One of the most extraordinary books ever written about chess and chessplayers, this authoritative study goes well beyond a lucid explanation of how todays chessmasters and tournament players are rated. Twenty years' research and practice produce a wealth of thought-provoking and hitherto unpublished material on the nature and development of high-level talent: Just what constitutes an "exceptional performance" at the chessboard? Can you really profit from chess lessons? What is the lifetime pattern of Grandmaster development? Where are the masters born? Does your child have master potential? The step-by-step rating system exposition should enable any reader to become an expert on it. For some it may suggest fresh approaches to performance measurement and handicapping in bowling, bridge, golf and elsewhere. 43 charts, diagrams and maps supplement the text. How and why are chessmasters statistically remarkable? How much will your rating rise if you work with the devotion of a Steinitz? At what age should study begin? What toll does age take, and when does it begin? Development of the performance data, covering hundreds of years and thousands of players, has revealed a fresh and exciting version of chess history. One of the many tables identifies 500 all-time chess greatpersonal data and top lifetime performance ratings. Just what does government assistance do for chess? What is the Soviet secret? What can we learn from the Icelanders? Why did the small city of Plovdiv produce three Grandmasters in only ten years? Who are the untitled dead? Did Euwe take the championship from Alekhine on a fluke? How would Fischer fare against Morphy in a ten-wins match? 1t was inevitable that this fascinating story be written, ' asserts FIDE President Max Euwe, who introduces the book and recognizes the major part played by ratings in today's burgeoning international activity. Although this is the definitive ratings work, with statistics alone sufficient to place it in every reference library, it was written by a gentle scientist for pleasurable reading -for the enjoyment of the truths, the questions, and the opportunities it reveals.

From Simon & Schuster, Logical Chess: Move By Move: Every Move Explained is Irving Chernev guide to beginners chess and the basic moves for every player to improve. In this much loved classic, Irving Chernev explains 33 complete games in detail, telling the reader the reason for every single move. Playing through these games and explanations gives a real insight into the power of the pieces and how to post them most effectively.

A one-of-a-kind masterclass in chess from the greatest player of all time. Learn how to play chess the Bobby Fischer way with the fastest, most efficient, most enjoyable method ever devised. Whether you’re just learning the game or looking for more complex strategies, these practice problems and exercises will help you master the art of the checkmate. This book teaches through a programmed learning method: It asks you a question. If you give the right answer, it goes on to the next question. If you give the wrong answer, it explains why the answer is wrong and asks you to go back and try again. Thanks to the book’s unique formatting, you will work through the exercises on the right-hand side, with the correct answer hidden on the next page. The left-hand pages are intentionally printed upside-down; after reaching the last page, simply turn the book upside-down and work your way back. When you finish, not only will you be a much better chess player, you may even be able to beat Bobby Fischer at his own game!

Every club player knows the problem: the opening has ended, and now what? With this new edition of his award winning book, International Master Herman Grooten presents to amateur players a complete and structured course on how to recognize key characteristics in all types of positions and how to make use of those characteristics to choose the right plan. His teachings are based on the famous “Elements” of Wilhelm Steinitz, but Grooten has significantly expanded and updated the work of the first World Champion. He supplies many modern examples, tested in his own practice as a coach of talented youngsters. In Chess Strategy for Club Players you will learn the basic elements of positional understanding: pawn structure, piece placement, lead in development, open files, weaknesses, space advantage and king safety. You will master the art of converting a temporary plus into other, more permanent advantages. The author also explains what to do when, in a given position, the basic principles seem to point in different directions. Each chapter of this fundamental primer ends with a set of highly instructive exercises. This new 3rd edition has, besides various corrections and improvements, a new introduction and a brand-new chapter called ‘Total Control’ with new exercises.

This book features the very best of Dan Heisman's multi-award winning chess column Novice Nook and is full of valuable instruction, insight and practical advice on a wide range of key chess subjects.

At the U.S. Championship in 1989, Stuart Rachels seemed bound for the cellar. Ranked last and holding no IM norms, the 20-year-old amateur from Alabama was expected to get waxed by the American top GMs of the day that included Seirawan, Gulko, Dzindzichashvili, deFirmian, Benjamin and Browne. Instead, Rachels pulled off a gigantic upset and became the youngest U.S. Champion since Bobby Fischer. Three years later he retired from competitive chess, but he never stopped following the game. In this wide-ranging, elegantly written, and highly personal memoir, Stuart Rachels passes on his knowledge of chess. Included are his duels against legends such as Kasparov, Anand, Spassky, Ivanchuk, Gelfand and Miles, but the heart of the book is the explanation of chess ideas interwoven with his captivating stories. There are chapters on tactics, endings, blunders, middlegames, cheating incidents, and even on how to combat that rotten opening, the Réti. Rachels offers a complete and entertaining course in chess strategy. At the back are listed 110 principles of play—bits of wisdom that arise naturally in the book’s 24 chapters. Every chess player will find it difficult to put this sparkling book down. As a bonus, it will make you a better player.

Garry Kasparov was the highest-rated chess player in the world for over twenty years and is widely considered the greatest player that ever lived. In How Life Imitates Chess Kasparov distills the lessons he learned over a lifetime as a Grandmaster to offer a primer on successful decision-making: how to evaluate opportunities, anticipate the future, devise winning strategies. He relates in a lively, original way all the fundamentals, from the nuts and bolts of strategy, evaluation, and preparation to the subtler, more human arts of developing a personal style and using memory, intuition, imagination and even fantasy. Kasparov takes us through the great matches of his career, including legendary duels against both man (Grandmaster Anatoly Karpov) and machine (IBM chess supercomputer Deep Blue), enhancing the lessons of his many experiences with examples from politics, literature, sports and military history. With candor, wisdom, and humor, Kasparov recounts his victories and his blunders, both from his years as a world-class competitor as well as his new life as a political leader in Russia. An inspiring book that combines unique strategic insight with personal memoir, How Life Imitates Chess is a glimpse inside the mind of one of today's greatest and most innovative thinkers.