried that my high regard for his work wouldn’t survive this foray into the fascinating but theoretically questionable and fundamentally untestable world of ‘learning styles’. In particular, would I encounter facile conflations of playing styles (a chessplayer’s habitual preference for playing certain types of positions – and not just won ones – and in certain types of ways) with assumptions that these are built on certain supposedly innate and immoveable qualities or predispositions? Turns out F. Scott Fitzgerald was right, and it’s quite possible to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time, and still function. At least it is in the hands of first rate minds and authors like these. First things first. The book builds on the classification of player types introduced by Lars Bo Hansen in his book Foundations of Chess Strategy (Gambit, 2005). Though there are some divergences from the Hansen book in the attribution of individual players from chess history to certain categories, both books posit the existence of four player types: activist, theorist, reflector and pragmatic. Having acknowledged that this won’t be the only possible model, and ‘stereotyped’ or overly dogmatic thinking inevitably brings dangers with it, the suggestion is made (endorsed by Vincent Keymer in his preface) that knowledge of one’s own and one’s opponent’s typology can be helpful in terms of game preparation and self-knowledge. Strengths and weaknesses of each type are outlined, with suggestions for leveraging one’s own strengths whilst exploiting one’s opponent’s weaknesses – in a manner analogous to the old game rock, paper, scissors: eg reflectors’ mastery of prophylaxis can trump activists, who in turn can use their knowledge of sharp opening lines to discombobulate both reflectors and theorists, who in turn can aim for quiet, technical positions in order to frustrate calculation-loving pragmatists. It’s not an exact science of course, and it’s arguable whether it’s a science at all, but it’s no less fun and fascinating for that. The argument has considerable face-validity, however thin the theoretical base and legion the players who straddle more than one type – or perhaps even none. As a rough-and-ready heuristic for conceptualising player-types I believe it is both interesting and plausible, and it provides a helpful architecture for a player’s long-term journey towards a universal playing style (a goal acknowledged as such by the authors). Who, after all, doesn’t want to have a Botvinnik-like mastery of general principles, a dash of Smyslovian harmony and a dollop of Fischerlike pragmatism combined with an Alekhinian feel for the initiative? Come to think of it, just one of those qualities would be attractive to we amateurs! The book is stronger for the authors’ decision to keep the theoretical overview light-touch, succinct and on-point. It recognises the dynamic evolution of many players’ styles (the early styles of Steinitz, Smyslov and Tal, for instance provide few clues to their later iterations), and for the most part it avoids assertions that are overly deterministic and mystical – though there are occasional lapses such as the unreferenced assertion that when it comes to “… a feeling for harmony and coordination like that of Karpov or Carlsen, you just have it, or you don’t” (p.99). I’d put good money on the likelihood that these sublime qualities didn’t appear fully-formed, but developed cumulatively over time. (By way of evidence, there are many early games of both these legends which are distinctly lacking in these qualities as well of course many games in which they are replete). But for me the book’s standout strength is when the authors revert to type (!) and do what they excel at: harnessing a lifetime’s love for and high-level expertise in the game in the form of carefully-harvested and well-curated positions and exercises, powerfully and lucidly structured and annotated. Typologies provide the architecture for this assemblage, and for obvious reasons examples are included which serve to support the designations of particular players to particular types. No-one investing the time in working through these exercises can fail to benefit, and derive a huge amount of pleasure en passant – whatever their own player-type! And in terms of publication quality, the occasional translation infelicity aside, the impressive accuracy and visual attractiveness of the book comes as Joachim Beyer Verlag standard.

Find out your Player Type After the great success of the first book (The Human Factor in Chess) on the model of the four player types, this follow-up volume contains not only specific tasks and exercises but also general questions such as: Do you prefer to calculate concrete lines or do you make your decisions more intuitively? Do you have a good sense of harmony and coordination? This approach is intended to enable the reader to assign himself to one of the player types and find out whether he belongs to the activists or rather to the pragmatists, theorists or reflectors. The result allows to draw conclusions in order to further expand the individual strengths or to develop a more universal playing style overall. Because even if you usually win thanks to your strengths, it makes sense to work on your own weaknesses as well. Of course, if there is only one move in a position, you should be able to find it. Playstyles are especially important in positions where you have a great choice. However, they also play a role when you choose the type of position, which you should strive for based on your style. Interestingly, a playstyle can also be imitated, which may even be the appropriate strategy against certain opponents. For example, certain characteristics stand out clearly in activists, and being able to adjust to them as an opponent is of course very valuable. A good example is Kramnik's win over activist Kasparov (at the London 2000 world championship match). Since Kramnik always managed to steer the game in the direction appropriate to his style, his big opponent never had the chance to demonstrate his own strengths in positions with attack and initiative. While 'The Human Factor' was about a clear distinction of the four playing styles, this book aims to emphasize the universality of each player. After solving the tasks tailored to the four player types, it becomes clear how your own competencies are distributed. Accordingly, GM Vincent Keymer states in his foreword: "Even if the further development of one's own player personality to a universal player who unites all player types may remain a utopia, it's still worth pursuing." 206 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag Review by Alexey Root in August 2023 Grandmaster (GM) Karsten Müller, GM Luis Engel, and FIDE Master Makan Rafiee are the authors of The Human Factor in Chess - The Testbook, subtitled „Find out your Player Type.“ Published in 2023 by JBV Books, it is a follow-up volume to 2020’s The Human Factor in Chess, subtitled „4 types of players with their strengths and weaknesses.“ GM Vincent Keymer wrote the forewords to both the 2020 and 2023 volumes. USCF Sales carries the 2023 book for $24.95. The following review also appeared on SparkChess in July 2023. I write for SparkChess twice a month. What is your Player Type? Do you prefer to calculate concrete lines, or do you make your decisions more intuitively? Do you have a good sense of harmony and coordination? The Human Factor in Chess - The Testbook helps you discover your Player Type through tasks and exercises. The four Player Types are Activist, Theorist, Reflector, and Pragmatic. According to The Human Factor in Chess - The Testbook, knowing your Player Type allows you „to draw conclusions in order to further expand the individual strengths or to develop a more universal playing style overall.“ Chess Problems While I found excerpts from Keymer’s 2020 foreword online, I could not find sample pages online from the 2023 volume. Publisher JBV Books mailed a review copy of The Human Factor in Chess - The Testbook to me. Here is a link (two problems on page 13)  of the first two chess problems from the first chapter about Activists. Answers For the first problem, on the left, I initially considered 17. c3, using my c-pawn to defend my d-pawn. Then my knight could leave that pawn’s defense and attack Black’s king. But then I found 17.Bxg6! I was influenced by the problem being in the „Activist“ chapter. I figured an active move was expected. In my opinion, finding „How should White continue?“ in the first problem is harder than deciding, in the second problem at right in the photo above, if Nf5 is good or bad. After all, I have a 50% chance to guess correctly regarding the quality of Nf5. Yet designating Nf5 as a good move got me 2 AP (Activist Points) while finding 17.Bxg6 got me 1 AP. I could not find the authors’ formula for how points are awarded. Nonetheless, I enjoyed earning points. Also, I learned from the authors’ explanations of why the correct answers were superior to other moves.

The author presents a collection of 120 instructive positions, each of which with mostly three proposed solutions, followed by the detailed discussion of both the correct and the incorrect solutions in the second part. The selected examples stem from tournament practice, with a few exceptions, which are part of theoretical lines. The reader mainly has to look for tactical solutions, although positional-strategic aspects also occur.In the direct attack on the king, the action on the board often reaches its climax, and the attacker's success depends on finding the appropriate plan and executing it with precision. On the other hand, a premature or incorrectly executed attack generally turns into a boomerang for the attacker. Therefore, it's essential to assess whether a position meets the requirements for an immediate attack or whether further preparation is needed. Serious training with this testbook will help you to correctly assess critical situations of this sort and to ensure that the attack will be successful.FIDE Master Gerd Treppner (1956-2009) was a chess journalist and author as well as a successful tournament player. 124 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag     Book review by Jörg Palitzsch (March 2021) Im Endspiel kann die Stärke jeder einzelnen Schachfigur markanter zutage treten als in anderen Stadien der Partie. Trotzdem bleibe im Endspiel genügend Raum für Phantasie und Schöpferraum, so der russische Großmeister Juri Awerbach in seinem Buch „Erfolg im Endspiel“. Der amerikanische Schachlehrer Jeremy Silman brachte das Endspiel in punkto Königssicherheit auf einen griffigen Punkt: „Ein König, der nicht rochiert hat, sollte man meiden wie die Pest“. Gerd Treppner nähert sich dem Thema Endspiel in seinem englischsprachigen „Testbook of Attacking the King“ mit spielerischem System. Mit 120 Stellungen, dargestellt auf Diagrammen, werden dem Schachspieler jeweils drei, manchmal auch nur zwei Lösungsvorschläge gestellt. Die Beispiele stammen zum größten Teil aus der Turnierpraxis, nur ein kleiner Teil folgt theoretischen Linien. Der Leser muss hauptsächlich nach taktischen Lösungen suchen, obwohl auch positionell-strategische Aspekte vorkommen. So verfolgt das Buch gleich mehrere Ziele. Man lernt, Schachaufgaben besser zu analysieren und bringt den Spieler dazu, über weitergehende Problemstellungen in der Endphase einer Partie nachzudenken. Bei allem zählt der direkte Angriff auf den König zum Höhepunkt eines Spiels – es kommt nur darauf an ob man Jäger oder Gejagter ist. So gilt es den richtigen Zeitpunkt abzuschätzen, um einen Angriff gewinnbringend umzusetzen. Kommt er zu früh, kann er ins Leere gehen, kommt er zu spät und ohne strategische Vorbereitung kann er schnell ins eigene Verderben führen. FIDE-Meister Gerd Treppner (1956-2009) war sowohl Schachjournalist und Autor als auch ein erfolgreicher Turnierspieler. Er hat in seinem Buch nicht nur Aufgaben mit einer Mehrfachauswahl an Antworten zusammengetragen, sondern zeigt in den Lösungen die Zugfolgen zu einem erfolgreichen Angriff auf. Praktisch ist die Anordnung der Diagramme, die, jeweils zwei auf einer Seite verteilt, sehr übersichtlich sind. So kann man an jeder Stelle im Aufgabenfeld einsteigen und lernt dabei auch etwas über die Partien, die stets den Königsangriff zu Ziel haben. Fazit: „Testbook of Attacking the King“ orientiert sich an der Praxis, verliert die Theorie aber nicht völlig aus dem Blick. Da immer nur eine Antwort möglich ist, halten die Lösungen oft auch Überraschungen bereit.    Book review by Heinz Brunthaler (June 2020) 120 positions challenge the reader to find the right way to attack the opposing king, and by working out the solution, of course, he will automatically improve his skills in this regard. Large diagrams are helpful to correctly take in and analyze the given positions. For the reader's support, two or mostly three multiple choice answers steer his solving process and prevent him from not finding a starting point at all or going astray. As for the level of difficulty and the motifs of the various tasks, they are not shown in any particular order. This sort of 'disordered mix' realistically reflects the requirements in competition chess. The comments on the solutions are detailed and easy to understand. The author, Gerd Treppner (1956–2009), was a renowned expert especially in the area of test books. He understood very well the potential of readers at club level and made it easy for this target group to really understand the solutions without getting lost in too many lines and subtleties. Some examples are of a more positional variety, so that it's not enough to just find a tactical blow. Instead, the reader really has to become familiar with the position and explore its possibilities. This is an excellent training approach and should prove useful for every reader's own practice. The book is particularly recommended for chess enthusiasts who have little time for an extensive systematic training. By thoroughly dealing with one or two tasks from the book on a daily base, the reader will get a lot of practically usable knowledge within a relatively short time, which should help him increase his playing skills and reach a higher level. Conclusion: The book is highly recommended for club players and ambitious young chess players.

In this book, International Grandmaster and senior FIDE trainer Thomas Luther offers something for all chess fans at amateur level. The ambitious tournament player can use it to improve his playing strength. However, not all chess fans have enough time for an extensive study of their game in general and tactics in particular. In this case, it is sufficient if the reader solves a few exercises every day, because even then he will learn a lot about this topic in the long term. Meanwhile, the pure "chess gourmet" is offered many interesting and entertaining examples and comments to enjoy the diversity of his favorite game. The author takes the reader on a journey from the beginnings of chess many centuries ago to the present day. Throughout history, smart players have found clever moves and techniques that are still used today. In detailed texts, the author explains the developments in the respective epochs and shows corresponding interesting examples. In addition, the book contains chapters on tactics in the endgame and on all the subtleties related to the topic of stalemate. But don't worry, all this is not boring, but extremely instructive and entertaining on top of that! In two longer series of tests, the reader can show how strong a tactician he already is – and what progress he has made after working with this book. A large number of diagrams in the text ensure that the reader is always able to find his or her way around and can largely get by without using a chessboard.   253 Seiten, kartoniert, Joachim Beyer Verlag  

In Strategic Play Jacob Aagaard digs deep into the most complex area of chess thinking. The games and exercises in this book transcend regular chess skills, such as pattern recognition, calculation and positional analysis. Building on the two previous books in the Grandmaster Preparation series, this book challenges the reader to explore the complexities of chess, offering clarity and understanding through Aagaard’s straightforward approach. Grandmaster Jacob Aagaard won the British Championship at his first and only attempt. He is the only chess author to have received the Boleslavsky Medal as well as the Guardian, ECF and ChessCafe Book of the Year awards. He is a FIDE Senior Trainer, and on his retirement from professional chess he has taken up the post of trainer for the Danish elite. His training material is used by amateurs, grandmasters and World Champions alike. The Grandmaster Preparation series is aimed at ambitious players  304 Seiten, gebunden, Verlag Quality Chess

Grandmaster Preparation Have there been times during a game when you have calculated a position for half an hour, only to find out that most of what you were thinking about was of little use? If you have not, maybe the only way to improve your calculation is to upgrade your processor. But if you are human, then this book will offer you practical advice and an effective training plan to think differently and make decisions far more efficiently.In Calculation thinking methods such as Candidates, Combinations, Prophylaxis, Comparison, Elimination, Intermediate Moves, Imagination and Traps are explained to the reader, and ownership of them is offered through a carefully selected series of exercises. “There is no shortcut to the grandmaster title, but there is a well-known route that many people have walked over the years. Jacob offers to guide you on part of this journey and I hope you will take him up on the offer.”From the foreword by Boris Gelfand Grandmaster Jacob Aagaard won the British Championship at his first and only attempt. He has received the Guardian, ECF and ChessCafe Book of the Year awards and the FIDE Senior Trainer title. His training material is used by amateurs and grandmasters alike. The Grandmaster Preparation series is aimed at ambitious players.   304 Seiten, Quality Chess  

In Attack & Defence Jacob Aagaard presents the main principles of how to attack and defend in chess. By carving dynamic chess into separate areas of ability, he gives the reader a clear way to expand his understanding of this vital part of the game.   "Playing the violin and learning languages are similar activities - the brain needs a special map for these kinds of activities, so it has to be learned at an early age - due to some brain chemistry stuff, I guess. That explains why so many players get stuck at a certain level - their map is done! Depressing, eh? But thats where Aagaard (and other heavyweights like Dvoretsky and Yusupov) come to the rescue! The books in this series are designed to change the ‘chess map in your brain! Jacob wants to transform that narrow path of finding good moves into a freeway where good moves flow!" From the foreword by Sune Berg Hansen   Grandmaster Jacob Aagaard won the British Championship at his first and only attempt. He is the only author to have won the Boleslavsky Medal as well as the ACP, Guardian, ECF and ChessCafe Book of the Year awards. He is a FIDE Senior Trainer, and on his retirement from professional chess he has taken up the post of trainer for the Danish elite. His training material is used by amateurs, grandmasters and World Champions alike.       304 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Quality Chess

Have there been times during a game when you have tried to calculate like mad, but can find no rhyme or reason to your lines?Have you ever felt that the computer’s suggestions in your post-mortem analysis make no sense to you? Ever felt like the man with a hammer, suspecting that the world may not be made up entirely of nails after all?   In Positional Play Jacob Aagaard shares his simple three-step tool of positional analysis that he has used with club players and famous grandmasters to improve their positional decision-making. Working from the starting point that all players who aspire to play at international level have a certain amount of positional understanding, Aagaard lays out an easy-to-follow training plan that will improve everyone’s intuition and positional decision-making. Grandmaster Jacob Aagaard won the British Championship at his first and only attempt. He is the only chess author to have received the Boleslavsky Medal as well as the Guardian, ECF and ChessCafe Book of the Year awards. He is a FIDE Senior Trainer, and on his retirement from professional chess he has taken up the post as trainer for the Danish elite. His training material is used by amateurs, grandmasters and World Champions alike.   The Grandmaster Preparation series is aimed at ambitious players   312 Seiten, gebunden, Verlag Quality Chess

Think Like a Super-GM is a unique collaboration combining the chess insights of an elite grandmaster with a scientific investigation into thinking at the chess board. 40 chess puzzles were shown to a panel of players ranging from occasional club players up to Super-GM and co-author Michael Adams. Researcher Philip Hurtado recorded not only the moves chosen, but also the detailed thought processes of every player in order to shed light on the mystery as to what exactly defines superior chess strength. This book offers a unique opportunity for readers to not only solve the puzzles, but also compare their thinking to that of club players, strong amateurs, IMs, GMs and Michael Adams himself. With an additional Bonus Puzzle section and a fascinating Eyetracker experiment showing where different players focused their attention on the board, this is a chess improvement book like no other. GM Michael Adams is a World Championship finalist and long-time British number one, with a peak ranking of 4th in the world. Philip Hurtado is an engineer, physicist, statistician and passionate amateur chess player. 464 Seiten , gebunden, Quality Chess

Chess Strategy for the Tournament Player demystifies chessboard planning, giving you the practical, game-winning techniques you could spend years gathering on your own. Each idea is explained and illustrated using carefully chosen for their instructive clarity and power.   This book stands alone. And it is the fifth volume of the Comprehensive Chess Course, a series that brings English readers the once strictly guarded and time-tested Russian training methods, the key to 50-year Russian dominance of the chess World. The Comprehensive Chess Course takes you from beginner to tournament expert.     344 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag CIRC

Have you ever wondered how chess grandmasters always seem to know which pieces need to be exchanged? Have you ever wondered how chess grandmasters always seem to know which pieces need to be exchanged? Or how an attack is influenced by the number of pieces on the board? When should we keep the queens on, and when should we switch to an endgame? Understanding Chess Exchanges shares expert insights into using exchanges as a strategic weapon. Your newfound knowledge will then be tested using exercises taken from elite modern practice. With a particular focus on Magnus Carlsen - the master of exchanges - this book reveals the principles behind a vital part of chess strategy. Chess mastery is the art of knowing when principles should be followed and when they must be broken. This book guarantees that you will not only become familiar with the typical guidelines, but also learn about their exceptions. Filled with tips, principles and practical advice, Understanding Chess Exchanges is an invaluable asset to a chess player’s arsenal! Grandmaster Amir Bagheri is an experienced player and coach from Monaco, and was the second-ever Iranian to achieve the grandmaster title. Mohammad Reza Salehzadeh is a FIDE Trainer and respected chess coach from Iran. 352 Seiten, gebunden, Verlag Quality Ches

  The author addresses the most frequent questions that arise in all the three aspects of a modern chess game (material, pawn structure - space, and dynamics). The core of the book cosists of 49 deeply annotated games played by the elite players. On top of that, there are 127 practical tests, so the material presented as a whole may be extremely useful to a wide audience. Of course, chess trainers and will find many of the games and test positions adequate for their chess lectures.   264 Seiten, gebunden, Verlag Chess Informant

  Christian tackles one of the most important issues in chess: how to select candidate moves. He illustrates and discusses many different themes such as: entering relatively uncharted territory replying on your acquired knowledge using intuition play prophylactically He uses examples from his own games, the result is a uniquely useful book that will help you to raise the level of your general play. French Grandmaster Christian Bauer is one of the leading strong players of his country. He is a former national champion and represented France in numerous international team events. He has written many articles and books for several publishing houses: 'Play 1...b6', 'Philidor Files' and 'Play the Scandinavian'. Many of his books have been translated into other languages.  405 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Thinkers Publishing

1001 Chess Tactics from the Real Games of Everday Chess Players The best way to improve at chess is to solve tactics puzzles. But why do regular tactics books make amateurs study master games? Is it useful for beginners to analyze games that are unreal for everyday chess players? In the real world of beginning and casual players openings are dubious, positions are messy, material is uneven, and cheap traps and oversights are occurring almost constantly. Most amateur games are won by rather primitive means, compared to the cool and fancy moves that masters need in order to gain victory. This book only takes positions from genuine amateur games and puts them out there, warts and all. Tim Brennan and Anthea Carson have assembled thousands of games by everyday players, and selected the most instructive tactical examples. If you want to improve at chess but have limited time and energy available, this is your book! Now you can study positions that are happening in games you yourself might have played!   A very helpful book for beginners and casual players.     144 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag New in Chess  

     Informant’s Collection of Instructive Tactics and Studies 500 carefully selected puzzles 5 levels of difficulty 42 instructive, prizewinning studies Study, practice and improve with our selection of tactical jewels!    The book is aimed at motivated amateur and club players, all the way   up to the grandmaster level, since the main objective is to teach diligent evaluation   of any given position, meticulous calculating, and overall decision making. We kept   the organization of the exercises according to their relative level of difficulty (one   * indicating the simplest exercises, ***** indicating the most difficult positions),   since is proved to allow smooth browsing through the material.    Tactic Workbook consists of 500 most instructive middlegame   and endgame examples (puzzles) from the games played during 2021 and 42   prizewinning studies which complement the puzzle section thus making this manual   truly comprehensive and indispensable.    344 Seiten, gebunden, Verlag Chess Informant

Russian International Master Maxim Chetverik has written a strategy textbook containing 75 deeply annotated positional games that show players how to devise plans to handle a number of key strategic themes, such as when to open up the game, how to activate the pawn chain, how to carry out positional sacrifices and many others. Unlike most other textbooks, the strategic plans are viewed as battles where the plans of each player clash, and Maxim analyzes why one plan comes out on top. Also unlike most other textbooks, all example games are drawn from grandmaster play in the 21st century, some played in 2018, and consider the plans right out of the opening stage. This makes the book of particular value to players wishing to better understand the strategies that the openings they play may lead to, bearing in mind the author is an openings expert with ten openings books published. The majority of games are played by elite grandmasters, including Carlsen, Caruana, Anand, Kramnik, Karjakin, Giri, So, Vachier-Lagrave, Aronian, Mamedyarov, Nakamura, Gelfand, Svidler, Ivanchuk, Shirov, Leko, J. Polgar, Topalov, Kamsky, Morozevich, Korchnoi and Spassky. Chetverik introduces and illustrates the concepts of "macroplan" and "microplan", which provide a simple structural framework for players seeking to devise plans in their own games. The macroplan is the specific way to achieve the required result (usually, a win), for example, the successful exploitation of a queenside pawn majority. The microplan is a way of solving a local problem that involves several moves, such as transferring a knight from a bad square to a good one. Ideally, a macroplan is a chain of sequential and carefully calculated microplans. This book is largely aimed at strong club players wishing to improve, or their coaches. The recommended Elo range is approximately 1,800 - 2,200, although it may of course be of interest to players a bit lower and a bit higher than this range. 237 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag LLC Elk and Ruby

It is not the quality of your best moves that wins you games; it is the quality of your worst moves. The quickest way to improve your chess skills is to raise the bar. The Spanish grandmaster and coach Jesus de la Villa has proven with his best-seller 100 Endgames You Must Know that he understands exactly what a chess student needs. Building on his experience as a writer and as a coach for juniors, he has carefully selected the 50 Mistakes every player should be aware of – so the mistake can be avoided. De la Villa loves this quote from the American First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt: ‘Learn from the errors of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.’ For over a decade, De la Villa has closely observed the Spanish junior championships, noting the recurring errors that players make. He has taken notes, classified these errors, and created training tasks based on them. From this wealth of chess exercises, he has selected the most impactful and has added recommendations how to correct the error. Your performance will improve dramatically because this book offers you: 50 important chess lessons detailed and lively explanations clear summaries and recommendations dozens of tests. Jesus de la Villa (1958) is an International Grandmaster born in Spain. He is a successful author and a well-known chess trainer. He has twice won the Spanish Championship. His book 100 Endgames You Must Know is an international bestseller 356 Seiten, Taschenbuch, Verlag Quality Chess

Are you a parent of a junior chess player who feels that because you don’t know how to play chess, you can’t help your child? Or are you an adult or junior chess player who has taken private chess lessons for years, but feels you haven’t been progressing? In both cases, there can be a lot of reliance on a chess coach who has been given free rein with lesson content and direction. They probably have some sort of plan but it is likely to be a plan used for all their students. This is not ideal. More important is a well-thought out, individualized plan, that focuses on a specific player’s unique strengths and weaknesses. Formulating such a plan is crucial for making improvements. Victoria Doknjas and her son John Doknjas are an ideal writing partnership to tackle this topic. John is a FIDE Master who has already established himself as an excellent and highly-respected author who understands the improvement process very well. Victoria has over a decade of experience navigating the competitive chess arena with her three master-level sons, including also running her own chess academy. Together they offer a unique and informative insight to those wanting to get more out of their chess studies, as well as presenting practical advice in areas including: Identifying important goals and how to work towards them. Understanding how to objectively analyse your games. Maximising the efficiency of software and engines for learning. Reading this book can broaden your horizons in the essential areas of chess study, and ideally let you better evaluate what your chess coach is teaching you. And if you don’t have a chess coach, this book will provide you with an excellent foundation for serious chess study.   384 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag Everyman

 Chess is 99% tactics. A tactical pattern is all about immediate threats that produce immediate results. Learning the 100 Tactical Patterns You Must Know will dramatically improve your performance. This book is the long-awaited middlegame companion to 100 Endgames You Must Know, the all-time bestseller of all chess books published by New In Chess. In three hundred pages, experienced chess trainer Frank Erwich teaches you all the tactical patterns that occur most frequently are easy to learn Explain ideas that are useful in practical games You will get a huge amount of clear, concise and easy-to-follow chess tactics instruction, ideal for every post-beginner, club player and candidate master who wants to win more games. Frank Erwich is a FIDE Master and an experienced chess trainer from the Netherlands. He holds a Master’s degree in Psychology. Frank is a book editor for New In Chess and has published the best-sellers: 1001 Chess Exercises for Club Players and 1001 Chess Exercises for Advanced Club Players. 352 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag New in Chess

This workbook offers over five hundred carefully selected exercises to accompany the book 100 Tactical Patterns You Must Know. Experienced chess trainer Frank Erwich has not only identified the 100 most important tactical patterns, he has also collected hundreds of exercises for you to train these patterns. Solving these puzzles will drive home the key ideas, refresh your knowledge and improve your technique. It is probably best to study the manual and workbook together, but you can also use the workbook as a stand-alone training tool as each pattern is summarised. Frank Erwich is a FIDE Master and an experienced chess trainer from the Netherlands. He holds a Master’s degree in Psychology. Frank is a book editor for New In Chess and has published the best-sellers: 1001 Chess Exercises for Club Players and 1001 Chess Exercises for Advanced Club Players. 336 Seiten, kartoniert, Verlag New in Chess